How Much to Tip on a Liveaboard

[rakpix]

i've gotten a rough estimate of tipping sense over several trips. usually following the rule-of-thumb of $5 per tank to the divemaster. the highest tip i've given was $60 for a full week of morning dives with scuba mau, cozumel. but i'm getting ready to go on my first liveaboard trip, and don't really know the norm. what is an average tip for a liveaboard crew (raggressor/dancer, blackbeard, etc?)

 

[on_two_wheels]

I haven't done a liveaboard except an overnighter. They failed to check people in/out the first two dives and all 4 dives were at different sites than what we expected. I dropped in $10 just because the guy filling the tanks did a GREAT job. Point being....depends on the service IMO. If the whole crew does a great job I'd go up to 20% and reduce it for drawbacks, reasonable disappointments, etc.

 

[beautybelow]

20% would be an above average..., 10%...average...and so on. However, if you did get a deeply discounted charter remember the staff probably didn't give you discounted service.

 

[BDSC]

However, if you did get a deeply discounted charter remember the staff probably didn't give you discounted service.

That's a good point. Sometimes you can get a heck of a discount if you can go last minute but you don't get discounted service. We have a group of 18 going to Roatan in a week or so and we are getting a really great deal. I have encouraged the folks to remember the normal rate for this trip when they are figuring out how much to tip.

As far as a liveaboard goes, I usually hear from a norm of 10% to a high of 15%. If you are going on one of those 10 + day trips for about $4000 and up, tips can really start to add up in a hurry. I'm also one of those people that would like to see the operators just up the price to include tips but I don't think it will ever happen.

 

[PvtStash]

Does the price you pay to actually Do the trip buy any service? or is Any and All service extra?

 

[beautybelow]

Does the price you pay to actually Do the trip buy any service? or is Any and All service extra?

Of course the price you pay includes the service. It is like any other part of the "service industry" in which gratuity is involved. That is one reason I don't think it would be wise to include "gratuity" in the initial cost of a charter. Having been involved in keeping the service standards up on more than one live aboard, I have to tell you that working for gratuities at the end of the week can be a substantial motivator. Let's face it...it is a job, even if it appears to be every diver's dream job. So, yes the "service" is included in the cost of the charter. Gratuity is just that....showing gratitude for most usually going above and beyond the simple "service" that would be expected in such an atmosphere.

 

[diversteve]

Sometime during the week you'll get a letter/envelope or similar with the suggested tip amount. It's usually going to be 10-15% of your total trip price - less surcharges. It will be split among the entire crew. It will also be suggested that if someone does something you wish to reward privately, you can do that as well.

You generally pay it when you settle up with the ship's purser - most often the last day/night you're onboard.

Cash works better for them to distribute among the crew usually.

My normal tip on week long liveaboards is 20% since most that I've been on the crew members do at least double duty - most work the divedeck, clean rooms, take watches, serve meals and generally do whatever is necessary. And will usually DM/dive wth you if asked. I back that down if service is sub-par - so far it's been the opposite, the service has exceeded my expectations - I've been going on better trips lately...

Depending on your trip schedule, you can also do other things. On the T/C Explorer recently, the Captain and several crew members arranged for and accompanied a large group of us to dinner in port the last night - although they do it for every group - we paid for their drinks/meals.

 

[Tropicalwolf]

I'd quote Mr Pink from Reservoir Dogs, but I don't feel like typing that much.

 

[beautybelow]

letter/envelope or similar with the suggested tip amount.

I have never been involved with a company that let the staff or Captain or boat manager suggest a tip amount. It makes it hard too when people come right out and ask. I am sure there are boats out there that do that but don't rely on that happening.

 

[Tropicalwolf]

Gratuity is just that....showing gratitude for most usually going above and beyond the simple "service" that would be expected in such an atmosphere.

I pay a base price, therefore I pay for basic service, I expect basic service. See, I pay for what I expect. If they do more, that's on them. Don't "expect" more. It's a simple concept.

And doing "a little extra" is not enough...it better be pretty extraordinary, i.e. Something that i would not have gotten from someone else's "basic" service.