When you're traveling, make sure you have plenty of small bills so you will be prepared to tip the staff. But how much do you give the folks who assist you during your stay?

At a mid-priced hotel:

• Parking valet — $2 for getting your car

• Bellman — $1 for hailing cab or helping with bags

• Doorman — $5-$10

• Hotel maids — $2-$3 per day

• Deliveries — $2

• Room service — 15 percent

• Spa services (manicures, pedicures, massages, wax and facials) — 15 percent

At a luxury hotel or resort:

• Parking valet — $1-$5 (on a sliding Honda-BMW scale) when you leave your car and again when you pick it up

• Bellman — $5 per bag they carry

• Doorman — $1 for hailing cab or helping with bags

• Hotel maids — $5-$20

• Deliveries — $4

• Room service —15 percent (unless there is a service charge built into the price)

• Spa services (manicures, pedicures, massages, wax and facials) — 20 percent

— "Just Ask Mom" by Nancy Malone, — About.com

Trip tips:

• Taxi driver — 15 percent of fare or more if he helps with luggage

• Limousine driver — 15-20 percent Airport skycap — $1-$2 per bag, $3 if it's extremely heavy

• Coat check — $1 per coat

• Bartender — $1 per drink or 15 percent of the bar bill

• Restaurant captain — Tip 5 percent based on the pre-tax total. However, if you are waiting in line with a reservation at a trendy, crowded restaurant, a discreetly folded $20 bill placed in the captain's palm is likely to get you seated sooner.

• Restaurant server — 15 percent of the pre-tax total for good service in a low-priced restaurant, 10 percent for bad service and speak to manager; 20-25 percent in a fine restaurant.

• Sommelier — 10 percent based on the total wine bill, less if it's an expensive vintage

• Washroom attendant — 50 cents-$1 per visit; $1 for towel, gum, lint brush

• Tour guide — Reward a good guide by tipping 10-20 percent of the cost of the ticket

• Hairdresser — 15-20 percent for haircuts. For extras like perms and color that are very expensive, use your own judgment

• Shampoo person — $2

— "Just Ask Mom" by Nancy Malone, Ask.com

More tipping tips:

1. Tipping is never required, but it may be expected in many situations. Tipping hotel staff and drivers should be at your discretion and should be thought of as a reward for excellent service. Unless service was severely lacking in some way, do give a tip of some sort (or at least a smile and a thank-you).

2. Keep several $1 bills in an accessible pocket. You don't want to be digging for them when you're juggling luggage. Keep the bills neatly folded in groups of one or two bills.

3. It creates a very awkward situation to ask for change from the person you're tipping. If for some reason you don't have a tip ready, it's better to skip it, particularly if you can get change from somewhere else and return with your tip at some point in the future.

— About.com