A tip is a monetary thank-you for a job well done. It’s not mandatory, but it sure is appreciated. Some wedding vendors will already factor in tips for themselves and their support staff—make sure you find out up-front if this is included.
Ask your wedding coordinator (or whomever is helping plan the events of the big day) to pass out tips to the appropriate parties on the day of the wedding. Put them in envelopes with the recipient’s name written on the front.
There are some traditional guidelines as to who should get a tip: delivery people ($5-$10 on site after the delivery), musicians ($10-$20 each), drivers (15-20 percent of the bill), parking attendants ($.50-$1 a car—post a sign so guests know the tip has been taken care of), and caterer or reception manager ($1-$5 a guest).
In addition to these, you should keep some extra cash in envelopes for anyone who handles a special need during your wedding or goes above and beyond their specified duty.
Who not to tip: the officiant (most ask for a fee; if they don’t, offer to make a donation to the church in their name); vendors who own their company (give them a note of thanks and a gift instead); reception servers (a single tip should be given to head reception coordinator who will disperse it to the individual servers).
What tips do you have on tipping?
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