Tipping at lodges

[trophywife]

Ok, even at that it seems rich ?
In a typical 90 days season a guide would make $15K in tips ?

13,500 is a 90 day avg.. kinda normal for a guide who puts in long hours, stays positive and shows people a great time day in and day out. to do a full 90 days is tough.

most guests tip 50/day per head...

 

[Olde School]

Many lodges pay guides a day rate, then deduct lodging and meals.
A conscientious guide will spend significant time preparing for each day, then several more hours post trip detailing the boat (which often includes cleaning the head).
A 10 hour day is a unicorn. A 14 hour day is not abnormal. Do the math on the day rate - it is not great.
Tips make or break the summers for guides.
Shore staff bust their butts too.
Did you have a good time?

 

[ILHG]

Many lodges pay guides a day rate, then deduct lodging and meals.
A conscientious guide will spend significant time preparing for each day, then several more hours post trip detailing the boat (which often includes cleaning the head).
A 10 hour day is a unicorn. A 14 hour day is not abnormal. Do the math on the day rate - it is not great.
Tips make or break the summers for guides.
Shore staff bust their butts too.
Did you have a good time?

I agree I should tip, but how would you tip?

 

[SteelyDan]

I'll give em a tip alright. Just the tip

 

[Burban]

Tip what you feel comfortable with, based on your budget and their performance. I wouldn't feel bad about leaving under the "recommended" amount if I wasn't comfortable with the amount. But if you have a great day and had a great guide that made all the difference, then by all means, throw down on the tip to show your appreciation.

I understand that those guides and staff are working their assess off and giving it 110% out there, but if they're under paid over the season that's on their employers not you. In my opinion, lodge staff that aren't waiting on you personally should get a good wage and not depend on tips.

Id bring cash and decide after personally.

 

[Aces]

I have read some previous postings on the subject. Most were to do with day trips & also times are changing so fast the advice is probably out dated. (I have had the same hair cut for 20 yrs, so I know I am slow on changes) I know this would be a great place to get insight on what/how to tip when you are at a lodge for a 3-4 day trip. Every year at the end of the trip I am always faced with how to tip? To me a Charter is simpler. A lodge is a different story..

To be honest I don't like the idea of tips being split between all the staff at the lodge. Staff at lodges get paid a wage to do a job & don't see why the cook or room cleaner should get a tip. I think we are in an age where tipping has gotten crazy & employers subsidize employee wages with tips. (People need to be paid a decent living wage & tipping is allowing employers to avoid do it.) Also when you consider most folks wage & then cash that they don't have to claim for taxes, some of them can be doing very well. Lodges charge enough money they should be paying their staff a proper wage.... (Rant Over)

Guides on the other hand are a completely different story. They are the ones who make or break a trip. When I look back at a trip I couldn't tell you anything about what supper was like, or ever if the bed was comfortable. What I remember is time in the boat with the guide. Typically a tip is for someone who is exceeding expectations & went over & beyond what is expected. That said it is not based on how many fish you catch but on how hard they have worked & the quality of time on the water. I have had some great guides who will stay out when the bite is one or put in some extra time to get "That fish" for the day. I have also had guides who watch the clock the whole time and made sure they did not spend an extra minute on the water, or ran out of bait, or was miserable & was long over due to go home or get a visit from the old lady....

In summary I would like input on how a person should tip at a lodge when you are happy with the guide. (I already know how to tip when you are not happy with a guide).. Also is it wrong to meet the guide privately & give them cash & tell them its only for them? Or if you need to put it on a credit card is it wrong to speak to the manager & request the tip go 100% to the guide.

Honest feedback please. If I am wrong on this I want to know so I can have some self reflection & try not to be "That Guy"

While i am in the business and do appreciate the tips i think the pressure for the guests has gotten out of hand. I agree about the lodges...they are just another big business that only cares about it's profits and should pay their employees more. I will say that a tip on the credit card isn't a real tip.

I guide because i love the job. I like being on the water and the camaraderie on the boat with the guests. I stay out when the bite comes on and refuse to give up. Guess that's why i have survived for over 30 years and have a lot of repeat clientele.

Have a good trip!

 

[Foxsea]

...
A 10 hour day is a unicorn. A 14 hour day is not abnormal. Do the math on the day rate - it is not great.
Tips make or break the summers for guides.
Shore staff bust their butts too.
Did you have a good time?

If you can't afford the tip, you really can't afford the trip.

 

[scott craven]

I think when it comes right down to it, a tip is just that....
if the service is great, a tip is in order.
I do believe however, that people are all of different financial backgrounds
and any tip should be accepted with grace.

 

[Islander57]

I worked as a guide in the early 2000's on the central coast. Days were long, usually up at 3 a.m. getting the boat and gear ready to be off the dock for first light. The days were long. Out all morning until lunch, then back out for the afternoon. If the guest wanted a guide for after dinner, they had to pay the guide for that. Cleaning the catch after each outing also had to be done. I know when the guests arrive, they are given an orientation before heading out on the water, and in the case of the lodge I was at, tipping staff was addressed, including suggested amounts. Almost 100 straight days of this routine, every day without days off. Tips averaged $300.00 for a three day trip, $400.00 on a four day trip, so $100.00 a day in tips average. Luckily, we catered to a large number of Americans so lots of U.S. dollars which at that time, the Canadian dollar was about .66 cents against the U.S. dollar. But I have to say, you worked for your tips. The guests place high expectations of their guide to put tyees in the boat.
I think when it comes to tipping your guide, treat him well. There is a lot of unseen work he/she does to make your trip a memorable experience. BUT, if your guide hasn't made your trip enjoyable, his/her gratuity should reflect that, but lodge management should be spoken to by the guest as to why the guest is less than pleased. Tight lines and if you ever get the chance to visit a fishing lodge, I hope it is a trip of a lifetime!!

 

[mayday]

I will say that a tip on the credit card isn't a real tip.
!

Just curious though - what's the reasoning of why not a real tip?

 

[Dogbreath]

If you can't afford the tip, you really can't afford the trip.

That's the most ridiculous garbage ever- passive/aggressive bee ess of the lowest most twisted order-last I was at Langara it was $1,000/day and because it was So Expensive I have to pay a premium?

WTH?

Just curious though - what's the reasoning of why not a real tip?

Because the tax man gets his cut and it's not small.

 

[Foxsea]

That's the most ridiculous garbage ever- passive/aggressive bee ess of the lowest most twisted ...

Please elaborate. If you go out for a nice meal, do you not expect to tip? Why not at a nice lodge? Langara is clear that gratuities are expected and an additional cost:
http://www.langara.com/langara-fishing-lodge/rates-packages/

 

[SpringFever552]

Couldnt pay me enough to be a guide...
Loooooong fn days..my kid did it 2 summers and i went up to Queen Charlottes and fished with him one trip (4 days).. I was toast just from the fishing part....saw what they did EVERY DAY all summer..
Some complainers on here should go do it for a summer and then come back and re-read your comments...

Respect to all the full-time guides out there

 

[ericl]

I am heavily down with Foxsea - if you are paying for something where a tip is expected behavior, the right thing to do is to tip per expectations/common practice. We often don't have to do the right thing, but my deepest respect to those that do & my deepest disrespect to those that don't. I am sure that at the lodges some SERIOUS tips get handed-out.

I got paired-up on a lodge trip at Hippa. with another angler who lived close-by - Richard. Richard had just retired & his company paid for his trip. I have a truck, so I picked him up at his house, drove to Van, dropped him off at his hotel. When we got back to where the truck was parked, the bus driver loaded all the fish into the truck, 5-6 boxes; he had also loaded the fish at the airport. I started to hand him a tip while Richard muttered something about not having any change - no tip, so I hander the driver a $20 to cover Richard. Listened to him complain about women & FN's all the way home. Didn't get so much as a thank you for driving.

 

[Unreel]

All lodges pay guides flat rates for the day. Usually in the 150-200 range but most under 200. And most of the higher end lodges pay under 200, thats why they recommend such high tips for the guides. Some of the "higher end" lodges in the charlottes pay there guides like 150 a day and expect you to put in 10 hour days on the water plus time cleaning fish and cleaning the boat and prepping for next day. This usually amounts to 12-14 hour days, do the math and your barley making min wage.

Typically $100 a day is a base tip, so for a 3 day trip $300 min. If you tip like crap or don't tip word gets around these lodges and no guide will go above the bare min to get you on fish. Having said that if the guide could care less about his job and you didn't enjoy being on the water with him you should either say something to him or management and request someone else.
Tip good and guys will remember you and put in every effort to get you on fish including staying out hours longer than they should.

As a charter owner/ operator its different and ive learned to expect nothing for a tip and except anything graciously, if you don't do that you wont last.

 

[ILHG]

Thanks guys. I have an idea of how to tip now.

 

[Barnacle Bill]

Just curious though - what's the reasoning of why not a real tip?

Because sometimes the tip you added for the guide on your bill does not trickle down to him.
Best always to give your guide cash. Had the former happen to me too many times when I guided for a certain lodge.
Tip for the staff on your bill but always hand your guide cash and thank him for your trips out with him.

 

[casper5280]

As a charter owner/ operator its different and ive learned to expect nothing for a tip and except anything graciously, if you don't do that you wont last.

Very well said. A true professional

 

[ryanb]

If they keep turning up, then the wage is fair. If they don’t turn up then obviously it’s not enough and there are better opportunities elsewhere.

This is how the labor market works lads. I appreciate good service, but I won’t tip to the point I’m subsidizing someone’s lifestyle choice and a lodges yearning for money.

Now that you know the norms for guide tipping you can choose whether you think it's reasonable. If you book a trip and refuse to tip to the norm for good service that just makes you cheap.

 

[Tugcapitan]

This is one area where American fishermen in Canada kick our asses, well, except for people from Washington haha! (When you travel abroad you realize we as Canadians have a bad rep in the tipping department)
When the fish master and senior guides went through the list of guests to see who would get who, we remembered what happened in years past. Crappy tippers never got a shot at the top guides again. Unknown guests from Canada or Washington, or known cheap skates went to the junior guides. I know it’s an awful generalization, but it also seemed true more often than not (That being said some of the best guests were from Washington, but so were a lot of the worst). I’m not saying the way we dealt with it was right, it’s just how it was.
Those who were nice guys and tipped well went straight to the top guides. Their names were looked forward to every year, and you busted your butt and went every extra mile. You always did really, but there was always an extra gear for top guests.
There were a few exceptions, return guests who were so nice and enthusiastic and clearly barely scratched up enough dough to come up, they usually got their guide too through attitude alone, but it was rare.

20 years ago in the Charlottes for two guys on a 3 or 4 days trip, less than $200 CDN was very disappointing. $200 US was ok. $400-500 of either denomination was good, and $1000 was special.

At our lodge the guides and lodge staff were tipped separately.