The tipping culture in Namibia

It’s traditional for diners in Namibia to give their servers or bartenders a pleasant and appreciated tip after the meal, but visitors may want to be mindful of the importance of tipping and how much they should give as they will vary.

Tipping can be important, especially in service-industry jobs such as trackers and waiters. There is a fine line between tipping enough for good service and tipping too much to where the funds are wasted.

Tips are gratuity and can have an important impact on the local economy. Their excessive use might spark negative consequences, so it’s important to keep your employees in check if you want to avoid serious economic repercussions.

Who to tip when on safari in Namibia?

Before you think about tipping, it’s important to know who deserves it. Your guides, back-of-house team, and camp manager all work hard to make your trip a success.

Tipping guides; One of the most important things your safari guide will do is make sure you have a successful time. They help our guests navigate the terrain and be safe while they’re on tour. With this in mind, some places suggest tipping them separately to ensure that they get what they deserve.

Tipping the back-of-house team; Many people will work behind the scenes to make your trip a success, including the chefs, the kitchen team, the maids and the housekeeping staff so show appreciation. Many camps have a “staff tip box” to which all the staff members contribute to. The proceeds are divided equally among them and they receive an equal amount of money.

Tipping the managers; Tip your camp managers. Although it’s up to the individual to decide, there are a few situations in which this wouldn’t be the best idea. Tipping your camp managers is sort of like tipping the owner of your local burger joint. Although they are clearly important, you wouldn’t normally tip them. When tipping, it’s good to have a set of guidelines for when you would actually tip someone. Tipping according to level of service is not really something we recommend.

When to tip

This is an important question, with three distinct options:

• After each activity

• At the end of each day

• At the end of your stay

How to tip

Namibia has a wide variety of camps and safari lodges, some of which have tipping policies that differ depending on who they’re for. If you’re staying with a host who doesn’t charge service fees and there’s no clear tipping policy listed, simply ask how to tip the staff.

Some camps explain their tipping policy in literature left and pile up near their beds. If not, ask the manager and check out the steps if there’s a tip box.

Most Namibian camps have guides and trackers who contribute resources and are paid a bit more so they can keep their livelihood. Other staff, typically cooks and porters, share the proceeds of their labour with the conde-logistics team. However, this varies, so ask!