TH1808

INTRODUCTION TO TOUR GUIDING

Definition of Tour Guiding
Tour guiding is the act of guiding groups or individual
visitors on a tour around natural and cultural heritage
sites or other attractions and giving interpretation
about the places in a language of the visitor’s choice,
often in an inspiring and entertaining matter.

Source: blogrope.com

ELEMENTS OF TOUR GUIDING

Communication Skills
Verbal communication is the use of sounds and language to relay a message.
• Vocabulary – It is best that tour guides work on their vocabulary and pattern their explanations based
on the profile of the tourists. Having a rich vocabulary will help a tour guide use words that will help
the tourists process the given information better.
• Tonality – Communication experts refer to this as the tone of voice that has a great impact on engaging
the audience when speaking. When doing commentaries, fascinating stories must be expressed in an
exciting manner as these stories are meant to delight tourists. A pleasant vocal variety is a well-
modulated voice that has an appropriate volume for the listeners.
• Rate of speech – A moderate speech rate is not too slow and not too fast. It is really important that
the audience is able to comprehend the announcement or commentaries of the tour guide. The rate
of speech is also complemented by timing. Appropriate pauses must be done especially when
emphasizing an important idea.

Nonverbal communication involves any form of body language, gesture, and facial expression. They are as
important as the words being expressed. Excellent narration is accompanied with gestures and facial
expressions from time to time.
• Eye contact – Making and maintaining eye contact is important when doing commentaries to tourists.
It does not mean staring at the audience for a long time, but to look at each one of them every now
and then.
• Gesture – This is one of the best accompaniments or even alternative of the spoken words. Gestures
are the normal movement of the hands and arms.
• Facial expression – It is the strongest in all nonverbal cues. It creates countless expressions like
happiness, excitement, passion, and sincerity that are important in relaying a message to guests. Facial
expressions should be in sync with what the tour guide is saying. If they say the next activity is going
to be excited, then they should look excited.

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People Skills – These are a set of skills enabling a person to get along with others, communicate ideas
effectively, resolve conflicts, and achieve a personal or business goals (Businessdictionary.com, n.d.). Tour
guides build rapport with their tourists. It starts with communication from the time they meet their guests. By
the end of the tour, tour guides have already built relationships.
In building relationships, certain elements must be present. These include being diplomatic, polite, friendly,
patient, positive, sensitive, caring, tactful, and ethical.

Knowledge and Skills

• Education is a component of travel. Learning is achieved when tour guides are competent and
knowledgeable. Tour guides must not only be ready with their prepared commentaries, but also be
prepared in answering queries of tourists and attending to their needs.
• Research is important. Knowledgeable tour guides are able to supplement their explanations with
updates and latest information by researching and doing further studies. Attending seminars and
interaction with other tour guides are great ways to gather new trends as well.
• Safety is another component of travel. It is highly recommended that tour guides are knowledgeable
of first aid and hazard preventive measures. In terms of safety, the basic skills needed for a tour guide
include the following: swimming, basic cardio pulmonary resuscitation (CPR), and management of
choking, burn, and bleeding.
• Basic courtesies can be inbound or outbound. This means that tour guides may encounter foreign
guests visiting the tour guide’s country of residence, or tour guides may act as tour managers and
bring resident tourists to foreign countries. Basic courtesies mean being courteous and respectful to
others regardless of their nationality, age, and religion. It is important to know the basic courtesies of
every nationality like bowing for Japanese and performing the “wai” (basic greeting) for Thai people.
• Problem-solving. Knowledge also involves knowing what to do in certain situations. There are different
problems that may arise during the tour like the breaking down of the vehicle, a lost luggage, or a sick
tourist who needs to be rushed to a hospital. A competent tour guide knows what to do and is ready
to face such challenges. S/He remains alert yet calm and proves to be a problem solver. Decisiveness
should also be one of his/her strengths.

Organizational Skills – These skills involve more than just paperwork. These involve time management and
financial management. Having good organizational skills is about making the best use of one’s time. Tour
guides must know how to multitask. They have other jobs to do more than just guiding and doing
commentaries.

References:
Baltazar, J. P., & Verzosa, R. F. (2016). Local guiding services. Quezon City: The Phoenix Publishing House Inc.
BusinessDictionary. (2019). People Skills. Retrieved from
http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/people-skills.html on 14 June 2019

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