waterton888

Hello

I am just wondering if one needs to give a tip to housekeepers when you stay in the hotel or the guy who helps to carry your luggage, etc.

29FEB

This question is frequently asked and answered:

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...g-400494-2.cfm

"Search the Forums" for more threads and good luck with your trip.

joannyc

I always tip porters and housekeepers. They make a small wage and work very hard.

Cowboy1968

You may find the official website of the Dutch Tourism Board helpful:
http://www.holland.com/global/Touris...ut-Holland.htm
There is a chapter on money & tipping.

kerouac

Tipping housekeepers is not done in France. Only luxury hotels have porters, but in that alternate universe, the customers like to sprinkle gold on the serfs.

spaarne

I once walked into a 5* hotel in Monaco and looked at the rate card. Rooms were about $500, plus a 15% service charge. Heck, I would make the bed for $75. Don't waste your money on a *tip* for the housekeeper. Porters do expect a tip if they carry your bags. About one euro per bag is plenty.

joannyc

And the housekeepers who change your filthy sheets with hair and other unspoken stains? And then have to clean your toilet, sink, and shower with more unspoken things?

I do leave a tip... but I also clean my room upon arrival!

Mainhattengirl

So, you think the housekeeper is getting that "service charge of 15%"? Really???? That goes straight into the pocket of the hotel owners.

They are probably lucky to make 6-7 euro per hour. Tipping the housekeeper is not a "waste" of money.

spaarne

At other hotels, those which I could afford, I often put a couple of euros on the pillow when I left in the morning. Invariably the money was still there when I returned in the evening.

So how do you tip a housekeeper?

Padraig

spaarne asked: "So how do you tip a housekeeper?"

The way Europeans do. It's the same way they tip shop assistants, bus drivers, and museum attendants.

It is appropriate that the visitor observe the cultural norms of the place rather than seek to impose his or her own values.

kerouac

Yes, and don't forget to tip the crêpe vendors and supermarket cashiers.

Current minimum wage in France is 9,00 euros an hour, Mainhattengirl = about $12.75.

Carlux

'And the housekeepers who change your filthy sheets with hair and other unspoken stains? And then have to clean your toilet, sink, and shower with more unspoken things?'

I'm sorry, but this is the work they do. I look after several properties. I used to clean them myself, and now have a cleaner. Never did anyone offer me (or the cleaner) a tip for cleaning the shower, washing linens, etc. Neither did I expect it. So why should it be expected in a hotel when it isn't in a rental property?

In France we don't have this compulsion to tip people. In fact, I agree with Kerouac. I was a supermarket cashier when I was in high school, and no one ever tipped me - and I was really good at my job. However, the guys who carried groceries to the car for customers often got tips. Didn't understand it then, and don't now.