Written by BY LOUELLA LOSINIO | VARIETY NEWS STAFF Thursday, 06 Dec 2012 03:00am
1,000th tour guide recognized
THE tour guide training class at Guam Community College has reached a milestone as it recognized the 1,000th person trained as a tour guide last night.
Chizuru Murayama, the 1,000th person trained as a tour guide, was recognized last night at the GCC Student Center by both GCC and the Guam Visitors Bureau.
Murayama, who has been living on Guam for three years, said she was surprised to hear her name during the certificate presentation. She is currently working for a travel agency.
With the yearly influx of visitors from her home country of Japan, Murayama said the island needs tour guides who speak and understand the language.
Public Law 23-136 created the tour guide program in 1997. Since then, according to GCC Tourism & Hospitality instructor Eric Chong, the college has provided the training for applicants while GVB takes charge of certification.
“We did our first class in December 1997. In 15 years, we’ve had 55 classes. The classes are usually conducted twice a year, in May and then in November,” Chong said.
The training program has two components. Aside from the customer service and operational aspect which Chong has been handling for several years now, another class, handled by Robert Balajadia, focuses on Guam history, geography, culture, and language.
The trainees, he said, come from China, Taiwan, Japan, Russia, and Korea – representing the diversity of geographical markets targeted by the tourism industry.
Out of the 1,000 people who have undergone training as a guide, he estimates 200 or 300 have since renewed their certification every year and remained active as tour guides.
Chong attributes this to the dips and peaks experienced by the tourism industry over the years. However, he feels positive about the industry’s future, citing recent visitor statistics and forecasts.
“I believe in 1997 we’ve had 1.3 million visitors. I think this year, we are going to hit that number again or even exceed it,” he stated.
With the fragility of Guam tourism, Chong said, it is important for tour guides to acquire proper training and information.
GCC tour guide training class reaches milestone
Written by BY LOUELLA LOSINIO | VARIETY NEWS STAFF Thursday, 06 Dec 2012 03:00am
For Guam Visitors Bureau Deputy General Manager Nathan Denight, tour guides provide visitors the first and last impression of the island.
“They are the ones out there showcasing Guam and telling our visitors about the history and culture of our island. It is important that we go ahead and give them certifications to make sure that they are up to a certain standard so that our visitors get the experience that has been promised them,” Denight said.