For a particularly helpful concierge, is it customary or even acceptable to tip him? I haven't even arrived in Europe yet and he's already been so kind. I don't want to insult him but I really would like to show my appreciation.

"customary or even acceptable", are you serious? You want to really insult him, don't tip him.

Yes, they do accept tips. Gladly. Most hotels have more than one concierge so we usually give it to them at the end of our stay. We use them alot to order taxis in advance, reserve tables etc.

In your case, if they've snagged an especially hard to get table or ticket in advance of your arrival, I would give them at least $20 when you get there.

Thanks, Linda - my first instinct was to buy him a card with some money in it but I wanted to make sure it was proper. See, not all Canadians are horrible tippers!

Absolutely - any concierge that provides more than the most basic services should be tipped.

For free they will give you maps and directions, and book bus day trips (they get a % from the bus company). But if you ask them to give you a lot of restaurant info and make ressies absolutely tip - 5 euros - up if a hard to get into restaurant. The same for any tickets they get you to opera or concerts or ? - and the tip should reflect the difficulty of getting them and the price of the tickets. (If they get you 2 300 euro tickets to a sold out concert a 5 euro tip is NOT enough.)