The tourist may need a very useful information tool for their trips, a tourist guide. It is a book in which it is possible to find all kinds of data about a specific destination. Thus, the content of the tourist guides incorporates very varied information on museums and cultural heritage, restaurants, shows, schedules, transportation, currency exchange, local traditions, practical recommendations for the traveler and, ultimately, everything that may be useful for the Turist.
In recent years these guides have adapted to the technological revolution and travelers use applications on their mobile devices that allow them to consult information about the site they are visiting.
Both in its paper and digital versions, a tourist guide is designed to solve problems and guide the traveler in their needs in an easy and practical way.
In fact, if we consult a guide, we will find sections with titles such as the following: where to eat, how to get there, how to save money, where to sleep, etc. It must be taken into account that normally the tourist has little time to visit a destination and the guide becomes an ally to make the most of the time available.
The travel book, an alternative to the classic guides
In a tourist guide there is objective information, but in a travel book there are experiences about a place. In this sense, many travelers prefer to orient themselves by a literary work in which the trip acquires a new dimension. Travel literature has historical and biographical ingredients and this makes the traveler-reader have a different experience than the tourist.
The profession of a tour guide
In countries with a tourist tradition it is possible to train academically as a guide. The professional of this activity has the appropriate knowledge to convey to travelers the same information as a tourist guide, but also incorporates the human factor. Thus, the guide comments on the history of a place, solves doubts and unforeseen events and, ultimately, contributes his knowledge so that the traveler has a more complete experience about his trip.
Qualities to be a good guide
The tour guide must be a good communicator and, at the same time, a deep connoisseur of the history of a place. If you describe a building you have to know who built it, when and what it was built for.
If you accompany a group to a local market, you have to advise on what products can be purchased and what are the most advisable prices. On the other hand, you must remember everything that may hinder the trip (dangerous areas or possible scams for tourists).
Photos: Fotolia - Lorelyn Medina
