Hi
My wife and I have booked tickets to The Moulin Rouge dinner and show in May this year, 2016. We would like to ensure we have good seats and have heard that tipping the usher is a good way to be assured of this. Does anyone know how much a reasonable tip would be in Euros?

You can't tip your way to a better seat as you have to pay for those - and they are 420 euro.

No matter what you pay you're going to be smashed into a very small space with busloads of other tourists. As for the tipping your way to a better seat, ugh. Not going to happen.

That is no longer tipping but corrupting.

Thats is one of the reasons tipping is not in our culture. We all get the same service - good or bad - without interference of extra money.

Try to be nice - it might actually work better.

Sorry - but Moulin Rouge is NOT a place to have dinner when there are so many great restaurants in Paris.

If you must see the show (can't imagine why - essentially an old fashioned vaudeville show and really mostly for tourists - why the big deal to see some bare boobs?) go to one without dinner.

Mortimer76, let me apologize on behalf of most of Fodor's, as getting kicked in the teeth by arrogant asses isn't what you requested, but can get.

Blueeyedcod and StCirq have given you the information you need for your choice. The tickets are purchased, and they govern which area you'll sit in. Those tables are not likely going to have a better seat amongst them.

Is 'arrogant ass' polite ?
If no - find yourself an answer to your own post. I guess you'll have no difficulty.

And definitely we don't tip in France to get a shortcut or a priviledge. You tip when you are satisfied, AFTER the service has been given. If it works differently for you, so be it, but OP asks about France.

This is true and your table is assigned. You can ask if there is a no show or cancellation and to be moved up, then a tip would be acceptable. You do this when you check in not with your escort or waiter. All this before you get your food and drink.


We had heard the same comments on Moulin Rouge and opted to stay away as we heard the same cattle story and that the food wasn't very good.

We opted for Paradis Latin, in the Latin quarter and it was fabulous, great show, excellent meal and wonderful service.
It was crowded but still roomy at the tables and enough room to get out easily. If you have some extra time catch that show. It has showgirls but also entertainment. We were very happy with our selection, the area was better and it was easy to catch a taxi (right around the corner). Moulin Rouge is a pretty seedy area (especially at night), similar to the old Times Square seediness of years ago. If you have the time in the afternoon go up to Montemarte, the artists area up the hill behind the cathedral. That is a special place. A stop or two away from Moulin Rouge.
Enjoy Paris,,,, it is wonderful.

Whathello, nothing in your post kicked the OP in the teeth, it just didn't answer their question directly. It answered why tipping in Paris isn't usually needed. Other posts started with - it is not a place for dinner, followed by "cant imagine why you'd go to the show". That's kicking in the teeth.

Sorry I wasn't clear.

Only the VIP tickets assure a front-row type of experience, and are the best seats in the house. Some VIP customers will be treated better than others, depending on who they are and how much they have slipped the manager in advance. Regular people, not so much, despite what you might have heard.

If you haven't paid for VIP seats, you'll be seated in the area according to your price range, and it will always be the usher's choice where to seat you - if you're a couple, you'll be put at the first open table for 2 people, no matter if there's a better table for 2 which you'd prefer.

Moulin Rouge does a huge business with tour groups, which is why the seating is so regimented and is done quickly, so the show can go on as scheduled. All you can do is try to enjoy the experience.

The Moulin Rouge is an excellent place to have a unique Parisian experience, but it is absolute poison for others, which is why you will find totally different opinions about it. Just about everybody who wants to go there will be delighted with the experience, which will be as they imagined it would be.

As for getting good seats, I doubt that a tip will do it. A pleasant attitude will get you much farther in such a place. Since there are so many tourist groups (mostly Chinese and Russian) to be seated, getting there as early as possible might be the best strategy.

Are they still doing the Feerie Show? Seems they are. I saw this three years ago and the SPOILER ALERT AHEAD snakes in a tank and tiny ponies on stage was simply baffling - and if you're expecting lots of can-can - SPOILER ALERT AHEAD - there ain't much of that.

Yes, if you think you might be disappointed by the experience, you should by all means Google their official website and see the current spectacle "Feeries".
Most people think they will see something out of the movie "Moulin Rouge", and expect non-stop can-can dancers. It's more like a combination of the Ed Sullivan show and Las Vegas - but with smaller "attibutes", if you get my drift. You do get one rousing can-can number at the end, though.

I have always heard that the finale is the cancan, but everything before that is just a traditional cabaret show, albeit with plenty of bare breasted showgirls, which is the main reason that a lot of people from the other side of the planet go there since they do not have access to such a spectacle where they live.

One of my best friends recommend to go to 'Les Folies Bergère' for a show of real quality.
(Now, he works for the Folies Bergere...).

I always refer people to Paradis Latin. So much more stylish, better area, more of a "parisian" experience imo.

Le Lapin Agile is one of the most fun, aned oldest, experiences in Paris. But it seems the OP has already reserved the Moulin Rouge. Tant pis.

And quite inexpensive.
I didn' know about this rabbit, but you gave me a good idea.
Thanks