Tipping Fishing guides

[Basscat]

3 of us are going to LOTW soon and renting a sleeper fishouse. Are you supposed to tip the guides? How much? I suppose the better the fishing, the higher the tip? Thanks for the input.

[Sonicrunch]

you catch fish, you tip. no fish, no tip.

[Steve Foss]

3 of us are going to LOTW soon and renting a sleeper fishouse. Are you supposed to tip the guides? How much? I suppose the better the fishing, the higher the tip? Thanks for the input.

Depends. Some tip based on fish caught. Others tip based on the value of their experience, how much they learned, and how much fun they had. Some never tip no matter what, and that's certainly their prerogative.

If fish numbers are your priority, then tip based on how many fish caught. In the case of a LOW sleeper, where you're really not in the hands of a guide (except for a few check-ins by sleeper staff now and then) my guess is you're wanting numbers and/or size. In that case I'd tip accordingly.

If a guide is with you all day and working alongside you to put you on fish and teach you the ropes, then tipping for that experience, rather than necessarily just off the numbers of fish caught, would be in order. The times I was in LOW sleeper houses, we didn't get checked on that often, but we didn't need to be, either.

[jwmiller33]

one has to understand the sport of fishing has its ups and downs... sometimes, fishing is so good, 'even a blind squirrel can find a nut' so to speak. and somedays, you could be with the best guide in the world and the fish just arent going to bite and its a real slow day. dont let this be the only factor in determining how much you tip a guide. it obviously should have some impact, but not solely 100%.

Moreover, i would say judge your tip based on the amount of work the guides do for you. how hard do they work and how many times do they come and check in on you during the day? if they just drop you off and pick you up at the end of the day, i'm not going to tip as much as i would if they stopped in and checked in on us a few times throughout the day.

[blackdog1101]

If the guide works hard to put you on fish, then I typically tip pretty well. Even a very good guide can't make the fish bite. All he can do is work hard to put you on fish, recommend the right baits and lures, and give you the best chances to catch fish. But they still can't guarantee the fish are going to bite.

[Seabass77]

Most of my perspective has been stated but one thing to add, are you guided by the owner or someone that works for them.

I usually don't tip the guy who sets the rates as much as the guy making $10 an hr.

I'll also add, I think tips should stay in the same realm as other services 10-20%. Seems like some guides I talk to expect crazy tips just because someone did catch a big fish, does that mean you get nothing when I don't?

[harvey lee]

Can't say I tip much for a house rental. If I was renting a h0use and the owner really went out of his way, then yes I may tip him $50.00 for a weekend.

Now, for a guide for open water fishing, typically if the guide does a great job in showing us some tips and such, a hondo is usually my tip.

How many fish I catch has nothing to do with what I tip as there are days when the fish simply do not turn on.

[blakeb]

i think that if it is a guide that is working for a lodge and only gets a percentage cut from the lodge owner he gets a tip.

if it is a guide that works for himself and is already getting three or four hundred dollars to take me fishing, thats a good days wage, a tip isn't leaving my pocket.

[traveler]

Hmmm...never even occoured to me to tip on a sleeper rental, yet I've been tipping guides for years. I guess I don't look at them the same way. If I knew the fishhouse owners had flunkys who were doing the grunt work, I'd likely tip them, but the few times I've rented a sleeper it's just been a drop-off, check in type of thing, not what i consider a "guide" situation.

That being said, I feel strongly that tipping should be based on effort, expertise, and attitude, NOT on the amount of fish/game bagged.

[Tom Buckles]

I agree with Traveler. Dont base it on the amount of fish you catch. Base it on the amount of service you get. I have rented sleepers where they just drop you off and pick you up when your done. If you needed anything, you had to call or flag them down. I dont tip with that type of service. On the other hand, I have had experiences where the resort workers come and check on us multiple times a day and really go out of there way to make sure we are enjoying ourselves. I always tip these guys really well.

[Crm7290]

When we went up to Mille Lacs we had a guy coming back and forth to check on us every day. He was a nice guy but in reality he did nothing to act lke a guide. We found out he was a "guide" working for the resort, but we didn't tip a cent because he mostly just told us nothing was biting and that was that.

If I went online and found a guide service and the guy worked hard to get us to catch some fish I would probably tip about 15%. Most of the money given to a guide is profit anyways isn't it? Besides gas if you bring your own lures, what does the guide have to pay for that requires me to give a tip for him?

[Ed Carlson]

If your package expectations are met, and or exceeded..a tip may be in order. It's certainly a case bye case type deal.

It is always best to make clear to the guide what your individual needs are. A guide should also try to establish what the clients expectations are and and special needs prior to the trip. They will go the extra mile to fill them. You will know it when you see it.

If they do not, well...there is your answer on if a tip is warranted, or not.

Speaking personally as a guide, I do not "Expect" a tip. If I get one.."Kewl"...I must have done the job to the customers expectations and/or exceeded them. If I do not get one, It may be an indication I better step up my game, and try a bit harder.

[Acemac]

I have never used a guide but I would have a hard time tipiing a guy that I was already paying to go fishing.

On the other hand if one of you guides wants to take me out I will split your gas money and tip you if we catch fish.

hmmm.. tipping is strange to me I have no issue tossing the barber 5 bones every time i get my hair cut but I would never tip a mechanic or a fishing guide...

[Acemac]

i think that if it is a guide that is working for a lodge and only gets a percentage cut from the lodge owner he gets a tip.

if it is a guide that works for himself and is already getting three or four hundred dollars to take me fishing, thats a good days wage, a tip isn't leaving my pocket.

This I can agree with 100% that really clears it up in my head.

[herefish101]

In a sleeper shack I would not tip unless they go out of their way to get you on fish, like if they actually moved the shack or somthing, but they usually just tell you that nobody is catching fish and then they leave, to me that warrents no tip, even if they tell me the hot jig or color. Now most of the time I judge it all on personality, if their funny and fun and help out alot that warrents a tip, we always tip the dude that runs us to and fro on lake of the woods, we always go to the same place and this guy is great, it's worth the extra 20 bucks a peice, by the time 15-20 people do that he's usually pretty happy, and he always remembers us.

[Basscat]

The place where we rented the house from said that they haul you to and from the house, check on you a couple tims a day, and will move the house if things aren't going well. I understand that catching a fish isn't a garantee, so the tip shouldn't be based on that. Rather, it should be basesd on the amount of effort the place puts into your time there. I suppose it would be like tipping at any resteraunt. 10% for an ok experience, more for a better experience.

[rugbymn]

i think that if it is a guide that is working for a lodge and only gets a percentage cut from the lodge owner he gets a tip.

if it is a guide that works for himself and is already getting three or four hundred dollars to take me fishing, thats a good days wage, a tip isn't leaving my pocket.

I've never been on a guided trip, but this is kind of the way I feel.

I'd like to get a guide's perspective on this.

[ozzie]

look back to Ed's post....last paragraph

[russ]

Do guides/resorts give the client a monetary tip/refund if you have a bad experience or didn't get the services that were advertised? Seems it should work that way if they are tipped for service over and above the norm. Just sayin' I agree tho, some guides and employees definatley go the extra mile and my tip to them would be return business.

[Steve Foss]

i think that if it is a guide that is working for a lodge and only gets a percentage cut from the lodge owner he gets a tip. if it is a guide that works for himself and is already getting three or four hundred dollars to take me fishing, thats a good days wage, a tip isn't leaving my pocket.

[mixxedbagg]

I wouldn't tip for a sleeper, but I'd tip if that guide were actually fishing with me if he were working hard.

Now, I actually do some guiding on occasion. Not fishing...birdwatchers. It's more comparable than you might think. I have been tipped most times. I set the rate, so I never expect it and wouldn't be upset if I didn't get one, but I certainly won't turn a tip down! The neatest tips I have received have been gifts rather than money. It's nice to get a gift certificate or a book rather than a $20 once in a while.

You should know, and I'm sure it's the same with both fishing and birdwatching...A GOOD GUIDE IS WORKING HARDEST WHEN YOU DON'T GET THE RESULTS YOU ARE HOPING FOR. Trust me...if I told someone I thought we could see a particular species and we aren't finding one--it's probably more upsetting to me than to them. I'll maintain a good demeanor and conversation on the outside, but I'll be frantically trying to think of something else new to try. I'm sure conscientious fishing guides are also sweating and trying to formulate plans B, C, and D if you aren't catching fish.

Those days when everything comes together are the days I relax, have fun, and think "easy money". Those are probably the days I LEAST deserve a tip...'cause nature did all the work.

[uptracker]

I got reamed for this a few years back, so I'll just say.... if you pay for a full day of steelheading via driftboat at $350.....tip at least $75. Do what you want on a icefishing trip.

I went with the old stand by on bear hunts of 5-10% while I was on another site and got screamed at for weeks.

[mixxedbagg]

Quote:

I went with the old stand by on bear hunts of 5-10% while I was on another site and got screamed at for weeks.

What?!? I think that fact that you were willing to tip 5-10% is actually pretty considerate. It's one thing to get on someone for stiffing, it's another to freak out saying that a reasonable tip isn't big enough. If a guide is RELYING on tips to pay his costs, he needs to up his rates. Wow.

[Steve Foss]

I went with the old stand by on bear hunts of 5-10% while I was on another site and got screamed at for weeks.

Interesting. I guide/teach photographers as well as anglers, and (discarding a few unusually high numbers that would skew the average) 10 percent is probably how things average out for me over the long haul for both businesses. A tip is a nice bonus, not an expectation.

I can't imagine someone hollering at someone else for not tipping enough. That's the client's business and nobody else's.

[Sonicrunch]

How about when you go to Florida and take a guided trip. I wouldn't be there to learn, I would be there to catch fish.

So.. Would you tip a Florida guide if you didn't catch fish?