Tipping in Rome - if yes, how much?
 

Is tipping by tourists customary in Rome? If so, can anyone shed some light on expected tip amounts for the following:

1) Shuttle service from Airport
2) Restaurants
3) Tour Guides, if used
4) Taxis
5) Anything else?

Thanks!

Yes, you tip in taxis, in restauants, tour guides, airport shuttles if they handle your luggage and the concierge if they do a special service. How much depends on what they have done and the cost of the service.

There is not the standard 20% restaurant/cab tipping as in the US - but do leave something for good service and more if a driver has hauled your luggge around. (I know a lot of europeans say don;t tip much - but I like to appreciate good service.)

Tips for tour guides depends n the length of the tour and if it is a public tour (and you are 1 of 25 people - modest, a couple of euros) or a private tour just for you or your group - I would do at lest 15% of the price.

For taxis and restaurants, rounding up is fine -- 15 euros for a bill of 13.80 for example. Always have cash for the tip and give it directly to the server, because credit card charge slips may not provide a line for you to add it.

Tip as the quality of service deserves. It has absolutely nothing to do with

how well the person is paid
whether or not "the locals" are going to get angry because "you are spoiling our workers"
how much anyone ELSE tipped

It DOES have to do with how much you APPRECIATE what they did for YOU (and by the way, would you like to schlep bags, clean your toilet, serve your meals, etc.)

Also, in Rome the Romans don't tip but Americans are expected to which I hate. Shouldn't it be when in Rome do as the Romans do??

I never tip much more than 10% in Rome unless for a tour or something. I would do a roundup as kayd suggested.

Remember, you have to pay the bread charge whether you want bread or not so already you have left a tip in the restaurants.

gruezi

The coperta is not a tip. It is a cover charge. It's a dumb idea, but it is their dumb idea and their country, so they can do whatever they want.

Appropriate tips vary by circumstances. We got back from Rome a month ago. In general, I rounded up and no one seemed the least disappointed. The 13.70 to 15 is a good example.

I tipped at an almost-US rate at a well-known restaurant where we ordered our meal one course at a time. The waiter had to keep returning to see how we were doing, make additional trips to the kitchen, etc, and he did a good job.

It tipped somewhere in between at another restaurant where the waiter was genuinely warm and funny and helpful. He got a lot bigger tip than an Italian would have given him, but a less that he would have expected in America.

At a local pizza place, I rounded up the first time, then gave nothing the second time when we had a different waitress, an angry person who took it out on us.

Somewhat off topic, but I almost never use cash for anything in the US, UK, or France but I almost always use cash in Italian restaurants for the entire bill, not just the tip. A number of years ago, someone treated his girlfriend to a lot of Max Mara clothing courtesy of my credit card, and I have had two major disputes with restaurant managers over bills over the years.

I always feel a little more comfortable that these disputes will not come back to haunt me if I don't use a credit card, and sitting there with a pile of euro notes under my hand as I discuss the chicken tracks that constitute the bill appeals to the well-known respect for cash in the worldwide restauarant community.

Ackislander - was the restaurant where you had a credit card problem a very casual one, or an upscale one? I realize it could happen at either. I'm just curious. That is a major headache. I can say that the person's girlfriend had expensive (and good) taste in clothes!

What is the coperta/bread charge? I have never heard of this before.

In Rome and throughout the region of Lazio, it is "pane", a bread charge. In theory, you can wave the bread away when they bring it and they will not charge you for it.

Throughout the rest of Italy, it's a "pane e coperto" charge, i.e., for bread and whatever is set at your place at table (tablecloth, knife, fork, glasses). There is no way of getting away from it or out of it.

Neither the "pane" nor the "pane e coperto" charge goes to the server.

Neither charge goes to the server and they are both minimal in terms of the cost of a meal. should have no effect on your decision to tip or how much.

Dear kidfriendly, I couldn't tell where the illegal charges originated since I used the credit card at all kinds of places on that trip. The actual Max Mara charges were from the store in Livorno, and I have never even been to Livorno!

The thing that I think is different in the US and most European countries is the wage paid to servers. In the US it is very minimal, tips are expected by the server, the customer and the restaurant owner. If you don't tip you are essentially cheating the server out of their "normal" wage. I would never not leave a tip in the US unless the service was so horrible I wanted to make a strong statement. I don't see it as an extra. I don't like the way this system in the US works, I think it's wrong, but that's the way it is. In Europe most wait service staff are paid better, their hourly wage is decent. And so tips are truly an "extra", for especially good service. Most of the people I know who live in Europe do not leave tips (other than the "rounding up") and so neither do I.

In Rome last month at one restaurant the "pane" charge of 3 euro was added to our bill but no bread had ever been even brought to the table, much less eaten. I pointed it out to the server who just shrugged. We did not pay it.

We always just leave a handful of coins, never more than 10% of the bill.

I think the point of the question is not how much should I leave dependant on how I feel. If that were the case he would not ask us but make his own mind up.

If the point is what is the norm then the 13.@@ to 15 round up is the norm through most of Europe (ignoring the mafia states like Russia etc).

Credit card security in Italy is a worry and never ever let them take your card away to make the credit. Wifi is normal now or go with the card. My only experience was a close call as I noticed two slips had been put through a machine rather than one "terribly sorry it was a mistake" etc.

Genrally make the tip in cash, it gets where you want it to

A few more on tipping -
1. Do you tip a tour guide if you booked them independently of an operator?
2. How much do you tip a guide through an operator on a group tour?
3. Do you tip a driver if they work for themselves?

Santa Susanna (the American Catholic Church in Rome) includes several things about tipping on their website.

**TAXIS
You can not always flag down a taxi like you do in New York. You have to go to a Taxi stand and take the first in line. Taxis are relatively cheap and a 5% tip is in order.

**DINING
Il Conto, Per Favore. Getting the bill sometimes requires asking for it two or three times (Faccia il conto, per favore). Don't get upset -- remember you're on vacation. Breath deeply three times. Waiters can be very nice, but if they're busy, they can also be forgetful. If something's missing, ask for it. Most restaurants take credit cards, but check the door to make sure. A few only take cash. There's a small cover charge (for the bread, etc) and a tax. Tip LESS than you do in the states. About 5% to 10% unless you're in a real fancy place and the service is extraordinary, but even then, don't overdo it. And Take Your Bill of Fare with you. Always.

http://www.santasusanna.org/index.html

Hi KF - so exciting that you are going to Italy! As for tipping, our Italian friend always says "just tip what you feel", which for us as Americans is totally annoying as we are used to the usual 20% formula! But I think the 13.5 euros rounded up to 15 euros is a good formula. if anything, when I would try to do the 15 - 20% formula, our Italian friend would say it was "too much, too American"! But I think I would tip the same in a cab in Italy as I would in the US - just a couple of bucks unless I had alot of luggage (and I always tip $1 per piece of luggage). As for tour guides, I think we tipped around 5%, doing the rounding method.
I wouldn't be overly concerned about it - I have found they are much more relaxed about the tipping than Americans are - and my husband works in the restaurant business here!

You might want to add Housekeepers to your list, you know, those people who clean your room for you, scrub your toilet, sink and tub, change your sheets, etc.
Do leave a couple euros a day for them, this is a back-breaking job and too many people never think to leave them anything at all. Daily basis is better than at the end of your stay, as the housekeeper may not always be the same person.

Yes, do tip your tour guide if you feel like it was a good tour. Were they passionate about the city and what they were showing you? Were they interesting and were they knowledgeable? Did they answer all of your questions? Did they go out of their way to be helpful? If it is a large group tour, a few euros is fine. Private tours ought to be more, but part of that depends on how much the tour cost to begin with, what services were included, etc. and how satisfied you were with the tour.