Posted by Elian on September 19, 2004 at 18:19:44:
In Reply to: Crew Tipping posted by Randy on September 16, 2004 at 22:18:23:
I tip $15 a day typically for a one day trip. I will increase that to $20 per day on a more than one day trip. The least I have left was $0 but only for a very good direct reasons.
I think that most people forget to tip based on the service, food and attentiveness of the crew members.
The crew members cannot control the conditions like current and vis no more than they can control if you see a black sea bass on the dives. The captains for the most part try to put their divers in the best conditions and sites possible. It is in their best interest to do so. But I hear discussions between some divers that they are not going to tip well because they never made it to San Clemente Island and had to divert to Catalina due to bad winds or big swell. That's a sad position to take as a Calif diver. That is the nature of diving here as well as the reward.
If a compressor develops a problem during the trip, all the crew can do is be as efficient as possible and deal with the problem. Even with the regular maintenance most boat owners perform on their business investment I have been on boats where equipment has broken down. Some boats just leave it broken until they get back to the dock. When possible others attempt to make repairs right there if possible. I appreciate the effort to correct the problem unsuccessfully more than the futile act of leaving it to fix for later.