Tour operator vs wilderness guide

The differences between tour operators 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 operator and a wilderness guide. Additionally, a wilderness guide has an average salary of $63,944, which is higher than the $47,294 average annual salary of a tour operator.

The top three skills for a tour operator include reservations, customer service and customer feedback. The most important skills for a wilderness guide are CPR, responder, and canoe.

Tour operator vs wilderness guide overview

	Tour Operator	Wilderness Guide
Yearly salary	$47,294	$63,944
Hourly rate	$22.74	$30.74
Growth rate	4%	-
Number of jobs	26,040	851
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 63%	Bachelor's Degree, 79%
Average age	34	34
Years of experience	2	2

Tour operator vs wilderness guide salary

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

	Tour Operator	Wilderness Guide
Average salary	$47,294	$63,944
Salary range	Between $27,000 And $82,000	Between $17,000 And $228,000
Highest paying City	-	-
Highest paying state	-	-
Best paying company	-	-
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between tour operator and wilderness guide education

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

	Tour Operator	Wilderness Guide
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 63%	Bachelor's Degree, 79%
Most common major	Business	Psychology
Most common college	University of Southern California	Johns Hopkins University

Tour operator vs wilderness guide demographics

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

	Tour Operator	Wilderness Guide
Average age	34	34
Gender ratio	Male, 45.0% Female, 55.0%	Male, 61.9% Female, 38.1%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 6.4% Unknown, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 10.3% Asian, 9.9% White, 66.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%	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 operator and wilderness guide duties and responsibilities

Tour operator example responsibilities.

Plan itineraries, make reservations, lead tours, obtain licenses for foreign pilots, manage a fleet of light aircraft.
Manage VIP guest calendar to ensure these guests are given quality service from staff.
Process and issue airlines, transfers, hotels, and city tours reservations for groups.
Train customers in operating Segway personal transport devices and hold entertaining tours.
Film all selection tour events and act as intermediary between AAG and hundreds of Midwestern media outlets.
Train customers in operating Segway personal transport devices and hold entertaining tours.

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 operator vs wilderness guide skills

Common tour operator skills

Reservations, 32%
Customer Service, 22%
Customer Feedback, 4%
Travel Arrangements, 3%
Tour Guides, 3%
Reservation System, 3%

Common wilderness guide skills

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