If I may tell their side of the story...this was told to me by the local gals who are my friends. They said lots of foreigners come in to VN thinking they must be dirt poor and give tips like US$1 or $2. I have come across foreigners who actually have a lot of these small dollar bills to give away as tips. And some of the locals actually feel insulted.
I am not saying to give money away like Santa Claus or spoil market. But come on. VND100k is only like S$6. When I take the taxi to airport, fare comes to 150k, I would give 200k. When the company sends a driver to pick me up and send me for site inspections, if its a long drive like 2 hrs, I tip the driver 100-200k.
Anyway it is my hope that foreigners to VN do not act like misers and give their respective countries a bad name. It's not easy to make a living in VN for the locals with rising inflation etc so do help whenever u can. Just sharing my opinion.
PS: I used to NOT give tips or give very little during my early years in VN until I made lots of local friends who explained better how things work. Their basic salaries are just enough for the basics like rentals, food etc and they really count on tips to go that extra mile.
