Hi All, I don't think I've seen this topic tossed around here before. I'm wondering how you folks feel about tipping guides/instructors. I mean tipping in the sense of monetary gratuities or gifts not capsizing, though if you want to capsize your instructor just remember that all's fair in love and war. I'm in a fairly unique situation in that I'm very well paid for my services and I don't encourage or need tips. Sometimes students want to tip and are offended if I try to refuse them. I think that my situation is unique and that many guides or instructors are not well paid and tips are a large part of their income. This was certainly true when I was a full time guide in Maine. I would suggest that in general if you take a trip or class and the guide does a good job and goes out of their way to make sure your trip is a positive experience you tip them at the end. There is usually a lot more work that goes on behind the scenes that is never seen by the client. Interestingly I find that east coaters tend to tip guides and west coasters don't. Which strikes me as funny because I find that in the food industry the west coasters seem to be the big tippers. This is just based on my limited observations. On a similar note, it is great when clients take the time to drop the outfitter a short note telling them of any positive or negative experiences they had on the trip. Anyway how do you folks feel about this? Cheers, Rob Cookson "They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety" Benjamin Franklin *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced/forwarded outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
I don't really do many guided trips these days (I don't like people <g>), but the ones I have done I have always tipped the guides. I don't think I've ever seen anyone else do it. The guides I tipped ($10 or $20 each, as I recall) seemed grateful and not at all embarassed by the offer, which I always make with a friendly "I enjoyed myself and I'd like to buy you a beer," handing them a folded bill. It's an interesting question, but I do think it's a nice thing to do if the guides were good to you. I often take crewed day sails on beautiful old sailboats (there are a couple of little schooners I like in Maine, and a couple of nice classic boats in the BVI. . . stuff like that), and I always tip the crew, but not the captain (who is usually the owner). I think it's basically the same thing. . . Mark *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced/forwarded outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
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