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Nevada-Las Vegas

More Tipping Questions

ktbabe530ktbabe530 member
500 Comments 100 Love Its Second Anniversary First Answer
edited April 2014 in Nevada-Las Vegas
I know there a bunch of threads on tipping, but I just want to make sure our plan sounds okay. 

 We are doing everything at the Mirage. Only outside vendor is the DJ, we are using their Cashman for photography. 

- Salon Services - 20% of total 
- Meet and Greet Buffet - 20% of total 
- DJ/MC - $100 
- Bartender - 10% of bar bill 
- Photographer - I don't even want to tip at all since they are making us use Cashman, I'm thinking $50 to $100 depending on the vibe I'm getting. 
- Wedding Coordinator/Planner - Should we wait and see how everything goes and send a check with a thank you note after we get home? I'm thinking around $200 if everything comes together like we want. 
- Officiant is my sister - still working on a nice gift idea for her... 

 Do the amounts sound okay and am I forgetting anyone?
We had our dream wedding at Mirage on May 3, 2014! 
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Re: More Tipping Questions

  • The only thing i would change is the bar tender I would give no less than 15%
  • the bar tender one seemed low to me too.  we are also paying a fee to have the bar tender, not sure if that makes a difference or not?  

    should we just plan on 20% if they do a really good job?
    We had our dream wedding at Mirage on May 3, 2014! 
    image
  • I wouldn't feel compelled to tip the planner; they're paid a salary and are a normal resort employee whose job is to ensure everything goes well.  In our specific circumstance, the restaurant manager at Mix would have been someone in a similar role for our wedding and reception.  Everything was 100% perfect, so I wrote letters of commendation for him to both the VP of Dining/Entertainment at Mandalay and the Food & Beverage Director at Mandalay to ensure they knew how outstanding a job he did.  I figure if it helps him get a raise or move onward and upward in his career, it's better than any tip I could leave.

    I'm not sure I'd tip the photog; with Cashman I am not sure if they even do any post-processing of the pics, that I believe is someone else's job and then they hit you up with the hard sell the next day.  Maybe go the nice letter route with them too if you really like the framing and angles the photog chose.

    Married in Vegas - June 2011


  • You can also nominate your service provider, bartender, waitstaff and other professionals for a Customer Service Excellence award. It's free to nominate, free for the company, and the employer gets notified as well. It's as simple as filling out a form here: https://www.lvchamber.com/cse

    It's not the same as a tip, but it is recognition that gets public exposure.

  • Watch out for the new "service charge" on your services. The IRS was finding a lot of falsely recorded tips in Vegas and just recently put a law in place for an auto service charge (typically 18-20%) instead of the option of tipping because workers weren't claiming it on their taxes and having it as a service charge the government can track it and tax it. So I would find out which vendors all ready have this built in fee. I don't know who it all applies too and it could be only your bartender... 

    Wedding Countdown Ticker
  • lol, I like this part "the change won’t add to the server’s tax burden — assuming that they’ve been honestly reporting their tips to Uncle Sam."  Umm, I was a server long ago, I'd say 99% don't report cash tips anywhere close to what they take home.

    Married in Vegas - June 2011


  • @KiKimara I was wondering about this because there is a 20% service charge on our venue/catering contract. So this is basically like an automatic gratuity??
    Wedding Countdown Ticker
  • There is a 20% service charge, I was told it was the gratuity for the waitstaff.  There is also a fee for the bartender, but no 20% service charge.  that's why i'm so confused.  :-/
    We had our dream wedding at Mirage on May 3, 2014! 
    image
  • I'm pretty sure there will be guests tipping the bartender too, don't forget that. Every wedding I've been to, people seem to give tips. I make sure to bring tipping money especially when it is a no cash bar. I try to give a little seeing as the bride and groom are paying out so much.
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