Sorry, A Tipping Thread! Limo Driver...

[trippypea]

I know, not another tipping thread, lol! I haven't been able to find a similar situation, so thought maybe someone else would have insight. DH won a contest where we are getting put up for a night in a hotel and a limo is taking us to and from a venue. The limo is provided as part of the package. Since we didn't arrange the limo ourselves, and we've never had a limo ride before, we don't know what one costs and what would be appropriate to tip the driver. Because I'm assuming we should still tip the driver even though we aren't paying for it.

So, for a 15 minute limo ride, what would you tip?
And do you tip once, at the end of the night, or do you tip after each ride?

I was thinking $20 each way, but DH thinks that's too much. Or is it too little?

[zibazinski]

 I tip at the end. Yes, it's expected.find out what limos normally cost. That'll help you decide on tip.

[mmhmm]

I'd say $15 or $20 is adequate for a 15 minute ride.

[billisonboard]

How bad is the part of town you will have to walk through if he doesn't pick you up from the venue? 

[Blonde Granny]

We had a car service pick us up for a trip to the airport. The cost was $45 each way with a 15% added on. We also tipped him $10 each way as our pickup time was 4:30 AM one way and 10PM the other.

They were both older gentleman, arrived before the set times, dealt with our bags etc.

When we figured the cost of driving to the airport and parking for 15 days, the possibility of damage to a new Mercedes to cover our deductible, it was far less expensive and quite a nice treat not to have to deal with anything.

[trippypea]

Dec 14, 2014 12:33:01 GMT -5 billisonboard said:

How bad is the part of town you will have to walk through if he doesn't pick you up from the venue? 

We've driven it before, and its winding, mountain roads. It's New Year's Eve, and our pick up time is after a concert/party, so after midnight. Definitely allows us to drink without having to worry about driving, lol. So it seems like $20 each way should be more than sufficient. I don't know what they do in the interim time from pick up to pick up (6:30pm and 12:30am) so don't know if it would be the same driver both times, so should probably tip after each ride?

[ArchietheDragon]

Sounds like a nice package. Wonder how much tax you'll have to pay on it.

[billisonboard]

Dec 14, 2014 13:13:16 GMT -5 trippypea said:

Dec 14, 2014 12:33:01 GMT -5 billisonboard said:

How bad is the part of town you will have to walk through if he doesn't pick you up from the venue? 

... winding, mountain roads. ... after midnight ... drink ...

Tipping well the driver who takes you sounds like a good idea.

[tallguy]

Whatever you do, I wouldn't recommend doing what a friend of mine did.  

He used to take limos regularly.  I don't recall if this particular time was after a basketball league championship or a birthday celebration, but he had the driver in the bar with the group.  After a while, they had to send out a relief driver because the original was not in the best condition to continue.  The evening progressed, and eventually the owner of the limo company had to come out to relieve the relief driver.     

[alabamagal]

I would plan on $10 each way, if the service was good - meaning polite, on time, etc.

I would tip both ways.  If you are at a long concert, it may not be the same driver both ways.

[milee]

I'd probably tip $20 each way. Especially since New Year's Eve is one of their peak nights when they could be turning away business and at least deciding who gets priority. You want to tip $20 to the first driver (even if it's not the same one as later) because the drivers talk and you don't want the talk to be "this customer won a free ride and is too cheap to tip on my busiest night of the year!"  Hard to imagine that they'll have the limo sitting there waiting for you during 6:30 - 12:30 - they'll be driving the other paying customers around.  And where you fall in the order of who gets driven home that night could have a little something to do with your tip at the beginning of the night...  After all, what are you gonna do - fire them? 

[lurkyloo]

Thanks for the thread!  I'm apparently getting limo service this week as part of an interview (airport to hotel) and was wondering the same thing.  It's a 45 min ride, and I have no idea what the service costs or whether the company includes a gratuity to the driver. I was thinking $10, but sounds like $20 might be safer?

Milee:  you're reminding me of the time I got van service (also airport to hotel) going to a conference.  It cost $12, I was the first one there and the last one dropped off (2+ hours total wait), and I was 7 months pregnant at the time.  You'd better believe I didn't tip.  I took a taxi back from hotel to airport: $17 ($22 with tip) and 15 min.  

[billisonboard]

Dec 15, 2014 14:50:11 GMT -5 lurkyloo said:

Thanks for the thread!  I'm apparently getting limo service this week as part of an interview (airport to hotel) and was wondering the same thing.  It's a 45 min ride, and I have no idea what the service costs or whether the company includes a gratuity to the driver. I was thinking $10, but sounds like $20 might be safer?

...

That one sounds more like a $10 trip to me.

[zibazinski]

$20 each time is wise.

[tloonya]

Dec 14, 2014 12:32:37 GMT -5 mmhmm said:

I'd say $15 or $20 is adequate for a 15 minute ride.

$1 tip per minute ride?
Aren't we forgetting YM code here?