Tipping on tours ...
 

Can anyone tell me protocol for tipping tour guides on day tours out of London?? Thx for the help.<BR><BR>Bob

As a second facet of this question, what is the norm re tipping on the London Walks? Do you or don't you?

Hi Bob,<BR><BR>We have found different habits depending on the tour. Some very poor tour guides have received nothing and others have received a round of applause and a generous tip.<BR><BR>We try to not be the first ones off of the bus on the tour and observe what others are doing. If people are tipping and you want to, then do so. If you see that no one is tipping and you think the that the guide was not very good, then don't tip.<BR><BR>That is my opinion.<BR><BR>lynlor

Re: London Walks, I have taken quite a number of them over the years and I (cheap me) have never tipped. I have seen a few people tip at the end but most sail off into the sunset without tipping.<BR>HTH,<BR>Mara<BR>ps I haven't tipped on walking tours in Paris or Rome either.

I disagree with one of the above posts that talked about watching what other people do. I think you should always tip or not tip depending upon how YOU feel you were treated and the services that YOU received...NOT on what others are (are not) doing. Some folks wouldn't leave a tip if the guide keeled over and DIED for them because they're either just plain cheap or have never had to work for a tip in their life. I think the best rule in ALL situations is that you tip according to the quality and degree of services rendered.

Bootman:<BR><BR>I am the last person to behave like a lemming, but this persn did ask for &quot;protocol&quot; (Webster: protocol= rules and procedures)

Thx for the comments, appreciate them all.

We usually tip the tour guides on day trips out of London, but we haven't had a &quot;bad one&quot; as of yet. As for London Walks, we've never tipped and I've not seen anyone tip on the walks that I've taken.

On Day trips and City Tours, we have always tipped the guide--they do not get all the $$ that you might pay to go on a day trip, unless they own the company that operates the day trip. The City guides are often independent guides and as I understand it, get a basic fee from the tour company which books them for the City tour, but most depend on tips to supplement their income. Incomes might be great during tourist season, but it could be a long, cold winter!! IMO, of course.

Be sure that, if you feel that a very poor tour guide has been booked by a company, you make your complaint known, so that this person is not hired again, or is re-educated re: being a tour guide.

When my spouse and I are on a trip, we usually tip $1-2 USD per person, depending on how we felt about the way the tour was conducted. If the guide hints for tips, it is usually the lesser amount. Sometimes, with a fab city guide we might give more. We try to figure out what we might need for tips before we leave home--sometime we tip in the local currency (Euro) or in $1. No one seems to complain.

Tipping is a very personal thing, and I doubt that there is any concensus on it--or even a &quot;protocol&quot;. Do what YOU think is the proper thing.

My feeling is that you do what you feel is best and what is deserved. I have taken numerous tours around Europe and I have had numerous conversations with these guides. Usually they are not the richest people in the world nor the poorest. But, when I have a great tour and they really made my day, I personaly feel bad if I don't show my appreciation. I usually tip 5 or 10 euros. I have tipped less and more.

I look at it like this. I go to a restaurant back home and I get mediocare service during my meal. I might of had that waiter for about an hour and a half. I am still tiping them the &quot;standard&quot; 15% if they did a good job then more then that. When I take a tour, I am with that guide for usually twice that amount of time. They have done far more then bring a plate to my table, they have served me with the ability to understand the sites. At a hotel, the doorman helps me with my luggage and I slip him a few dollars. Why not tip a guide that, in my mind, has done far more then these other service positions.

We took a small (8 person) day trip out of London and had an excellent guide. We were shocked when no one tipped (we were the last drop off)him. We chose to tip 10 pounds (roughly 10%) and the guide seemed surprised, but very appreciative.

The other tourists were young (college age or early 20s) and another couple from Mexico - perhaps youth and cultural differences led to the lack of tipping, but nonetheless it was surprising.