jmcquown wrote:

> Considering the tipping customs vary in so many countries how is anyone
> supposed to keep up?! I can't recall who it was earlier in the thread
> (Lia?) said tipping a small gratuity is expected in Italy even though the
> menu price includes service, or something like that.


Nah, wasn't me. I'd love to be someone who had traveled in Italy such
that I could comment on their tipping customs, but I'm not.



So if I'm travelling
> and I go from France to Italy to Hungary, for example, I'm supposed to have
> something akin to Cliff's Notes handy to tell me what to do whenever I cross
> a border? Just curious. Most people I know who have visited Europe aren't
> just going to one country.


Of all the customs to get used to when traveling, how much to tip
doesn't sound like the most difficult. That information is readily
available in travel guides, or from asking the first person you meet.
More difficult are matters of safety, getting medical care, replacing
medications, approaching strangers or members of the opposite sex,
language, etc.


--Lia