How To Become A Guide: What It Is and Career Path

What is a guide and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

A tour guide takes visitors on guided tours at historical or culturally relevant sites that are unfamiliar to them. Guides share interesting information and entertaining insight into the places to provide tourists with a more in-depth experience. Following the lead of a tour guide in a foreign place usually guarantees that you will not get lost, and you will find the best spot to see and have a great meal, or a fun night out.

Guides sometimes obtain vocational training in travel or tourism, but they are not required to have a degree to hold this position. Language skills are great to have, and experience in the service industry, such as hotels or travel trades, can also be useful.

You will be walking around a lot as a guide, so make sure you are at least more fit than the average tourist if you take on this job. You should not shy away from speaking in public. Unless you advertise yourself as a Zen guide, you will be expected to keep the info and fun titbits coming all day long.

ScoreGuideUS Average

Salary

2.7

Avg. Salary $34,479

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

6.3

Growth rate 28%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

1.1

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.67%

Asian 9.89%

Black or African American 6.47%

Hispanic or Latino 10.36%

Unknown 5.35%

White 67.25%

Gender

female 50.67%

male 49.33%

Age - 28

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 28

Stress level

6.3

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level

6.1

Complexity level is intermediate

7 - challenging

Work life balance

7.3

Work life balance is good

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a guide

Explore guide education requirements

Most common guide degrees

Bachelor's

61.0 %

Associate

13.1 %

High School Diploma

11.9 %

Start to develop specific guide skills

Skills	Percentages
Brand Awareness	25.75%
Product Knowledge	12.28%
Safety Rules	11.58%
Customer Service	8.07%
Safety Procedures	4.89%

Complete relevant guide training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New guides learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a guide based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real guide resumes.

Gain additional guide certifications

Guide certifications can show employers you have a baseline of knowledge expected for the position. Certifications can also make you a more competitive candidate. Even if employers don't require a specific guide certification, having one may help you stand out relative to other applicants.

The most common certifications for guides include First Aid, CPR and AED Instructor and Certified Medical Interpreter - Spanish (CMI).

More About Certifications

Research guide duties and responsibilities

Manage kayaks, guest and guide gear and repaired/ordered as needed.
Lead VIP guests on guide tours of the property and facilitate their involvement in special events, productions, and conventions.
Manage payroll - specifically manage overtime.
Provide hands on experience in stream exploration, plant identification, and survival classes.

Prepare your guide resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your guide resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a guide resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable guide resume templates

Build a professional guide resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your guide resume.