Fishing with Rod Discussion Forum
Fishing in British Columbia => General Discussion => Topic started by: Spawn Sack on July 24, 2014, 10:19:52 PM
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Just curious how much ya'll tip on your guided fishing trips? Do you use a % of the bill? Does it depend on how many fish you get into?
Late August I'll be going on a day guided trip on the Fraser. It'll be the 3rd time we will be going out with this paticular guide. He is fully licensed but gives us a good cash price.
The first time we went out we got into lots of salmon and sturgeon and tipped $50. The 2nd time we caught zip all day and still tipped $50.
I know by restaurant standards (15% or so) this would be a crappy tip. However I reason that we are paying cash (I sure not claimed on his taxes) and the trip is pretty expensive and we can't really afford to be tipping big :o The crew I go with are just regualr working guys with kids, mortgages, bills, etc. We have to scrape our funds together just to afford to get out in the first place, let alone add a tip to the total. That beings said, we have always tipped something.
Just wondering if we're tipping about right, or way low, etc. I'll be honest I generally hate tipping!! I tip when eating out to avoid awkwawardness/looking cheap, but I hate paying an extra 15%-ish just so someone can bring me my food/drink. I never tip taxis etc, I don't know where this custom started??? I have started tipping the guy who services my reels just becasue he does such an awesome job and gives me a good deal.
Anywho, when it comes time to pay this fishing bill we will again eb faced with the inevitable moment of....sooooo...how much should we tip guys?
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We tip 10-15% just like in restaurants.
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I tip 20% for good service. Split 4 ways, it's not too bad.
Say you're paying 700 for your cash trip, that's only $35 a head on top. Not too bad for 8 hours of entertainment. Guiding is pretty hard work, I'd imagine.
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Thanks for your input guys. I think I just fundamentally hate tipping lol!! ::) When we go to Mexico etc I am a pretty generous tipper. I have been told the avergae resort wage is in the ballpark of $150 USD/month. These people simply rely on tips to support their famalies. So we tip the maid, bartender, etc all the time.
Not to turn this into a rant but...it seems we have taken tipping too far. I remember last year my wife and I took my parents and sister out for a night to the Giggle Dam in Poco. After our tickets + drinks the bills was close to $100/person. Not too bad for a hilarious night and pretty good meal. BUT, they added an a-u-t-o-m-a-t-i-c gratuity of 20% to the bill!!! :o WFT?!!? So we are talking an extra $100 here. I complained and had the tip adjusted to $50. I mean, we already paid a fair price for the ticket, premium price for the drinks etc. I thought an automatic 20% on top of the bill was pretty bold. Maybe I just don't get out enough.
I remember years back when I lived in Japan for 4 years teaching English. There you basically don't tip anyone - ever. It was great! And by and large you got way better service there in restauants, etc than you would get here. It was hard moving back to Canada and tipping 15-20% just to have a server plop a plate and beverage in front of you and later the bill.
Back on track to tipping one's fishing guide. IMHO it is a bit silly to tip a guide another 20% or whatever esp on a cash deal. That being said, he is a fantastic guide and all around nice guy, we've tipped him before and we will again. I'll try to scrape together an extra $100 or so amongst our group. I think it's stupid but just like going out for dinner...do you want to look like a cheap douche? I don't, so, reluctantly, I tip.
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Tipping is taken for granted these days. Tipping used to stand for "To Ensure Prompt Service". These days tips are expected regardless of service. Two weeks ago I was in a restaurant, after I was seated I had to wait 15 minutes before I got a menu. I was just about to leave when the waitress finally got around to bringing a menu. Service was slow. I had to ask another waitress for a coffee refill. I left without leaving a tip.
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I hear ya! Some buddies and I ate at a golf course the other week after our round and the service sucked big time and the food wasnt much better. It took some convincing on my part but we all didn't tip a cent. Our waitress seemed quite shocked when we didn't tip her, I'm guessing she is used to getting tips regardless of whether she provided good service or not. Not from this guy!
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Look, spawn sack, if you "think it's stupid," or "a bit silly" to tip, then don't do it. No one is putting a gun to your head pal. My friends and I aren't rich, but the way I see it, if I can afford to go on this trip, and the service has been outstanding, I tip well. That's just me. Remember, you're the one who asked.
Don't tip just because you don't want to look like a "cheap douche"
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If you're going with the same guide again, he is probably overall satisfied with rate he is charging you and appreciative of the tip you have been providing thus far.
He recognizes that the amount you tipped him is based on his hard work and other measures. Demonstrated by you tipping whether you caught fish or not. Trust me, he noticed that. The tip was based not on catching fish but his commitment to doing everything it takes to have success.
Keep doing your thing.
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A lodge up north suggests $40 - $60 per person per day for their guides.
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Most guides only make about 200 of the 800 they charge, they also usually are up getting everything ready by 4am, bringing their own bait, rods, and tackle. Depending on length of the trip your guide could be working a 12,14 or more hour trip works out to less than 20$ an hour. a lot of them rely/hope for good tips. I'd say 10% bare minimum, a lot more goes into guiding a fishing trip and finding fish than bringing a plate to a table
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I usually shoot a sturgeon guide an extra 100$,Just seems like the right amount ?
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I tip 20% minimum. Cash deal or not. So long as the attitude and effort are there with good opportunities given you by the guide, they deserve it. That's not to say I don't occasionally give more or a gift suited to them on top of that, but if I am guided I budget for the minimum 20 % on top of guiding fees.
Cheers!
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I'm with you Rantalot. Last guided sturgeon trip I took. $100 tip.
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It's a service industry.
I have tipped between $0 and $600 depending on quality of service and outcome ($600 was a fish of a lifetime under special circumstances).
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This discussion makes me want to go home and watch Reservoir Dogs!
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Thanks for the discussion guys! (Fishawn...not so much). Our group likes this guide a lot and we want to keep him happy and go out with him year after year. Maybe even again in the fall if we can afford it. We've decided that The $50 we tipped on the last two outings was probably a little on the cheap side, and this time we'll budget for a $100 tip. I know the guide will give 100% effort, so Im not learey of adding the tip into the money pile before we set foot on the boat. Ill keep a bit of extra cash aside just in case we have a day beyond all expectations, but if it's just another solid day on the river, whether we catch fish or not, we are comfortable with cash price + $100. ThaNks again guys.
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Haha. Spawn Sack, (Mr. Pink) you're welcome.
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No fish = no tip. I didn't pay for a sightseeing trip! Got skunked on my stag party charter, best man covered the tip but I said he should have thrown the captain overboard instead. Agree?
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I agree with that, I've been on 2 charters in my life. Both with bon chovy. We didn't catch anything not even a bite. So I didn't tip because 700$ is a pricey sightseeing bill.
No fish = no tip. I didn't pay for a sightseeing trip! Got skunked on my stag party charter, best man covered the tip but I said he should have thrown the captain overboard instead. Agree?
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While $500 to $800 is a good pile of money for most people - kind of hard to think you have to tip on top of that - expecting to catch fish in order to make the tip kind of says such people don't understand fishing. Not even the best can always connect. Kind of an interesting topic though - whose paid big $ for a top notch guide to get skunked? Happened to me out of Ucuelet. I also paid $500 for a drift trip on the Saugeen River in Ontario said to be the best smallmouth base river in the world and caught one fish at the end of the day. Lost a nice one plus a tidler mid-afternoon. The guide - who is very well known had promised me lots of action bellowed "yes - I won't get skunked!" when I brought the little guy in. It was kind of embarrassing and not that professional in my view. However I tipped him anyway as I had a great trip down the river and it seemed clear conditions just were not at all favourable that particular day. Overall my experience with guides and charters is they generally aren't worth the money and I've also done better just by doing research before I fish a new piece of water.