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When tour guides go on tour
Kind of odd but not unimportant. So tour guides, on their own, do go on sightseeing. And that is exactly what happened last week when some members of the Tour Guides Association of Ghana decided to do a familiarisation tour. Their destination? Parts of the Eastern Region of Ghana.
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But before I give you a gist of how it went and the fun they had, let me say a few things about the association and Tour Guiding. TORGAG is a tourism trade organisation, which is a member of the Ghana Tourism Federation. Members are trained and individually licensed annually by the Ghana Tourism Authority.
There are regional branches across the country. The responsibilities of a tour guide are as challenging as they are exciting. The reality is that the experience and impression tourists get of a destination are mostly influenced by the professional who guides them.
The truth is that from the moment the guide takes over a group of tourists, he or she has the responsibility to not only cater to their understanding of the things they see and hear but also their hospitality and safety.
That is why in every national tourism development plan, tour guiding remains a critical activity in providing the destination experience. The professional Tour Guide, who acts as the link between the tourist and the realisation of the latter’s dreams, is an important player in shaping the tourism experience of the visitor.
Guides are tourism professionals who lead their guests through the most interesting parts of their region. It is their task to engage visitors and to help to interpret the sights that they are visiting. They help tourists to have a positive experience and take care of their guests as well as they can.
It is important to be aware of cultural differences between visitors and to know about possible sources of noise that might disturb the interaction with guests.
If the opportunity comes, they amuse visitors by telling interesting and funny stories and responding in a proactive way to their complaints and requests. Guides always make sure that they have enough information and knowledge about the subject of the tour and ensure the safety and happiness of their guests.
Although they do not know everything, the average tour guide knows a great deal thereby impressing their clients who sometimes leave fat tips.
How does one become a Tour guide? According to TORGAG, one can become a Tour guide by engaging in one or more of the following:
• In-service training: - understudying an experienced practising tour guide on a bus, at a site, or during community tours.
• Informal training/Self-tuition: by reading on the subject and practising in the field.
• Formal training: - pursuing a designated accredited guiding course from a recognised training institution. In Ghana, examples of training institutions include technical universities, selected universities and professional institutions such as Hotel, Catering and Tourism Training Institute (HOTCATT).
Critically, a practicing tour guide must be a member of TORGAG to reap the benefits of association and networking. Here, colleagues meet periodically to share ideas about tourism and the business of tour guiding. As a union, they also take care of the welfare needs of members. Above all, there is constant training/learning both formal and informal.
This brings me to the recent familiarisation tour the group had, which forms part of the learning opportunities available to members. Under the leadership of Mr Samuel Ashford Banibensu, National General Secretary TORGAG and Mr Elvis Wallace Bruce, TORGAG President, the group left Accra and successfully toured various attractions and facilities of the Eastern Region. The itinerary includes Oboadaka Waterfalls. Adom Falls, Tetteh Quarshie Cocoa Farm and Okomfo Anokye place at Awukugua.
The group also experienced the pristine Nkofieho caves and visited Ojuanoma Mountain.
They also inspected hotels such as Rock City and Little Acre, Aburi. So what do tour guides do when they go on tour? They check for hospitality facilities. They check out what’s new at a tourist attraction. They take note of prices and packages at the destinations. They also examine the state of facilities.
If there are safety concerns, they take notes and sometimes consult other tourism stakeholders. On the tour every morning, they compare notes and assess how the various sites are doing.
Though the COVID-19 pandemic has slowed down business for these vital tourism professionals, they are still holding strong in their respective fields. They are using innovative management techniques such as brainstorming to enhance the innovativeness of their organisation.
But it certainly wasn’t all work. Remember, they were also out to have their own fun. Talk of the jama, singing, dancing and oh, calabashes of delicious palm wine that lubricated parched throats. To all the members who made it, the nation and the entire tourism world say Ayekoo!