I'm with you, Mike. I also think that the surveys are rather meaningless when hotels are lumped together and I hate the choose a number between 1 and 5 aspect of surveys. For some time I have ignored them while on vacation, come home, and send a thoughtful critique of the trip. It takes me longer to do so but Tauck has thanked me for giving a more meaningful review.
Someone suggested carrying fifties or hundreds. I never carry those cuz they are difficult to cash. I carry dollars that are the latest series, not new bills which are difficult to get even at a bank. If the bills are the latest series and not a crumpled up mess, they normally work just fine.
the Moores: I agree with all the mentioned about the surveys. There is no possible way that Tauck can get an accurate sense when guests such as myself fill them out in a hurry. Most of the time they are handed out on a bus with not enough time to shower and change for dinner or for the farewell dinner for that matter when we all like to put on nicer clothes. I've found myself hurrying through the survey rather than really thinking about what I would like to convey.
Yes and occasional you are given the survey before the end of the tour and asked to give it back and then something happens you wish you could have commented on.
Evaluations using a 1 - 5 scale can be useful to quickly identify aspects of a tour, etc. that were positive and where no follow-up action is needed; and aspects that might have been bad and where further research and or action might be required on their part, especially rapid action is needed when a large number of respondents rate a particular aspect as a 1 and provide negative comments.
Personally, I would prefer more time to really think about a tour before spending a lot of time evaluating it. For that reason I complete the Hope and Trust as requested, then when appropriate, I follow up with an email to customer relations with specifics about anything negative or particularly noteworthy.
Somewhat likewise. I normally call customer relations after each trip. They know me. They actually called one time to schedule a formal interview to get my opinions on the operations and service. I have a great deal of contact with management. Some folks on this website got a friend of mine fired, and I was unable to fix that. He now works for another tour company where another friend works. For obvious reasons I will not name that company. If you do have a problem with a Tauck employee, talk to them about it. If you ‘write them up’ you may be costing someone their job.
MY last comment : we go on 2 to 3 tours a year . Different tour companies . Tauck I like very much . It is in my top two . The other top one ALLOWS tips in advance ! The tour company collects thru credit card and some how gets the tip to TD and bus driver . If this large Company can do it , Tauck should be able to do it . Customer Service is very important - this is important to many customers .
One TD at another company, when some of our group expressed concern about carrying tip money around, he offered to keep our tip envelopes for us, hand them back at the end of the tour and we could add, subtract or whatever.
To be fair to the TDs - I expect they don't want any kind of app or payment through the Tauck website. They want to get all that money in cash.
I'm not pointing fingers, but a lot of people and businesses who are paid in cash don't report all that cash. It's possible that the TDs prefer to get tips in a way that doesn't track how much they receive.
That's a reasonable point, Mike.
I'm not a financial wizard (except to say that I am really good at spending money), but that could also be a reason why Tauck is not building their tip into the cost of the tour.
Typically the bus driver is the same person throughout the trip, but sometimes they change. If they change the TD usually takes care of the tips. If it is the same driver, the TD will make sure you know when his/her last day driving is so you can provide your tip - I do not recall them coming to the farewell dinner and usually you can give it to them the last day they drive you when you say goodbye.
(Not sure if anyone mentioned this above, but...) I find it interesting that Roam by Tauck includes the gratuities in the price of the trip but "regular" Tauck does not. I'm torn on the gratuity issue - I actually feel very awkward when I give the TD or the bus driver the gratuities and would rather they just include it in the price (it seems that the cruises do include it but not the land tours)....but then you can't add or subtract from it if you want (well, I guess you could give extra at the end if you wanted...) The economist/accountant part of my brain thinks its just a bit farcical and simply a cost-shifting endeavor from the company to us so the company avoids taxes by claiming this amount is not really a part of their salary....
I have been on tours where we have had more than one driver and we have tipped both drivers. For that reason, I usually carry some currency in smaller denominations. I agree that if the alternate driver is just for a day or so, the tour director takes care of the gratuity. There have been a few times when the driver has attended the farewell dinner, but that is rare.
I prefer to offer the gratuity in person. I write a ‘thank you’ note, tuck the money inside and give to the director and driver. I enjoy the interaction.
I always take note cards and write a little thank you and tell them why the trip was special....I still find it awkward handing them a wad of cash - its like we're paying them to be nice to us. I hate, hate, hate it - and mention this on my trip evaluations...and wish they'd include it. To each his own, I guess...
I'm not fond of carrying extra cash, but on the other hand since tips are a reward for good service, the incentive for providing good service is gone when tips are included.
Well…when they tell you how much to tip per day it really doesn’t seem like incentive for good service..,it’s expected. Now that Tauck seems to be increasing the amount even tho there is more and more free time, and reminding us of the expected gratuity, it seems less and less like incentive…
We may think of tips as a reward for good service but Tauck clearly states that tips represent a majority of these folks compensation. My translation: Tauck does not pay them well. I would much prefer that tips be included in the basic tour package and Tauck pay these good folks what they deserve. If some want to tip additional, have at it. We toured with Rick Steves company for years. Guides, drivers, etc well compensated, no tipping allowed.
To think that people will not give you their best service if they don’t think they are going to get a tip, for me, that’s disgusting.
That’s not the way I was raised. I always give my best.
I have never been on any sort of tour before so I don't know how these things are usually handled. Next weekwnd we taking the THE BEST OF WESTERN CANADA & ROCKY MOUNTAINEER tour.
When Tauck suggests $15/day for the tour director and $10 for the driver, is that in Canadian or US dollars. It matters as considering the exchange rate, $15 Canadian is less than $15 US in absolute terms. I assume they can deal with either currency but I'm not sure what is expected in terms of absolute amount.
Also outside of the tips for the TD and driver, should I take some Canadian currency or can credit cards be used for everything (including cabs if needed) when we are on our own. If so, how many Canadian dollars per person?
Comments
I'm with you, Mike. I also think that the surveys are rather meaningless when hotels are lumped together and I hate the choose a number between 1 and 5 aspect of surveys. For some time I have ignored them while on vacation, come home, and send a thoughtful critique of the trip. It takes me longer to do so but Tauck has thanked me for giving a more meaningful review.
Someone suggested carrying fifties or hundreds. I never carry those cuz they are difficult to cash. I carry dollars that are the latest series, not new bills which are difficult to get even at a bank. If the bills are the latest series and not a crumpled up mess, they normally work just fine.
The higher denominations I take are not for discretionary use but for the tour directors and coach driver(s).
the Moores: I agree with all the mentioned about the surveys. There is no possible way that Tauck can get an accurate sense when guests such as myself fill them out in a hurry. Most of the time they are handed out on a bus with not enough time to shower and change for dinner or for the farewell dinner for that matter when we all like to put on nicer clothes. I've found myself hurrying through the survey rather than really thinking about what I would like to convey.
Yes and occasional you are given the survey before the end of the tour and asked to give it back and then something happens you wish you could have commented on.
Evaluations using a 1 - 5 scale can be useful to quickly identify aspects of a tour, etc. that were positive and where no follow-up action is needed; and aspects that might have been bad and where further research and or action might be required on their part, especially rapid action is needed when a large number of respondents rate a particular aspect as a 1 and provide negative comments.
Personally, I would prefer more time to really think about a tour before spending a lot of time evaluating it. For that reason I complete the Hope and Trust as requested, then when appropriate, I follow up with an email to customer relations with specifics about anything negative or particularly noteworthy.
Somewhat likewise. I normally call customer relations after each trip. They know me. They actually called one time to schedule a formal interview to get my opinions on the operations and service. I have a great deal of contact with management. Some folks on this website got a friend of mine fired, and I was unable to fix that. He now works for another tour company where another friend works. For obvious reasons I will not name that company. If you do have a problem with a Tauck employee, talk to them about it. If you ‘write them up’ you may be costing someone their job.
MY last comment : we go on 2 to 3 tours a year . Different tour companies . Tauck I like very much . It is in my top two . The other top one ALLOWS tips in advance ! The tour company collects thru credit card and some how gets the tip to TD and bus driver . If this large Company can do it , Tauck should be able to do it . Customer Service is very important - this is important to many customers .
If you tip in advance and the service is terrible is there an option for a tip refund after the tour?
Yeah, that's more like a charge than a tip for recognition of the service.
One TD at another company, when some of our group expressed concern about carrying tip money around, he offered to keep our tip envelopes for us, hand them back at the end of the tour and we could add, subtract or whatever.
A modernized Tauck app could be the answer.
But not likely to happen in my lifetime.
To be fair to the TDs - I expect they don't want any kind of app or payment through the Tauck website. They want to get all that money in cash.
I'm not pointing fingers, but a lot of people and businesses who are paid in cash don't report all that cash. It's possible that the TDs prefer to get tips in a way that doesn't track how much they receive.
That's a reasonable point, Mike.
I'm not a financial wizard (except to say that I am really good at spending money), but that could also be a reason why Tauck is not building their tip into the cost of the tour.
This may be a stupid question, but I just wanted to check for the Best of Ireland, did you give your gratuities all at the end of the tour, or by day?
Usually at the Farewell Dinner. If you aren't going to see the Bus Driver at that event, they make sure to tell you in advance.
We take an envelope with the tip in it and write a note. We hand it to the TD as we go into the final dinner.
For land trips, example Yellowstone Safari, is the driver the same person everyday so he/she can be tipped at the end of the trip?
Typically the bus driver is the same person throughout the trip, but sometimes they change. If they change the TD usually takes care of the tips. If it is the same driver, the TD will make sure you know when his/her last day driving is so you can provide your tip - I do not recall them coming to the farewell dinner and usually you can give it to them the last day they drive you when you say goodbye.
(Not sure if anyone mentioned this above, but...) I find it interesting that Roam by Tauck includes the gratuities in the price of the trip but "regular" Tauck does not. I'm torn on the gratuity issue - I actually feel very awkward when I give the TD or the bus driver the gratuities and would rather they just include it in the price (it seems that the cruises do include it but not the land tours)....but then you can't add or subtract from it if you want (well, I guess you could give extra at the end if you wanted...) The economist/accountant part of my brain thinks its just a bit farcical and simply a cost-shifting endeavor from the company to us so the company avoids taxes by claiming this amount is not really a part of their salary....
I have been on tours where we have had more than one driver and we have tipped both drivers. For that reason, I usually carry some currency in smaller denominations. I agree that if the alternate driver is just for a day or so, the tour director takes care of the gratuity. There have been a few times when the driver has attended the farewell dinner, but that is rare.
I prefer to offer the gratuity in person. I write a ‘thank you’ note, tuck the money inside and give to the director and driver. I enjoy the interaction.
I always take note cards and write a little thank you and tell them why the trip was special....I still find it awkward handing them a wad of cash - its like we're paying them to be nice to us. I hate, hate, hate it - and mention this on my trip evaluations...and wish they'd include it. To each his own, I guess...
I'm not fond of carrying extra cash, but on the other hand since tips are a reward for good service, the incentive for providing good service is gone when tips are included.
Well…when they tell you how much to tip per day it really doesn’t seem like incentive for good service..,it’s expected. Now that Tauck seems to be increasing the amount even tho there is more and more free time, and reminding us of the expected gratuity, it seems less and less like incentive…
We may think of tips as a reward for good service but Tauck clearly states that tips represent a majority of these folks compensation. My translation: Tauck does not pay them well. I would much prefer that tips be included in the basic tour package and Tauck pay these good folks what they deserve. If some want to tip additional, have at it. We toured with Rick Steves company for years. Guides, drivers, etc well compensated, no tipping allowed.
Perhaps "enjoy your free afternoon" should also be accompanied by "tip for half a day today."
To think that people will not give you their best service if they don’t think they are going to get a tip, for me, that’s disgusting.
That’s not the way I was raised. I always give my best.
"we offer the following guidelines'" sounds like a suggestion to me.............................
I have never been on any sort of tour before so I don't know how these things are usually handled. Next weekwnd we taking the THE BEST OF WESTERN CANADA & ROCKY MOUNTAINEER tour.
When Tauck suggests $15/day for the tour director and $10 for the driver, is that in Canadian or US dollars. It matters as considering the exchange rate, $15 Canadian is less than $15 US in absolute terms. I assume they can deal with either currency but I'm not sure what is expected in terms of absolute amount.
Also outside of the tips for the TD and driver, should I take some Canadian currency or can credit cards be used for everything (including cabs if needed) when we are on our own. If so, how many Canadian dollars per person?
Thanks
US dollars