Tipping Guide

[375Fox]

Hi all, the OP was a great read! That said, it's from 2008. Is there an updated tip guide? I read the most recent couple pages though it tends to cover various aspects.
This is my hunt partner and my first African hunt. We live/hunt Montana DIY. Not really familiar with tipping outfitted adventures.

I've been told a rough overall guide is the following: 10% avg-good and 15% for good-great for the complete experience paid at the end. The owner/head operator has a % the tip is divided, based on each person's responsibility.

This a fair practice or?

Where are you going hunting? A ranch hunt in South Africa or Namibia is very different than a concession hunt in Zimbabwe. A ranch hunt is generally +/- $100 a day to PH, maybe $10-15 a day each to tracker and skinner, $20 a day to cook, $5-10 a day to housekeeping. A hunt in concession area is usually +/- $150 day to PH and generally the same amount divided amongst the much larger staff. I generally don’t base tips on a percentage of the hunt unless maybe it was a very low cost package hunt. Tips get adjusted up or down based on the trip and work put in.

 

[Sytes]

Where are you going hunting? A ranch hunt in South Africa or Namibia is very different than a concession hunt in Zimbabwe. A ranch hunt is generally +/- $100 a day to PH, maybe $10-15 a day each to tracker and skinner, $20 a day to cook, $5-10 a day to housekeeping. A hunt in concession area is usually +/- $150 day to PH and generally the same amount divided amongst the much larger staff. I generally don’t base tips on a percentage of the hunt unless maybe it was a very low cost package hunt. Tips get adjusted up or down based on the trip and work put in.

Appreciate the info.
We are going to South Africa. As I understand we're hunting moutains and coastal/low land - two locations. I believe one is on their ranch, the other is a concession. Daily PH fee for 2+1 is $350 each + trophy fee. Accommodations, etc are part of the $350 daily.

Communication has been great though this is the one question I'd like to understand entering the scene. Also, from reading some of the posts here, cash USD or Rand is preferred and it sounds as though the SA Rand is better than USD, at the equivelant rate?
As I read your post, do you tip daily upon service or at the end of the hunt when wrapping up the bill?

I may sound new because I'm flat out of my element. Hah! Do people share the company they're using on the forum or after, if intending to share the success and give a nod for their service?

 

[Andrew62]

Appreciate the info.
We are going to South Africa. As I understand we're hunting moutains and coastal/low land - two locations. I believe one is on their ranch, the other is a concession. Daily PH fee for 2+1 is $350 each + trophy fee. Accommodations, etc are part of the $350 daily.

Communication has been great though this is the one question I'd like to understand entering the scene. Also, from reading some of the posts here, cash USD or Rand is preferred and it sounds as though the SA Rand is better than USD, at the equivelant rate?
As I read your post, do you tip daily upon service or at the end of the hunt when wrapping up the bill?

I may sound new because I'm flat out of my element. Hah! Do people share the company they're using on the forum or after, if intending to share the success and give a nod for their service?

I try to take Rand to tip out the staff. I tip US cash to my guide. I tip on the very last day, so when I get to camp, I lock up my cash and paperwork in my gun case and that is where it stays. I see no reason or value in tipping daily.

You are certainly welcome to say who you are hunting with, in fact I suggest you do so that others who have already hunted there may have tips or suggestions for where you are hunting.

 

[Sytes]

We were referred to LJ Safaris from a well respected hunter on a US DIY (primarily) based hunt forum. As I mentioned, the communication with Juan has been great! We are set for mid/end of this September. It's finally here and now it seems time suddenly began ticking much faster and questions I should have asked earlier are now at the forefront.

 

[Rare Breed]

Hi all, the OP was a great read! That said, it's from 2008. Is there an updated tip guide? I read the most recent couple pages though it tends to cover various aspects.
This is my hunt partner and my first African hunt. We live/hunt Montana DIY. Not really familiar with tipping outfitted adventures.

I've been told a rough overall guide is the following: 10% avg-good and 15% for good-great for the complete experience paid at the end. The owner/head operator has a % the tip is divided, based on each person's responsibility.

This a fair practice or?

I think the best example is what each of us has done. On my April hunt of 7 days for my elephant I did the following given it was an outstanding hunt:
PH: $1,000
Trackers: $200 each
Staff: $100 each
Government people each: $100
This was just what I chose to do

 

[Happy Myles]

In

 

[375Fox]

Appreciate the info.
We are going to South Africa. As I understand we're hunting moutains and coastal/low land - two locations. I believe one is on their ranch, the other is a concession. Daily PH fee for 2+1 is $350 each + trophy fee. Accommodations, etc are part of the $350 daily.

Communication has been great though this is the one question I'd like to understand entering the scene. Also, from reading some of the posts here, cash USD or Rand is preferred and it sounds as though the SA Rand is better than USD, at the equivelant rate?
As I read your post, do you tip daily upon service or at the end of the hunt when wrapping up the bill?

I may sound new because I'm flat out of my element. Hah! Do people share the company they're using on the forum or after, if intending to share the success and give a nod for their service?

That type of hunt will fall under the ranch hunting guidelines I gave. For a 2:1 hunt I’d split the difference with both hunters and tip more or less based on service. A concession outside South Africa refers to large government or community areas usually with several dangerous game species. Some large farms might get referred to as concessions in South Africa but they are still farms/ranches and easier for outfitters and PHs to operate from. Tips are paid one time at the end of the hunt based on how you felt about the hunt as a whole. PH in US dollars. Staff in US or local currency but I find it easier to give US dollars. They have their system to get it converted.

 

[.300RUM]

For a 5 day hunt, about 1 grand max for the camp folks is what to expect. About half to your PH, and break it down from there. It could vary depending on the amount of animals hunted, how pleased you were with the PH and staff, etc.

I hunted for five days, trophy Waterbuck, trophy female Gemsbok and a great Impala, and tipped my PH $500 USD, he was worth so much more, but left all I could, same for the rest of the staff.

Take newer US bills, as the older ones were not accepted.

 

[JimP]

I looked at your outfitters web site and he doesn't recommend what you should trip.

My last hunt was with Frontier Safari's in the Eastern Cape and they have a good example of what to tip for the first time hunter.

Tipping Etiquette – Frontier Safaris

frontiersafaris.com

Since I don't want to clutter up this thread anymore than it is I am going to send you a PM with some more information.

 

[Rare Breed]

I looked at your outfitters web site and he doesn't recommend what you should trip.

My last hunt was with Frontier Safari's in the Eastern Cape and they have a good example of what to tip for the first time hunter.

Tipping Etiquette – Frontier Safaris

frontiersafaris.com

Since I don't want to clutter up this thread anymore than it is I am going to send you a PM with some more information.

Good guidance from fronteer. I just always over tip my trackers given to me they are so important. On my last hunt my PH Lou Hallamore confirmed that the trackers are the most important. Do not misunderstand me I take great care of my PH but on my elephant hunt it was just unreal how they tracked when I could see nothing. We got my elephant on the last day last hour when I had given up but my PH and trackers did not

 

[Sytes]

Tipping Etiquette – Frontier Safaris

frontiersafaris.com

This is exactly the understanding that helps me navigate as a first timer. Much appreciated! Thanks to everyone for your information assessing everything shared, I piece-mealedan understanding that has greatly helped our first African hunt. Great community. Thank you! Maybe one day, I'll be able to offer a tip though I'm a few African hunts from that! Haha!

 

[JimP]

Good guidance from fronteer. I just always over tip my trackers given to me they are so important. On my last hunt my PH Lou Hallamore confirmed that the trackers are the most important. Do not misunderstand me I take great care of my PH but on my elephant hunt it was just unreal how they tracked when I could see nothing. We got my elephant on the last day last hour when I had given up but my PH and trackers did not

I also over tipped my tracker just for the job that he did.

I think that a lot of hunters do not appreciate the job that they do if they hit a animal and the tracking job begins. I had one solid hit on my kudu but he still made it to the thick stuff. Close to a mile later we had him on the ground. While I could of followed much of the trail my tracker made it so much easier for both me and my PH. We were able to get up high to watch for the kudu as the tracker was on it's trail through the thick stuff.

 

[.300RUM]

Same here, first day hunting, and with severe jetlag, I made a bad first shot on a Gemsbok. Was almost like my PH and tracker were smelling where the animal was, cause I wasn't able to make heads or tails on what they were following, but they found it. It was worth so much more than the tip I left because I didn't have to pay for a wounded and unclaimed animal. Again, I left what I could.

Plan on tipping your PH and fellow camp associates well and hopefully they will deserve it. Especially if you think enough of the outfitter to return.

 

[Mtn_Infantry]

Like others have said your hunt will fall into the realm of a South African Ranch Hunt. That tipping guide looks like pretty good advice. If you’re shooting a lot of animals each day, you might think about a percentage of the total hunt or your portion of it.

I give my tips at the end of the hunt, with the exception being skinners and trackers. In big mixed company camps, I’ll give the skinners a little something after the first animal. Whether it’s a $20 bill with the first animal, a bag of candy or something, I’d like to believe they spend more time and are a little more thorough with my stuff after I do it. The skinners normally have other jobs and often pull some extremely long hours. I’ve hunted in some of the more remote camps where they’re also a tracker. If I have a good stalk where the trackers are clearly working overtime on a specific animal I’ll do the same. Anytime I do this, it’s in addition to what I’m giving them at the end of the hunt. I don’t even think about having already given something to them. I try to do it to incentivize them to work a little harder for me.

 

[Tusker]

I might be opening Pandora's box here.
Someone I know closely just left a tip which was requested and gratified as "the best tip ever" (for a PH that has been 20 years guiding DG hunts).
What was given wasnt cash, but actually a rifle (to be more precise, 2 rifles). I was amazed of how easy was to register those guns at the airport police with a affidavit. It barely took 30 minutes and zero tipping to any officer.
A rifle that in the USA was purchased for under $1,000 at an online auction was worth over $4,000 there in Zimbabwe. The second rifle was cheap, but still was very much welcome.
I was offered a hell of a deal for my double which I got for dirt cheap, but I will return next spring and want to take another couple elephants with it before I let it go.

 

[375Fox]

I might be opening Pandora's box here.
Someone I know closely just left a tip which was requested and gratified as "the best tip ever" (for a PH that has been 20 years guiding DG hunts).
What was given wasnt cash, but actually a rifle (to be more precise, 2 rifles). I was amazed of how easy was to register those guns at the airport police with a affidavit. It barely took 30 minutes and zero tipping to any officer.
A rifle that in the USA was purchased for under $1,000 at an online auction was worth over $4,000 there in Zimbabwe. The second rifle was cheap, but still was very much welcome.
I was offered a hell of a deal for my double which I got for dirt cheap, but I will return next spring and want to take another couple elephants with it before I let it go.

Other countries have made it more difficult. Namibia for instance writes on firearm permit “must be exported” because this was commonly done for both ease and to avoid import duties. I’ve heard this done in Zimbabwe, but I’d want to know it’s fully legal from US side, especially for Zimbabwe. I’d also only consider this if requested by PH since they can’t own an unlimited amount of firearms.

 

[jpr9954]

We were referred to LJ Safaris from a well respected hunter on a US DIY (primarily) based hunt forum. As I mentioned, the communication with Juan has been great! We are set for mid/end of this September. It's finally here and now it seems time suddenly began ticking much faster and questions I should have asked earlier are now at the forefront.

I went with Juan (pronounced JU-on and not Wan) and Lauren in early June. Number one you will get personal attention like you wouldn't believe. Number two, they work their tails off to get you on really good animals. The accommodations in both the Karoo and the coastal area are nice with the coastal area having the edge. The food in both locations was great.

My trip had both rain and snow to deal with but we persevered.