Tour Guide
Why Is Tour Guidance a Job of Tomorrow?
The United States is a large country with such diverse cultures, climates, and geological wonders that it is little surprise domestic tourism as well as international tourism continues to thrive. Cross-country road trips are routine occurrences for many families, and hot spots such as Las Vegas, New York City, and Washington D.C. host thousands of visitors every year. In fact, international visitors to the U.S. reached a record high of 58 million individuals in 2008, which is a four percent increase from 2007’s numbers, according to U.S. Department of Commerce’s International Trade Administration. The U.S.
is second only to France in the title for the world’s most international visitors. With the boom of tourism, tour guides will see a much faster than average employment change as many more jobs open up, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Tour guides with one to four years of experience make an average salary of $22,500 annually, though salaries vary greatly depending on the guide’s employer, according to PayScale, a company that specializes in compensation data.
What Does a Tour Guide Do?
Whether a tourist comes from another city, state, or country, a tour guide is responsible for entertaining the visitor as well as providing him or her with valuable information. Tour guides must be well-educated in the subject they are showing the tourists. Guides can work in a variety of settings, including museums, historical landmarks, and with a travel company. Tour guides who work in a stationary setting, such as a museum or landmark, typically conduct several tours a day to different groups of visitors. They must select the most important and interesting information about the subject and present it to the visitors in a simple, yet appealing, way. Often, tour guides must adapt the information to suit the specific visitors. For example, a tour guide at an art museum may present a more detailed tour to learned adults than they would to a group of school children. Tour guides may also work with a travel company that arranges private group tours across a region. In these cases, a tour guide may stay with a specific tour group throughout the duration of their tour, which can last anywhere from several days to several weeks. These tour guides must keep their assigned group comfortable, entertained, and satisfied. They must also know a great deal of information about the history, cultural significance, and other interesting factoids about all the places the tourists visit so that they may answer any questions tourists may have.
What Kind of Training Do I Need to Become a Tour Guide?
There are no formal education requirements for tour guides, though most tour guides have at least a high school education. Training and certification programs are available from a variety of travel guide associations, such as the World Federation of Tourist Guide Associations. These training programs are typically run by current tour guides and cover industry knowledge, tour itinerary design, and other related topics. Tour guides must also be knowledgeable in the area they will be covering.
