While ITMI offers good training for many careers, most of us feature such enticing day dreams as visiting the polar bears, the penguins, or at least pink flamingoes as part of our work. Some of us actually do those things. Others find themselves too tired to day dream from days of trooping along with 8th graders through the various sights to be found in our nation’s capital. The compensation for this is an attractive rate of pay and lots of work every Spring and we do have some Pandas and other residents from out of town in the National Zoo. The ticket for this career is a DC Tour Guide License…and if you have any political sense at all in this political town, membership in the Washington Tour Guide Guild. The Guild provides useful training, a mentoring program for new guides, and other services such as a daily telephone update on matters of interest to any local guide. Two Yahoo email groups that provide additional aid and comfort are the ubiquitous ITMIClass214 (open to all) and DCGuides (open to licensed DC guides and primarily Guild members).

This is my third season of this sort of activity, punctuated by somewhat more exotic work closer to those day dreams. If anyone is interested, I will be happy to share more comments on my work…but I am more interested in what you have to say about your experiences. To close I will attempt to add a photo to this showing myself in the midst of this sort of activity at the National Air and Space Museum’s Udvar-Hazy Center.

In just a couple of months I will be turning (D.V.) seventy-five, and it will be almost seventeen years since I graduated from I.T.M.I. And great years they have been. Thank you so much. I have toured a lot. In and around North America I have been from Mexico to Newfoundland, from Florida to Alaska, and almost everywhere in between. I estimate that I have made over thirty trips across Canada, with more trips in and around the eastern provinces, and many, many more in and through the Canadian Rockies. Then there have been a number of tours to Europe, the Middle East and Egypt, as well as a number of cruises, including one through the Black Sea. So you can see that one can really travel the world and get paid for it.

The best part though has been the wonderful people that I have met over the years, many of whom have become and have remained good friends. There are also the many drivers with whom I worked, and the people in hotels, and in all of the tourist industry, again, many lasting friends. It has been rewarding to show people a happy and an informative time on tour, tours, which for many were the trip of a life-time.

Now that I am finally at last retired, (I took my last tour last year) and as you are now coming up to your next Symposium, I just wanted to say thank you to all at I.T.M.I., especially to Ted and to Randy, for giving me a great start, and for your ongoing support. Thank you.

Sincerely,

Fabian Hugh
Class of 1990

Graduated in ’01…I have learned so very much, gotten an appreciation for my country and its historical heritage and scenic wonders, traveled many exciting places and most of all met the nicest people especially those in tour directing! Here is my tribute…

The Top Ten Reasons it’s great to be a Tour Director

10. The ten extra pounds gained touring make you fluffy not fat.

9. If you make a concerted effort, you never have to buy body lotion, soap, shampoo, mouth wash, shower caps or conditioner all year long.

8. We see exceptional wildlife on tour…of course I am thinking most recently of the political donkeys and elephants in D.C. but I am sure you have your own examples.

7. Runaway coaches, hurricanes, torrential rains, blizzards in April for example are just life’s adventures, rather than a challenge or a malicious quirk of fate.

6. Questions such as how much is a Jefferson $2.00 bill keeps you on keeps you on your toes.

5. We can manage a mike, cell phone, destination notes, timed itinerary, water bottle, snack, video, CD, jacket, handouts and map all at the same time (while standing) even when the motor coach lurches its way around the curves of a national park.

4. Emergencies creating a tremendous adrenalin rush are such a natural high.

3. You know the location of every rest room within 500 miles of your tour area.

2. Even though our passengers are on vacation and we are not, we still see and do so much that we can’t wipe the smile off our faces.

AND THE NUMBER ONE REASON IT’S GREAT TO BE A TOUR DIRECTOR…

1. We were trained by the best at I.T.M.I.

Thanks…Joan Kreeger
Class of 2001

Beverly Ylitalo’s Emergency Tour Preparation (Class of 2004)

What do you do if you get a call at 4:30 a.m. and your tour operator is asking if you can begin a tour that same day? What if you only have a few hours to prepare? Here are some key ideas as presented at the 2007 Symposium in Charleston.

Before you leave home:

*Ask the company to e-mail the tour documents to you a.s.a.p.! Print them!

*Have “blank” documents handy at all times for welcome letters, seating charts, dinner reservations, bag lists, hand-outs, etc.

*In fact, keep one small 1” binder ready with separate sections for tour notes, tour paperwork, blank documents, etc.

*Grab the tour brochure and at least one general guidebook for North America.

*Toss your laptop into your always-ready office bag.

*Toss your always-packed bathroom bag into your suitcase along with your tour clothes (which you always keep separately and ready in your closet anyway).

*Before leaving for the airport, dress professional. DO NOT wear comfy clothes if you are going to meet your group later that same day… what happens if you’re luggage is lost??? Along those same lines, always keep your tour info with you in your carry-on.

On the airplane:

*GETTING YOU ORGANIZED FIRST = A SMOOTH TOUR!!!

*Read over the tour notes and tour information.

*Fill out your ‘blank’ sheets: rooming lists, bag list, seating plan, hand-outs, etc.

*Now look at the itinerary:

-Where is the tour starting? Where is it going? How many days? Are you doing city tours or are there step-on guides? Begin to form that mental picture.

-Focus on one city at a time as you go along… one day at a time is the only way to do it. Begin thinking about today’s meet and greet, is there a welcome dinner tonight, and what tomorrow includes.

-List out suppliers to call for confirmations and make the calls the very second that you land (or before you take off if you have enough time and the time zone works). Its okay to tell a supplier that you are filling in for the regular tour director… they love to help!

*Write up daily sheets that includes rough times that you either know or estimate, where you’re going, who you need to call for that day or the next.

*And if you have time, begin looking at your guidebook for information re cities, stops you will make and sights to see, etc.

When you land:

*Go immediately to the tourist information centre at the airport to retrieve maps and brochures of main tourist attractions… these maps are for yourself! If you are spending time in the city of arrival then see if you can pick up maps for your group as well.

*Also check if they have brochures for other destinations down the road on your tour! Brochures can give you info and e-mail address and may save you internet time later on.

*Make your confirmation calls!!! If you have time, call EVERY SUPPLIER. And at the very least you should call the first 3-4 days worth of suppliers to make sure they’re ready for you. (For a normal tour I call every supplier before I leave home. I call again several days before arrival. I call a third time the day we arrive. I rarely have problems with suppliers).

*Greet your group, give them a general outline for the next day, and tuck them safely into bed.

At the hotel:

*Now, research tomorrow! How do you do a city tour of a city you’ve never been in before on a route you don’t know?

-Try to talk to the driver to get a general idea of what the ‘usual’ route is and what the normal timing is. Tell your driver you’ve never been here before! They’re generally happy to help you. Ask what the main stops are so you can research them more fully.

-Pull out that laptop, or go to the business centre, or find an internet café… research those main tourist attractions. Check the brochures, go to their websites to see what current events are happening and to look at maps of the facilities to point out “restrooms through the entrance on the right”, etc. Make notes!

-Go to the city website. Most will have a ‘history’ link (or a link to the local Convention and Visitors Bureau) and you can get a tremendous amount of history and background area here. You can use this as your info in between stops on the city tour. The city website will also usually tell you population, industry, welcome info, sometimes housing prices, restaurants, shopping, etc.

-I take pages and pages of notes and I will refer to them while I’m doing the city tour. I have a good memory, but really! In this case I don’t feel bad using notes. If anyone asks I’ll say I’m terrible with dates and I want to be accurate! Ha!

The morning of the city tour:

*Talk to the driver early if you can. Go over the route on your map and again get a feeling for the timing. Ask the driver to prompt you if there’s anything to see in between stops, for example, he could cough… or simply say, we’re approaching the statue. If you’re facing your group they’re not going to wonder if the driver’s helping you a bit.

*Take a deep breath. You can do it.

In general:

*Unless you have loads of free time once the tour starts, prepare one day at a time.

*At rest stops pick up brochures for wherever you are going next. Call ahead. Ask some questions. Ask front desk staff about nearby restaurants, banks, etc.

*Remember you can always add more info later as an addendum.

*A very wise and experienced tour director said to me one time, while I was doing a tour in just this manner:

“All you have to do is stay one step ahead of the guest.”

And I must say it worked very well.