OCCUPATION THESAURUS

TOUR GUIDE



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HELPFUL TIP:

There’s probably a good reason why your character chose their career. Think about how certain talents and skills, a dominant positive or negative trait, or even an emotional wound might have influenced this decision. And once they're on the job, don't forget about the many work-related conflict scenarios you can throw at them to create tension and add complications.
OVERVIEW:
Similar to an Outdoor Guide, a tour guide is someone who acts as a knowledgeable companion for a group of people wishing to experience local sights in a safe and educational way. Excursions might be a few hours (usually at a landmark location like a museum or a walking tour of an urban center) to several weeks, depending on the type of tour. Guides travel with their group, showing them landmarks, historical sites, and other areas of interest, encouraging tourists to immerse themselves in the culture, activities, cuisine, and adventure of the place they have traveled to.

If the tour is a longer one, the guide is also the go-between when it comes to hotel accommodation, restaurant reservations, travel arrangements, transfers, etc. and will interpret between clients and locals if there is a language barrier. They also advise travelers on how to purchase items (bartering), hot to secure transport for non-group activities, and make recommendations for things to see and do with one's free time. Guides will also ensure travelers in their care understand local laws and customs, and will pass on any other dangers to watch out for (if there are any). Tour guides may operate within a city, take their group to multiple locations in a specified area, travel with them to different parts of the country, or even accompany the group on a multi-country trip.

NECESSARY TRAINING:
Education will depend on the type of guiding the character is doing, but many will have a degree in the area of tourism and travel as well as supplemental training and education that pertains to their area of focus. For example, a guide who focuses on a specific location such as a museum or historical site will have in-depth knowledge of that area, and possibly even an art history degree. If a guide covers a specific town or city, they will have significant knowledge of the history, landmarks, culture, arts, and language of that location, and will be able to answer a range of questions their clients may ask, everything from the specifics surrounding the type of tour and historical and cultural facts of the area to what to see and do after the tour is over.

Tour guides that take longer excursions will have a broader skill set as they will be required to not only be knowledgeable about each area they visit, but to also organizing all management aspects of the trip including accommodation, tickets, transfers, etc. and deal with any problems as they crop up. If the tour includes outdoor camping and overland travel, just as an outdoor guide would, they are in charge of camp management and transport (often driving the group from location to location for part or all of the trip). If the tour is international, they will navigate clients through border crossings and customs which may be very different from the processes they are used to in their home country. Guides have extensive knowledge of the areas they visit and be able to ensure the safety of their guests at all times and will receive a great deal training and mentor ship from the guiding company they are affiliated with.

Many guides speak a second language or even multiple languages as this helps with the work they do (and becomes a side effect of spending so much time with different cultures as they travel). Most will require a license to operate. Because this is a people-focused occupation, they are often extroverted, love travel and adventure, have a friendly disposition, and excel at organization and time management.

USEFUL SKILLS, TALENTS, OR ABILITIES:
A KNACK FOR LANGUAGES, BASIC FIRST AID, CHARM, ENHANCED HEARING, EXCEPTIONAL MEMORY, HAGGLING, HOSPITALITY, MAKING PEOPLE LAUGH, MULTITASKING, PHOTOGRAPHIC MEMORY, PREDICTING THE WEATHER, PROMOTION, READING PEOPLE, SURVIVAL SKILLS, THROWING ONE'S VOICE, WILDERNESS NAVIGATION

HELPFUL POSITIVE TRAITS:
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HELPFUL NEGATIVE TRAITS:
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EMOTIONAL WOUNDS THAT MAY HAVE FACTORED INTO THIS OCCUPATION CHOICE:
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SOURCES OF FRICTION:
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PEOPLE THEY MIGHT INTERACT WITH:
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HOW THIS OCCUPATION MIGHT IMPACT ONE'S BASIC NEEDS:
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REASONS THE CHARACTER MAY HAVE BEEN DRAWN TO THIS PROFESSION:
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