 Poster: A snowHead
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Recently while we were in Corvara I booked 2x three hour lessons for my kids while we were there.
The total cost was Eu276 which I paid the ski school in advance . The instructor was great and he and the kids seemed to have had a great time.
At the end of the second session I offered the instructor a gratuity/tip of Eu30.
Much to my surprise, he very politely refused to take the money?
Is this a cultural thing? Was the tip too small?
I was slightly perplexed by the reaction and have been thinking about it ever since??
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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We tipped at Madesimo and they were happy to accept. Eu30 sounds about right.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Don't eat yellow snow!
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We tried to tip the ski instructor we had in Sestriere last year and he also politely declined - said it "wasn't necessary". He would allow you to buy the coffee if we stopped for a quick break, which we were more than happy to do.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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As a Brit I've always bought drinks/lunch for instructors...but never tipped in cash...that feels like a very American thing to do and whilst perhaps expected over the Atlantic I hope it doesn't become accepted as the norm in Europe!!!
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@vjmehra, I second that. It would never even have occurred to me that someone would tip a ski instructor. Even in restaurants, tipping should always remain optional. Just say no to the American way.
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Every year I skied in France or Switzerland with club med , it was customary on the last day that the group would all put money into a kitty to give the ESF instructor . This was after having always eaten out on the last afternoon in the mountains (and having paid for the instructor's meal/drinks) . I don't understand why this concept is so foreign to you? It has always been the norm for me, but because it was my first time in Italy, I found the instructors reaction unpredictable?
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| Quote: |
As a Brit I've always bought drinks/lunch for instructors...
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As did I on my recent Italian ski holiday. The Italian instructor (and fellow Italian ski schooler) were polite in their thanks. I didn't offer a tip but did visit his family bakery. Everyone seemed happy.
The business of tipping is confusing.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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@Spyglass, in the UK tipping isn't customary except in restaurants and the odd other place.
Do you tip the lift attendant?
If not why tip the instructor who you've already bought meals for on top of the pre-agreed fee?
Don't get me wrong, there is absolutely nothing wrong with tipping if you feel it's deserved or even if you simply feel obliged.
However you are hinting that you feel people who don't tip are somehow odd...which (unless you are American) I would counter as being strange in itself!
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The reason is that the pre-arranged fee is with the ski school. I am unaware of what percentage of that fee gets paid to the instructor. He may or may not rely on gratuities to supplement his income?
Secondly , as he was taking my children for lessons , there would not have been an opportunity to buy him lunch or drinks , maybe if I had already done that, I would not have given him a tip?
Thirdly, as suggested above , it has always been customary when I have used an instructor in France or Switzerland to give him a gratuity .
This has nothing to do with nationality , being a Brit/Canadian or American, it has to do with what is the correct thing to do.
Clearly people are divided on this.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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At the rate private lessons are charged then no I would not tip, buying drinks/food for them is more then enough. If the wage from the employer isn't enough then that is for the employer to rectify.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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@Spyglass, I'm certain he wouldn't have thought the tip too small. More of a case of him not wanting you to part with your hard earned cash. I've found that in that part of Italy they don't expect tips - when I've tried to tip taxi drivers for example they seem unused to it and a bit flummoxed.
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@Spyglass, how much of your lift pass goes to the attendant?
Okay so if buying lunch/drinks may have been acceptable in your opinion, why the initial comment 'I don't understand why this concept is so foreign to you' (also lets bear in mind 10-15% of the lesson fee may well be less than the cost of lunch anyway)?
If people are divided how come you get to be the judge of 'the correct thing to do'?
I would argue nationality has a massive part to play, in the UK (and I believe, but am happy to be corrected) tipping is reserved for restaurants and frankly in many places (in Europe rather than the UK) not even then. In the US that is not the case, therefore for Ameticans I can completely understand why they feel uncomfortable not tipping, but for Europeans it would be surprising (yet not wrong of course if they choose to).
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You know it makes sense.
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I am really not prepared to go around in circles responding to these posts.
I am not saying there is a right or wrong answer.
IMO while I have skied in France and Switzerland there was no issue tipping instructors and in my circles it was the norm. I skied in groups of all nations , mainly Europeans , who actually where the ones initiating the clubbing together to pay the kitty.So to say that in Europe it is not the culture to tip, that is not my experience.
On this basis , it is my understanding that in those countries it is the norm to tip instructors.
I transported this belief to Italy, and it seems that there is not the same expectation in Italy.
I am not judging anyone who doesn't tip or feel the need to tip, and nobody needs to justify to me the reason why they don't tip.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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French and Italian instructors are generally pretty well-paid, I've seen a few refuse a tip. On the other hand, younger/trainee ski-school instructors don't get such good rates and may not get as many hours as they'd like so would very likely appreciate it.
Even some of the well-paid guys may well appreciate a tip if they feel they've worked hard that week, whether that's finding you the best powder from dawn to dusk all week or reaching extremes of patience with a nervous beginner!
Either way, it's certainly not normal/expected, but there's no harm at all in it either.
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Poster: A snowHead
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No one said there was an issue with tipping...you implied there was an issue with not tipping.
Anyway I still maintain buying lunch for an instructor is likely to be of higher financial value than a 10-15% cash tip 
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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I mostly thought that instructors had a meal ticket or got their meal on the house when they take a ski school group to a restaurant. I've not seen many guests pay for an instructors meal, but rarely seen an instructor put their hand in their pocket to pay either.
We usually do tip. Although embarassingly we tipped our instructor in Arabba a few years back. When we took our skis back the hire shop he was in there working, then we noticed his name above the door/owned the shop and according to the a rep owned a fair chunk of the town too!
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Perhaps Club Med is the common theme? My group informed it was customary to tip the instructor and plain white envelopes were dispensed from reception for the purpose. It was a sad moment to see him opening the envelopes under the table. I don't know how equally ESF instructors are paid, but he looked down at heel and in need of the cash 
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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| vjmehra wrote: |
I would argue nationality has a massive part to play, in the UK (and I believe, but am happy to be corrected) tipping is reserved for restaurants |
Also taxis, cloakrooms, hairdressers.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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In Japan courtesy levels are off-the-scale: they are consistently attentive, polite, considerate and helpful in 'customer service scenarios'. So consistently so that it was a bit of a shock arriving back in the UK to be treated 'normally' at the Heathrow cattle-drive.
Anyway, last week I witnessed a rather tense exchange between a Japanese hotel employee and an American guest. She had helped him form his onward travel plans and he was now trying to pay/tip her for her help. She said that this was not necessary but he persisted. She politely explained that this was not done in her culture but he insisted, "In my culture this is how we show appreciation".
I didn't stick around to see who 'won' but it was all getting very awkward.
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@dogwatch, I'm not sure everyone would tip in those instances...I think virtually everyone would in a restaurant, but cloakrooms I've never really heard of anyone tipping (although yes they do have that silver plate in front of them), whereas taxi's and hairdressers I'd argue its more a case of rounding up to the nearest round amount (i.e. letting them keep the change), that said I guess that still is a form of tipping!
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| Quote: |
Anyway I still maintain buying lunch for an instructor is likely to be of higher financial value than a 10-15% cash tip Happy
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Not really (depends where you ski obviously) - but in most Austrian resorts I have skiied, the instructors either got a special deal (i.e. set "Skilehrer" lunch heavily discounted) or weren't charged anything on the basis that they had come in with a group lesson all buying lunch and drinks.
And I'd also agree with @Spyglass that whenever I did a group lesson (in Austria), there would usually be a collection by the group (assuming the instructor was good obviously but never really ran into any problems from recollection). When I first learned to ski my father did tip the ski instructor at the end of the week - obviously because he felt he was happy with the instruction not because he felt he was obliged to.
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@Val Desire same here. However, did once refuse as he was hopeless!
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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| admin wrote: |
In Japan courtesy levels are off-the-scale: they are consistently attentive, polite, considerate and helpful in 'customer service scenarios'. So consistently so that it was a bit of a shock arriving back in the UK to be treated 'normally' at the Heathrow cattle-drive.
Anyway, last week I witnessed a rather tense exchange between a Japanese hotel employee and an American guest. She had helped him form his onward travel plans and he was now trying to pay/tip her for her help. She said that this was not necessary but he persisted. She politely explained that this was not done in her culture but he insisted, "In my culture this is how we show appreciation".
I didn't stick around to see who 'won' but it was all getting very awkward. |
If you leave a restaurant in Japan before you get your change from paying, the staff will often down the road after you to say you've forgotten your change.
You're right, after travelling through either Tokyo airport I find it a bit embarrassing how people are treated at Heathrow.
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