Tour Guides and Escorts
The occupation Tour Guides and Escorts covers people who escort individuals or groups on sightseeing tours or through places of interest, such as industrial establishments, public buildings, and art galleries. O*NET rates it as medium preparation, which usually means one or two years of vocational training, an apprenticeship or an associate’s degree. It leans on speaking, social perceptiveness, and active listening. One core duty is to describe tour points of interest to group members, and respond to questions. Its interest code is SEA. Social leads at 5.4 out of 7, so expect helping, teaching or caring for people, with Enterprising next at 3.6. If you want helping, teaching or caring for people, keep it on your list. If you need research, analysis and working through hard problems, it may feel thin.
What they do
Escort individuals or groups on sightseeing tours or through places of interest, such as industrial establishments, public buildings, and art galleries.
Main tasks
- Describe tour points of interest to group members, and respond to questions.
- Escort individuals or groups on cruises, sightseeing tours, or through places of interest, such as industrial establishments, public buildings, or art galleries.
- Monitor visitors' activities to ensure compliance with establishment or tour regulations and safety practices.
- Conduct educational activities for school children.
- Research various topics, including site history, environmental conditions, and clients' skills and abilities to plan appropriate expeditions, instruction, and commentary.
- Provide directions and other pertinent information to visitors.
Skills
- Speaking
- Social Perceptiveness
- Active Listening
- Service Orientation
- Time Management
- Reading Comprehension
Who this career fits
May suit you if
- You get energy from helping other people move forward.
- You like taking the lead and making the call.
- You are willing to put in a year or two of focused training.
- You are comfortable relying on speaking and social perceptiveness.
May not suit you if
- You find a full day of dealing with people draining.
- You want to spend most of your time analyzing and researching. Investigative rates 2.4 out of 7 here.
- You need to start within a few months, with no training period.
Interest profile
O*NET rates each occupation from 1 to 7 on six interest types. The code SEA takes the three highest, and Social comes first here.
Preparation
Medium preparation. Expect vocational school, an apprenticeship, related experience or an associate’s degree, usually one or two years in total.
Most-reported requirement in the O*NET survey: Associate's Degree or other 2-year degree. This reflects what workers reported most often and is not a legal minimum. Licensing rules can differ by state or industry, so confirm what applies where you plan to work.
Also called
- Art Museum Docent
- Discovery Guide
- Docent
- Guide
- Historical Interpreter
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This page includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.