Do you love telling stories and meeting people from all over the world? A career as a tour guide could be perfect for you! But before you dive in, a certain amount of preparation is essential. You can't just wing it as a guide! Behind the seemingly effortless delivery of great speakers lie hours of hard work and meticulous preparation. Here are the 5 steps to follow to embark on this exciting career!
1/ Create your guided tours
A tour guide is nothing without their tours. What do you want to share with your clients, and what value will you bring them? Put simply and practically: you need to know what you're going to sell!The very first step is to establish the concept for your tours and your positioning in the market. You need to design your tour routes and decide what you'll share with your clients along the way — whether historical facts or entertaining anecdotes.
Take the time to survey the competition and see what other tour guides are offering. It's well worth proposing fresh and original tours to stand out and carve out your place in the market. Ask yourself: why would clients buy your guided tour rather than a competitor's?
Craft compelling titles and descriptions for your tours to encourage potential clients to book. Lean into originality and build excitement by hinting at the highlights of your tour.
Test your tour with friends to get their feedback — there will almost certainly be things to fine-tune. And take the opportunity to ask them to photograph you in action. These shots will be invaluable for promoting your tours on your website and social media.
2/ Complete the legal formalities
Whatever country you live in and wherever you plan to offer guided tours, you will need to comply with local regulations regarding guided tours and business registration.The need to obtain a professional card
If you wish to offer guided tours in museums or historic sites, you will need to check whether a professional card is required. In France, for example, it is forbidden to guide visitors in national museums or listed historic monuments without holding a professional guide-lecturer card. The card is also required for services sold through a travel operator. The professional guide-lecturer card is issued:- to holders of the professional licence in guide-lecturing;
- to holders of a national master's degree who have completed, during or after their training, the 3 supplementary teaching units for guide-lecturers;
- to holders of a master's-level degree who can demonstrate a minimum of one cumulative year of professional experience in oral heritage mediation within the past 5 years.
If you do not intend to offer tours in national museums or listed historic monuments, you do not need the guide-lecturer card. For example, you won't need one if you want to run guided walks around Montmartre or a tour exploring the traboules of Lyon.
Register your business
Before you start running guided tours, you must formalise your professional activity by registering a business. In France, the simplest and most accessible option is to register as a self-employed entrepreneur (auto-entrepreneur). The process is done online and is straightforward. In Switzerland and Belgium, you will need to register as self-employed (indépendant). Here too, the process is streamlined and allows you to get started quickly.You will then be able to invoice clients and receive payments legally. You will also need to pay tax on the profits you make. Note that you will not be subject to VAT, which simplifies the process further.
If your tour guide business grows and you need to bring other guides on board, you will need to evolve your business structure. You could then opt for a limited company (SARL). In France, you could also choose the SASU structure (a single-person simplified joint-stock company). You will need to engage an accountant to handle your bookkeeping and legal obligations. But that's a good sign — it means your business has really taken off!
3/ Build your website
It's impossible to be a tour guide today without a website! Your site needs to introduce you and showcase your guided tours. Once again, you must differentiate yourself from the competition by answering one simple question: why choose your tour over anyone else's?Showcase your guided tours
Create a dedicated page for each of your tours, covering all the key information visitors need to know. Be careful to say enough without giving away every detail about the places you visit — you need to preserve the element of surprise and the appeal of joining you on a tour.Don't hesitate to share your own story and post photos of yourself in action. Better still, you could add a video so that clients can get a feel for the tour experience and your personality.
You can also display reviews from your first clients, provided you have their permission. This will show that your tours are genuinely up and running and already attracting visitors. Ask your first clients to play along by agreeing to appear on your site.
Remember to update your site regularly, adding new photos, reviews, and tours. Your website is the showcase for your offering, and it deserves proper attention.
Sell your tours directly on your site!
Your website shouldn't just be a static brochure. Above all, it should be designed as a tool for selling your guided tours. You have two options for managing enquiries and taking bookings:- The first option is to add a contact form or a link to your email address and respond to enquiries as they come in, whenever you get back from a day out and can check your messages. This approach is clearly lacking in responsiveness and, without a quick reply, you will inevitably lose sales. On top of that, you'll soon realise how time-consuming it is to keep up with messages arriving at all hours of the day and night.
- The second option is to install the Explorates booking system directly on your site. You enter your tour descriptions, prices, available dates, and all relevant information into the system, and this data powers a dynamic booking widget on your site. Clients can then sign up for your tours and pay instantly — no input required from you. See our dedicated page for our booking system for guided tours.
4/ Build your presence on social media
Alongside your website, social media is a key tool for raising your profile and showcasing your guided tours. Once your website is ready, set up your professional accounts on Facebook, Instagram, and even TikTok if you're comfortable with that platform.You can then document your tours by sharing photos, videos, and other content captured during your guided walks. Respond to comments and don't hesitate to engage your community, encouraging them to share your content and share their thoughts.
Whatever you do, make sure you post consistently on social media. It's far better to have one well-maintained account on a platform you enjoy than several neglected accounts spread across multiple platforms.
Social media is essential for raising awareness of your guided tours and sparking interest among potential clients. Make sure you share quality, up-to-date content.
5/ Sell your tours worldwide
Have you created your guided tours? Are you already registered as a self-employed entrepreneur? Do you have your website and social media accounts up and running? Then you're ready to take on the world and sell your tours on all the major global platforms!The Explorates booking system gives you the ability to list your guided tour on all the leading online travel agencies, including Viator, Get Your Guide, and Vizitoo.
How does it work? You simply sign an agreement with each of these platforms and accept their commission terms. And after that? There's nothing more to do! The Explorates booking system takes care of displaying your tour details — including prices and availability — across the various platforms. As soon as a sale is made, the availability for that tour is updated in real time!
You'll be able to sell your tours anywhere in the world, without worrying about time zones. A client in Belgium, Switzerland, or Canada can book your tours directly without waiting for a response from you. A fantastic boost for your guiding business!
