Different cultures have different expectations when it comes to tipping for services offered to travelers. But here’s a general practice you can observe while traveling to different places – Give at least 10-20% of your total bill as tip if you think the service was great enough and your provider deserves it.
Traveling to Scotland isn’t any different. You will see dedicated workers here who are friendly and helpful enough to deserve a little bonus from you. And among the most hard-working tourism employees in the country, you’ll find the Aberdeen taxi drivers to deliver one of the best services to help you make the most of your Scottish trip.
On your vacation, the taxi drivers can play a big role on turning your vacation into a smooth and memorable one. How?
For one, local drivers can take you around and share their knowledge of the city or take you to best spots that you cannot Google. They can help you arrange your itineraries too without extra charge and recommend a couple of interesting events to see during your stay.
There are a lot more reasons why they should get a little extra on top of your payment for the ride. And if you ever find yourself still questioning whether you should give your taxi driver a tip or not; or whether you’re tipping your driver the right way or not; here’s a checklist we developed to help you sort things out.
Checkbox 1 – Does your driver deserve it?
From your first pick up point to all the extra stops you asked him or her to bring you to, did you experience a smooth ride all the way? If yes, then he absolutely deserves a tip.
Many riders aren’t sure about how they can tell whether their ride was smooth or not most especially when they are not familiar with the Scotland traffic. The months of June-August are extra busy months and if your driver managed to get you to your stopovers without making you feel impatient, then yes, you should tip.
Checkbox2 – Did your driver help you unload your luggage and shopping bags?
If your taxi driver has been extra helpful by carrying your entire luggage from the airport taxi queue to the trunk, and from the trunk then off to your aberdeen hotel lobby, then you can consider giving at least 10% tip.
If you decided to hire your aberdeen taxi driver for one whole day of wandering around the city, taking you from one souvenir store to visitor attraction, then it’s another prompt for you to give a tip.
If he provided friendly conversation and offered other services to make your tour a pleasurable experience, then it’s a good practice to reward them for going an extra mile.
Checkbox3 – Ride Quality
You have to gauge the ride quality and tip accordingly. Does your aberdeen airport taxi have what you would expect? Was it fresh inside the cab? Does the interior look like it has been well-maintained? Was you driver presentable? These can be your standards for knowing how much to tip.
If the taxi has an “okay” grade, you can give 10% for tip. If the experience is “standard” then you can give 15%. But if you think the ride experience was excellent, then we recommend giving your driver at least 20% tip.
And if they gave a poor service or if the taxi wasn’t pleasing at all, then don’t give a tip. This will tell the driver that they are either providing services that are below standard or their vehicle gives bad vibes to passengers. This will, at least, encourage them to do improvements.
Checklist 4 – Are the routes the right path?
I know this means extra effort on your part but knowing whether your taxi driver is leading you to the right path or driving you in circles just so he can get extra income from the meter count should dictate whether he deserves a tip or not. This should help you decide, too, whether he is trustworthy enough to be hired for your day tours or not.
Like I mentioned, it is the best idea to hire a local taxi driver who knows the ins and outs of the city and nearby towns. They can find the quickest and shortest possible route to get you to places. They can give you helpful tips too on how you should reach your destination when you need to do some walking. But you should pay attention on who you hire. Otherwise, they might become the reason why you didn’t enjoy your trip.
Do your homework before you fly to any country you are planning to visit.
It pays to read reviews and travel tips to know if hiring a taxi in that specific destination is a better idea than renting a self-driven car or taking public transport.
You can also Google “taxi near me” and choose from the result the one with the highest rating.
In aberdeen, Scotland, one of the most recommended taxi-hailing companies is aberdeen Taxis. It recruits courteous and hospitable drivers who are also very professional when delivering their service.
A lot of tourists are already booking their rides with Aberdeen Taxis and in its 60 years of serving locals and tourists, it has already become the go-to of most commuters. If you ever book your ride with the Aberdeen Taxis and find your ride overall impressive, then remember that tips should range between 10% and 20% of the fare. If your journey was of poor quality, don’t tip and please drop us a line on your experience.