Tipping

[chefchick]

General tipping question here. I've read that tipping is not necessarily "the norm" in Europe (like in the States) and in Rome, at most restaurants a service charge is included. My question is regarding hotel personnel and airport/port transfer drivers. Is it customary to tip the maid, breakfast workers or bartender at the hotel? If so, how much? What about my RomeCabs driver? Not a tour operator but a driver from the airport and to the port.

 

I know tipping is a personal matter, but I don't want to leave it out if it's expected and I certainly wouldn't want to offend someone if it's not.

 

Just looking for others personal experiences.

[fabnfortysomething]

no to maids,breakfast waiters and bartenders.They are protected by minmum wage standards

 

Taxis and tour guides yes -round up to full pounds/euros-max 10%

[numbersix]

no to maids,breakfast waiters and bartenders.They are protected by minmum wage standards

 

Taxis and tour guides yes -round up to full pounds/euros-max 10%

 

Not every European country has minimum wage laws (not that I am in favour of minimum wage laws, as they tend to hurt the very people they purport to help, but that's another discussion for another place). Italy, for example, have none, while the minimum wage in Grece is E585.78 per month, or E3.63 per hour, based on 37.5 hours and 4.3 weeks in a month.

 

We always leave a bit (2 or 3 Euro) for the maid. Waiters and bartenders tend to be taken care of by the service charge, although we often leave a bit there, too.

 

Not so big on tipping drivers and guides--they always seem to be doing alright, unless, as always, they've gone 'above and beyond'.

[Cruise Leprechaun]

If I pay a cab 20 Euro to take me from the port to the train station, do they expect a tip on top of that?

[mydreamvacation]

I always tip drivers ten percent at least, more if they go above and beyond. With the cost of gas in Europe they are not making a lot of money, some companies just break even to stay in business.

 

In restaurants if the menu says "servizio incluso" or the likes or you see a line item on the bill called servizio the tip has already been added in and there is no need to tip.

 

Bellboys we always give a couple euros to if they lug our bags up to our rooms. Never have tipped a maid.

[fabnfortysomething]

If I pay a cab 20 Euro to take me from the port to the train station, do they expect a tip on top of that?

 

If the fare came out at that nicely rounded up figure then no I wouldnt tip but then have never experienced such a precise figure being charged-especially in a metered cab.

[euro cruiser]

If I pay a cab 20 Euro to take me from the port to the train station, do they expect a tip on top of that?

Tipping for a cab is generally just up to the next Euro. By the way, if you are talking about 20 Euro to go from the port at Civitavecchia to the train station in Civitavecchia, there's no way I'd offer a tip for that. 20 Euros to travel a half mile is absurd, no one deserves a tip on top of that! (I'm thinking this was just a random number chosen for an example.)

[francesam]

no to maids,breakfast waiters and bartenders.They are protected by minmum wage standards

 

Taxis and tour guides yes -round up to full pounds/euros-max 10%

 

Always tip bar staff 50p or so, Chamber maids about £1 or 2 a night,minimum wage is very low and it's accepted gratefully by them. Not normally breakfast staff, but evening waiting staff on your last night. Restaurant waiting staff, about 10% of the bill.doesn't have to be exact, but try and give cash as the restaurants don't always give the staff their tips if they are on a credit card. if it says service charge no need to tip.

We are not paranoid about tipping so if you don't, don't worry. A lot of people don't bother.

We Must do things differently in the north.

[PersistenzaretiniKa]

omg, please! do u really tip people with coins of 1 or 2 euros??

 

i tip no one or everyone it depends. maids bellboys or bartender or chef also,many times

it depends

 

we DON'T tip in %, at least here in italy.

 

i can give 5 euros to maids, bartenders, receptionists and so on. taxi it depends, usually u can leave the change. of course it depends by the banknote u pay with. if the fare is 20 euros and i pay with 50 i woulnd't leave all the change hehe

 

it's also true that tips are no more "on fashion" lately in italy...

[Podie]

One of the nicest things about cruising on MSC was no one expected a tip. In fact, when I tried to tip the person who brought our room service breakfast, he said no thank you and headed right back out the door.

 

And that's the way I've found it throughout Italy. Taxi drivers are surprised when we give them anything extra, waiters and waitresses accept but do not expect tips, and the owners of a family-run trattoria told me they would be insulted if anyone tried to tip them.

 

Quite the opposite of Carnival and Celebrity, where they actually handed out business cards and envelopes for us to tip above our daily automatic tips.

[luvtheships]

I always tip drivers ten percent at least, more if they go above and beyond. With the cost of gas in Europe they are not making a lot of money, some companies just break even to stay in business.

 

In restaurants if the menu says "servizio incluso" or the likes or you see a line item on the bill called servizio the tip has already been added in and there is no need to tip.

 

Bellboys we always give a couple euros to if they lug our bags up to our rooms. Never have tipped a maid.

the bellboy gets a tip for 5 minutes worth of wheeling your luggage on a cart but the person who keeps your bathroom spic and span gets nothing? Seriously? Are you sure it is not because tipping the housekeeper..male or female..costs more than tipping the bellboy?

 

Come on 1 euro minimum per day for the cleaning person...be a sport..or better yet don't tip the bellhop..this way you are fair to all.

[euro cruiser]

the bellboy gets a tip for 5 minutes worth of wheeling your luggage on a cart but the person who keeps your bathroom spic and span gets nothing? Seriously? Are you sure it is not because tipping the housekeeper..male or female..costs more than tipping the bellboy?

 

Come on 1 euro minimum per day for the cleaning person...be a sport..or better yet don't tip the bellhop..this way you are fair to all.

I suspect it's simply an issue of being present when the service is rendered. Maids are often forgotten because we're not there when they do their work and often never see them at all, while the others provide the service directly to us.

[luvtheships]

I suspect it's simply an issue of being present when the service is rendered. Maids are often forgotten because we're not there when they do their work and often never see them at all, while the others provide the service directly to us.

exactly my point...the tipper gets to look good with the bellboy...but since they cant get the glory of being there when the cleaning staff get the tip...they dont bother to give one.

 

 

sort of like when pax claim they leave the auto tip on AND tip in excess of $100 to the waiter..steward..etc.....when most pax only tip an extra $20 ..if at all..since it is not required.

 

All for show..:rolleyes:

[thebooler]

no to maids,breakfast waiters and bartenders.They are protected by minmum wage standards

 

Taxis and tour guides yes -round up to full pounds/euros-max 10%

 

I think you must be the only person who actually believes the minimum wage protects such workers. Not all countries are the same in Europe, and most of these workers depend on tips to give them a half decent living.

[euro cruiser]

exactly my point...the tipper gets to look good with the bellboy...but since they cant get the glory of being there when the cleaning staff get the tip...they dont bother to give one.

 

All for show..:rolleyes:

We may have arrived at a similar conclusion but we got there in very different ways. I was not being cynical, nor do I assume the worst about people.