The profession as a tour guide is one of the jobs that requires communication skills and broad insight into tourist objects and cultural arts. In this era of globalization, the world of tourism is one of the driving forces for the economy in various countries, for example Singapore, France, Malaysia, Egypt, the United States, Thailand, Italy, South Africa, Australia, Brazil and other countries including Indonesia.
In the tourism sector, there are many fields and types of work that can be used as a profession, such as marketing marketing, hotel staff, restaurant employees, spa services, accommodation providers, and many more including being a tour guide. Having a job, of course there are ups and downs, including being a tour guide. ~
What’s so good about being a tour guide?
- Get Gratuities or Commissions
If you as a tour guide are able to serve tourists well and satisfactorily, tips will definitely be easy to get. To get this, a tour guide must be friendly, provide satisfying information, and of course, must be able to answer various questions asked by tourists, especially about the places visited.
Apart from getting tips, many tourist guides also earn commissions from various tourism companies, such as hotels, restaurants, or spas. For example, when lunch time arrives, the tourist guide usually invites the tourists to have lunch at a certain restaurant. For his services, the restaurant owner thanked the guide for taking the tourist to eat at his restaurant. Apart from being able to eat for free, another form of gratitude is of course in the form of commission money (usually 5-20% of the total expenditure).
- Opportunities for Relationships
Apart from getting tips, if the tour guide is good at socializing and can attract the sympathy of tourists, then the guide has the opportunity to make friends, business relations, and even get a girlfriend. Many friends are successful because they become “tour guides”, this is because they are able to take advantage of existing relationships, for example being invited to work together in building a villa or restaurant. - Frequent Free Tours
Another good thing about being a tour guide is that you often take part in free tours, meaning you get the opportunity to travel for free, visit tourist objects without having to pay fees. By visiting many places, of course, will add to your insight.
Then what’s the bad taste like?
- Mandatory Mastering of Foreign Languages
One thing that becomes a burden as a tour guide is having to master foreign languages, especially English. If you are able to speak various types of languages, such as French, German, Japanese, and Chinese, the opportunity to earn dollars will be even smoother. In Bali, a tourist guide is usually a special guide, for example a guide for French tourists, Japanese tourist guides, German tourist guides and others according to the language skills they are most familiar with. - Must Have Broad Insights
Being a tour guide must frequently read books, seek additional information, and add insight so that you can be confident while doing work. If the guide’s knowledge of various places and cultures is still minimal, then be prepared to be laughed at by the tourists, especially if they give wrong information. This is the ‘bad’ about being a tour guide. - Often Parting with Family
Parting with family is something that is often experienced by a tour guide. In a “touring” sometimes it can take one day trip, two days, or even one week depending on the route taken. For example, a group of tourists from Bali who tour Mount Bromo or Jogja, will experience the feeling of being far from their family.
