Tips for Russian Guides

[Capt. Orca]

Can anyone give me some guidelines on standard tipping (and yes, I know I can always adjust the amount). I found only one old post on this topic. Thank you.

[jlr2482]

Also, is it better to tip in rubles or dollars?

[LHT28]

Also, is it better to tip in rubles or dollars?

 

Probably Euro

You can always ask what they prefer.

[stunnedinva]

Alla accepts payment by rubles, Euros, or dollars (or credit cards). I'm also anxious to hear responses to this thread from people who've already experienced this. Usually for a multiple-day group tour on land, we tip the guide $4-5/day pp and the driver $2-3/day pp. Because each person in our private tour will be paying over $300, I can't see tipping 15% or something as you would in a restaurant. :eek: I read somewhere that people just gave the guide and driver all their leftover rubles at the end of the second day.

[friendship]

Obviously tipping is very personal. When we went our guide Viktoria (spb-tours) was so wonderful and outstanding the four of us tipped her ten percent , the driver five and took them also to lunch every day. The lunches averaged $10. You can pay tips in any currency.

[friendship]

We got free tavelers checks and cashed them for free on the ship into dollars and paid that way. Our tours were priced in dollars from the start. Just remember money in Russia has to be without writing or tears.

[LHT28]

I am also interested in first hand experiences

I have read on some sites to tip $20. pp for the guide and $5. pp for the driver also read to tip 15% of the tour price.

If you have 4 people & the tour is $400. =$60.

 

I guess it depends on how good the guide is etc...

It is probably worth every $$ to have the private guided experience of Russia

[RetiredFL]

We went with Red October. We had them for three days. There were four of us.

We tipped the guide $100 total and the driver $50 total in US currency. Thats $12.50 per day per person.

 

They seemed satisfied.

[pattyj 1204]

We are doing the Alla complete SP and have been really stressing over what to tip. I don't want to not tip enough. There will be about 20 persons max on this tour. Has anyone taken this tour and what did you do for tips?

[Peregrina651]

Can anyone give me some guidelines on standard tipping (and yes, I know I can always adjust the amount). I found only one old post on this topic. Thank you.

 

There was a lot of discussion on the topic of tips/tipping last summer (and in previous years). Perhaps when you searched there was a filter limiting your search. Give it another try because it was a really hot topic.

 

One comment that I will make in reference to tips is that since last summer the dollar has weakened. The question to be asking this year's travelers--and not those of us who went last year--is how they feel about the dollar and would they prefer to be tipped rubles, euros or dollars. In years past, the dollar was welcomed, even sought after, but perhaps that situations has changed.

[Capt. Orca]

Just remember money in Russia has to be without writing or tears.

 

This is the first I heard about needing unmarked money. Are you speaking of US$ or any currency?

 

I also didn't think about tipping the guide as well as the driver. I assumed it was one and the same. We are a small group (4), and I just figured there would only be one person.

 

Sounds like 10% is standard tip, 15% is generous?

[LHT28]

This is the first I heard about needing unmarked money. Are you speaking of US$ or any currency?

 

 

This is for all money.

crisp new bills work the best;)

[Capt. Orca]

I sent our tour planner the question about what currency is recommended for tipping. I should have an answer in the morning, and will post her reply.

[mwdoug]

We were on an Alla tour on 5/10 and 5/11/08. There were only 4 of us on a 2 day "Comfort Tour". Our guide was Elena (there are 3 Alla guides with that name, I've discovered) and our driver was Valera. Both were simply excellent. We tipped the guide $120 and the driver $80. Our thinking on the tip per person was somewhat based on the small size of our group as well as the quality of the service. It was a bargain in any case.

[Capt. Orca]

Our Denrus tour planner responded today:

 

"You will have the guide and the driver. Regarding tips, for individuals we would recommend to calculate your per person tips in such a way, so that the guide gets about USD 40-60 per day from your whole group, the driver - about USD 25-40 per day from your whole group The tipping is normally done at the end of the entire program. All this is naturally subject to the good service rather than charity. US dollars "

 

I hope this information helps all us. Looks like you were spot-on, mwdoug.

 

After spending this much on a cruise, the last people I want to short-change are the tour guides who do all the actual work, and who, by all accounts, are pretty great.

[mek]

DH and I tipped the tour guide $75 and the driver $25 for 2 days. The other family with us had 4 people and they tipped a little more, but I don't think they doubled our tip.

[New Hampshire]

I will be touring with Alla for two days in July. There are four couples in our group and we will be tipping individually. My husband and I planned to tip $100 for the two days but weren't sure how to divide it between the guisde and driver. I was thinking of $60 for the guide and $40 for the driver. Can you explain why you divided the total the way you did?

[mek]

Well, the driver simply drove us around and dropped us off - picked us back up, while the guide was with us all the way, getting us in buildings in front of all the lines, proving fascinating information, and arranging lunch, etc. We felt she deserved the bulk of the tips. You really have to do what feels right for your situation.

[jc75644]

We were in St. Petersburg on May 10-11 and had scheduled a private tour for the 4 of us with Anastasia. The tour was absolutely perfect; somewhat costly (over $400 per person USD), but certainly worth it in our opinion. We tipped 15% of the total cost, per person, and split it 70% to the guide and 30% to the driver.