Occupations · Personal Care and Service
Tour Guides and Escorts
Escort individuals or groups on sightseeing tours or through places of interest, such as industrial establishments, public buildings, and art galleries.
O*NET 30.3 Database (USDOL/ETA) · occupation code 39-7011.00
Pay over time
Median up 7% between 2010 and 2016, before inflation. The band shows the 10th to 90th percentile.
BLS OEWS, one release per year. Before May 2011 only national estimates were published, so geography detail starts there.
What people in this job actually do
Ordered by how important the work is rated.
- Describe tour points of interest to group members, and respond to questions.
- Escort individuals or groups on cruises, sightseeing tours, or through places of interest, such as industrial establishments, public buildings, or art galleries.
- Monitor visitors' activities to ensure compliance with establishment or tour regulations and safety practices.
- Conduct educational activities for school children.
- Provide for physical safety of groups, performing such activities as providing first aid or directing emergency evacuations.
- Research various topics, including site history, environmental conditions, and clients' skills and abilities to plan appropriate expeditions, instruction, and commentary.
- Assemble and check the required supplies and equipment prior to departure.
- Greet and register visitors, and issue any required identification badges or safety devices.
- Distribute brochures, show audiovisual presentations, and explain establishment processes and operations at tour sites.
- Provide directions and other pertinent information to visitors.
- Drive motor vehicles to transport visitors to establishments and tour site locations.
- Train other guides and volunteers.
O*NET 30.3 task ratings, importance scale
Skills that matter most
Importance, rated 1 to 5.
O*NET 30.3 skills, importance scale
Software and tools
A dot marks what O*NET flags as in demand.
O*NET 30.3 software skills · hot-technology flag
What your tools are worth
Occupation-based, not posting-based: how much employment, pay and projected growth sit behind each tool. It is not a count of job ads.
| Tool | Value | Spread across occupations |
|---|---|---|
| Microsoft Access | 71 | 265 → 372 occupations since 2015 |
| Microsoft PowerPoint | 69 | 400 → 629 occupations since 2015 |
| Microsoft Outlook | 68 | 348 → 642 occupations since 2015 |
What your tools are worth
LockedThe same score for every tool in this occupation, plus the ones you ticked and the ones you did not.
Open in your report →What this work is actually like
Conditions rated against the average across all occupations — only what makes this job different is listed.
O*NET 30.3 Job Zones
Working conditions that stand out
O*NET 30.3 work context, frequency scale · observed 2020-08
How people actually get in
Share of workers by the education they hold.
O*NET 30.2 education, training and experience · observed 2020-08
What kind of person the work suits
Occupational interest profile, rated 1 to 7.
O*NET 30.2 occupational interests (RIASEC)
What you take with you
Skills rated for how well they transfer into other occupations.
O*NET 30.3 transferable skills, importance scale
Knowledge the work draws on
Abilities it leans on
O*NET 30.3 abilities and knowledge, importance scale
How this job is advertised
The same work is posted under many titles — this is what to search for.
O*NET 30.3 job titles reported for this occupation
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What changed since 2015
Comparing O*NET release 20.1 (2015-10-01) with 30.3 (2026-05-01). Signs, not colour alone, carry the meaning. 2 entries that were only relabelled between releases are left out.
Now listed 8
Diff across the O*NET releases held here in full since October 2015, following occupations through merges and retirements. O*NET re-surveys occupations on a rolling cycle, so “no change” can also mean “not re-surveyed”.
Related jobs
O*NET 30.3 related occupations
Also called
O*NET 30.3 alternative titles
The same work in Europe
| ESCO occupation | ISCO | Match |
|---|---|---|
| guide | 5113.1 | exact |
| tour organiser | 4221.5 | close |
| tourist animator | 2659.4 | close |
| mountain guide | 3423.4 | broader |
| park guide | 5113.1.2 | broader |
| zoo educator | 5113.1.3 | broader |
Official ESCO ↔ O*NET crosswalk (ESCO Secretariat with USDOL/ETA)
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