Tipping instructors

[zeak]

hi there. search function didn't turn anything up so i'm posting here. i'm going to aspen soon and will have a private lesson for a day to shore up mogul work. i keep hearing conflicting info about tipping instructors. some say that they are "well paid" and that an extra $100/day is sufficient. others say they rely on tip income and the tips should be a certain percentage of the lesson charge. the price of an aspen lesson is about 1k for a day, which is a lot for me. Would appreciate any help. I understand that instructors work incredibly hard and want to be fair without overdoing it. thanks.

 

[Tricia]

hi there. search function didn't turn anything up so i'm posting here. i'm going to aspen soon and will have a private lesson for a day to shore up mogul work. i keep hearing conflicting info about tipping instructors. some say that they are "well paid" and that an extra $100/day is sufficient. others say they rely on tip income and the tips should be a certain percentage of the lesson charge. the price of an aspen lesson is about 1k for a day, which is a lot for me. Would appreciate any help. I understand that instructors work incredibly hard and want to be fair without overdoing it. thanks.

When I was in a clinic at Aspen with an instructor (5 other students) we tipped 20 each. If you're going for an all day private, I'd say $100 is good.

And I'd like to say, thank you for understanding that these instructors appreciate this.

@Nancy Hummel @Mike King @Bob Barnes are all instructors at Aspen and may have a better idea than I do.

 

[dbostedo]

hi there. search function didn't turn anything up so i'm posting here.

Hey Zeak - Welcome! It's a good question, and a personal one depending on how you personally think about things. I think the guidance above is good, personally.

There are a few threads on tipping, so for reference:

Tipping Ski Instructors?

Hey. I had a group lesson today at Big Sky. My first lesson in at least 35 years. Good time. Helpful. At the end, I saw a member of the group passing a tip to the instructor. Definitely a surprise. I don’t remember my Dad tipping my ski instructor when I was a kid. I have no problem with...

www.skitalk.com

Tipping Amount for Private Lesson

Heading to Copper this weekend and looking at a private lesson to learn to ski moguls better. Choking a bit on the price though as a half-day in the afternoon is $449. I assume a 20% tip is standard, but that takes the total price to $538, which is a bit of a budget breaker. Just wanted to...

www.skitalk.com

Tipping

Money, not edge angle. What’s an appropriate or appreciated tip to an instructor for a full day group lesson?

www.skitalk.com

 

[Steen275]

My understanding from an instructor just a week ago over a beer (well-known Colo ski resort) is that the resort pockets the lesson amount, instructors are paid $25/hour plus gratuity. Lessons are big line item number for the resort. I think most Instructors not doing it for the tips.. Still, I think a tip would be appreciated for Good Service.

 

[Mike King]

Nancy Hummel and I are part time instructors at Aspen who teach for reasons other than earning a living from it. As a result, we are exceptions to the much larger group of folk who look to support themselves by providing high quality ski instruction in a place that is very very expensive to live. Aspen provides the highest compensation to ski instructors of anyplace in North America, but it still isn't a living wage. So, those looking to make a career out of ski instructing depend on tip income in addition to the wages the Ski Company provides.

As a rule of thumb, a tip of $100 is generally at the low end of a tip for an all-day private. Still, you should think of a tip depending on the quality of service provided.

Personally, I find the tipping culture to be objectionable and wish that it would disappear to be more like it is in many other cultures. But the fact of the matter is that it is the culture and tipping is generally expected and necessary to support those that are professional ski instructors at major destination ski resorts.

 

[zeak]

Thanks. That’s very helpful, as are the other links.
overall there seems to be such variability. I know Aspen is a billionaires playground so maybe the tips there are on the higher end compared to other resorts. But the above are great guidelines.
agree it would be great if tipping was eliminated and instructors were paid well. It’s such a difficult situation for the instructors bc I am sure that many students are well meaning but have no idea that tipping is important the same way it is for waiters.

 

[rustypouch]

I won't complain with a tip of that much.

Keep in mind the hourly is generally low. Without tips, at least in my snow school, the decent money comes from requests.

 

[Wannabeskibum]

I will add my perspective. I don’t book private lessons, but rather sign up for all day group lessons and being a level 9 skier, I wind up with either a very small group of 2 or 3 with an instructor or with a “private”. I will tip 20 to 25 % of the group lesson price I paid

 

[Nancy Hummel]

Zeak, in my opinion, tips are optional and based on your experience and what you choose to do. That said, there are some instructors who feel a tip is obligatory. Many instructors go above and beyond the actual lesson. It really is up to you.

Did you request a specific instructor? If not, you may want to do that. Feel free to PM with questions.

I am not a fan of the tipping culture at ski school. However, I understand the economics of the business. When I do lessons or locals clinics (not ski school clinics), I tip.

 

[Prosper]

Many instructors go above and beyond the actual lesson..

Can you give some examples of when an instructor goes above and beyond vs doing a really good job/being generally a very good instructor?

 

[Nancy Hummel]

Can you give some examples of when an instructor goes above and beyond vs doing a really good job/being generally a very good instructor?

Picking people up at their lodging, getting equipment for students, arranging child care, lunch/dinner reservations, sending edited video after the lesson, go with people outside Of lessons to shop for equipment.

 

[zeak]

Thanks Nancy. That's very helpful. I booked a specific instructor that i met a few yrs ago in a group lesson. I requested them again just because of familiarity.

I was wondering what people meant by "above and beyond". I'm not expecting or getting anything like that.

 

[Nancy Hummel]

Thanks Nancy. That's very helpful. I booked a specific instructor that i met a few yrs ago in a group lesson. I requested them again just because of familiarity.

I was wondering what people meant by "above and beyond". I'm not expecting or getting anything like that.

Good that you booked an instructor you like.

My views on tipping are just that - my views. We are paid very well - in my opinion. As Mike said, I am a part time instructor and this is not my primary income source.

I find it objectionable to expect someone who has paid $1000 for a private or $200 for a group lesson to be expected to tip on top of that.

 

[AmyPJ]

Thanks Nancy. That's very helpful. I booked a specific instructor that i met a few yrs ago in a group lesson. I requested them again just because of familiarity.

I was wondering what people meant by "above and beyond". I'm not expecting or getting anything like that.

Husband is a level 3 instructor and has taught for 30+ years. Private requests like you did are a big bonus. Going above and beyond would include contacting you prior to the lesson if the instructor has specific questions, taking video and reviewing it during the lesson and sending it to you after, sending video of other drills or skills, etc. that are online, and just generally giving you excellent attention and for him, spending more time skiing than talking. Yes, tips are appreciated but he really is happy with a happy student and a fun lesson. Caveat is he teaches at a mountain that is not known for high-tipping students. That being said, as the spouse who gives up every Saturday during ski season with her husband, I probably appreciate the tips more than he does He has three jobs during ski season.

Private lessons are awesome. Have fun!

 

[Quandary]

Good that you booked an instructor you like.

My views on tipping are just that - my views. We are paid very well - in my opinion. As Mike said, I am a part time instructor and this is not my primary income source.

I find it objectionable to expect someone who has paid $1000 for a private or $200 for a group lesson to be expected to tip on top of that.

So you actually think the current structure where the Ski Resort pockets $850 of the lesson charge and the instructor $150 is fair and reasonable?

No one puts a gun to an instructor and requires them to instruct for a living. On the other hand resorts forbid independant contractors from the slopes as well. The current system is not a good one. Better, fair, compensation would no doubt lead to better instruction.

 

[Nancy Hummel]

So you actually think the current structure where the Ski Resort pockets $850 of the lesson charge and the instructor $150 is fair and reasonable?

No one puts a gun to an instructor and requires them to instruct for a living. On the other hand resorts forbid independant contractors from the slopes as well. The current system is not a good one. Better, fair, compensation would no doubt lead to better instruction.

I did not say anything about the current structure being fair. I believe that the customer should not be expected or required to subsidize wages on top of what they paid for the lesson

I did say I believe we are paid well. I am a Level 2 and make a minimum of $35.00 per hour for assignments and $45.00 per hour for requests. These rates go up as you reach yearly hour thresholds.

 

[noobski]

Quick chime in. I've been using instructors for years both ski and flyfish. I view tipping as optional, but I budget for it as if I'm going to do it as part of the vacation budget. So if I know going into a trip a rate is $500 or $1000, I immediately add in the assumption of at least 10%-20% and then sometimes I have to back out of that with the question: is actually hiring a guide/instructor within our travel budget. We love instructors but on some trips we don't add them.

I have always tipped because almost every instructor or guide we've used has been good to great. The way the industry "often" works in both ski and fish is the booking agent (i.e. the resort or fly shop, etc) often takes at least 40% upwards to 80%. (In fly fishing, the lower rates are usually reputable high volume shops that expect the guide to meet the clients at the fly shop to stock up on gear.) But whatever the quote rate is it's likely the majority of that goes to the agent, not the guild. So unless a guide/coach is horrible, we minimum 10% just to pad the hourly base rate they get and that's for folks who just do the basic stuff, but I try to go in assuming I budget 20%+ because I want to be psychologically ready to reward for awesomeness in advance.

 

[Roundturns]

Tip them as much as you can afford. They are not being compensated fairly from the ski school.
To make it worse , a lot of people assume the instructor is well paid based on the cost of the lesson.

 

[Quandary]

I did not say anything about the current structure being fair. I believe that the customer should not be expected or required to subsidize wages on top of what they paid for the lesson

I did say I believe we are paid well. I am a Level 2 and make a minimum of $35.00 per hour for assignments and $45.00 per hour for requests. These rates go up as you reach yearly hour thresholds.

You show Snowmass/Denver so I assume you instruct in Aspen. Unfortunately in say Breckenridge a level II is generally paid $25/hr.

I don't see how this is any different than dining. You tip in that setting, your subsidizing the servers wages. When you go on a guided hunt you tip the guide, you subsidize their wages. When you take a caddy golfing, you tip, you subsidize their wages. I fail to see how tipping a ski instructor is any different.

 

[Chris V.]

some say that they are "well paid" and that an extra $100/day is sufficient. others say they rely on tip income and the tips should be a certain percentage of the lesson charge.

Most places, a $100 tip for a private lesson would be most welcome. I can see that at some of the top destination resorts with very high housing costs, like Aspen, opinions might be different. You know going in that it will be an expensive vacation going to those places. In group lessons, if everyone gave a $20 tip, the instructor would do well. But not everyone tips. Not by far. (Understatement.)