Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
294
TAXES
The United States has no v alue-
added tax ( VAT) or other indir ect tax at
the national level. Every state, county, and
city may levy its o wn local tax on all pur-
chases, including hotel and r estaurant
checks and airline tickets. These taxes will
not appear on price tags.
In Chicago, the local sales tax is 10.25%.
Restaurants in the central par t of the city,
roughly the 312 ar ea code, ar e tax ed an
additional 1%, for a total of 11.25%. The
hotel room tax is a steep 14.9%.
TELEGRAPH, TELEX & FAX
Telegraph
and telex ser vices
ar e pr ovided primarily
by Western U nion. You can telegraph
money, or hav e it telegraphed to y ou, very
quickly o ver the Western U nion system,
but this service can cost as much as 15% to
20% of the amount sent.
Most hotels hav e
fax machines
av ail-
able for guest use (be sure to ask about the
charge to use it). M any hotel r ooms ar e
even wired for guests' fax machines. A less
expensive way to send and r eceive fax es
may be at stor es such as
The UPS S tore
(formerly Mail Boxes Etc.).
TIME
The continental U nited S tates is
divided into
four time z ones:
eastern
standard time (EST ), central standar d
time (CST ), mountain standar d time
(MST), and P acific standard time (PST );
Chicago is in the central time zone. Alaska
and H awaii hav e their o wn z ones. F or
example, when it 's 9am in Los Angeles
(PST), it's 7am in Honolulu (HST), 10am
in D enver (MST ), 11am in Chicago
(CST), noon in N ew York City (EST ),
5pm in London (GMT ), and 2am the
next day in Sydney.
Daylight saving time
is in effect fr om
1am on the second S unday in M arch to
1am on the first S unday in N ovember,
except in Arizona, Hawaii, the U.S. Virgin
Islands, and P uerto Rico. Daylight saving
time mo ves the clock 1 hour ahead of
standard time.
TIPPING
Tips are a very important part
of certain workers' income, and gratuities
are the standard way of showing apprecia-
tion for ser vices pr ovided. ( Tipping is
certainly not compulsor y if the ser vice is
poor!) I n hotels, tip
bellhops
at least $1
per bag ($2-$3 if y ou hav e a lot of lug-
gage) and tip the
chamber staff
$1 to $2
per day (more if you've left a disaster ar ea
for him or her to clean up). Tip the
door-
man
or
concierge
only if he or she has
provided y ou with some specific ser vice
(for example, calling a cab for y ou or
obtaining difficult-to-get theater tickets).
Tip the
valet-parking attendant
$1 every
time you get your car.
In restaurants, bars, and nightclubs, tip
service staff
15% to 20% of the check, tip
bartenders
10% to 15%, tip
checkroom
attendants
$1 per garment, and tip
valet-
parking attendants
$1 per vehicle.
As for other ser vice personnel, tip
cab
drivers
15% of the far e; tip
skycaps
at
airports at least $1 per bag ($2-$3 if y ou
have a lot of luggage); and tip
hairdressers
and
barbers
15% to 20%.
TOILETS
You won't find public toilets
or “restrooms” on the streets in most U.S.
cities, but they can be found in hotel lob-
bies, bars, r estaurants, museums, depar t-
ment stores, railway and bus stations, and
service stations. Large hotels and fast-food
restaurants are often the best bet for clean
facilities. I f possible, av oid the toilets at
parks and beaches, which tend to be dirty;
some may be unsafe. Restaurants and bars
in r esorts or heavily visited ar eas may
reserve their restrooms for patrons.
TRANSIT INFO
The
CTA
has a useful
number to find out which bus or E l train
will get y ou to y our destination:
&
836-
7000
(fr om any ar ea code in the city or
suburbs) or TTY 836-4949.
VISAS
For information about U.S.
Visas go to
http://travel.state.gov
and
click on “ Visas.” Or go to one of the fol-
lowing websites:
Australian
citizens can obtain up-to-date
visa information fr om the
U.S. E mbassy
Canberra,
Moonah Place, Yarralumla, ACT
