How to Start a Tour Business or Work as a Tour Guide
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As long as you enjoy being around people, you can enjoy the fun lifestyle of a tour guide operator - you
don't even have to like traveling. Read on and you'll understand why.
Whether you decide you want to travel the world as a tour guide - or simply provide tours in your local
area, there are more opportunities than you can imagine. Tourists will pay to experience something unique and
interesting - even if you find it "commonplace" because it's in your own backyard. (You can understand - we've
all been tourists at some point).
And don't forget that people don't just want to see things - they want to do stuff. There are numerous tour
companies that revolve around sports activities - whether it's as extreme or adventurous as mountain biking or
rock climbing - or as simple and relaxing as walking. Some companies provide equipment and gear - others don't
or partner with another company who will. When you design your business to meet both your needs and your
clients needs - you will be the happiest.
Learn to become a tour guide operator from Cherie Anderson - who has worked successfully as a tour guide
operator for 20 years and has trained people to become tour guide operators for over 6 years. Who better to
learn from?
She shows you how to work in the tour guide field - how to get hired by a professional company - or
start your own successful tour guide
business.
Another very good resource is Marc
Mancini's "Conducting Tours". Mancini is a
well-known travel industry speaker who has worked with large companies such as American Airlines, Carlson
Group and American Express. He shares the secrets to conducting a successful tour - and especially important
- how to address common challenges that you may encounter.
Some other helpful online resources that you can use to get insight into the tour guide industry are the
United States Tour Operator Association which represents the tour operator industry and
the National Business Travel Association, which offers useful and up-to-date information on
the travel industry.
A tour guide certification is not required to start your own tour operator business, but it is recommended,
especially if you want to gain additional training in the travel field that can help your business, Penn Foster
offers an at-home "Travel and Tourism Specialist" training program. You can request a free information packet here
.
Wondering about customers? Infohub is the perfect website on which to advertise a tour business. This travel
website features all sorts of unique travel and tour ideas worldwide - specifically for your target market -
the traveler looking for organized trips or unique travel.
Starting a Tour Guide Business Business Checklist:
- Obtain the necessary business licenses. Check with your local government office to find out which licenses and permits you need for
your tour business and how to apply.
- If you plan to operate your tour business out of your home, check with your local government office about zoning ordinances and possible land use
restrictions
- Set up a business bank account with your local bank. Make sure that the bank is FDIC is
insured. It is important to keep your tour business and personal finances separate, and often your
banker can help with small business loans or financing.
- Arrange a meeting with an accountant to discuss tax strategies and ways to maximize your business tax deductions. You can get referrals from other business owners you know
or sometimes your banker.
- File your fictitious business name with the county clerk, or if you want to form a corporation, find
out the advantages of incorporating your business
- Meet with an insurance agent to discuss insurance you may need for your cafe. The IIABA (Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America) is a good place to
start. You can also get free quotes online for business insurance
- Set up your business phone system. Whether you use a toll-free 800 phone number, a multi-line phone system, VoIP or simply add an
additional phone number to your existing service, you'll want a designated line to establish a
professional business image. If you accept reservations by phone, this can be very important.
- Order business cards. One of the cheapest ways I know of to advertise a business. See how you can
design your own professional business cards online, plus simple tips for increasing your sales >>
Free Business Cards
- Get a website. Save money by creating your own website with simple online design programs, or outsource the job
to an affordable website designer. Whether you sell tour reservations online - or you use
a website to display touring intineraries or business hours, it's important to take advantage of this
low-cost marketing resource that can help you get more customers.
- Need Clients for your tour
company? Don't worry! Marketing Expert David Frey shows you how. I used his advice to get my own
clients Click Here to subscribe to
his free newsletter or find out more about he finds customers for his business.
More Tour Business Resources:
With Tour Guide Training, You Can Get Paid to Travel
In survey after survey, when people are asked what they would do if they had more time and additional
financial resources, the top answer is "travel." Unfortunately, for most people, the dream of seeing exotic
locales and exploring the sights and sounds of distant places remains just that - a dream. But some people
choose to transform their travel dreams into reality by receiving tour guide training and becoming a tour
director or getting any one of a number of other travel jobs.
Types of Tour Guide Jobs
Travel and tourism training paves the way for any number of tour guide jobs. Leading tours can mean
sightseeing and bus tours, adventure tours, sporting tours, and cruise ship excursions either near your home,
within the United States, or internationally. With tour director training, you can find work as varied as being
a cruise host to assuming a management position with a tour company. The companies you can work for include
tour operators, destination management companies, and event planners.
Who Makes a Good Tour Director?
One of the wonderful things about the travel and hospitality industry is that it encompasses a diverse array
of jobs and draws people from a variety of backgrounds. In order to succeed in the field, you simply need to
love travel, enjoy working with people, and have the right travel and tourism training. Some tour guides have
extensive travel experience prior to starting, while others just have natural curiosity and the desire to
travel. Many take tour guide jobs on a part-time basis, either during vacations from school, after retirement,
or during the "down time" of seasonal careers. Others work locally as full-time tour directors or travel the
world on cruise ships. There isn't a single career path that leads to becoming a good tour director; indeed, it
is tour guide training that makes all the difference.
Finding the Right Tour Guide Training
While some community colleges and universities offer tour guide training, you can also earn a certificate as
a tour director through online courses. The best online courses offer the option of getting credit for the
course through an accredited college or university in your community.
When looking at travel and tourism training options, look into the background of the instructor. Ideally,
you will find someone with over a decade of extensive travel experience throughout the world as a cruise host
and international tour director. He or she should also have considerable tour guide training experience.
A
reputable tour director training course should last about six weeks. It should cover the expectations,
requirements, and procedures involved in tour directing and guiding, as well as techniques for group
management, creating and delivering interesting narration, and handling challenges that arise. The course
should also go into depth about pre-tour planning, multi-day tours, facing emergencies anywhere in the
world, and governmental regulations and procedures. Finally, a good tour guide training
course will explore the career opportunities available for a tour director, which opportunities are a good fit
for your needs and interests, and how to best write a resume, network, and interview for travel jobs.
Getting paid to travel is a dream job. And, with the right tour guide training, you can make that dream come
true!
Chris Robertson is an author of Majon International, one of the worlds most popular internet marketing companies on the web. Learn more about
Tour Guide Training or Majon's Travel directory
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