Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Elk Hunting proper tipping

When I go to Rome I do like the Romans but, honestly, I don't feel comfortable with this 10-15% tipping.

In my mind a tip is an extra, a completely discretional decision, and not something compulsory, obligated, and part of the salary which the guide needs to make his job worthwhile, and a cost which the employer transfers directly to the client.

I guess it is a matter of culture which In Europe is different to yours in the US. Here, waiters don't put a pistol in your chest to get a 15% service fee which, if needed as part of the salary, I just cant't understand why it is not included in the base prices shown in the carte.

We had one guide that worked for us that complained he didn't get a tip. After explaining in no uncertain terms "tips were discretionary and should not be expected" we no longer employ that guide.

Now what is expected is a good attitude and a certain amount of effort by the hunter, regardless of what they are paying. We will work hard during the hunt, but that is really just minimum compared to work and costs the rest of the year getting to the hunt.

So, if you tip your hat on the way out as appreciation for a job well done, we are good with that. If you tip your hat sarcastically, kinda how I took your comment, then you better hurry when leaving the gate cause it is about to hit you in your backside. Hope I misread your comment.

Having the outfitter charge you up front to compensate for no tipping would end up costing you more than if you just tip the guide directly. Outfitter would have to pay all the employment taxes on top of that money.

Do you tell your waitress this when you go out to eat? Tipping has been the defacto standard for all service industry jobs since before we were born.

If you can tip your waitress, or your guide, don't go out to eat, and don't go on any guided hunts.

When I buy what I want to eat I just go to a grocery store. I don't see any point to these Bwana faux hunts.

IF you just want some guy to point to it, hold the gun for you to pull the trigger I'd just take a side of beef and hang it on the fence. Get a lot more and better meat for your money.

I gave my guide $500 last year. So $100 a day. I didnt tip the outfitter. Not sure if that was right or not.

My guide brought his own side by side and treated me like a friend and went out of his way to get me on game every day.
I had the most opportunities out of the whole camp.
But I’m also a DIY guy and we hunted hunted, like regular dudes. When we came up to a gate, I got out and opened/closed gates like I would if I was the passenger in my camp. Helped strap down the side by in the trailer, etc…
Just because I was a paying client doesn’t mean I can’t help.
And it went a long way.

Hilarious...

You are really special.

Have been "guiding" myself for decades in Montana, along with sometimes guiding for an outfitter. If you've never done it, from either side, then you have no clue.

Plus, there are plenty of places on this planet where, if you want to hunt there, you must go with an outfitter/guide, by law. If you have no curiosity about that, well then good.

But if somebody else does, that doesn't mean they're "bad." In fact, have been guided by more than one outfitter here in Montana who asked me to guide for his outfit, one after our first day.

But just your comment, "IF you just want some guy to point to it, hold the gun for you to pull the trigger" is enough to tell you have no clue about what you're talking about.

I tip commensurate to the service and bring mega millions and power ball tickets to camp. I enjoy the reaction to the tickets and I'll be darn if some have sent me a personal note saying they won something.

(Ha!) On the other hand, have often offered guides the option of cash, or my binocular (often much better than theirs) or something similar, such as my spotting-scope tripod. So far all have taken the non-cash option.

I know one guy who was strictly head hunting only who signed over a huge elk carcass to the young guide with a young family.

The guide was very happy.

I have not ever used a guide but have met a few surly ones on public land, some even told me I could not go where I wanted to go. Those are the guides I tip my hat sarcastically to as I walk on by. If I were to go hunt Alaska I would use a guide and tip him what he earned.

You obviously know nothing about guided or outfitted hunts.
The meat is way better than any hormone fed beef you bought in the store but if that's what you like , enjoy.

Haven’t done much guided big game hunting as I am lucky to have had a father that taught me to hunt and to live in a place where game is plentiful. Same with fishing, but I’ve paid for a fishing guide and will do so again, and this is no different than big game hunting. I can generally catch fish wherever I go, but when I went to New Zealand I was very happy to have a guide and I tipped him well. A similar situation came up last summer on the Harriman (Railroad Ranch) section of the Henry’s Fork of the Snake River. The previous summer I fished there and did okay, but this is some of the best and most difficult fly fishing in the world. Last summer my wife and I booked a guided day and it was one of our best fishing days ever. We didn’t realize when we booked that we would be with John McDaniel, who literally wrote the book on fishing this stretch. What we learned in our 8 hours with him was incredible…doubt we could have ever learned it on our own no matter how much we fished there. Point being that we can always learn more, and we will never have the local knowledge that only a long time local can have. I am very happy that there are long time locals out there who are able and willing to share their knowledge of their particular trout or elk or kudu or whatever with us. Many of us here are accomplished hunters and fisherman, and there is no threat to our manliness in hiring a guide. Quite the opposite for those of us who are willing to set our egos aside so we can learn. So anyhoo, 20% or better seems right, all else being equal.

I've seen this come up a few times and thought 15% of the hunt cost was the norm. Most of it goes to the guide but anyone that provides a significant service like a cook or wrangler should get a share as well.

Every one has a different experience and approach. I have used the same guide for 8 hunts over 20 years. We had a good hunt the first time out and got along well. I gave him a 15% tip. We went to his wedding several years (and one hunt) later. Over subsequent hunts I got to know his young kids. I'd come into town a day or two early to get used to the elevation and help get everything ready for the hunt. I'd have dinner with the family. After our 4th hunt, we no longer hunted out of the big camp with other guides and hunters, we did our own thing. I now give him a larger tip.

Bare minimum 10%. If Your guide takes care of you and you take a good animal Bump that up to 15%-20%

My best tip was to a guide who did a fantastic job and whose gear was showing lotsa wear.

I’ve guided for a few years in Wyoming. I’ve never met another guide who wasn’t at least hoping if not expecting a tip. Now whether or not they deserved one could be debated. Like someone above posted it is the de facto norm, like it or not. If you don’t tip or tip poorly you will be remembered. If you tip well it’ll be appreciated. I’ve guided guys from fairly normal incomes to extremely wealthy. One guy who was extremely wealthy, and a lazy hunter, straight up told me his tip amount would depend on how big his bull was. Which isn’t something totally in my control. That was maybe the only conversation I’ve had with a client I was guiding about tipping. Other than when the tip was actually given.

I’ve had some bad tips that I thought were too low. I can tell you I won’t guide them again. I’ve seen fellow guides get shorted by clients and I wouldn’t guide them either.

If you can’t afford a generous tip, when deserved, you can’t afford the hunt.

I think it’s funny that African outfitters charge for a rifle rental. Maybe my next client I guide I’ll charge a saddle rental.😜. But as yet another poster said when in Rome.

if the guide is a decent guy doing his job...tip him....lazy jackass...fug him......same for the cook......that doesn't mean they have to kiss your ass...just be good people.....

if you don't tip because the guide doesn't deserve it.....don't worry about them guiding you again....if the outfitter doesn't employ good hard working guides ...don't spend your money with them.....bob

I agree with this.

You folk that are paying guides and for hunts really ain’t hunting. This is just another discussion for the elites and supremacist. A paid excursion doesn’t make it hunting no matter the animal or environment.

Same goes for hunts anywhere in the world.

So if you have that trophy on the wall from a paid “hunt”, let it be a reminder of how helpless and pathetic you really are.