ABSTRACT

The COVID-19 health crisis has severely affected the tourism industry worldwide. Some subsectors of the industry have suffered much more than others, particularly the tour guiding profession, which has been damaged considerably. The primary role of the tour guide, which is to interact with visitors’ face-to-face, has changed significantly. The purpose of this article is to outline how COVID-19 has affected local tour guides and the guiding profession; and assess the future outlook for the profession. Qualitative data were analyzed using an inductive approach involving 10 in-depth interviews with local tour guides and several virtual guided tours. Results reveal that the current situation in local guiding has highlighted issues such as the fragility of the profession, the lack of legal protection, and guides’ vulnerability when faced with the threat of unfair competition from free tours. The study also highlights the passivity of many professionals, whereas other, more resilient tour guides have reactivated their profession in new ways. The findings contribute to knowledge on how the pandemic has impacted the tour guiding profession, and sheds light on how local tour guides can cope with the future.

摘要

COVID-19 健康危机严重影响了全球旅游业。该行业的一些分部门比其他分部门遭受的损失要大得多，尤其是导游行业，它受到的损失相当大。与游客面对面互动的导游的主要角色发生了重大变化。本文的目的是概述 COVID-19 如何影响当地导游和导游行业；并评估该行业的未来前景。使用归纳法分析定性数据，包括与当地导游的 10 次深度访谈和数次虚拟导览。结果显示，地方导游的现状突出了职业脆弱性、缺乏法律保护、免费旅游 该研究还强调了许多专业人士的被动性，而其他更有弹性的导游则以新的方式重新激活了他们的职业。这些发现有助于了解大流行病如何影响导游行业，并阐明当地导游如何应对未来。