I leave in three days last minute help????

Hello, first of all I would like to thaqnk everyone for the help and posts. We could not have planned our trip with out them. Now I have a couple of last minute questions to help fill in the blanks:

1. The Louvre-we want to see the Egyptian area, The Sully Wing, and bible artifacts and of course the Mona Lisa...can we get a map at the beginning that will clearly outline how to get to these areas?

2. The weather is calling for light rain so far...does that usually mean in Paris all day or just intermitent?

3. Tipping-how much would you tip for housekeeping in a hotel? We are staying for 198 Euros a night? I want to be sure to be polite and fair.

Thanks.

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1- yes and if you have a guidebokk like the Green Michelin there is a map inside the guidebook

2- depends but it should be intermittent if they say light rain

3 - Never done it but I would say 20 euros for your stay (and that is aguess, other posters may know more about the %26quot;étiquette%26quot;)

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In response to your forum. We just got back from Paris last Sunday Here are some answers to your Questions

1. When you go through the ticket line at the Louvre, they give you a good size map highlighting all of the popular exhibits and what wing they are in. The map is very clear and it shows most of the other exhibits and where they are. We saw all of the famous exhibits and Napoleon%26#39;s apartment and it took almost four hours,

so plan your time

2. The rain if usually intermitent.

3. We stayed at the Hotel Raphael and the suggested tip for housekeeping was 2 euros per day. They did an excellent job, so this is what we left

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Thanks to both of you. Now this may sound silly but in North America we usually leave our tip on the bed so the housekeeping knows it is for them. Is this okay in Paris? I don%26#39;t want to be considered rude.

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I%26#39;ve always left the tip on a pice of hotel stationery with %26quot;madame%26quot; written on it and twice have gotten %26quot;merci!%26quot; notes back.

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%26gt;%26gt;%26gt;1. The Louvre-we want to see the Egyptian area, The Sully Wing, and bible artifacts and of course the Mona Lisa...can we get a map at the beginning that will clearly outline how to get to these areas?%26lt;%26lt;%26lt;

As noted, there are floor plan diagrams and maps available at the entrance / information areas....But prior to your visit, you can use the Collections pages at the Louvre%26#39;s web site to roughly orient yourself

%26gt;%26gt;2. The weather is calling for light rain so far...does that usually mean in Paris all day or just intermitent?%26lt;%26lt;%26lt;

YES...either of the above or both....but more than likely showers will be intermittant...of course if you happen to be indoors when it%26#39;s NOT raining outdoors and outdoors (or vice versa) when it it, your perception of %26#39;..intermittant..%26#39; may vary.

%26gt;%26gt;%26gt;3. Tipping-how much would you tip for housekeeping in a hotel? We are staying for 198 Euros a night? I want to be sure to be polite and fair.%26lt;%26lt;%26lt;

Tipping is the %26#39;black hole%26#39; of travel advice...a lot goes in..but nothing useful ever seems to come back out. Your OWN usual custom %26amp; practice should dictate. As a b r o a d, general rule a tip to hotel housekeeping could be anywhere from nothing to 1€-to-5€ per day...either left daily in an envelope clearly marked for housekeeping...less if you receive just normal ordinay service....more if the services have been extraordinary. Some guests will leave a few coins on a plate or in and ashtray intended for houskeepers...but I%26#39;ve always thought this a bad plan and one that might easily lead to misunderstanding. Another option is to leave whatever you deem an apopropriate tip in an envelope marked for Housekeeper with the hotel front desk at the end of your stay..for distribution to housekeeping staff by whatever fromula they may apply. If a particular housekeeper provides particular service that you want to acknowledge, then make it a point to discover the name of the individual and leave an appropriate tip in an envelope with that name on it.

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The Egyptian wing is magical at dusk or later in the evening. Try to time your visit then, as there will be considerably fewer other visitors around.

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You guys tip at hotels ????? I thought only Americans did that??!!!

I have never ( regularily) tipped at a hotel and have always been treated nicely by the staff, of course I think smiling and saying bonjour mesdames, is more important the leaving a euro or two, and then demanding the maid do this and that.

I think if you are staying at a hotel that has a %26quot; recommended amount%26quot; posted I would be horrified as that is NOT standard French policy, but shows the hotel caters to American tourists.

I have left something beside the bed( twice) , at the end of the stay, with the word %26quot; merci%26quot; written on the paper to indicate it is for a tip, and this I only do in some places when the maids have done extra , like bring extra towels etc. or given me extra shampoo etc.

There is an english language brochure given out at Louvre entrance, ( map ) to get more presise info or map you can buy a guide either at home or at the Lourve itself.

Weather is weather, who can really tell for sure.

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I am sorry, Joan, but I must respond to your comment.

How about saying Bonjour, Madame AND tipping a few Euros for the service??

I must add, that I assume that most of the housekeeping staff are trying to support families, etc, and that every Euro counts. With all things considered, at the end of your (mine, our) FAT CAT trip to Paris and all that that entails and costs - what is another Euro 20 note out of your pocket?

I do not think the expectation is that you would be treated any differently for not tipping. It is just a nice generous gesture and a demonstration of appreciation, and once again, I am sure the housekeeping staff DEPENDS greatly upon them.

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I have a friend who was a hotel maid for a time in Europe -- she is German -- and her stories have made me very empathetic to maid staff -- it is a hard life, poorly paid (she was in some kind of apprentice type role which means she wasn%26#39;t paid hardly anything (some time ago) and they ahve to deal with awful people and their awful disgusting messes

lots of people doing this are immigrants trying to support a family

we always leave a couple of Euros a night at least -- more if we have left any sort of mess (i.e. when we traveled with little kids, we tended to tip higher)

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trechnic, I think you assume that the staff DEPENDS on them, which means you ASSUME that they are used to getting them ,, but sorry, Americans are the big tippers in the world, many many nationalities do not tip, or if they do it is smaller amounts or only for extra services. . Ask an Australian, or even a Brit, tipping is AMERICAN ,, so perhaps on the big chain hotels that some Americans favor the maids are used to getting tips, primarily from Americans, to a much lesser degree occaisonally from other nationalities.