Question: The question of how much to tip a guide has always plagued me, and that got me thinking, “Why do we have to tip at all?” I don’t tip my auto mechanic or the plumber who comes to fix my sink. They charge what they have to charge to stay in business, and if they do a crappy job, I hire someone else the next time. Why can’t guides operate like that?

Charlie G., Eureka, MO

Answer: This is a question that often comes up during discussions about tipping guides. The truth of the matter is that many people don’t like being forced to make a financial decision based on a nebulous “value” such as the quality of guiding. There are simply too many variables involved. For instance, on a tough fishing day, a guide might work his ass off to put you over just a couple fish, whereas some days you’ll catch 20 without the guide breaking a sweat. Which guy deserves the better tip? What makes a guide good, anyway? Is it just a numbers game, the quality of his shore lunch, the entertainment value of his conversation?

When you’re tipping a waitress, all you have to do is look at the bill and do a little financial calculation. When I was a waiter, however, I came to believe that 99 percent of diners don’t tip based on actual performance, unless your service was exceptionally good or exceptionally bad. People are just either “twenty-percenters” or “fifteen percenters” by nature. And since a guiding tip has not traditionally been tied to the cost of the trip—which can vary widely by destination—anglers are left to figure out a more complex calculation.

Marshall Cutchin’s excellent article on tipping offers some good general guidelines to help anglers negotiate this frustrating process, but I’ve talked to many folks who would like to simply remove the “tipping angst” from the process altogether. If the guide would simply charge more and not expect a tip, they argue, everything would be easier and above-board.

So I asked several guides what they thought of the idea, and here’s what they had to say. The names of the guides have been withheld to protect their identities. We’re talking about their livelihoods here, after all.

Outfitter/Guide #1: I'd like to think that guiding follows your auto-mechanic example, but it doesn't seem to. You'd think the guides who are rude or incompetent or totally disorganized would eventually lose their clientele and drop out of the business, but I see a lot of those guys in the field year after year, and they appear to be just as busy as everyone else.

I have had people in the industry suggest that better or more experienced guides should just charge a higher rate—that clients would be willing to pay the extra money, and this would allow the guide to dispense with tipping. But I don't think many of us have enough clients who recognize our value to pay this kind of surcharge above the going rate. And I don't think that would play well within the guide community. I imagine plenty of the excellent guides who do trips for my outfitting business would be offended (or pissed off or at least peeved) if I charged more for my trips than I do for theirs, just because I have 20 years of experience on them.

Guide #3: You may have a point, but the custom of tipping is now doctrine—and a good doctrine, in my eyes. Few things feel better than a hard-earned tip from somebody who noticed and cared. I also think that a tip is how you get paid for all the work you do when you’re not on the clock—scouting, learning an area on a day off, or otherwise enriching the basic guiding experience.

Guide #4: I work for an outfitter who already charges $550 for a full-day float in peak season, so it would be hard to raise the price even higher to make tipping unnecessary. That said, the tip should never cross your mind until you hit the burger stand on the way home or buy flies the next morning.

Guide #5: I would not take tipping out of the question, and here is why: I already get paid the rate I need to make the trip time worthy. Tipping is just a way for the customer to say you did your job above and beyond and this is a little something extra. But a tip is a nice way for them to say we would like you to restock the $6.00 Crease Flies we lost (all 5 of them) or the $15.00 Lucky Craft lures we broke off (all 3 of them). That is NOT priced in the fee I charge.

Guide #6: I couldn’t raise my price to cover the tip because the guy down the street will keep his price at $450 and undersell me.

What do you think? Would you be willing pay an extra $100 to get the guide with 20 years experience instead of the fuzz-lipped kid who’s trying to make money for college? Or do you figure that the fishing is easy enough on the Yellowstone or the Frying Pan that you don’t need that extra knowledge?

Article Comments:

How much time do you spend with your auto mechanic?? A guide spends the whole day with you, and if you don't know the difference between a bad guide and a good one, You are lucky enough to have never had a bad guide. It reminds me of a qoute I heard once, told to someone I was guidin' with in Alaska. A many times repeat client once said " Chris (the other guide not me) there is a fine line between a friendly knowledgable guide who it is a pleasure to spend a day on the river with and a f--kin' asshole, and you are walkin' that LINE!" A good guide makes a difference. Oh yea do you want to see my pay stubb from the expensive lodge I work at in Alaska!

Tight loops,

Steve and Brook

I practiced law for almost 40 years (before retiring last year) and
never expected a tip, just as my doctor, accountant and plumber don't.

And yes, extra experience justifies a higher rate in all of those
professions, and should in guiding too.

Tight lines,

David

I'm a long time guide in Montana. In the area I fish currently, the guides provide the lunch, gas, and shuttle (and a lot of flies). Along with appreciating a good day on the river, I hope the clients appreciate the fact that I go out of my way to provide not just a fishing day, but an experience. If they do, then a tip helps the guide cover extra expenses and a bit more.

The costs of a good guided day equal about $50/$60 a day in our area. Since I'm an independent operator and not an outfitter, that comes out of my pocket. I estimate that I put out about 25% of my income to make a good day for the client wether or not we catch fish. A large part of the day is the experience, convenience, personality, and memory of a good day on the river. If the fish are willing, better yet. On the other hand, I don't expect a tip. If I did this to make a living, I'd starve.

Phil Romans

Here in my area of North Carolina most of the guides work on a flat per trip rate with an outfitter; unless they are independent in the guide business. Many do this I feel because the cost of liability insurance and equipment update and purchase. Many are not interested in amortizing the cost of a drift boat against income over a five year period - and are definitely NOT interested in maintaining solid tax records.

What peeves me is the instruction you sometimes get from outfitters to "expect to tip" your guide an amount. I have been a waiter and with the exception of groups of older women (they always get out the calculator to figure out the exact breakdown on a bill to be split) I was well rewarded for my excellent service and paid out my bus person and other well to assure that I got good service from them.

Tipping should always be on an individual basis based on service provided. There will be some who feel that a low fish count is somehow related to the guide - and others who feel that only they are responsible for high fish counts. Life has a way of evening things out over time.

Michael

You're tipping your guide because of the experience  he is not a mechanic providing and service he is a professional providing an entire experience, if you can't afford a guides tip you do not need a guide.

Andrew Stiles, Richmond, VA