Paper 9: Tour Guiding Essentials 
                                                                     
                Module 2: Introduction to Tour Guiding 
                                          
                                          
                                          
                                                       THE DEVELOPMENT TEAM 
                      Principal Investigator                  Prof. S. P. Bansal,  
                                                              Vice Chancellor, Indira Gandhi University, Rewari 
                      Co-Principal Investigator               Dr. Prashant K. Gautam, 
                                                               Director, UIHTM, Panjab University, Chandigarh 
                      Paper Coordinator                       Prof.  Sandeep Kulshreestha, 
                                                              Director, Indian Institute of Tourism and Travel  Management 
                                                               
                      Paper Co-Coordinator                    Dr. Saurabh Dixit,  
                                                              Nodal Officer, IITTM, Gwalior  
                                                           
                      Content Writer                          Dr. Saurabh Dixit,  
                                                              Nodal Officer, IITTM, Gwalior  
                                                           
                        Content Reviewer                      Dr. Prashant K. Gautam, 
                                                               Director, UIHTM, Panjab University, Chandigarh 
                     
                   
                                                               
                     Items              Description of Module 
                     Subject Name       Tourism and Hospitality 
                     Paper Name         Tour Guiding Essentials 
                     Module Title       Introduction to Tour Guiding 
                     Module Id          Module no-02 
                     Pre- Requisites    Basic knowledge of Tourism and its types 
                     Objectives         After completing this chapter you will  
                                              To give you an idea about a tour guide and his role in 
                                               the industry 
                                              To understand the meaning of tour guiding 
                     Keywords                 TVP- Top Visual Priorities 
                                              Dictaphone 
                                              Smart technology 
                                              Tacho or tachograph: a device for recording speed and 
                                               distance covered by vehicle. 
                                                
                                                               
                   
                                                       CONTENTS 
                  2.0 Introduction 
                  2.1 Meaning of a Tour Guide  
                  2.2 Job profile.  
                  2.3 Working Environment  
                  2.4 What is the role of a Tour guide? 
                  2.5 Why do people want to become a tour guide 
                  2.6 What is expected from a tour guide? 
                  2.7 Guiding Gadgets 
                  2.8 Do I need a tour guide 
                  2.9 Future tour guides 
                  2.10 Key words 
                                                                                           
         
                       QUADRANT-I 
        2.0 Introduction 
        Tour guiding is an interactive activity in which a tour guide meets a tourist or a group of 
        tourists, and takes them to a place called a tourism destination or a tourist attraction. He 
        engages them in commentary about the place. He connects his clients with the past of this 
        place (like history of Agra), presents USP and specialties about region. He also recreates 
        a story as per the demand of the situation.  
        2.1 Meaning of a Tour Guide  
        This chapter, Tourists vis a vis tour guide is based on the real life experiences of the 
        authors. The chapter cites the meaning, role and significance of a Tour Guide. We talk 
        about accommodation, transport, destinations, etc, but we forget to talk about the tour 
        guide.  A  tour  guide  is  an  important  active  link  in  any  field  tour.  He  is  important 
        especially  when  you  are  going  to  have  technical  exposure  like  people  working  in 
        architecture engineering going to see a fort, temples, monument etc.  
        Expectations from a guide 
        Good attire 
        Good mood 
        Good smile 
        Equipped with required gadgets  
        Ready to serve 
        Environment friendly 
        Empathetic 
        A tour guide is an important person in the chain of the tourism and travel industry. When 
        the tourist starts from his place of living, he meets the first person who will accompany 
        him for the whole journey; this person may or may not be a tour escort who may also 
        attend to him on the way. After the tourist reaches his destination, he needs someone to 
        help him on the tour.  The person should have good knowledge about the place (for e.g. 
        Agra, New Delhi, Sirpur etc.), languages (i.e. French, German, Spanish etc.), and should 
        preferably be a native of that region. This person (tour guide) is a liaison with the Tour 
        escort and expedites the tour in the area. After the completion, the tourist proceeds to 
         
         
        another place and a second person takes up the job. The person, who is native to that 
        place and who manages the tour at that place is a tour guide.  
        Many people ask a simple question, who is a tour guide? They might want to know how 
        one could become a tour guide. An individual known to me completed his masters in 
        tourism and wanted to stay in the same town. He started going to travel agents with the 
        hope of finding work and became a tour guide.  
        One man who is from a peak travel destination travelled to Delhi with the intention of 
        working for a reputed travel agency, but the only reason he got a job is that the company 
        had no other choice than to accept him as a tour escort. 
        One gentleman left his studies due to a personal problem. One of his friends was a tour 
        guide; he discovered that it was a good work to get money. Later, he picked up a foreign 
        language and commentary. This was someone who was not able to speak fluently in his 
        first assignment and the travel agent was annoyed.  
        Case 
        Mr. Mishra is a Tourism graduate from a University and started working as a manger in a 
        company. He was interested in working in his town and was looking for something that 
        interested him and allowed him to return home after a day of long work. He found tour 
        guiding as a suitable work. He applied for a license with the Ministry of Tourism, Govt. 
        Of India and became a licensed guide. He often remarks that every tourist has a different 
        nature,  temper  and  questions.  He  feels  happy  after  getting  appreciation  from  tourists 
        various times.  
        2.2 Job profile.  
        For a Tour Guide you must have the following:- 
        Knowledge about the history, art, culture, cuisine, and architecture  
        First aid skills 
        Ability to speak multiple languages  
        Knowledge of food, cuisines 
        Ability to read a map 
        Pleasant personality, patience, and interest