I will be travelling to Paris by myself and feel that I may need to use the Hotel's concierge to book dinner reservations only. How much should I tip him/her? Is it based on the number of times I use them? Or the number of nights I stayed? Do you tip more if you are staying in a 4-5 star hotel? Do I tip each time, daily, or when I check out? I harldy ever use the concierge in my travels, because I know ahead of time where Im going. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated. Ive searched on Fodor's and elsewhere on the net and cannot find a clear answer.

The criterion should be based upon the service he/she will provide you, but it's totally at your discretion how much to tip. It also depends on the hotel you're staying, The more luxurious it is, the higher the tip should be, but is still very subjective. If I were to tip a concierge, I wouldn't give him/her less than 20 dollars. Otherwise, I'd buy something cute and give as a present, depending on how helpful they have been. <BR> <BR>OTOH, it might happen that one day, one of the concierges, since you're staying at a 4/5 stars hotel, is doing something for you, and the next day, someone else is, and a third one another time. One might be very helpul and knoledgeable, others, might be not, so just be sensible, and you won't be (tip) wrong. <BR> <BR>Surlok

Having been a concierge many years ago, I would not recommend the cute gift as gratitude in most cases, except from a regular guest who knew my tastes.

I am staying 4 nights at the Grand Intercontinental. The only thing I will need for the concierge to do (that I foresee) is make dinner reservations for 4 nights - and the first night I will most likely have dinner right there at Cafe de la Paix, as Im always very tired the first night. So, does $20 US sound good?

Sorry, Mark, I thought mostly of female concierges, as the word "cute" doesn't apply to present bought with a man in mind, since it's easier for a woman to buy presents for another woman. <BR> <BR>My fault, I didn't make a remark. <BR> <BR>Since you were a concierge, maybe you could be a better advisor here. How and how much do you suggest tipping a concierge? <BR> <BR>Surlok

Amount of tipping depends, on the hotel and on the services performed. Many times I will ask a concierge to call restaurants that I specify to make reservations, and for that $5-20 (or the equivalent). <BR> <BR>For finding obscure things (an exhibit of a particular artist, or a store that sells some unique item), then $10-50. <BR> <BR>But these amounts are "total" for my stay--and I would tend to give the tip at the beginning of the stay to "thank them in advance" for their good service. <BR> <BR>For smaller hotels without concierges, I would give similar amounts to the desk staff, probably on the lowere end of the scale.