The Accurate Reloading Forums THE ACCURATE RELOADING.COM FORUMS Hunting Alaska Hunting Forum How much for guide's Tip??Go | New | Find | Notify | Tools | Reply | |
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| One of Us |
Never been guided before,, don't want to insult anyone, but don't want to get stupid, either.. I was thinging about $500... any sugestions? thanks Les | ||
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les; that is a hard question to answer as there are so many variables that effect the size of the tip. i.e. price of hunt, effort put out for you, # of days spent in the field, quality of trophy and on and on.... i think it is fair to say that most tips fall between $100-1,000. what about if the outfitter himself is your guide? would you tip him because he is guiding you? or not tip him, since he is the owner and gets to keep your fee? hope that helps. i am sure you will do the right thing. Cold Zero | |||
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Depends on the hunt, cost, length, difficulty, etc. Cold zero is right in that most tips fall in the $100-$1000 range. Most guys would be very happy to get $500. If I was on a 2 or 3 day hunt in Wyoming for antelope where the guide is driving around in a pick-up glassing goats I would not be inclined to tip him as much as a guide that is taking me in on a pack trip to remote country putting in very long days and working hard keeping me happy, looking after the livestock, camp, maybe even cooking in some cases. That guide would deserve a much bigger tip in my opinion, all things being equal. And trophy size or whether I get something or not should not factor into it. It is hunting and as long as the guide does his job well he should get a tip. As a guide, I absolutely hate guys that come into camp and promise you a big tip if they get a 'book' this or that. I have seen guys tip their guide $20 after a successful hunt when they guy worked his but off and I have to say the hunter should have got a slap up the side of the head. That was more of an insult than a tip. As for the outfitter doing the guiding....having been in that position I can honestly say that most outfitters do not expect to get a tip as they are getting the benefit of the profits from their hunting business. Generally hunters do not tip the outfitter, maybe 1 in 3 has been my experience. Guides on the other hand kind of depend on it as part of their income from guiding. If you took their rate of pay per day and divided it by the hours most guides put in........most of you would not work for that. All of this of course is assuming the guide does his job. If you get a slacker or a guy that really doesn't give a damn then he no more deserves a tip than a crappy waitress. ______________________________________________ The power of accurate observation is frequently called cynicism by those who are bereft of that gift. | |||
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skyline; thanks for answering my question about outfitter tips. let's also not forget to tip the packer, wrangler, cook, guy who picked you up at the airport, ast. guide, etc. my point about the trophy animal was that, if the hunter is fortunate enough to take a large or even book animal, i feel the hunter should share his good fortune of taking such an exceptional animal with the guide who helped him take it, in the form of a larger tip than was previously planned or possibly a gift for the guide either there or by mail after returning home. it is not fair or proper to say to a guide upon entering camp get me a big animal and i will give you a big tip. the guide does not keep a b and c animal tied up to a tree around the hill for just such guys who come into camp. it is hunting , not shopping for trophies. that being said, i do feel a guide is entitled to something extra for an exceptional animal after it is taken, either a gift or extra $. i.m.h.o. a tip is a way of showing respect and appreciation for the guide after providing good service. everyone budget is different as well. i have heard guys say that they wished they could have given the guide an even bigger tip or that no tip would be large enough for what the guide did for them. your life is in their hands... Cold Zero | |||
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cold zero I agree with all of that.....ultimately tipping is always up to the customer. Finances play a big part too, itis easy for a guy listed in Forbes to slip a guide $1000 or hand over a pair of Zeiss binos. Not so easy for the guy who scrimped for 5 years to go on his moose hunt. The guide needs to be observant and be reasonable in expectations as well. You are also correct in that it is normal to tip the wrangler, cook and at lodges the bartender and cabin cleaning staff. But at many outfitters camps, especially the satellite camps, it is not uncommon for the cook, cabin staff, bartender, wrangler and taxidermist to be the guide. These are the guides that deserve a good tip........they are working long hours, need to know a lot and certainly earn their wages. As for the bigger tip for a trophy head......sure if you feel that is appropriate. I sure do not know any guide that is going to say no.  ______________________________________________ The power of accurate observation is frequently called cynicism by those who are bereft of that gift. | |||
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As far as tipping the cook and other assorted staff, is that usually done individually, or does it work like restaurants where a percentage of the tips are pooled and then split up among the various positions? Thanks, Washougal Chris | |||
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I like to do it individually, but there are different rules or agreements at different places. In a small camp where it is just a cook and a couple guides, maybe a wrangler, it will be individual. At big lodges it is not uncommom where the camp staff pool their tips and split. In those cases even if you give it them individually it may end up in the pool anyways. The lodge where I currently guide moose and bear hunts pool their tips for camp staff. Not the way I like it but it is what the staff wants. ______________________________________________ The power of accurate observation is frequently called cynicism by those who are bereft of that gift. | |||
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i prefer to take care of the people who took care of me individually and directly. if they then want to pool their tips, that is their perogitive. this way, i make sure the people helped me are taken care of. m.h.o. Cold Zero | |||
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if you want to fine tune the range of tips even more. i think skyline is correct with ref' to $500. the majority of tips would fall between $100-500. the over 500 being in the minority. skyline you are talking u.s. dollars here right? the exchange rate from u.s. to canadian is not as great as it once was... Cold Zero | |||
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Tip only for outstanding service, otherwise forget it. Citius, altius, fortius | |||
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I have a $600 anterless elk tag I've contracted with a guide and I'm paying him $1000 for 4 days but the elk could be dropped in 1,2,3 or 4 days how much should I tip him ?My guide was extremely helpful,we used his 4x4 ford truck and I bought all of his gas & filled it after the hunt,I tipped him $602 the 2 was a $2 bill he hadn't seen in a long time.We saw 76 elk the 4th morning cross the road,shot a cow the 4th morning.My guide offered a special price for another hunt this year but we didn't apply soon enough as all tags went on sale 1-03-07 and were sold out in about 2 weeks. | |||
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Nothing until he provides some outstanding service! Citius, altius, fortius | |||
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My rule of thumb is the minimum tip for a kill is $500. I still tip the guide $300 for an unsuccessful hunt though. That does not mean that a kill is worth $200 more than no kill, I just believe in being "white" about it. Now a really successful hunt can go up to $1000. My elk (369) netted the guide $750 (the first evening hunt of my trip) the rest of the time we scouted for the other two hunters in camp. My mule deer guide got $1000 for two mulies and a coues. There are two types of people in the world: those that get things done and those who make excuses. There are no others. | |||
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to most people that is a lot of money. not everyone is that priviliged. "Science only goes so far then God takes over." | |||
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I tipped about $1,400 for a 9-day buffalo / warthog hunt in Zimbabwe this year. (That included the PH ($900), trackers (2), game scout, and camp staff) I thought I overdid it a little. I tipped $500 for a 10-day Dall sheep hunt in the NWTs in 2004. I tipped $300 for a 5-day elk hunt in New Mexico in 2002. I tipped $300 for a 10-day kudu and oryx in RSA in 2000. I tipped $100 for a 3-day pronghorn hunt in West Texas in 1998. | |||
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 I'd say you way overdid it! Unless he literally saved your life seconds before you were about to be flattened by a buff or elephant, or there were some other very unusual circumstances. JMHO... | |||
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Les It all boils down to this..Did your guide/packer do everything to make your hunt successful and help you reach your goal.. Sometimes you reach you goal without a harvest.. Sometimes you reach you goal and harvest the game.. After that it becomes a issue of the value of that experience.. The more value the bigger the tip.. You must weigh these componets.. If all is met goal,service,game then I would start at 300.00 and go from there.. AK | |||
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I rationalized it as $100/day for the PH and $10/day for each of two trackers and game scout. The other $10/day got split between, cook, skinner, house-boy, etc. I hunted nine of ten days. The PH got $800 cash and a box of Federal solids, about $80 to $90 value. | |||
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I am a flyfishing guide and I have seen tips from $20 from a day of fishing to $200 for a day. My average is around $100 a day. I try to give my clients 110% everyday trying to make it the best day of there lives. I have had clients give me $40, for having a 50+ fish day. On another I got $150 when the guy who only caught 10 fish. Some people are all numbers where some just want to have a relaxing day. I tip guides more if they work there but off for me. Even if I don't kill something but they gave 110% everyday, they will get a better tip then if I had a guy who only gave 60% everyday but I still shot something. Mink and Wall Tents don't go together. Especially when you are sleeping in the Wall Tent. DRSS .470 & .500 | |||
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I know I'll get yelled at for this but feel like I have to anyway. I don't make a lot of money. I don't get tips. If I spend $5000 for a week of hunting or fishing, $700 for plane tickets and $500+ for licenses fees, more for ammo/flies, equipment, geez. Now I have to add another $500-1000 on top of that? Why can't folks just include it in the price? I always thought a tip was for something out of the ordinary perfomed as a service with no expectation of being compensated for it. I only recently started tipping in restaurants. I recently got a raise so now I can when I want to. I'm sorry. I know these guys may not make much but if they are good at it they should make more from the guy that pays them. I've already paid my way. It may drive more and more guides out of the business but that would force outfitters to pay more. They may in turn charge more but then I don't have to worry about what's right, wrong, customary, too much, not enough......and so on. I pay one price and I'm done. The guy took care of me personally? Well, I thought that was his job. Then again, maybe I wouldn't ask some guy to do something for me I could do myself. If a guide takes me too the game, a cook fixes meals for all of us, a wrangler provides horses and saddles in good repair......isn't that what they were hired to do? Maybe I'm wrong. I'm sure I'll get blasted for my way of thinking. | |||
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Old Cane, This is a very good point.  And you can rest assured that in many countries around the world, tipping is not customary. And when tips are given, it's usually because something extraordinary and beyond the call of duty was done! If anyone deserves tips, it should be for the kind of low paying jobs where tips are never given. The life saving kind of jobs; LEO, soldiers, nurses, firemen and so on. | |||
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Amen. My son-in-law just got back from his second year in the land of sand. I have a nice hunt planned for him. We're afraid he'll have to go back again before he retires. | |||
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I just got back from a Bighorn sheep hunt. The outfitter/owner and his guides most of which are his friends,had a private discussion on tips. I listened in. Basically,their plan was to keep all clients that tipped well (200 dollars or more) and make an excuse up for all customers that didn't tip well. In other words "we're full booked,sorry". We're talking 5500 dollar elk hunts and 4500 dollar deer hunts and the deer quality sucks. Tipping has turned into a joke. Most of these assholes spend more time worrying about their tip and what they'll get,then they do actually performing the service they were hired for. And the clients continue to reward them. You can figure the average guide in the western states is making 100-250 dollars a day from the outfitter. So how much should the tip be? Alot of guides would rather have a client lend a hand when shits going bad,rather then tip heavily after they've been babysat all trip. | |||
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How about 10% for good service and maybe 15% if it's exceptional. I give the bastard a scope or binoculars when I get there and tip the cooking staff $100 when I leave. I got hounded about tips in Africa, my most recent German hunt I gave the guy about $350 worth of hunting gear, and I bought lunch in town a couple beers. It's hard to figure out what is right. You decide not them, or you won't go back to them. Tips are a bullshit problem brought on by us Americans ruining the world for everyone else on tipping. If we paid service people more we wouldn't have this problem. | |||
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Good overall thread. Tips are a personal judgement call and working guides get less from some than others , even with identical service. In my camp, on moose and bear hunts, I would say the average tip is $700 to $1000 with exceptional service (which I expect from all of my guides) often doubling that. As the outfitter I do not take tips unless I personally do the guiding. Which I still do and enjoy. I also still have my very first tip; a Canadian silver dollar that is taped to the old Servel refridgerator at camp. It was from my first sheep hunt, where I was supposed to be a packer, but after the guide sprained his ankle, went to town and was arrested for murder, I became the de facto guide. At least the misfortunate hunter thought I was worth an extra dollar. Anyone who claims the 30-06 is ineffective has either not tried one, or is unwittingly commenting on their own marksmanship Phil Shoemaker Alaska Master guide FAA Master pilot NRA Benefactor www.grizzlyskinsofalaska.com | |||
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I always find it interesting that people worry that the oufitter wont want them back if they dont tip enough. My question is why would you want to go back if that is the way they feel about it. If the guide is making the salary metioned on this thread then thats good money in a whole lot of places. As a poor working stiff I think these tips some people have posted are outrages. Seems 10% would be more than fair. | |||
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If the guide busts his ass to ensure I have an excellent hunt, and that doesn't mean I have to kill something, then I would tip accordingly but for just doing his job, he would not get anything but a simple thank you. Tips should be the exception and not the norm. "We band of 45-70'ers" | |||
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I do my best to take care of the people directly helping me. While the daily amount of money to be made may sound like a lot, remember that professional guides don't have the luxury of spreading out their work or earnings over the year like most folks. There is also a large (if variable) amount of work that needs to get done in the off season to make your trip a success. You probably wouldn't want your hunting camp to be located based on where day laborers were available cheapest.... I feel confident you will recognize the efforts of your guides....and reward them accordingly. I think you're on track, and have input in this thread from some of our best. Happy Hunting Dan | |||
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D & L Outfiters/ failed to see any response to the question posted....or were you just trying to get some free add space? Let us all know...what are YOUR expectations?/ Chaz | |||
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Tough question, eh? I'm one of the guys that would have to scrape for a number of years to get the dollars together for a guided hunt. $1000 on top of the hunt and associated costs would not be a trivial matter for me. On the other hand, I've worked as a guide, and at $100 a day, without some sort of extra, it just isn't worth it, it becomes a labour of love. Here's an example of one day of guiding. You be the judge if $100 is "good money", as was suggested above: Wake-up at 3:30 am, make breakfast and lunch for the dude and myself. Start the truck at 4:00 am, find out none of the headlights work. Jerry rig the headlights directly to the battery, blow up two spares in the process. Leave the house at 4:30 am with one headlight going. Pick-up client, drive an hour, hike 2 miles to get to the hunting area. Hunt all day. Drop off client after dark, have him do dinner alone, drive to friend/mechanic 40 miles away. Fiddle around with the headlights until 11 pm Drive home, grab a shower, a beer and a sandwich. In bed by 0:30 am, alarm set for 3:30. Frans | |||
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Tipping you will just know what is right. I would say that 90+% of the time $200-$400 is about right for a 5-7 day hunt. A tip is something extra and I don't think it should replace the persons wages. I sometimes think folks try to impress each other by how much they tip. Mike Never under estimate the internet community's ability to reply to your post with their personal rant about their tangentially related, single occurrence issue.  What I have learned on AR, since 2001: 1. The proper answer to: Where is the best place in town to get a steak dinner? is…You should go to Mel's Diner and get the fried chicken. 2. Big game animals can tell the difference between .015 of an inch in diameter, 15 grains of bullet weight, and 150 fps. 3. There is a difference in the performance of two identical projectiles launched at the same velocity if they came from different cartridges. 4. While a double rifle is the perfect DGR, every 375HH bolt gun needs to be modified to carry at least 5 down. 5. While a floor plate and detachable box magazine both use a mechanical latch, only the floor plate latch is reliable. Disregard the fact that every modern military rifle uses a detachable box magazine. 6. The Remington 700 is unreliable regardless of the fact it is the basis of the USMC M40 sniper rifle for 40+ years with no changes to the receiver or extractor and is the choice of more military and law enforcement sniper units than any other rifle. 7. PF actions are not suitable for a DGR and it is irrelevant that the M1, M14, M16, & AK47 which were designed for hunting men that can shoot back are all PF actions. 8. 95 deg F in Africa is different than 95 deg F in TX or CA and that is why you must worry about ammunition temperature in Africa (even though most safaris take place in winter) but not in TX or in CA. 9. The size of a ding in a gun's finish doesn't matter, what matters is whether it’s a safe ding or not. 10. 1 in a row is a trend, 2 in a row is statistically significant, and 3 in a row is an irrefutable fact. 11. Never buy a WSM or RCM cartridge for a safari rifle or your go to rifle in the USA because if they lose your ammo you can't find replacement ammo but don't worry 280 Rem, 338-06, 35 Whelen, and all Weatherby cartridges abound in Africa and back country stores. 12. A well hit animal can run 75 yds. in the open and suddenly drop with no initial blood trail, but the one I shot from 200 yds. away that ran 10 yds. and disappeared into a thicket and was not found was lost because the bullet penciled thru. I am 100% certain of this even though I have no physical evidence. 13. A 300 Win Mag is a 500 yard elk cartridge but a 308 Win is not a 300 yard elk cartridge even though the same bullet is travelling at the same velocity at those respective distances. | |||
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Thanks for all the discussion.. as a follow up to my question, my son and I had a sucessful Dall sheep hunt in Sept 06.. the young guide put us on a pair of handsome rams which we both promptly killed. I did post pictures of the rams, side by side.. I was happy to give him $500, and I think my son added another $300 .. he seemed happy with it.. I gave one of the packers an external frame pack, another a jacket.. and so on.. (less to ship or freight home).. The outfitter told us we had been a pleasure to have in camp.. made my hunt... I would hunt with them again.. Les | |||
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Mike/ thanks for our input; it is very up-front and helpful. I for one am always unsure; I don't want to insult/offend a guide who worked hard for me. Yet, being a retiree on a fixed income who views any guided hunt as a luxury to begin with, I feel a need to keep things within reason. Again, thanks/ Chaz | |||
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I'm often asked what is appropriate for a tip. I hate answering this but folks want an answer from me. This is what I have come up with and the caveat is that this is what I personally do and the client can use it for a guideline or not as they choose. Dangerous game hunt for personal guide or PH I would give around $100 per day as a very rough guideline. If the hunt is for deer, antelope, plains game etc. $50 per day would be closer to what I would give. Personally I would make sure the camp crew all got something even if it was just a token showing that I had noticed they did a good job. I don't think any of the guides or PH's I know expect an extravagant tip although they get them on occasion. On the other hand if they get stiffed they wonder why. Mark MARK H. YOUNG MARK'S EXCLUSIVE ADVENTURES 7094 Oakleigh Dr. Las Vegas, NV 89110 Office 702-848-1693 Cell, Whats App, Signal 307-250-1156 PREFERRED E-mail markttc@msn.com Website: myexclusiveadventures.com Skype: markhyhunter Check us out on https://www.facebook.com/pages...ures/627027353990716 | |||
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most guys like myself, who would have to save for a number of years to go on a $5000 hunt, will not participate in many of these hunts in a lifetime. i live in farm country in the midwest. mountain hunting would be a foreign world to me. how is a guy like me to know if the guide was "good", when i have no basis of comparison, or a very minimal amount of experiences to base it on? a $5000 hunt. $500 in a tip? i'm more inclined to invest the money in another license, to maximize my experiences. who knows if i'll ever get another "guided" hunt. its unfortunate that we have industries that rely on the consumer to fill the gaps in workers wages. i hope when the day comes, i'll be able to find a guide that will be happy to take my $5K and a handshake. maybe that's foolishness on my part. maybe i'll only be able to afford to "self-guided" hunts, maybe pay someone to pack me in and out, etc. does that require tips as well? at what point can i simply pay someone to do their job, and hope they have the pride to do it well? the vast majority of us poor saps work without bonuses or tips, and are expected to perform well, or we lose our job. | |||
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Thank God I have very little urge to book paying hunts. I feel sorry for those that have to as the only way to get hunting. This thread reminds me why I prefer swapping with friends! | |||
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Mark; you left out your tip range for non dangerous mtn. game as found in ak. or canada? wellll Mark and Phil; When be guided by the outfitter would the outiftter be tipped the same as a guide or somewhat less because he is also the owner? For those situations where the client is guided by the outiftter who is functioning as a guide can be ackward. Cold Zero | |||
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CZ, If you want to give a larger tip for a sheep than a deer go for it. I'm not sure I would make a distintion as far as tipping went but that is my personal opinion only. Often the outfitter does not accept a tip because he benefits most financially from hunt cost. Once again in my opinion if the outfitter is personally guiding you he deserves a tip. I tip for service not to supplement the guide's income. As for tipping when hunitng with the outfitter being ackward I think at the end of the hunt it would be appropriate to ask the outfitter flat out if he would accept a tip. That eliminates any confusion on everybodys part. Mark MARK H. YOUNG MARK'S EXCLUSIVE ADVENTURES 7094 Oakleigh Dr. Las Vegas, NV 89110 Office 702-848-1693 Cell, Whats App, Signal 307-250-1156 PREFERRED E-mail markttc@msn.com Website: myexclusiveadventures.com Skype: markhyhunter Check us out on https://www.facebook.com/pages...ures/627027353990716 | |||
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I can't help but to throw in my $0.02 worth on this subject. Generally, tipping is not part of the culture in Australia. Wait sfatt, as an example, appreciate any tip offered, but as a rule, they don't expect to receive a tip from every customer. There is an expectation in Australia that the agreed price for any good or service is the final price, and that an additional tip will not be offered or expected. Also, generally, people in Australia do not rely on tips to supplement their income. Personally , I don't like tipping any person to do the job they are being paid to do. If the guide is expecting a $500 tip, I won't mind paying is the cost of the hunt was reduced accordingly. | |||
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The Accurate Reloading Forums THE ACCURATE RELOADING.COM FORUMS Hunting Alaska Hunting Forum How much for guide's Tip??
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