tour guiding major

8/7/2019 tour guiding major

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Introduction

In this project there are the steps that were taken when planning and and conducting a two

day tour in Gaborone, the definition and examples of stereotyping and ethnocentrism and

how a tour guide has to react when faced with different situations.


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1. Two Day City Tour of Gaborone

The tour is going to be conducted in Gaborone for two days. The tour group will consist of

thirty people, British and German tourists. Attractions that will be visited are the national

museum and art gallery, main mall, the parliament building, Sir Seretse Khama statue, the

village, game city, Kgale hill, Gaborone dam, Mokolodi nature reserve and Gaborone game

reserve. Since the tour is taking place in a city it is a city guided tour. According to Mancini

(2001) a city guided tour is when a tour guide leads and gives information to tourists about

attractions in a city.

Before the tour

A month or two before the tour manager is supposed to make all the necessary payments in

preparation for the city tour. The tourists will be staying in Gaborone Sun hotel. Sun

International's luxury Hotel, Casino and Conference Centre in Botswana is another glittering

diamond. The Gaborone Sun located in the capital City of Gaborone, offers world travellers

and business people a home-from-home feel and meeting place with the added advantage of a

premium casino. The manager has to ensure that the correct rooms as per each client`s

request are booked. The manager will submit a list of all the thirty tourists to the hotel. The

front office personnel will give the manager a rooming list once the tourists have checked in.

a rooming list is a list of the tourists and the rooms that will be allocated to them.

The manager also has to seek for approval and pay for the sites that need to be viewed for

example the manager has to book for an appointment at the parliament well in advance. The

tourists will be using a motor coach for the tour; it is the duty of the manager to hire a motor

coach for the tour. The group compromises of people who speak two different languages. It is

vital to employ an interpreter for good communication between the guide and the group and

the tourists themselves. The guide should compile a list of the passengers and try to come up

with seating arrangements to avoid any problems. The tour guide should memorise the names

of the tourists. The list should contain their next of kin and physical addresses in case of

emergency. When compiling the seating arrangements the guide should take note of spouses,

friends and relatives who might want to seat with each other and again people who speak the

same language should be seated together. The guide should do a pre tour to make sure he or

she has enough information about the tour. All the receipts forms, vouchers and other

important paper work should be kept safely in case of any problem.


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During the tour

The tour guide should always be punctual; the tourists have paid for the tour they deserve to

be treated with respect. When visiting the sites the tourists should be given ample time to

view the sites and be given room to ask questions. The guide should be able to settle all the

disputes that are likely to arise between the tourists. The group should always travel with a

medical aid kit during the course of the tour as a safety precaution. The guide should walk

with a briefcase which has some stationery and reference material about the site being visited.

The tourists must be given handouts with information about the tour something to take home

and remember the tour with it. In case one of the tour members has a birthday or anniversary

the guide should give them a card.

After the tour

The tour group should be given feedback forms to fill so that the company will know which

parts to improve. The tour guide should present a report to the tour manager about the whole

tour stating any problems and complaints from the tourists. The guide has to escort the group

to the airport he or she has to bid them farewell and tell them to come back again.

Itinerary

The itinerary used will be the hub and spoke. This means the group will fly to a destination

and stay there for the entire trip taking one day trips but always retuning to the originalposition. In this case the tourists will be staying in the Gaborone sun Hotel taking day trips. A

thing to do list is drafted with the itinerary so that the guide keeps track of the activities not

yet done.

Thursday: 1900hrs-1930hrs: The tour guide, the tour manager, interpreter wait at the

airport thirty minutes before the plane arrives so that they do not keep the tourists waiting

upon arrival. The guide and manager should be caring cards containing the company`s name

so that the tourists can identify them.

1930hrs-2030hrs: The tourists arrive at the Sir Seretse Khama airport. The manager, tour and

interpreter will assemble the tourists and introduce themselves to the group and welcome

them to Botswana. They will assure them that they will try their level based to make the trip

unforgettable. The tour guide and manager should make sure that everyone has their luggage

and they will be escorted to the motor coach then leave for the hotel.


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20.30hrs-2100hrs: The coach departs from the airport. When in the motor coach, the guide

and interpreter should explain the next day`s activities. On the first day, the tour will be about

the culture and heritage of Botswana. They are going to visit the art gallery and museum, the

village, main mall, parliament, statues, game city mall. The tourists will be collected from the

hotel after breakfast at 08.30hrs. The guide should tell them that they are taking them to the

hotel to check in. The guide will ask for everyone`s cooperation during the tour.

21.00hrs-2200hrs: the tourists arrive at the hotel and they check in. the guide, the manager,

interpreter ensure that every one has checked in. The tour manager is given the rooming list

by the front desk personnel once all the tourists have checked. The list contains all the names

of tourists and their rooms. The tour guide wishes them a good night and reminds them that

breakfast will be at 07:30hrs, they will be collected at 08.15hrs everyone should be done. The

tourist will find some food in their rooms they will have to warm it up with the microwaves

in the rooms

The Two Day tour

Day One

Friday: 07:30hrs-08:00hrs: The tourists have breakfast at the hotel.

08:15hrs-08:30hrs: The guide and interpreter come to take the tourists. They ensure that

every one is present.T

hey use a passenger list to allocate seats to the tourists. Once this isdone the coach departs for the village.

08:30hrs-08:45hrs: On the way the tour guide points out the University of Botswana to the

tourists. It is the largest tertiary education institution in the country. The interpreter who will

be speaking in Deutsh.

08:45hrs- 09:15hrs: the group arrives at the village. The guide will direct and give the group

information about the village. The village is an old part of the city. it has remnants of

Botswana`s colonial history such as the remains of the old government rest house where theJameson Raid was believed to have been planned. It is where Cecil john Rhodes used to stay.

The guide gives tourists enough time to see the village and take photos. When answering

questions the guide should be patient and treat them fairly.

09:15hrs-09:30hrs: the coach departs for the national museum and art gallery


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09:30hrs-10:30hrs: The group arrives at the national museum and art gallery. It is in the

centre of the city the museum has a splendid permanent exhibition of life and animals in

earlier times. There is also a fine collection of traditional native art, craft and sculptor. The

tourists get a chance to see the history of Botswana. The guide should ensure that no one

breaks anything and give them room to ask questions. He or she should ensure that the group

is happy by passing some jokes where relevant they should be sensitive and not offend

anyone in the group. They depart for the main mall

10:30hrs-10:35hrs: They arrive at the main mall

10:35hrs-11:00hrs: The main shopping mall in the centre of Gaborone. This was one of the

more successful features of the original city design. Locals sell bowls and animals made of

wood, baskets made of reef which make lovely souvenirs. The group will get the chance to

see Batswana and can talk to the vendors and even buy some things. The guide should assist

with changing the money to Pula at the Money Exchange

11:00hrs-11:15hrs: the group will take a break in the couch. The guide with the help of an

assistant will give them some refreshments. The group will then walk to the parliament

building which is just opposite the main mall.

11:15hrs-12:00hrs: The parliament is where all the laws of Botswana are debated. Outside the

parliament there are some statutes one of them is the Sir Seretse Khama statue a man who


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played a role in the liberation of the country. The guide should make sure that they do not

make noise when in the parliament building.

12:00hrs-12:20hrs: On the way to game city the group will make a stopover at the new CBD

to view the statue of the three chiefs. The three men also played a pivotal role in the

liberation of the country from its colonial rulers. The tourists are free to take each other

pictures on the statue.

12:20hrs-12:30hrs: Drive to the game city mall

12:30hrs-13:15hrs: the game city mall has a modern architectural style making it beautiful

and unique from the other malls. Although it is modern it has beautiful rock painting designs

in the lobby. It has got a lot of shops that tourist can get into. The tourists can talk to the

locals as they move around in the mall. The guide should encourage the people in the group

to socialise and get to know each other.

13:15hrs- 14:00hrs: the group will have lunch at Mugg and Bean at game city mall. After

lunch they will go back to the hotel

14:00hrs-14:20hrs: drive back to the hotel. The guide will ask the group if they enjoyed

themselves and if they have any questions or comments. He or she informs them that they

will come back and take them at 16:30hrs to go to Kgale Hill. They should be told to put on

something comfortable for climbing.


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16:30hrs-17:00hrs: The guide and interpreter will come back to collect the group. They have

to make sure that everyone is present before they take off.

17:00hrs-18:30hrs: The group arrives at Kgale Hill. It located where the main road from the

south enters the city. Climbing to the top of Kgale Hill provides the group with a fantastic

view and also allows them to witness Botswana's playful Baboons in their natural habitat.

The group can also have a beautiful sunset view from the top of the hill. The tour will be in

summer the sun sets at 18:00hrs. It gets dark at 19:00hrs the group should leave before it gets

dark.

18:30hrs-19:00hrs: They will drive back to the hotel. On the way back the guide should tell

the group that the next day will be for game viewing they will go to Mokolodi nature reserve,

Gaborone game reserve, Somaraleng Tikologo and Gaborone Dam and wishes them a good

night rest. The guide should tell them the group that they will come and take them at 08:00hrs

19:30hrs -20:30hrs: The group has supper at the hotel.

Day Two

07:30hrs-08:00hrs: the group has breakfast at the hotel.

08:00hrs-0830hrs: The guide should greet the group and check to see if everyone is present

before takeoff. On the way to Mokolodi the guide should talk to the group and ask them if

they are ready for the day`s activities.

08:00hrs-10:00hrs: The group arrives at Mokolodi. The guide should tell them about the

reserve and the animals they will see. It is a 300 hectare reserve which contains most of the

flora and an impressive collection of most of the indigenous animals. The reserve was created

by anon profit making organization for the purposes of education and conversation. It was

established in 1994 Mokolodi nature reserve brings the beauty, the excitement, and the

tranquility of the bush to the city. The group will have a two-hour game drive they will see

baboons, giraffe, wart hogs, zebra, elephant, hippo. The guide should open the floor forquestions. To make the tour livelier the guide can ask the group questions about what he or

she will have said.

10:00hrs-10:30hrs: The group will drive to Gaborone Dam. To reduce boredom music can be

played in the coach.


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10:30hrs-11:30hrs: The group will tour the dam. The Gaborone Dam is the water source for

Gaborone, is in a sense the foundation of Gaborone itself. In a dry region water is of crucial

importance, and the fact that a large dam could be successfully created in the city was a

necessary precondition for the growth of the city. The dam has a yacht club, and also the

splendidly named Kalahari Fishing Club. The tourists can get on the yachts in groups. They

can also take pictures as the dam has a wonderful view.

11:30hrs-12:00hrs: they drive back to the hotel for lunch. The guide will tell the group that

they will have a surprise tour they should ready by 16:30hrs

12:00hrs-13:00hrs: The group has lunch at the hotel

16:30hrs -17:00hrs: The group drives to Gaborone Game Reserve

17:00hrs- 18:30hrs: The group arrives at the reserve. The attraction was chosen because a lot

of foreign tourists come to Africa for the wildlife. The reserve is the third busiest game

reserve in the country; Gaborone Game Reserve provides a popular escape for city dwellers

with picnic sites, a bird and game hide, and a network of game viewing roads. The park is

home to rhino, ostriches, zebra, a variety of antelope, and a rich bird life. The Gaborone

Game Reserve is more of an educational nature reserve. It was initially set up to enhance

conservation awareness in Gaborone and the surrounding areas. The group will be able to see

the beautiful African sunset from there it is also the perfect time to view animals in summer.

18:30hrs-19:00hrs: the group drives back to the hotel. Once they arrive the tour guide thanks

the group for cooperating them and wishes if they could have been together for a longer time.

The group is now free to tour Botswana on there on and see places that they did not get a

chance to see as a group.

Challenges and Solutions

The main problem that is likely to be faced during the tour is of poor communication between

the members of the as they do not all speak the same language. The interpreter will help aidcommunication between the two groups (British, Germans) but the group is too large for one

interpreter. Botswana has very hot summers the heat will affect the tourists as the climate in

Europe is cool. They are likely going to get sun burns. The guide should advise them to buy

sun protection creams. The guide should ensure that the always move around with water in


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the motor coach. The group consists of a lot of people who can be difficult to manage. The

guide should move around with assistances to help him or her.

The tourists in the group come from different cultural background thus they have different

cultural traits. The tourists can offend each other during the trip as one can view something as

wrong whilst the other says its right. It can be the way they greet each other. The guide

should tell the group to appreciate each other the way they are and try to accommodate each

other despite their differences.


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2 (a). Stereotyping and EthnocentrismStereotyping is the tendency to believe that an unvarying pattern or manner marks all

members of a group. Statement that may apply to some members of each ethnic group but not

to all the members (Mancini 2001). A stereotype is a commonly held public belief aboutspecific social groups or types of individuals. Stereotypes can be either positive ("black men

are good at basketball") or negative ("women are bad drivers"). But most stereotypes tend to

make an individual feel superior in some way to the person or group being stereotyped.

Stereotypes ignore the uniqueness of individuals by painting all members of a group with the

same brush. For instance, The Asians are stereotyped to be good at mathematics; the blacks

are stereotyped to be good at athletics and dancing. These can be regarded as positive

stereotypes. Other stereotype like "All Muslims are terrorists" is a negative stereotype. For

instance during a tour Germans are considered to be hyper-organized and efficient. Theymight offer to help and are active when given a task. But they are also considered to have a

totally different sense of humour (they don't usually get jokes). The will not laugh at the jokes

that will be said. The Irish as quick-tempered brawlers and alcoholics. Stereotyping goes way

beyond race and gender, it can be about people from the next town, another department in

your company, supporters of other football teams, and so on. There are also examples of

political stereotypes. These stereotypes have been deep rooted in the mindset of the general

public, because of the general interpretation of the policies of a political party. Political

stereotypes include All democrats are liberals, All Republicans are racists, All

Democrats are Stupid, and All Republicans are against the "working man".

Ethnocentrism is a commonly used word in circles where ethnicity, inter-ethnic relations, and

similar social issues are of concern. The usual definition of the term is thinking one's own

group's ways are superior to others or judging other groups as inferior to one's own. Ethnic

refers to cultural heritage, and centrism refers to the central starting point. Ethnocentrism

basically refers to judging other groups from our own cultural point of view (Barger 2008).

Ethnocentrism is defined as the belief that one`s own nationality or ethnic group is superior toall others (Mancini 2001). It is basically making false assumptions about others' ways based

on our own limited experience. For example the Texan who views Parisians as culturally

derived because they do not know how to cook a good steak. British considered being

nationalist, loud mouthed uncooperative wanting things to be done in their own way. Maybe

during a group tour the can start giving orders to the tour guide or talk a lot about their


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country. Europeans in the 16th

century believed both Africa and the Americas to be primitive

societies based on hunting and farming, and felt that they needed to take over these nations in

order to bring them up to speed with modern technologies. Traces of this sense of European

ethnocentrism are still evident today. For example, in schools in Europe, world studies

courses tend to focus almost solely on the history of the United States and Europe, and

largely ignore other parts of the world. One of the best known and the most horrible examples

of ethnocentrism to ever occur was during Nazi Germany. Adolf Hitler decided that he hated

Jews, as well as some other groups of people, and had many innocent people slaughtered in

concentration camps. They did not deserve the torture that they received, and this was clearly

an extreme case of ethnocentrism (Marx 2004) A Westerner thinking that using chopsticks at

every meal to eat is strange, silly, or a "stupid" way to eat .An American making jokes about

the Korean practice of eating dogs.


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HOW A GOOD TOUR GUIDE WILL REACT.

(b)(i) When faced with the situation of the tourists wanting to smoke in the coach when it is

against company policy and they argue that they were told by the travel agent that smoking is

permissible. The guide should be able to resolve the problem politely without pushing the

blame to anyone. The guide would first of all apologize for the misunderstanding the apology

should be on behalf of the company. He or she will assure the tourists that the company will

talk to the travel agent to avoid a similar event from reoccurring. The guide should go on to

explain why the tourists should not smoke go on the coach. The prime reason is that it is not

fair and unhealthy for non smokers to be inhaling the cigarette smoke as they become passive

smokers unwillingly and some can have health problems like asthma that can be triggered by

the smoke. The guide should make the tourists understand that everyone has come to enjoy

the trip and the smoke will definitely irritate non smokers. He or she will have to ask politely

and firmly if the tourists can smoke outside the coach and that they will be given a smoking

break.

(ii) A good guide should be brave and calm in the face of danger. (Mancini 2001). For this to

be possible the guide should always carry certain equipment that may come in handy in case

of emergency. If one of the tourists gets bitten by a scorpion on a Sunday, The guide should

be able to control the group as a good leader, he or she will tell the tourists not to move

around but rather stay as a group. The guide was supposed to give this instruction when the

car broke down. Since the mistake was already made the guide should apologise for the

inconvenience caused an assure them that everything will be alright and ask them to stay as a

group. The guide should be calm mannered so as to instil courage in the group.

The guide should always move around with a first aid kit in case of such an emergency. He or

she should ensure that the person who has been bitten is calm. This is important as panicking

can worsen the situation. The guide should ask the tourist to lie down on the ground and show

him or her where the tourist has been bitten. Probably if it is on the leg the guide should look

for the bite marks then tie a bandage tightly above the bite to stop the poison from spreading

into other parts of the body. The guide should then ask the tourist to try and explain what the

scorpion looked like as this will help the guide know how lethal the poison is and what to tell

the doctor.

Once the tourist has calmed down and relaxed the guide should try to call for medical help

and a tow truck to pull the coach as well as a coach to take them to CKGR. The guide should


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always move around with a mobile phone and a radio to communicate with in case of

emergency. If the guide does not have a phone or radio he or she has to ask from the tourists.

The guide should continually check on the tourist that has been bitten.

The hot weather can make the tourists irritable and thirsty so the guide should give the

tourists some refreshments. Considering the weather in Botswana the tour manager should

buy refreshments for the tour to keep the tourists refreshed. The guide should designate

someone in the group to do give the refreshments whilst he or she tries to make the important

phone calls. If an ambulance arrives the guide should go with the tourist and make sure that

he or she gets the necessary medical attention.

The guide should apologise to the group for the inconience caused and promise to take them

to an extra site. If the group decides to continue with the tour, the guide should give them an

update on how the tourist who has been bitten is feeling and if that he or she will be alright.

The guide should encourage the tourists to be careful and not to stray away from the group.


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Conclusion

In a nutshell it is vital to plan for a tour to avoid any problems when it is being conducted. It

is the duty of the tour guide to keep the group smiling and address to any problems they face,

thus a tour guide must be a good leader free of any stereotyping and ethnocentrism.


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References

y Anderson, B. (1966) Tour GuidingBelmont, CA: Wadsworth.y Carmines, E., and R. Zeller, (1979) Tourism Principles. Beverly Hills: Sage.y Mancini,(2001) Conducting a Tour .New York, Prentice Hally American-stereotypes, British-Stereotypes, Culture, German-Music, German-

Stereotypes, German-Survival, Germany, Leave-Earth-the-Band, Podcasts march

2007

y http://www.yourdictionary.com/grammar/examples/examples-of-ethnocentrism.htmly http://www.virtualtourist.com/travel/Africa/Botswana/South_East_District/Gaborone-

1932457/Shopping-Gaborone-BR-1.html

y http://www.thuto.org/ubh/about/about01.htmy http://www.babyboomercaretaker.com/elderly-law/age-

discrimination/stereotype/Stereotype-Examples.html

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