Do you tip shore excursions guides

[Ladylouwho]

We tip the guides and the bus drivers on our excursions. The amount depends on the length of the tour and the individuals. We have been very fortunate over the years to have some outstanding guides and drivers through our (mostly RCI) booked tours. Now if it is just a short shuttle drive, we will just tip a couple of bucks for the family.

 

My daughter went on a History Class tour with a small group from her College last year to Austria and Germany. The driver and guide were on the tour the entire week. In the packet from the tour officials it was stated that each person should tip her/his driver and guide at least $5 each per day. That certainly seemed reasonable to me.

 

Colleen

[BroncosFan2010]

Only if they went above and beyond to make our excursion extra special. Ship based excursions are over priced as it is, so I am more likely to tip a private excursion staff member.

[BND]

We always tip our guides, taxi and bus drivers. I'm curious why people don't tip for ship arranged tours? Is it because you think those guides and drivers make more than the independents? I'm betting they don't. It just seems a strange reason to not tip. It's like you're punishing the employees. Doesn't work for me at all and it comes across as being cheap.

 

If you feel the ship provided tours are overpriced, then don't do them.

Edited July 14, 2009 by BND

[tahoemc]

We typically tip a bus or taxi driver a couple bucks a person as well as the tour operator if they provide us what we paid for and make an effort to make our tour enjoyable. When we zip lined in Jamaica last year, the staff that assisted us were very accomodating and had us laughing our @$$&$ off. Our group showed some greenback appreciation for their efforts.

[SA Traveler]

We always tip a few dollars for either private or ship arranged tours.

[smoosh21]

I always tip something, usually $5-$10 for 2 of us, depending on how good the guide was.

 

I find it surprising that so many people say they refuse to tip if they booked it through the cruise line. I seriously doubt that RCI is giving these people good tips. Most of that extra money you are paying is going straight into the coffers of the cruise ship and not into the hands of the local people.

[G'ma]

We have booked all our shore excursions through RCCL. I know we could have done it much cheaper but being our first cruise, peace of mind is worth it for me.

 

Do we tip our guides? How much?

 

Cozumel - Sea Turtle Snorkel

Grand Caymen - Reef and Wreck Snorkel

Jamica - Chukka ATV Safari

 

Thank you for your help?

 

A rule of thumb is 10-15% of the price for the tour guide and a dollar or two for the driver.....

[Puffinater]

A rule of thumb is 10-15% of the price for the tour guide and a dollar or two for the driver.....

 

Where can one find this rule?

Edited July 14, 2009 by Puffinater

[coordinator23]

I usually tip $2-3 - both the driver and tour guide. Sometimes I give more if it was an especially good tour. I believe it encourages people to go the additional mile when they are tipped. Thus, the people who were on the excursion before me, who have tipped, encouraged my guide to continue to go above and beyond.

[critterchick]

I'll tip anywhere from a few dollars to $20, depending on the length of the excursion and how well everybody involved did their jobs. It doesn't bother me if they mention at the end that they rely on tips for their income. It would bother me if they mentioned it incessantly, but thankfully that hasn't happened to me often.

[luvscruising2007]

We have tipped on most of our tours, but not all. One in particular in Quebec we did not tip. We didn't think she was all that good; she was the tour guide.

We have not been so consistent with the bus driver.

Part of our problem is that we don't carry much cash with us off the ship.

So, I do feel guilty if we don't tip.

We'll just have to be more diligent.

[dmndlil]

We always tip the guide and the driver a few dollars.

[marci22]

A rule of thumb is 10-15% of the price for the tour guide and a dollar or two for the driver.....

 

Sometimes I do and sometimes I don't. When I do, it's usually a few dollars pp.

 

Someone above mentioned 10% for excursions and I think that is a reasonable ballpark. You can go up or down depending on your experience.

 

From what I have seen, most people do not tip on excursions.

Edited July 14, 2009 by marci22

[truffles2]

We always tip the guide and the driver. One time we did not tip the guide--she yakked on her cell phone the entire time and was worthless!

[SamFritz]

It is proper to tip tour guides $10 or 15% of the tour price. Here is a linke to an Orbitz Guide for tipping:

 

http://www.orbitz.com/App/ViewTravelWatchArticle?headline=Tips+on+tipping

 

And here's the quote from it:

Tour Guides and drivers: For extended tours, $1-$2 per person per day; for day trips, $10 or 15 percent of the tour cost per person.

 

 

During the summer months I work as tour guide in Niagara Falls. The tours I give cost $75.00 for a five to six hour trip. I both drive the bus and give the tour. I receive an average tip of $6.61 per person. I get paid minimum wage by my company. Some companies just give their driver/guides a flat fee of $40.00 no matter how long the tour takes. I am given a small commission from the one gift shop that we are contractually obligated to visit; it usually works out to about $12.00 per tour. My total hourly income with all of these revenue streams put together comes to about $23.00. Without tips it would be $9.00 and I wouldn't do it.

 

Tip your tour guides!

[chriskwarren]

My fiancee depends on tips in the restaurant industry. You would be surprised how much these workers depend on their tips for a living. Her night can be terrible if she gets a large group that takes all her time, and does not tip or does not tip well. It is especially unfair if she worked hard and did a good job. Some people look for excuses to not pay.

 

Some jurisdictions have laws that allow lower pay for people who get tips on a regular basis in their position. In Ontario, the min. wage for regular workers is $9.50/hr, and people who work in the service industry get $8.25/hr.

 

This may not apply to people doing tours, but it might in a particular jurisdiction. If it is customary to pay a tip, unless the service is terrible, a tip should be given. This includes ship's tours.

[turquoisesea]

Depends if the "tour" gave us more than expected, or if it was what we paid for! We've had some excursions that simply take you there, and bring you back....not "tippable" IMO! We've had some excursions that really went out of their way to give us a great time...and we did tip those guides!

Base your decision on your experience. You don't HAVE to tip...you won't be considered rude or cheap....and if they think that, that's THEIR problem---you won't see them ever again! Tip if it's worth it.

 

 

"ditto" for me.

Well said CB!!!:D

[A2Mich]

I always tip something, usually $5-$10 for 2 of us, depending on how good the guide was.

 

I find it surprising that so many people say they refuse to tip if they booked it through the cruise line. I seriously doubt that RCI is giving these people good tips. Most of that extra money you are paying is going straight into the coffers of the cruise ship and not into the hands of the local people.

 

BINGO !! Saw the same thing on High Profits on the High Seas special.....I believe it was said that anywhere from 30-50% of the cost of shore excursions was profit for the cruiselines. If anything, the local tour operators are actually paid LESS per person when booked through the cruise line.....but they are being spoon-fed VOLUME, and sometimes are locked into contracts with the cruise lines, where they can only run certain tours for certain cruise lines, or that they can't do any freelance touring, etc.

[romnan]

We for thw most part tip for services rendered It is very rare or the service has to be really bad for me to stiff someone

[MDSue]

Yes, I always tip the tour guide. I am sure they depend on tips just like food servers do.

If I'm with a busload of others, then I usually tip $5, but I would tip more for a small individualized tour.

[gagirl7143]

Always tip! Sometimes only a couple of bucks or much more if our guide is good!

[budmeister]

Yes, unless they irritate me for some reason.

[Grandma Dazzles]

I have a feeling this isn't limited to just the cruise line tours... I'm sure the local guides help out their friends & family by making sure the tour stops at their business..

 

Had to comment on this - a little off the subject - but brought back many happy memories. We booked a cab driver in Barbados to give us a tour of the island - he was wonderful - we arranged the price ahead of time for a 4-hour tour and he did not disappoint us.

 

The fun part was when he included a drive past his home on the tour - he also stopped at his mother's home and introduced us and went and picked bananas from a tree in her yard. He did also stop at a few local businesses and also his church. I felt he probably had a "deal" going with the businesses - they knew him very well; however, he was such a great tour guide we didn't mind. We paid him the agreed price, plus a good tip.

 

We also took his business card and recommended him to friends and family for future trips.

[Kittycatwlv]

We always tip our guides, taxi and bus drivers. I'm curious why people don't tip for ship arranged tours? Is it because you think those guides and drivers make more than the independents? I'm betting they don't. It just seems a strange reason to not tip. It's like you're punishing the employees. Doesn't work for me at all and it comes across as being cheap.

 

If you feel the ship provided tours are overpriced, then don't do them.

 

The OP asked what people do, not for you to call people cheap. It's answers like yours that discourage people from giving an honest answer to the question. Why do you need to to force your opinion on others, why not state what you do and let it go. If asked my opinion I would say people who over tip are insecure and try to buy recognition- but I wasn't asked my opinion :D

[ggo85]

We did all ships tours last month. As a general rule, we tipped the guide and the driver. Usually 5 Euros per couple for the guide and 3 or so for the driver. We had one fantastic guide and driver for an all-day tour along the Amalfi Coast where we tipped double that.

 

To me, it makes no difference whether or not it's a ship's tour. Tipping (whether to do so and the amount you give) is always a personal choice.