On 01 March 2019
Guides : passing on knowledge, connecting with people
Each guide is unique and multi-faceted!
Just as the Pinot Noir and Chardonnay grape varieties form the origin of all Burgundy’s appellations, each of which has its own character and identity, the professional training of guides forms the fertile ground on which each student draws to create his or her own discourse. It’s not a question of mass standardisation, but a rich and variegated panel of unique individuals.
There’s plenty of freedom for guides to express their personality through their comments! Historian, architect, wine expert, actor, and sometimes wearing all these caps at once...
The guide is the Swiss army knife of culture!
A true chameleon!
Guides adapt their approach to their audience: they know how to capture the attention of a 7-year-old just as effectively as they respond to more demanding adults, choosing their themes, their words, their anecdotes and so on carefully.
Leading a group requires an equally essential level of expertise: knowing how to position yourself, control your voice and successfully navigate your way through busy places are skills that are just as essential as historical knowledge.
Teacher? Yes! Instinctive? Sure! Multi-lingual? Often!
A seasonal worker who knows everything, about everything, everywhere...
Often on the go and working without fixed hours, the guide depends on the tourist season and works mainly from April to September.
The low season doesn’t mean hibernation, though! They have to constantly maintain their knowledge and update their patter. Guides are bookworms, head constantly in the archives, documenting, searching, discussing, meeting ... their description of all the different places is better as a result, and their spiel all the better for it.
Do you want to book a guided tour ? It's over here !
