What is going on with tipping culture in the hunting industry?

[Bandera]

I’m about to depart on a 4 day dove hunt to Argentina. I received an email from the outfitter stating that we needed to bring $1000 per person for tips.

I am looking at booking a Dove Shoot in Argentina for 26. Please tell me what outfitter that is so I can stay away from them.

 

[Sabre]

It's possible that he doesn't even pay the guide. Ridiculous.

And that's the thing. At a certain point it stops feeling like a tip is a tip for a job well done. When outfitters start essentially demanding that a client leave a 20% minimum tip, then it is just the client paying the guide's wage for the outfitter. Or at the very least, massively subsidizing it.

When you are demanding a minimum tip, then it becomes a de facto increased price of the hunt that was hidden from the client, especially in cases where outfitters are sending these "tipping guides" out shortly before the hunt, or they are displayed at the lodge.

 

[wildwilderness]

Not so sure
How doesleaving a tip keep the business afloat??

The thought is it keeps employees working even though their true salary/hourly pay rate or is low.

Sort of transferring the cost of payroll to the consumer and not the business owner. Payroll is usually always the highest expense in a small business.

So in Covid lots of them cut employees and hours.

Problem is once prices and expectations go up they never go back without a bit of pain (as in an economic recession)

 

[Nyati]

Again.....

 

[Sabre]

What is overall opinion on tipping after unsuccessful hunt?

This subject was not much covered in famous tipping thread. I am divided on that.

Tipping is for the effort not the animal. I’d be more inclined to tip higher on an unsuccessful hunt where guide worked hard than a hunt where I finished on day 1. The guide can’t control the weather or animal movements especially on North American hunts with short seasons and tags for specific areas.

I am happy to tip my guide/PH well if we are unsuccessful if they are putting in the effort to make the hunt successful. Because it is hunting and anything can happen.

However, where I think the North American model of guided hunt is defective is in how it charges for hunts. All of the risk is on the client, which was acceptable when hunts were reasonably priced. However, now an elk hunt can easily be $25,000+ These costs are exorbitant and clients shouldn't be the only ones with skin in the game at prices like that, in my opinion. But, North Americans are conditioned to eat the risk from when hunts were reasonably priced and the hunting culture was formed.

A much better and more fair model would be a price for the hunt and a trophy fee upon success. But I don't fault outfitters for sticking with the current model while there are still enough clients willing to do it and pay those prices.

Either way, I don't think that pertains to the tip, which, for me, will always be a combination of effort and success. I won't tip a guide less for success on day 1 of a 5 day hunt just because they had to work less days. Maybe they put in so many hours scouting that we had quicker success. And I will still tip without success if they work hard and are fun to be around.

 

[Sabre]

Again.....

You of course have the option of not clicking on the thread and not commenting on it if it isn't to your liking.

 

[Muskox]

I am a 10% guy for the most part. Much More than that and we are just paying peoples salaries.

100%

 

[spike.t]

This isn't what I frequently see, which is the "how much should I tip", thread. But is about a newer recent trend about a sharp increase in expected tips and attitudes toward it.

Also, it always cracks me up how some people always have to complain if they have ever seen a similar thread before. I believe about 98% of the new threads posted are things I have seen before on the site. I don't feel the need to comment on every one of them about how it's been done before.

Simply because some have been beaten to death so many times...it does actually get boring....

 

[Borderer]

Tipping as you see it is not part of the Australian culture.

We do tip but it’s change or maybe a note dropped in a tip jar at a restaurant but my understanding is of the American lifestyle is different.

I read up on tipping before hunting Africa. I considered the breakdown etc and wanted to endure the lowest paid still got a mention and acknowledgement.

I would have my instruction to the outfitters in email.

Now, it’s all foreign to me and I did accept a quote and paid the price. I was told tipping is not essential but appreciated. It is customary in Africa and I did tip.

All that said if someone accepts a price in Australia it’s the price you pay. If someone accepts gives a tip it is because they genuinely appreciate the service or product and want to be generous. It’s not an expectation but I see it sneaking in on various billing systems etc and to be honest it’s Un-Australian.

Same here in the UK

 

[wildwilderness]

When tipping comes up I always think of the opening scene in Quentin Tarantino’s Reservoir Dogs-

 

[Mark Biggerstaff]

Again. I do not believe in percentage of hunt. I am a per day tipper depending upon the hunt and how hard they worked.
Ph $100 day PG. $150-175 DG depending on what all happens.
Trackers and drivers. $10-20 just depends
Cleaning and laundry $8-10
Cook $10-15. Real good up to $20 and depends also is i am only one in camp or sharing camp.
Maybe too much or too little to some. But this has worked for me last 6 trips and will continue this way.

Recently at local restaurant / bar.
Party of 8. I was picking up tab.
There was an 18% tip added to bill when looked over.

I asked for manager. Was told that is for large party’s. I said service wasn’t worth that and was lousy. Would not pay it and scratched off. Either run my card without the 18% or call the cops. They took it off and we left no tip. Service was that bad.

 

[Muskox]

The tipping culture, especially in the USA, has gotten ridiculous. I don't mind giving a good tip, but 30%? I dont think so.

a 20% Tip on a full bag safari of $80,000 is $16,000. That's a lot.

Go back to the $100 a day.

 

[Muskox]

Friends of mine, from my old F-Class days in Australia, and 2 from New Zealand were trying to put together a Krygistan trip for ibex. We got a required tip list before I sent a deposit and the tips were $3000 on a $7000 hunt this was about 9 years ago. $2000 for the interpreter and $1000 for the guides in new US $20 bills. You couldn't pre-pay the tip via IBAN or another bank transfer, it had to be cash. This was with a Canadian agent that I won't name.

My friends ended up going, I didn't as we had a new kid and I wasn't feeling a $3000 tip to go. They ended up having a miserable hunt, and only two of them got their goats.

Every time I see a hunting advertisement I search for anything about tips. I don't want to have a situation where I can't go back on a hunt because I didn't tip where someone wrote that they expected it.

 

[3chunter]

I haven’t been on many guided hunts in North America. Went on a $650 turkey hunt one time and I was self guided and didn’t tip anyone. I have been on a few guided duck hunts and didn’t tip, just paid the hunt fee. I usually go the lease route for deer but will be mule deer hunting this year and next year. $100/day might be what I tip at best unless I get into something really nice but that’s kind of why you pay the hunt cost in the first place. If my guide has went above and beyond then he might get $100/day. If not then I maybe inclined to go with $50/day. Especially when I have to rent a car and drive 3-5 hours myself to get to the lodge or whatever. A rental car for 5 days ends up being $500 by itself.

 

[Mtn_Infantry]

The tipping culture, especially in the USA, has gotten ridiculous. I don't mind giving a good tip, but 30%? I dont think so.

a 20% Tip on a full bag safari of $80,000 is $16,000. That's a lot.

I just want to know where the deal on the $80k full bag safari is happening

 

[jeff]

I was looking at a two day axis hunt in Hawaii with no meals or lodging and the suggested tip was $350 a day, besides the cost of the hunt, I didn't book. I work as a mechanic and I sure as heck don't make $350 a day let alone ever get a tip for repairing someone's vehichle. So what it really boils down to is it's a lot of $

 

[Happy Myles]

Somehow anxiety and conscience guilt should not be part of the tipping process. It is a gratuity not an obligation. Before i sign up for hunt I clear up the extra pay for staff with the outfitter. What i pay the PH is my business. I start at 100 per day and go up or down from there. A percentage of the hunt i do not consider. It seems to have worked for sixty years with only one minor complaint. Once I handed the PH $3000 in new 100 dollar bills and he said he usually got twice that. I smiled and suggested if he was not satisfied he could give it back. He laughed and declined. Once in Canada I had to bail my guide out of jail to have a hunt, that was a big mistake. I should have gone home.

 

[wyosteve]

I don't have a good answer to the question, but will relate personal experience. In the late '90's I guided archery elk hunters for an outfitter friend of mine. We were typically up at 4 a.m. and usually to bed by 10 p.m. The rest of the day (about 18 hrs.) was guiding, horseback riding, cleaning and hauling out elk. My weekly pay (6 day hunt)j was $500 gross, before taxes taken out. Net was about $360 if I recall. I remember one hunter (a lawyer) who tagged a nice 300 pt. bull. He had forgotten film for his camera (yeah, it was that long ago!), so I gave him a spare roll I kept in my pack. At the end of the hunt, not only did he not leave a tip, but didn't even pay me for the roll of film! Didn't take me long to recognize I was making about $3 per hour for the long days and never went back. So, I guess the point is that even $100 per day tip is not a lot given what the guide/PH has to put up with.

 

[Art Lambart II]

What I don't understand about tipping is why the PH gets more than your tracker. On my last safari in July of 24 my tracker did much more work for me than my PH did. While my PH and I enjoyed a nice lunch my tracker was cleaning and fueling the truck, overseeing if not actually skinning my game, and after I harvested my buffalo it was my tracker and other like him that skinned, processed and carried my buffalo out of the field while my PH and I enjoyed a cold beverage and warmed ourselfs in the sun. I'm not saying my PH didn't deserve his tip but my tracker worked alot for his tip than my PH did.

 

[CBH Australia]