A cultural travel guide to the world

Etiquette & taboos

Etiquette & taboos

Understanding local customs is where a journey begins. Find the topics that matter to you and feel at ease wherever you go.

United Kingdom

3 rules found

Local customsEveryday mannersCountry-wide guidance · 英国

UK: Greet with a handshake and follow how people introduce themselves

Do

  • Greet new people with a firm handshake and eye contact
  • If someone introduces themselves by first name, use it
  • With older people or in traditional settings, start with title and surname
  • Address peers below duke as "Lord" plus their title, and a duke as "Duke"
  • Use please and thank you freely

Don’t

  • Don't go in for a cheek kiss with someone you have just met
  • Don't offer a limp handshake; it can suggest you are holding back
  • Don't ask new acquaintances intrusive personal questions

Nothing happens if you get it wrong, but a surprise kiss may make people recoil, and being either too stiff or too familiar makes others uneasy.

Verified Oct 19, 2026Source: Commisceo Global: British business etiquette

Local customsTippingCountry-wide guidance · 英国

UK: Tipping is optional, so check the bill for a service charge first

Do

  • Check whether the bill already includes a discretionary service charge, often 10%–12.5%
  • If there is none and service was good, leave around 10%
  • In cafés, rounding up is a welcome thank-you
  • If service was genuinely poor, you may politely ask to remove the service charge

Don’t

  • Don't tip again when a service charge is already on the bill
  • Don't feel obliged to tip for fast food, takeaway or drinks at the bar

Tipping is entirely voluntary and nobody will chase you for it, but tipping on top of a service charge means paying twice. Since 2024, UK law requires employers to pass all tips and service charges on to staff.

Verified Oct 19, 2026Source: Official site: Visit London tipping guide

Local customsPublic transportCountry-wide guidance · 英国

London Underground escalators: stand on the right

Do

  • Stand on the right on Underground escalators and leave the left for people in a hurry

Don’t

  • Standing still side by side on the left of the escalator

There is no penalty, but you block people behind you. The habit dates back to 1921, when Underground announcements first told passengers to 'stand on the right'.

Not yet verifiedSource: Wikipedia: London Underground

Site-specific notes 18

Taken from the "don'ts" on each site page here. Open a site for its full etiquette and background.

Tower Bridge

  • Never jump the queue — the greatest social taboo in Britain
  • stand on the right on Tube escalators
  • don't be loud in front of memorials and churches.

Edinburgh Festival Fringe

  • Taking photos or filming during performances
  • talking loudly during shows
  • blocking the way inside street-performance circles

Giant's Causeway

  • Do not climb steep cliffs
  • do not chip off or take away stones
  • do not wedge coins into the cracks in the stones
  • do not go near the water's edge at high tide or in heavy seas

York

  • Do not linger or fool around at unrailed edges of the walls
  • do not block the old town's narrow lanes

Cotswolds

  • Do not make noise in residential areas
  • do not enter private gardens to take photos

Lake District

  • Do not cross private pastures or farmland
  • do not attempt routes beyond your ability alone
  • do not disturb grazing sheep

Loch Ness and the Scottish Highlands

  • Do not leave paths to enter private pasture
  • do not litter at the lochside or in the glen
  • do not climb closed walls at ruins such as Urquhart Castle

Bath

  • Do not enter the water at the Roman Baths (it contains pathogens)
  • do not enter private homes in the Georgian residential areas

Oxford and Cambridge

  • Entering teaching and examination areas without permission
  • making noise in quiet areas

Royal Mile

  • Entering private courtyards or stairwells
  • blocking the way for long at performance spots
  • imitating the old custom of spitting on the heart

Westminster Abbey

  • Wandering about or making noise during services
  • playing around in the burial and memorial areas
Show 6 more

Buckingham Palace

  • Climbing over fences or entering restricted areas
  • blocking passageways

Edinburgh Castle

  • Do not photograph inside the Crown and Stone of Destiny gallery — the display area has clear no-photography signs
  • do not climb the rampart parapets or cross the battery railings for photographs — the drop at the rock's edge is extreme
  • do not laugh, chatter or take selfies inside the War Memorial — it is a memorial space for the fallen

Stonehenge

  • Do not climb, lean on or carve any stone — including the fallen ones on the outskirts that look ordinary
  • do not enter the fields to approach the circle outside open hours — the surroundings are private farmland protected by law
  • do not fly drones — the airspace over the site is expressly closed to them

The British Museum

  • Do not touch any openly displayed stone carvings or sculptures — oils and friction accelerate the weathering of artefacts
  • do not use flash, tripods or selfie sticks
  • do not eat, drink or talk loudly in the galleries — security staff will intervene

Fish and chips

  • Don't jump the queue
  • don't feed seagulls at the seaside (banned in many seaside towns)

Tower of London

  • Don't take photos in the Jewel House
  • don't feed or approach the Tower's ravens
  • don't climb the walls or cannons