The No Tipping Culture in Japan
One thing I found fascinating about Japan was that tips are generally not accepted anywhere, and people might actually get offended if you offer them a tip. The reason being that they’re doing their job because they love it, not because they want a tip.
It was something I found incredible, as I found that a lot of other countries are the polar opposite, and they won’t do their job to the best of their abilities unless there’s a big tip expected. They don’t take pleasure in the job they do.
One day, while in Osaka, I accidentally made a mess in the room. Because of that, I left a note apologising and some cash with the note, as even though I know it’s their job to clean the room, I still felt bad. Once I returned, I found the room completely clean, the note had been taken, but the cash was still there. To me this was unbelievable.
It’s amazing to see a culture where people really do just do their job because they want to, and not because they expect tips in return. It really made me think about why other cultures are not like this, and made me fall in love even more with this beautiful country ❤
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Disquiet Thoughts 
Same in Turkey and Europe. We don’t tip. But it is because waiters and waitresses there have secured salaries.
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I’m in Europe though, and even though tipping isn’t always expected, it is very welcomed if people give them. I never saw anyone refuse it because they don’t do it for the tips, that’s the part that I found more fascinating.
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Oh ok. Yes, that is right. I was thinking of expecting tipping in all cases.
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A tip is built into the bill in quite a few European countries also, from what I’ve heard.
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I love this! I hate the expected tip especially when they want 20%! It’s becoming more popular in so many tourist countries.
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There are many things which are great about Japan and Japanese people.
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It really is a fascinating cultural difference. I think it’s part of why I’ve been somewhat enamored with Japanese culture for decades. There’s a sense of honor about doing any task to the best of your ability and taking pride in it. Granted, that’s not everywhere in Japan, but it’s still the standard, not the exception like it is in the West.
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This reminds me of when my partner and I had just moved to Belgium. We went out to a Chinese restaurant and, because we assumed we should leave a tip, we left a tip.
Just as we had left, the waitress came running after us because she thought we’d forgotten our change.
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