Tipping - help!
 

Hi,
i've read all the posts on tipping and realize the subject has been beaten to death. We are leaving on friday for Kenya/Tanzania. We will have a private safari with 4 people and 1 car for . If we take the recommended adivce of $10 per person per day for 11 days is $440. that seems like a very big sum for Tanzania! you can probably live half a year on that. is this really the appropriate amount?

My recollection from our trip this summer to South Africa and Botswana was that the recommended amount was $5 per person per day for the guide and the same to be shared by the staff. We thought that sounded low and since we liked our guides very much and so gave them a bit more and we also gave our tracker a tip. I think it really has to depend on the amount of servie you feel you got once you get to the end.

For a private safari, $40/day for the guide is standard, I believe.

$5/day per person on a group departure or at a camp where others share your vehicle is also standard.

$440 in tips for four people. How much is the safari costing the four of you? If the TOTAL cost is $6,000 then $440 sounds about right. I know, I know, when you add it all up $440 is a good piece of change. But look at the whole deal. Just my $.02 worth.
regards - tom

for what you're getting, $10.00 a day is peanuts. would you work for $10.00 a day? even $40.00? if the guide is good and everyday is an adventure, tip more than that-they need it more than we do!

Hi lerasp, like you, we had a four person private safari to Kenya and Tanzania last June. Our agent told us the standard tip for a guide/driver was $3-$5 (USD) per person per day, but that it was voluntary and depended on what kind of service we felt we got. We had two guides, one in Kenya and the other in Tanzania, and were very pleased with both of them. I believe we all ended up tipping about $5 a day per person. Have a great trip! Jack :)