Tour guide vs wilderness guide

The differences between tour guides and wilderness guides can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a tour guide and a wilderness guide. Additionally, a wilderness guide has an average salary of $63,944, which is higher than the $32,323 average annual salary of a tour guide.

The top three skills for a tour guide include local history, customer service and safety practices. The most important skills for a wilderness guide are CPR, responder, and canoe.

Tour guide vs wilderness guide overview

	Tour Guide	Wilderness Guide
Yearly salary	$32,323	$63,944
Hourly rate	$15.54	$30.74
Growth rate	-	-
Number of jobs	1,043	851
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 70%	Bachelor's Degree, 79%
Average age	34	34
Years of experience	2	2

Tour guide vs wilderness guide salary

Tour guides and wilderness guides have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Tour Guide	Wilderness Guide
Average salary	$32,323	$63,944
Salary range	Between $18,000 And $55,000	Between $17,000 And $228,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	-
Highest paying state	Alaska	-
Best paying company	Harley-Davidson	-
Best paying industry	Education	-

Differences between tour guide and wilderness guide education

There are a few differences between a tour guide and a wilderness guide in terms of educational background:

	Tour Guide	Wilderness Guide
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 70%	Bachelor's Degree, 79%
Most common major	Business	Psychology
Most common college	Stanford University	Johns Hopkins University

Tour guide vs wilderness guide demographics

Here are the differences between tour guides' and wilderness guides' demographics:

	Tour Guide	Wilderness Guide
Average age	34	34
Gender ratio	Male, 46.8% Female, 53.2%	Male, 61.9% Female, 38.1%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 6.6% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 10.5% Asian, 9.9% White, 67.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 6.3% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 10.1% Asian, 9.0% White, 69.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	9%	9%

Differences between tour guide and wilderness guide duties and responsibilities

Tour guide example responsibilities.

Manage the canoe landing including guests, workers, and canoe traffic in a way that all run smoothly and safely.
Aid clients with matters regarding passports and visas.
Receive multiple positive reviews on the company Facebook page.
Complete extensive training as well as first aid, CPR and a certification.
Maintain alertness for any problem solve calls via radio and communication with management.
Spearhead all creative activity for online marketing (Facebook), and other social media sites5.

Wilderness guide example responsibilities.

Manage payroll - specifically manage overtime.
Reside on-site in remote Alaskan wilderness setting.
Drive full size off-road buses to transport clients back to canoe launch site.
canoe rental agent and driver for delivery and pick up of clients on the local rivers.
Facilitate daily leadership lessons and debriefings.
Ensure participant's safety and well-being, practicing responsibility and leadership.

Tour guide vs wilderness guide skills

Common tour guide skills

Local History, 22%
Customer Service, 19%
Safety Practices, 16%
Public Speaking, 8%
Front Desk, 4%
Facebook, 3%

Common wilderness guide skills

CPR, 22%
Responder, 15%
Canoe, 9%
Alaskan, 9%
Substance Abuse, 8%
Trip Planning, 6%