Start & Run a Tour Guiding Business. Barbara Braidwood, Susan Boyce & Richard Cropp

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      (b) Foreign Independent Travel (FIT)

      Foreign Independent Travel (FIT) is a customized group tour. A group of wine connoisseurs might arrange a FIT tour of the Loire Valley of France. Several members of the group would work out the details, tailoring the itinerary to the group’s interests, then leave it up to the tour operator to arrange appropriate bookings and local guides.

      (c) Independent Tours (IT)

      Independent Tours (IT) are for people who want prearranged rates for the basics (airfare, accommodation, and ground transportation) but complete freedom and no guide at the destination. A couple honeymooning in Acapulco on an IT know their hotel and rental car are waiting on arrival at the airport but are free to explore (or stay at the hotel) as they fancy.

      (d) FAM

      FAM trips are just one of the marvelous perks of being in the tour guiding business. These are subsidized or free trips to a destination or attraction which FAMiliarize tour operators, directors, and tour guides with its features. For example, a new theme park might provide several nights’ accommodation and admission to all rides and exhibits so that tour professionals will promote and show off the park to maximum advantage throughout the season.

      1.4 Hotels and car rental agencies

      Hotels and car rental agencies sell not only to the public through their own offices and toll-free telephone numbers but also to tour operators. Commission rates range from 5 percent to 12 percent.

      1.5 Insurance

      Insurance suppliers generally provide medical, accidental death, lost baggage, and cancellation insurance to the industry. This is a wonderful source of revenue as commission rates vary from 10 percent to more than 40 percent on a policy. It is also a necessary protection for you and your clients, especially for travel in foreign countries. Many tour operators insist their clients carry complete insurance in order to join a tour, while others require clients to sign a waiver if they choose to travel without insurance.

      1.6 Cruises

      There are more cruise ships being built now than at any time in the last 50 years. As a floating luxury resort, each line tries to set itself apart from the others by stressing price, quality, luxury, or differences in the exotic destinations and sidetrips they offer. Ticket prices for a cruise are normally above $1,000 per person, so commissions for each sale start at $100.

      2. Agency Specialties

      If you are going to run your own tour operation, you will need to find a travel agency to work with. You may deal directly with airlines and hotels in some states and provinces, but in others it is illegal to accept money for travel unless you are either a registered agency yourself or are working under an existing agency’s license. (For more information on working with a travel agency, see chapter 11; on laws and registration procedure, see chapter 15.)

      The days of the general full-service travel agency are not over. However, the complexity of the industry today has spawned thousands of agencies specializing in particular areas and types of travel. It is to your advantage to focus on those agencies that best represent what you are aiming for. If you want to put together a tour of England, don’t go to an agency specializing in African safaris. Keep in mind that the contacts of the travel agency you have chosen will make all the difference to the quality of your tour and to the amount of money you make. If you are going after a certain kind of client, a specialized travel agency may be able to do a better job at a better price than a full-service agency. The specialized agency will have clearly defined target markets and will aim its marketing at these potential clients. This will work to your advantage as you try to fill seats for your tour.

      3. Travel Regulators — IATA, BSP, IATAN, AND ARC

      In the United States, the accreditation bodies you need to be concerned with are the International Airlines Travel Agent Network (IATAN) and the Airlines Reporting Corporation (ARC). In Canada and the rest of the world, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and the Bank Settlement Plan (BSP) are the major players in accreditation. None of these are government agencies.

      In Canada, an IATA appointment automatically means you are accepted by BSP. In the United States, an accreditation by IATAN does not mean acceptance by ARC. A separate application must be made to ARC, which has its own stringent requirements.

      Although you do not need to be accredited by IATA/BSP or IATAN/ARC to be a tour operator, an appointment means your company may issue tickets for many of the association’s member airlines and participate in the money settlement plans ARC and BSP provide. Companies appointed by IATA, ARC, and IATAN must meet minimum financial, security, and experience criteria.

      As the names imply, IATA, ARC, and IATAN are concerned only with air transport. They have no bearing on cruises, hotels, or car rentals. (IATA, BSP, IATAN, and ARC are discussed at more length in chapters 11 and 15.)

      5

      What Does It Take To Become The Perfect Tour Director?

      What does it take to become the perfect tour director? The long version (Warning! Inhale deeply before attempting to say this): The ability to ensure the smooth running of all transportation, luggage handling, sightseeing, activities, accommodations, group meals, customs clearances; to negotiate the best rates for all of the preceding; to promote communication and camaraderie between fellow travelers from the minute the tour begins till the moment the last person heads home.

      If you can say it all in one breath, you have probably already passed the lung capacity test to be a tour guide.

      The short version (for those in a hurry to read on or who skipped operatic voice training): Everything!

      Well-run tours don’t just happen. They are the result of superb organization by the tour operator and precision choreography by the tour guides and directors. It is the tour professional’s enthusiasm and attitude that set the tone for any tour, and he or she is solely responsible for making everyone feel comfortable and well cared for. The director or guide is the person tour members interact with, and he or she must be prepared to be ambassador, diplomat, entertainer, historian, psychologist, translator, mind reader, and miracle worker.

      The next seven chapters will give you an overview of the duties and responsibilities you can expect when you embark on a career in tour guiding and tour directing. Some of what you read here will be a surprise, while other information may seem self-evident or will not apply to everyone (for example, a step-on guide may wish to skip the sections about cruising). But remember, it is usually the self-evident things that get overlooked in any project, things that are so “obvious” people forget about them. And it is usually those obvious but forgotten considerations that cause the biggest problems.

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