Tour guides · Australia
How much should you tip a tour guide in Australia?
Short answer
$20–50 per day
$20–50 a day for a guide. $5–10 for a bus tour driver.
Not obligatory, but more established than tipping in restaurants. Lonely Planet puts guides in Australia and New Zealand at $20–50 for a day and bus tour drivers at $5–10, which is well above the few dollars per head visitors often assume. This is the one figure on this page resting on a single source: Rough Guides covers Australian tipping but does not price guided tours. Reef trips, Uluru tours and Blue Mountains days all fall into this bracket. A dive guide or a liveaboard skipper who has looked after you deserves the top of it.
Things to do in Australia
Where are you actually going? These are the best rated in each place.
SydneySydney Harbour Kayak Adventure - for FIT PEOPLE!5.0·135 reviews·from €79.51
MelbournePrivate Great Ocean Road - The Ultimate Aussie Adventure5.0·84 reviews·from €712.43
AdelaideFull Day Kayaking Tour in Coorong National Park5.0·122 reviews·from €101.78
BrisbaneBrisbane Sightseeing Tour by Bus: Scenic Locations & Morning Tea5.0·70 reviews·from €79.51Some links may earn WhatTheTip a commission at no extra cost to you.
Common questions
- How much should you tip tour guides in Australia?
- $20–50 per day. $20–50 a day for a guide. $5–10 for a bus tour driver.
- Can you tip by card in Australia?
- Card terminals increasingly show a tip prompt, particularly in Sydney and Melbourne. It is entirely optional and skipping it is normal.
More on tipping in Australia
Tipping tour guides elsewhere
Full tipping guide for Australia
Reviewed by Greg Kockott on 3 September 2026.
Figures checked against the sources below on 4 September 2026.
Sources
- Rough Guides, “Travel Tips Australia” (consulted 2026-09-04)
- Lonely Planet, “Guide to Tipping in Australia, New Zealand and the South Pacific” (consulted 2026-09-04)