Hello Ladies,
My wedding isn't quite in the luxury category (I'm in that wide world between budget and luxury) but I thought this board might be able to answer my question. I'd imagine many of you planning larger luxury weddings have live bands for music. We have a live band too and I am wondering if I should tip them. Background info:
-They are professional wedding band that we just happen to know socially. When we inquired about booking them, they offered us their "friends and family" rate, which is about a 40% discount. Without the discount, they would not have been in budget.
-They are self-employed as a unit, which I know might normally put them in the no-tip category, but I would like to show proper appreciation for the discount.
-Their guitar player will be providing our ceremony music, and did not request any extra charge for doing so. I plan to tip him the amount that we had budgeted for ceremony music (about $200) regardless of how we handle the rest of the band.
-We can find the money to tip what is appropriate, but are running close to our goal for the wedding budget so if tipping the band seems totally unnecessary I would be glad to skip it.
Given that these guys are awesome but self-employed, I am leaning towards a small tip (10%, either on their regular price or the discount price we are actually paying) but I would love to hear how other couples have handled this. Thanks for any advice!