Tour guide
Encyclopedia
A tour guide provides assistance, information and cultural, historical and contemporary heritage interpretation to people on organized tours, individual clients, educational establishments, at religious and historical sites, museums, and at venues of other significant interest. They (normally) have a recognized national or regional tourist guide qualification.
The CEN (European Committee for Standardization
) definition for "tourist guide" (part of the work by CEN on definitions for terminology within the tourism industry) is:
CEN also produced a definition for "tour manager":
In Europe
, tourist guides (tour guide being initially a term primarily used in the US market) are represented by FEG, the European Federation of Tourist Guide Associations and world wide by WFTGA.
The tourist guiding qualification is specific to each and every country; in some cases the qualification is national, in some cases it is broken up into regions. In all cases it is embedded in the educational and training ethic of that country. The Art of Guiding is a skill; it is the skill of selecting information and varying it for different audiences; it is the skill of presenting it in a simple and precise way; it is the skill of allowing the visitor to see and to understand; it is a skill which, if well performed, is invisible.
EN15565 is a European Standard for the Training and Qualification of Tourist Guides
Tour guides on boat tour
s in the Port of Hamburg are called he lücht
s ("he is lying") after an often used call of dock workers when they overheard the often colorful stories told by tour guides to tourists.
The CEN (European Committee for Standardization
European Committee for Standardization
The European Committee for Standardization or Comité Européen de Normalisation , is a non-profit organisation whose mission is to foster the European economy in global trading, the welfare of European citizens and the environment by providing an efficient infrastructure to interested parties for...
) definition for "tourist guide" (part of the work by CEN on definitions for terminology within the tourism industry) is:
- Tourist guide = person who guides visitors in the language of their choice and interprets the culturalCultural heritageCultural heritage is the legacy of physical artifacts and intangible attributes of a group or society that are inherited from past generations, maintained in the present and bestowed for the benefit of future generations...
and natural heritageNatural heritageNatural heritage is the legacy of natural objects and intangible attributes encompassing the countryside and natural environment, including flora and fauna, scientifically known as biodiversity, and geology and landforms ....
of an area, which person normally possesses an area-specific qualification usually issued and/or recognized by the appropriate authority
CEN also produced a definition for "tour manager":
- Tour manager = person who manages and supervises the itinerary on behalf of the tour operator, ensuring the programme is carried out as described in the tour operator's literature and sold to the traveller/consumer and who gives local practical information
In Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, tourist guides (tour guide being initially a term primarily used in the US market) are represented by FEG, the European Federation of Tourist Guide Associations and world wide by WFTGA.
The tourist guiding qualification is specific to each and every country; in some cases the qualification is national, in some cases it is broken up into regions. In all cases it is embedded in the educational and training ethic of that country. The Art of Guiding is a skill; it is the skill of selecting information and varying it for different audiences; it is the skill of presenting it in a simple and precise way; it is the skill of allowing the visitor to see and to understand; it is a skill which, if well performed, is invisible.
EN15565 is a European Standard for the Training and Qualification of Tourist Guides
Tour guides on boat tour
Boat tour
A boat tour is a short trip in a small boat taken for tourist reasons, typically starting and ending in the same place, and normally of a duration less than a day...
s in the Port of Hamburg are called he lücht
He lücht
He lücht is an expression used in Hamburg, Germany, for tour guides in port of Hamburg.-Overview:The first HADAG harbour tours started in 1921. he tour guides often told anecdotes and stories...
s ("he is lying") after an often used call of dock workers when they overheard the often colorful stories told by tour guides to tourists.
See also
- Audio tourAudio tourAn audio tour or audio guide provides a recorded spoken commentary, normally through a handheld device, to a visitor attraction such as a museum. They are also available for self-guided tours of outdoor locations, or as a part of an organised tour. It provides background, context, and information...
- Cell phone tour
- GPS tour
- Institute of Tourist GuidingInstitute of Tourist GuidingThe Institute of Tourist Guiding was formed in 2002 as an English professional body.It was formed with the approval of the Department of Culture, Media and Sport and the Department of Trade and Industry to encourage professionalism in – and raising the status of – the guiding sector...
- Museum educationMuseum educationMuseum education is an important part of the role of museums.- Introduction :A museum's collection can be used to support education in a variety of ways...
- Blue Badge tourist guideBlue Badge tourist guideBlue Badge Tourist Guides are the official, professional tourist guides of the United Kingdom. They wear a Blue Badge to indicate their professionalism. They are recognised by local tourist bodies throughout the UK, and by Visit Britain as Britain’s official tourist guides...