How much should you tip the guide for a days hunt?

[Carroll B]

A buddy and myself  are seriously considering a drive from Maryland to Kansas next fall to hunt pheasant.  The outfitter provides a guide and dog for the hunt.  What is the customary amount you should tip the guide for each day?  Lodging is included in the hunt package we are looking at. Should you also tip the people who serve the meals in the lodge and if so, 15% as in a restaurant? I'm asking not trying to be cheap I just don't know as I have never hunted this way before.

[redd7]

I just returned from a hunt in Colorado. It was a two day hunt, The guide was also the cook. He also skinned and cleane the game. I asked the owner what was appropriate and he told me 50 - 100 dollars. I don't know if that helps and I would be interested in hearing from others.

[Carroll B]

The place I'm considering going to charges $2.50 a bird to clean them.  I think the guide will just handle the bird dog.  I think there will also be another person doing the cooking at the lodge.  Hopefully others will reply as to what they have done in the way of tips.

[Don Fischer]

I have a bad time with tipping. Just out of curiosity, what is this hunt costing you? It has alway's seemed to me that nobody should be tipped just for showing up for work and yet there seem's to be guidelines! Why doesn't the guide get paid a liveable wage? Then if he's really tripped your trigger, fine. This tipping business is way out of hand. Your outfitter say's he's gonna get his money, weather the guide does or not! Maybe you'll get a great guide, maybe you won't, maybe the outfitter need's to pay better and make every effort to insure you get a good guide. Then if you want to tip, fine! I catch a lot of crap over this but I just can't see tipping someone else's employees just for showing up for work, and because their employer doesn't pay a decent wage.

[JPSaxMan]

I have a bad time with tipping. Just out of curiosity, what is this hunt costing you? It has alway's seemed to me that nobody should be tipped just for showing up for work and yet there seem's to be guidelines! Why doesn't the guide get paid a liveable wage? Then if he's really tripped your trigger, fine. This tipping business is way out of hand. Your outfitter say's he's gonna get his money, weather the guide does or not! Maybe you'll get a great guide, maybe you won't, maybe the outfitter need's to pay better and make every effort to insure you get a good guide. Then if you want to tip, fine! I catch a lot of crap over this but I just can't see tipping someone else's employees just for showing up for work, and because their employer doesn't pay a decent wage.

I was kinda thinking the same thing...you're paying for the hunt as it is. Why tip the guy you're paying anyway to guide you? I mean, I might understand slipping him like $20 for gas money or something if he's a really cool guy, but if he's just plain jane, I really wouldn't bother. Just my :money:.  

[redd7]

I agree 100%. I don't like the idea of tipping anyone. I think that people should get paid and be expected to to be competent. But there is still a difference between how things should be and how things are. I dislike having to tip at restaurants as I think that having the food served should be included in the price of the meal, but I still do as I am aware that servers in general are not paid enough and depend on tips to make a living.

[Carroll B]

My feeling is if the guide just does an average job with his dog (since I only plan to hunt birds), there should be no tip.  If he goes out of his way to make the hunt more enjoyable, offering tips to help us fill our daily limit, etc. then he should get something extra for going out of his way. I just need to know if I have a "great" guide should the tip be 10% or 15%?  The hunt is $250 per day and includes meals and lodging.

I occasionally charter a fishing trip although not often since I would rather fish on my own boat.  The mate on the boat is not paid by the captain of the boat.  The only money the mate gets is tips. They have to mate 2-3 years in order to take their captain's license test.  Most of mates will go out of their way to insure you have an enjoyable fishing trip.  The last one I was on showed me some fishing rigs that we didn't even use that day and told me how to make them up for my boat when I ask him. I thought a nice tip was more then called for in this case.

[Don Fischer]

Boy I usually catch it bad over this deal, I love you guy's. There are time's I do tip, but it's what I feel I can afford and never just because someone did their job. Thank's guy's!

[Carroll B]

I made the trip to Kansas and the phesant hunt was great.  My buddy and I each tipped the guide 10% of the cost of the hunt.  We were the only ones in camp for the 3 days.  The guide treated us great, gave us tips on what we did wrong to help improve our hunt, and drove my truck 12 miles to the local town to get it serviced when I said I didn't know if I could find the farm in the dark.  He then picked the truck up for me when it was complete.  It was part of the hunting package but he also cleaned the birds each night.  Overall it was if we where hunting with close friends or family rather then an outfitter.

[NONYA]

Unless a guide goes beyond what you have paid for in terms of the hunt and quality of animal you were told to expect a there should be no tip.you paid for the hunt dont feel obligated to pay more for somthing you just bought.

[weasel]

I've received anywhere from 0-$600 for tips, a friend got a Leica spotting scope (WOW!). Lots of times I'll get a knife, have a pretty good collection now. Some guides expect a tip, most of the guys I work with are happy to get anything, including me. Usually the big tippers are the blue collar hourly people. I would imagine $50 would be more than adequate for a day, heck $20 would make me happy.

[NONYA]

Do you tip the guy at the lumber yard that helps you load you stuff?How bout the guy that mounts your tires?How bout your mechanic?When did it become standard opperation to tip a guide that is already getting paid,if you feel you deserve an extra 20-50 bucks put it in the cost of the hunt and dont expect people to know what you feel is proper,its just a form of extorsion and clients never know what they are expected to tip so they overtip.If you to Africa and you have trackers and gunbearers those are the guys that deserve a tip because odds are thats what they are working for,they dont get a wage like guides do here.A guide would have to go way out of his way to do somthing tip worthy in my book.

[weasel]

Actually I do tip the lumberyard guy, he also gives me a heads-up on discounts,(damaged goods, etc,). I also tip the barber, the kids at the fast food places, they always try to find a way to reciprocate. Some guides expect tips, I don't, but I sure appreciate them. Around here, the average guides wage is $120- $150, the average day starts at 4am,( I've  been working  as late as 2am skinning), average day ends maybe 8pm, works out to maybe $10/hr. Then you have to figure wear and tear on your vehicle, four-wheeler, horses, etc. All this is still good if you're seeing good quality game and the hunters are happy, not always the case, and the pressure does get to you. As much as I love hunting, I love my time off better by the end of the season.

Enough whining, my point is the guides don't make much money.

[NONYA]

Im lucky if i make 10 an hour while im roofing,Id take less money to be out in the field taking people hunting and scouting game.I worked in a lumber yard and a fast food restaurant,i never received a tip at either job.I guess its just part of the business but I dont think it should be implied,if I went on a hunt and the guide connected me with a better quality animal than i was expecting i would be more than happy to tip,but if I received exactly what i thought i was paying for I dont see the need for it,these outfits need to charge a little bit more and pay their people better,raising the price of the hunt by 50 bucks isnt going to stop anyone from booking it.

[corbanzo]

One of my buddies got lucky last year, he was building a house, and was a foreman on the project, when the house was done, the owner came up, and asked him if he was interested in a .375 HH mag, he said he wasnt really in the market, couldnt spend the money.

The guy looks at him and says, you did a great job helping on this house, so this is yours.  Gives him the rifle.  Not a bad tip I would say.

I have worked in the service industry forever pretty much, heck I have a degree in hospitality management, so I am a real sticker when it comes to tipping.  If you do a great job, I usually over tip (cause I have depended on tips so much) but if you are bad, I'm not going to tip you.  If you bring me my food, or stuff, or do something for me that is run of the mill, you are going to get paid your wage from your boss for doing your job.  If you actually add value to that transaction for me, I will pay you the value added.

In my home town, the fishing deckhands make out pretty darn well for themselves with tips.  But the guys who work on the boats usually do their jobs well, make sure the clients arent doing any work, and dont stop moving and getting the job done while they are on the boat.  Those are guys that will earn a tip from me, especially is they are working to keep my hook in the water. 

[NONYA]

Nest time you eat out and tip your waitress go in the back and tip the guy washing the dishes as well,they do the real work,dont they deserve it just as much?I have worked in several and most dont make the servers share tips,so why tip the girl that wlaks a plate of food to your table when the guy that cooks it and the guy that cleans your mess get nothing?

[weasel]

In our hunting camp, we split our tips, the cooks, gate guy, all get even cuts. I guess you could hide the $ handed to you, don't think anyone does.

Nonya, $10/hr for roofing is white slavery. I won't roof hourly for less than $25, would rather work by the square ($40 new const.). Speaking again of tipping, when the lumberyard delivers shingles the driver forks them up to the roof and gets up and helps stock. Last job he was there 12 min., I gave him $20, smartest money I'll ever spend, saves my back and 3 hours hard labor. When I call in an order, those kids will squabble over who gets to deliver.

[NONYA]

In our hunting camp, we split our tips, the cooks, gate guy, all get even cuts. I guess you could hide the $ handed to you, don't think anyone does.

Nonya, $10/hr for roofing is white slavery. I won't roof hourly for less than $25, would rather work by the square ($40 new const.). Speaking again of tipping, when the lumberyard delivers shingles the driver forks them up to the roof and gets up and helps stock. Last job he was there 12 min., I gave him $20, smartest money I'll ever spend, saves my back and 3 hours hard labor. When I call in an order, those kids will squabble over who gets to deliver.

white slavery?No...just Montana,if you dont wanna do it for 10 they will get 3 mexicans to do it for 5,there is a contractor in the state thats gonna pay a roofer $20 an hour.