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Layover guideLondon · LHR

Tipping in London

Tipping is optional, not expected: 10-15% in restaurants only if no service charge is on the bill, round up taxis, and by law staff now keep 100% of tips.

Markus Spiske / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 2.0
All of London

Tipping is not expected in Britain: staff must be paid at least the National Minimum Wage regardless. If service was good, a 10-15% tip in a restaurant is well received.

Check the bill before adding anything: restaurants sometimes add a service charge, which Acas notes can be voluntary or compulsory; VisitBritain says an optional service charge noted on the bill can be paid or declined.

Since the Employment (Allocation of Tips) Act 2023 took effect on 1 October 2024, employers must pass on 100% of tips and service charges to workers with no deductions beyond tax and NI, and tips cannot count toward minimum wage, so a card tip does reach staff.

Taxis: customary to round the fare up to the nearest pound; 10-15% is a nice gesture but not required. Hotels: about GBP 2 for a porter who carries bags.

  1. VisitBritain (national tourism agency) · checked 2026-08-18
  2. Acas (statutory workplace body) · checked 2026-08-18
  3. GOV.UK (statutory code of practice on tips) · checked 2026-08-18

The rest of London

The whole guide
Getting out of the airportBlack cabs on the meter from ranks outside each terminal with a small Heathrow pick-up charge, or three rail routes into town, only one of which runs through the night and only at weekends.Ride-hailingApps are legal but every ride is a pre-booked private hire job, the pick-up is in the short stay car park rather than the terminal kerb, and the app estimate replaces a meter.Local laws that catch crew outThe traps that catch crew here are blades, cannabis, and open alcohol on the transport network, and all of them come straight from UK government departments and TfL.Staying connectedFree wifi at Heathrow and Gatwick; PAYG SIMs and eSIMs sold with no contract or credit check.WeatherMild maritime climate: pack for rain in any month, light layers year-round, and increasingly real summer heat with no monsoon or snow season to plan around.Eating near the crew hotelsFood markets are the efficient layover feed: Borough Market by London Bridge (closed Mondays), Old Spitalfields open daily; carry a card, everything takes contactless but a few stalls do not.What to buyNo VAT refund on goods you carry home; street markets (vintage, food) are the distinctive buy, and cards work nearly everywhere.