Tipping on Red Sea liveaboards

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However, I'm not sure how much the baksheesh culture carries over to tipping on liveaboards.

You hit the nail, this is why I made the topic. It's always the best idea to ask people who have recent and first hand experience about a situation as particular as a liveaboard trip.

About the baksheesh culture you're spot on, it's obvious you experienced the real Egypt :)
 
You hit the nail, this is why I made the topic. It's always the best idea to ask people who have recent and first hand experience about a situation as particular as a liveaboard trip.

About the baksheesh culture you're spot on, it's obvious you experienced the real Egypt :)

My first trip was an adventure for me--quite a few years ago--crossing over from Israel, diving and trekking in Sinai, and traveling by bus up to Cairo, experiencing having my backpack searched at the checkpoints, etc. But the real education on Egypt was from some friends who were living and working in Cairo at the time. On my more recent trip I skipped Cairo entirely and stuck to the southern tourist trail--Luxor and Valley of the Kings--before joining the liveaboard.
 
Been there 3 times over the last 3 years on different boats. 55€ per person per week were expected and collected by the one who organised the trip by the end of the week. The boats were no luxury boats.
 
the boats are nice enough. they aren't socal or scapa converted fishing boats. there is also a much higher amount of crew to attend to guests than a lot of other places, probably due to cheap labor costs, but I'd hate to see how they all fit in the crew quarters. it seems separate envelopes for DMs and crew is common. I split what I tipped by headcount with the majority in the crew envelope for a close to even split. I did go above 10%, but even then it was a lower tip than I usually do per week on a liveaboard because the trips are much cheaper.
 
Captain and crew (around 5% and a bottle of rum) at the start of the cruise; guide at the end (5-10%).
GJS
 
A week Red Sea Aggressor trip is about $1450 x 5% = $72.50. That's seems to be in the ballpark of the above responses. I'll be back there again in December, Flights to Red Sea If they do a real good job to not lose me at sea & not giving me a run in my tummy, I have a nice crispy $100 bill to put it in the envelop.
Emperor Divers caters for Europeans so their tipping guide is geared towards European tipping practices. You are going on an American LOB, so don't be surprised if the Cruise Director gives a tipping guideline of 10%. As far as I can see, it is the same in the Maldives and Indonesia - American LOBs guide towards 10% whereas European LOBs tend to be less aggressive and some may not provide a guideline (in terms of either % or $).
 
10-15$ per day is standard , put everything in one envelope and give it to the captain / group leader , they will divide it equally between the crew.
 
I just came back from my first Egyptian liveaboard, and tipping was a subject of much conversation on the boat.

On our boat, we were asked by the staff to put our tips into separate envelopes: one for the divemasters, and one for the staff.

My trip had cost about $1,000, and I tipped $150, which went $30 for the divemaster, and $120 for the staff. I set that tip level purely based on what seemed fair/just in a totally subjective sense.

The envelopes were opened by one of the divemasters and a non-diving crew member, who counted the money together. There would have been massive opportunities for scamming if the two of them agreed to do so, but I imagine that potentially incurring the wrath of their fellow crew, with whom they have to share such close quarters, would have been something of a deterrent.

My impression was that most people on the boat tipped less than I did. While I am usually quite cheap/miserly, I felt that the non-diving crew had really earned their tips, and in fact I gave a couple of them individually an extra $10 in Egyptian currency that I knew I would have little use for, as it was my last day -- and they were thrilled to get it.

Many of my fellow divers and I felt that the dive guides should not be getting their own envelopes, as they did not work any harder than a lot of the other crew, and they got to dive, eat with the guests, and generally hang out as if they were paying guests. But I tipped $30 for the divemaster mainly out of gratitude that the divemaster let me dive unguided on most dives, and gave me space and time as a photographer to do my own thing.

Egypt liveaboards are extraordinarily cheap, and I enjoyed tipping generously relative to the prices being paid. I don't think there are any hard and fast rules. It's really between you, your conscience, and your wallet.
 
Thanks for sharing. Just a quick comment on the "and they got to dive" bit: I once assisted at a very heated discussion between the Egyptian employees of a dive center and their German manager, one of the main points of contention being the lack of proper insurance for the diving staff. (as in insurance for professional risks and hazards). So what may look to us like a big bonus may be for them more like an accepted risk.
 
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