A non cruise Italy question

[rushedmom]

I have always gotten such wonderful advice from the CC people and hope you can help me out.

 

My DD will be going to Italy this spring for a class trip. Being from the US where tipping is common, I know that some European countries have different views on tipping. I don't want her to offend anyone, so my question is about tipping in Italy.

 

Who to tip ?? bell hops, tour guides, wait staff?

How much??

 

Thanks in advance for your advice.

[cberge]

I have always gotten such wonderful advice from the CC people and hope you can help me out.

 

My DD will be going to Italy this spring for a class trip. Being from the US where tipping is common, I know that some European countries have different views on tipping. I don't want her to offend anyone, so my question is about tipping in Italy.

 

Who to tip ?? bell hops, tour guides, wait staff?

How much??

 

Thanks in advance for your advice.

If she is going with a group the tipping should be taken care of by the person in charge of the trip for the students,and usually that is done before they leave with so much money put into a pot so to speak to be handed out on the trip as needed.If she is on her own she can round up to the closest euro or two for the luggage and maybe 5 euro or so for the tour guides or a tad more if all day.That is really nice for them to do as I have seen groups demand a lot and never give a thing.

[wantocruisemore]

Years ago (many, many years) I did several student trips to Europe. On most of them they told us the tips were being handled by the guides with us if they had to use special additional on-site guides. For most of my trips, we had a set group that accompanied us to each country throughout the trip (longest trip was 6 weeks) and then there would be additional guides in each of the countries who knew it better. I guess the first group were really more like chaperones/organizers. They usually informed us when we needed to tip, or when we needed to tip more.

 

If she is going with an escorted group, she could ask her group leader about what has been pre-arranged and what has not.

[riffatsea]

IN general, Italy is a NON tipping country. She doesn't really have to tip anyone!

[euro cruiser]

IN general, Italy is a NON tipping country. She doesn't really have to tip anyone!

Hmm, well, I sort of agree, but sort of don't.

 

Of course, no one ever HAS to tip, in any country.

 

And I would agree that, in general, the custom in Italy is to tip less frequently, and a lesser amount, but it is not a non-tipping country.

 

Tips are expected for most personal services, such as luggage handling, driving, maid service at a hotel, table service at a restaurant, hairdressing, etc., pretty much the same instances when you would tip in the States.

 

The big difference is the amount, which is generally less than in the States. For example, in a full service restaurant 10% would be considered fair, even generous.

[riffatsea]

The Italians don't tip as we do and don't expect tips except of course when a cruise ship is in port and they know the Americans will be on board and used to tipping everyone!!

Most Italians would tell you that in a restaurant you just round up to the nearest euro. This would be waaaaay lower than 10%!!

The same goes for anyone else in the service industry like taxis,housekeepers in hotels etc. The don't "expect" tips(except from Americans)

[euro cruiser]

The Italians don't tip as we do and don't expect tips except of course when a cruise ship is in port and they know the Americans will be on board and used to tipping everyone!!

Most Italians would tell you that in a restaurant you just round up to the nearest euro. This would be waaaaay lower than 10%!!

The same goes for anyone else in the service industry like taxis,housekeepers in hotels etc. The don't "expect" tips(except from Americans)

I'm not interested in getting in an argument with you about this, but yours is not the only perspective on the matter. Also, I'm fairly certain that neither you nor I will have the opportunity to ask more than a few Italians, much less "most" of them, so for either of us to generalize and claim we "know" the answer is silly, at best.

 

According to the Italian tourism board, 5% - 10% is customary for a waiter. They detail several other service providers and the suggested tip amount. For those who are interested, the information is here: http://www.italiantourism.com/tipsadv.html

 

For what it's worth, they do agree with you that Italians rarely tip taxi drivers.

[rushedmom]

I'm not interested in getting in an argument with you about this, but yours is not the only perspective on the matter. Also, I'm fairly certain that neither you nor I will have the opportunity to ask more than a few Italians, much less "most" of them, so for either of us to generalize and claim we "know" the answer is silly, at best.

 

According to the Italian tourism board, 5% - 10% is customary for a waiter. They detail several other service providers and the suggested tip amount. For those who are interested, the information is here: http://www.italiantourism.com/tipsadv.html

 

For what it's worth, they do agree with you that Italians rarely tip taxi drivers.

 

Thank you for this web link! While tour guides and bus drivers will be tipped by the group leader, they will be on their own for lunches. I also was not sure about hotel maids.

 

Thanks to all for your input... Now just have to work on that Euro to Dollar math ;)

[UKBayern]

Generally, in most European countries, it is rude not to leave at least a coin on the table in a restaurant. It is conveying the message that you thought the service was lousy. We just returned from Rome, and we observed that every Roman leaves a coin on the bar or table when he finishes his coffee. The only thing you have to watch in Italy that in some very touristy restaurants the waiter adds a "service charge" to the bill of anything between 10 and 15%. He has already calculated his own tip: don't leave him a dime extra. Restaurants in Italy very often have a cover charge of around EUR 1-3. This is considered normal in Italy, and basically is not a service charge, but pays for the bread, the napkin, etc.

[riffatsea]

I agree that leaving "a coin" or rounding up to the nearest euro is what is typically left at a restaurant. It is not what most Americans think of though as enough for a tip sooo that is why I said it is not a "tipping" country.

From what I understand, the "service charge" is set by the restaurant not by the wait staff. Usually this service charge is displayed so you can easily see it. The pan e coperto for the tableware and bread etc is also a normal extra charge but it is a small one.