best punta cana excursions
The Art of Tipping in Punta Cana
If you are on holiday it is sometimes hard to work out how to provide tips. Who should you tip? When and how much should you tip? These are typically the questions that I hear from tourists traveling to Punta Cana, the Dominican Republic.
Individuals who work in tourism in Punta Cana often be given a relatively small basic salary that will be supplemented with tips and commissions for sales (e.g. excursions). These hardworking people are used to receiving and often expect to get a hint because of their services.
If you wish to be fully prepared to provide tips from the moment you arrive to Punta Cana, it would be a great idea to be sure you have lots of small USD bills. When you have found its way to Punta Cana, you can always exchange larger USD bills to smaller bills or withdraw money in the local currency (i.e. Dominican Pesos) from any ATM. One USD is approximately 40 Dominican Pesos.
Arriving at the airport:
It all begins once you arrive at the airport in Punta Cana. You will soon be greeted by friendly porters/bellboys that are ready to help you locate and carry your luggage from the baggage claim to the automobile or bus that will take you to your resort. The porter expects to get USD 1 per suitcase, or a little more if your luggage is extremely heavy or when you yourself have lots of it.
At the resort:
Once you arrive at the resort, you might tip the driver should you feel he has been driving well, has been friendly and you generally feel satisfied with his services. Normally, you should tip 10-15% of the purchase price for the trip, which generally would be approx. USD 3-5 if your resort were situated in Punta Cana or Bávaro (within 10-30 minutes from the airport).
Once you arrive at the resort, a bellboy, who'll assist you along with your luggage, will greet you. You could tip him USD 1 per suitcase if he brings your luggage to your room.
It is definitely a good idea to tip the maid, who cleans your room, either at the beginning of one's vacation or during. Normally, you should tip the maid about USD 2 per day and leave the money on the bed where she will certainly find it.
Sometime through your vacation in Punta Cana, you will most likely need the help of the concierge - e.g. to produce dinner reservations. A hint of approximately USD 5-10 for his/her assistance will go quite a distance, and you might experience that a table at the restaurant, that has been originally full, is available nowadays for you at the hour you desire. You may also experience that something, that has been completely impossible for you yourself to obtain most of a sudden, becomes no problem .
Waiters and bartenders will without a doubt appreciate your tip. You are able to either leave a more substantial tip of approx. USD 10-20 at the beginning of one's vacation (then they will surely remember you) or smaller tips during your vacation (e.g. USD 1-2 every time you get great service).
On an excursion or at the golf course:
If you should be going on an excursion through your vacation in Punta Cana, it's recommendable that you bring money for suggestions to the tour guide. He or she will typically share the tips with the driver and/or other staff on the excursion. If you have had a great time, you can easily leave USD 2-3 on a half-day excursion and USD 5 on a full day excursion. If you have gone on an exclusive best punta cana excursions with an exclusive driver or tour guide, you should leave a more substantial tip, e.g. USD 10.
If you should be a golfer and will play one of the courses in Punta Cana or Casa de Campo where caddies are mandatory (Punta Espada, Corales or Teeth of the Dog), you must typically pay a caddie fee of USD 25-30 for the caddie. Normally you will have to have one caddie per golf cart with 2 persons. Apart from the caddie fee, a hint of USD 15-20 per person is expected, depending on what satisfied you have been with the caddie or how well you have played... and how great your mood is after the round.
If someone cleans your golf clubs and/or shoes after the round, you should tip this individual USD 3-5.
At the local restaurant:
If you decide to get out to consume at one of the local restaurants in Punta Cana, you should be aware that there's usually already a 10% tip contained in your bill (by law). In many places, you're likely to leave an additional tip of 5-10% of the amount in your bill when you yourself have been satisfied with the foodstuff and service.
