NOTE ON BECOMING TOUR GUIDE

I believe that you have travelled a lot. I am sure that you have visited many beautiful and interesting places. Some of your prefer to go on guided tour and some of you perfer to go without any tour guide. Those who have visited places on guided tours realize the advantages of joining such tours. Professional guides can make our tours lively, safe and interesting. Although some tour guides are just fair or even poor. Do you have any idea how professional guides prepare themselves ?

The success of tour guides depends on many factors. First, he must have a thorough knowledge of places, history, facilities, social, political and cultural condition of the places that he will visit. Take Indonesia for example, because Indonesia has many beautiful and interesting places like Bali, Yogyakarta, and Borobudur temple. Many Asian and Western tourist visit these places each year. Many of them travel in groups so they need many guides from their country. If you want to be a successful tour guides who conduct tour to Indonesia, then you must learn its language, history, and social, political and cultural conditions. You don’t have to be a PhD on language or cultural studies. You can learn that from books, magazine and internet. Indonesian language is very easy because it is very simple. Good command of the language will be helpful but it is not a must because many Indonesian speak English especially those who live in Yogyakarta and Bali. Knowledge on Buddhism will be useful to explain about Borobudur temple when you visit it. So will knowledge on Hinduism when you visit Bali and Java.

Books and dictionaries on Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian language) are abundant. So are books on history, social, political and cultural conditions of Indonesia. To be able to learn these knowledge you must have a genuine interest on social studies.

Knowledge alone is not enough. You need a positive personality. You must like travelling and making friends with people from various cultural, social and economic background. And this factor must be genuine. With this factor it will be easy for you to make a close relationship with your clients and working partners. Tour guides will cooperate closely with many professions like hotel managers and employees, local guides, restaurant managers and waiters, airline employess, and even drivers.

Next you must know well the area that you will visit. Before conducting tours you must visit the places to learn the real condition. You cannot just rely to local guides and drivers. You must have first hand knowledge, not just from books. Ideally you have to live there for several weeks to get to know the place and the people you work with. Meet the manager of the local agent and the local guides. Talk to them and ask the guide to take you to places of interest. If you know well the people and the place, you are ready to conduct tour there.

Then you must also have a good health. Travelling and conducting tours need good physical and mental health. Sometimes you have to wake up very early to catch the early flight. Sometimes you have to travel far by land. And you must speak a lot. It is your client who enjoy the tour, not you, not the guide. So this job needs a good health.

If you have a specific skill, it will be very useful. Although its is not a must. Some tour guides are expert on a specific aspect of culture. I know a tour guide who is an expert in Asian studies. But don’t worry if your not one, because a tour is not a scientific lecture. You can become a good guide even if your not an expert.

Now that you have a good mental attitude, a thorough knowledge of a particular place like Java and Bali, you are in good health, you know well the place and the people. You are ready to go. But wait! You need something else.

EQUIPMENT FOR TOUR GUIDES

Like any other professions tour guides need some equipment to help them work well. You need dictionary, cellphone, bag or suitcase, camera and pictures. When you visit any foreign country you need dictionary to help you. Don’t carry a heavy one. A concise electronic or talking dictionary will do.

You need a cellphone or smart phone since you have so many contacts at home and in the country you are visiting. You have to store many numbers of your agents, local guides, airline, hotels and more. Sometimes you have to receive and send emails. So a Blackberry will be very helpful.

You also need a camera since you have so many events to take. Many beautiful beaches, dances, mountains, lakes, forests, temples, and people. These pictures are useful to make your explanation lively. Besides pictures that you take, you need also old pictures of places. There are old pictures of Balinese and Javanese kings, temples, or heirlooms and costumes. Show them to your client to make them interested.

You need a map to help you to know where you are and where to go. It is also useful for your driver in case you have a new driver there. In long tours you need to show your client about the route.

Don’t forget to bring a small suitcase. You need this thing to carry documents, cellphone, camera, a small bottle and many small things you need while working.

With all the above mentioned factors now you are ready to go. Good luck!