Best Tour Guide Resume Examples, Templates, Formats (Extra Tips!)

tour guide resume example
CakeResume

A tour guide is in charge of accompanying groups of visitors to tourist attractions such as historic monuments and cultural centers, and providing them with specific information about the sites. Tour guides commonly work on walking tours or with day-trippers. They might also support tourists on longer visits that involve overnight stays, perhaps in rural or overseas areas.

To embark on this exciting career, you need to possess many important skills and qualifications as well as comprehensive knowledge of diverse fields. There are no formal education requirements, but you will need to attend a training course or obtain a valid license/certificate. Also, several years of relevant work experience are requisite.

All of these elements together make up a professional tour guide resume. Let's check out our guide for making a winning tour guide resume that opens up new vistas! 

Step-by-step guide for a professional tour guide resume

Step 1: Write a well-phrased resume headline.

A resume headline is a short statement at the top of your tour guide resume that can portray yourself as an ideal candidate. Keep it concise and unique within a sentence to seize the hiring manager's attention right from the start. 

💡 Tips: The headline for a tour guide resume should consist of your current role or your strengths preferably accompanied by a quantifiable number or an outstanding achievement. 

Examples of a great tour guide resume headline: 

  • Experienced Tour Guide fluent in English, Chinese, and Japanese, and knowledgeable in Asian food culture. 
  • Energetic Tour Guide with 8 years of experience in planning and leading tours for foreigners to Hanoi.
  • Historical Tour Guide with a strong passion for exploring ancient Greek landmarks and archeological sites. 

Step 2: Craft a professional resume summary statement.

Longer than a resume title/resume headline, a summary statement commonly consists of 3-5 sentences. It should be polished to market yourself as a strong candidate. 

This is how to brush up an impressive tour guide resume summary:

  • Start with a positive adjective to describe yourself: dynamic, enthusiastic, friendly, etc.
  • Demonstrate your professional level such as job title, years of experience, and core competencies.
  • Highlight the best skills for a tour guide that you’re most confident in, or help you perform well at work. 
  • Mention any achievement or certification if you have obtained.

Examples of a winning summary for tour guide resumes:

  • Passionate Historical Tour Guide with extensive experience and full responsibility for escorting individuals or groups on cruises and sightseeing tours. Highly specialized in conducting in-depth research on a variety of topics, including site history, local lifestyle and cuisine, and client’s preference to design the most appropriate plan. 
  • CPR-certified Hiking Guide with 5 years of experience in leading and navigating groups of hikers through the Angels Landing, Zion National Park, and Shenandoah National Park. Key skills include motivating participants to overcome their personal obstacles, fostering a cheerful environment, and providing knowledge of specific areas.
  • Energetic local Tour Guide in San Francisco for 8 years. Possess exceptional communication and story-telling skills to engage tourists during the visit. Highly skilled in designing and planning personalized tours while offering great customer service. An active member of PTGAC (Professional Tour Guides Association of California).

Step 3: List essential skills for a tour guide.

Time to show off your strengths and capabilities in your tour guide resume skills section! Often, this section particularly catches the employer's eyes as they can determine whether you are qualified for the job. 

With the list below, you may find it easier to pick out the essential tour guide skills for your resume.

Soft skills
Hard skills
Communication skills
Flexibility
Great presentation skills
Time management 
Friendly attitude
Knowledge of ecology & recreation
Good physical fitness
Photography
Schedule management
Account management

💡 Tip: Check out more skills from our tour guide resume sample at the end of the article. 

Step 4: Proofread your tour guide resume.

Running a final check is a critical step for a professional resume. Take extra time to go through every detail on your tour guide resume to make sure there are no typos, grammatical mistakes, or inconsistencies in punctuation and capitalization.

3 basic types of resume formats: how and when to use them?

Before determining the best format for your tour guide resume, take a look at the definition of three common types of resume formats.

1. Chronological resume format

This is by far the most widely used resume format preferred by both recruiters and applicants. Details concerning your work track and achievements will be listed in timely-reversed order, beginning with the most recent job and backward. 

If you’ve worked for several companies in the field without large time gaps, this format brings you a big advantage. 

2. Functional resume format 

On a functional resume, you focus on painting a clear map of your skills and abilities instead of showcasing your employment history. This is a less chosen format as hiring managers sometimes find it hard to read and review.

The functional format is suitable for job seekers who have experience across multiple industries or don’t have work experience as a tour guide. You can also adopt this resume format if you're a fresh graduate who lacks experience.

3. Combinational resume format 

A combination resume implements structures of both the chronological and functional formats. You can highlight your skills and qualifications and provide a thorough list of your previous work experiences. This way, you get to present your career at a high level while also expressing your capabilities of performing the job you're applying for. 

This is beneficial for career changers, applicants who have limited work experience, and those re-entering the workforce as a tour guide.

CakeResume provides the right tour guide resume templates & formats for you to showcase your skills and experiences. Sign up to create and download the best tour guide resume now for FREE!

How to create a tour guide resume template?

A clean, well-presented, and error-free resume will increase your chances of being considered for the position. To do so, it's recommended that you use free tour guide resume templates available on Microsoft Word and online resume builders such as CakeResume.

Microsoft Word

You can find dozens of professional resume templates for free in the Resume Wizard by clicking File, New, Template, and in the search box, typing “Resume” or “Cover Letter”. You can also download lots of free templates from Microsoft Office’s website. 

Once you’ve selected the one that you like, fill in all your information by replacing the placeholder text with your own content.

Online Resume Builder

Online resume builders provide job seekers like you with thousands of professionally designed and trendy resume and cover letter templates. The biggest advantages are time-saving, built-in templates, and more trendy and eye-catching layouts. 

Most platforms require you to create a free account to build your own tour guide resume. After that, all you need to do is to drop in your content. It costs you less time to worry about the resume layout and formatting.

✍🏻 Choose the best online resume builder for you at 20+ Best Free Online Resume Builders | 2021 Reviews.

Top 10 Dos and Don'ts for a brilliant tour guide resume 

Dos:

✅ Tailor your tour guide resume to the opening job. 

The tour guide industry includes various types of jobs, depending on the client’s preference, such as sightseeing, food & culinary, or adventure, sport, and eco-tours. Thus, it’s crucial to customize your tour guide resume to increase the level of relevance to the position you’re applying for.


✅ Add numbers to your tour guide resume. 

This way, employers can get a clearer sense of your experience and be convinced that you will add value to the company. 

Example: “Guided 10 adventure tours of up to 15 people to Northeast Australia.” 


✅ Create an ATS-friendly resume. 

ATS (Applicant Tracking System) is the software used by many companies to scan job applications. The trick to beat the bot is incorporating keywords from the tour guide job description in your resume and avoiding tables or graphs.


✅ Adopt action/power verbs.

Verbs commonly exhibit a stronger sense of determination and self-confidence than other word forms. So, try to give your tour guide resume a boost with such power verbs as lead, guide, provide, prepare, assist, commit, introduce, facilitate, etc. 


✅ Highlight your certifications/licenses. 

Depending on the country or area, you might need a license or permit to work as a tour guide. It could be a huge competitive advantage if you list your certifications, licenses (e.g, Blue Badge Holder), or Professional Tour Guides Association membership on your tour guide resume.

Don’ts:

❌ Mix up a resume with a CV.

It’s important to distinguish a tour guide CV from a resume. A CV is commonly longer and more detailed than a resume. It lists out all comprehensive details on the applicant's lifetime professional and academic achievements. 


❌ Adopt an old-style objective statement.

Don’t waste the precious space! Try to craft a strong career objective for your tour guide resume by stating your goals along with potential contribution to the organization, for example:

Seeking a position in Santu Travel where I can utilize my great strategic planning and storytelling skills to provide tourists with the ultimate experience.


❌ Disclose confidential information about previous employers.

With this unprofessional manner, you could ruin your chance of getting the job. Some confidential info to avoid in a tour guide resume can include clients’ names, business financial reports, or anything mentioned in the Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA). 


❌ Include unnecessary personal details.

Nowadays, many organizations are aware of discrimination at the workplace and want to eradicate this issue, starting with the hiring process. However, it’s still recommended to leave out certain personal information from your tour guide resume in case they lead to biases.

Here is some info that might lead to discrimination: age, sexual orientation, marital status,  political affiliation, religion, etc.  


❌ Send the resume as a Word doc.

Most online resume builders don't support the Word format.
But, for those using tour guide resume templates from Microsoft Word, make sure you save the file as a PDF. This safeguards your resume against formatting issues and ensures the design and fonts stay consistent across devices.

Tour Guide Resume Sample

Katherine Bowers

State-licensed Tour Guide with 5 years of experience in informing and guiding visitors

[email protected] 
(565)-123-9999
katherinebowers.com

Professional Summary

Informative and humorous Tour Guide with a proven track record in leading groups of up to 30 people while providing informative commentary about the subject and delivering prompt and friendly service to all participants. Fluent in English, Spanish, and French.

Work Experience

Hiking Tour Guide 
Rocky Adventures, Inc., CA
12/2018 - 5/2021 

  • Guided 8 camping-based hiking tours at the Claremont Hills Wilderness Park, Trippet Ranch, Mount Umunhum, Grand Canyon, and Yellowstone.
  • Introduced and explained the areas in terms of geology, ecology, and recreation.
  • Led outdoor cooking workshops and prepared outdoor meals for the hiking tour participants. 
  • Designed creative activities to delight the tour participants during the tour, achieving 98% customer satisfaction. 

Tour Guide
Trafalgar Travel, CA
09/2016-10/2018

  • Led tours for groups of 5-30 tourists in 2-7 hours to natural highlights in California and Arizona. 
  • Facilitated educational and informative sharing about the natural, geological, and cultural history through storytelling during bus rides.
  • Successfully proposed the concept of eco-tour and designed personalized tour experiences to feature eco-responsible animal sightings.
  • Collaborated with the Sales & Marketing team to develop promotional programs for existing customers, increasing customer retention rates by 15%.

Education

B.A. in Communications
University of California, Berkeley

Class of 2012

Volunteering as a Campus Tour Guide (2014 & 2015)

Skills

Soft skills
Hard skills
Communication skills
Interpersonal skills 
Storytelling skills 
Time management 
Friendliness & Enthusiasm 
Knowledge of ecology and recreation
Good physical fitness
Trekking
Climbing
Camping & Backpacking 

Certifications

Licensed Member of The Guild of Professional Tour Guides in California

Languages

English - Native
Spanish & French - Professional

--- Originally written by May Luong ---

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