The tedious Tip Question

[Foxi]

Hi Community,

In the German and European hunting forums, it is often a great discussion about the right tip to the PH and his staff.
The conclusion is in most cases ,that the world wide american hunters ruin the tip-prices.
I do not belive that, because the American hunters I met in the world, were mostly no Texas Oil-Millionaries but hard working men,like you and me.
And money plays a roll for everyone.
We know all, that in America ,when you are in a restaurant , you have to give 10-15% Tip for the Service.
But a invoice about 15-20.000 USD from a safari operator is an other house number.
And sometimes you hear demands for severel thousand Dollar tip..........
Everyone can imagine what a PH is giving tip to a mecanic,when he brings his car to repair................
In Europe, we accept the bill and are expecting a good and correct work.
But it's heavy for us, to accept tips by a few thousands of Dollars besides that.
When I give a tip,I whish to express my satisfaction and I don't wont to finance the employees of the safari operator.

What was your experiences ?
And an other question is,what do you think is the right number, for a tip by an average ,successfull hunt for 10days for a PH and staff for plains game (five trophies for example)

dangerous game
buff
lion
elefant
lepard

Alaska/Yukon moose

blackbear

brownbear/Grizzly

Mule deer

Wapiti

Wolf

Thank you
Foxi

 

[BRICKBURN]

Foxi this subject is always a contentious issue. Different cultures, practices around the world.

This is a long standing thread on the subject.
http://www.africahunting.com/threads/tipping-guide.183/

 

[Red Leg]

LOL, you should hear PHs complain about European hunters to Americans! "Worked my ass off for two bloody weeks - took and enormous (fill in the blank) - have to completely restock the bar and the cheap bastard shook my hand and left me a half a box of shells..." etc, etc. Generally, Americans do tip more than Europeans, though there are exceptions. We become use to it in restaurants where a service charge is rarely included. Most servers are working for below minimum wage, and so the tip is the primary source of their income. In much of Europe, that is figured into the bill, and so a tip truly is a gratuity. I think we both get trained from an early age.

For a PH, particularly one hired by the owner, those tips are a major part of their annual income as well. I figure around a 10% percentage against the daily rate, and I generally draw the line somewhere around $100 - 120 a day for DG. That is cheaper than daily charter tips (15-20%) which one will encounter from Hatteras to Costa Rica fishing for big game such as sails or tuna.

But as many have noted, you should follow your own instincts.