20 Feb 2023

In order to sharpen the tour guides skills and knowledge so that they take business to greater heights, Wilderness Safaris has organised training for over 50 tour guides.

Hosted at Linyanti Tented Camp, the training attracted guides from the company’s different campsites to be drilled on issues of good tourism practices, bush walks, tracking of wildlife, how to manage crisis, star gazing and interpretation among others. 

Wilderness Safaris private guide manager, Mr Attorny Vasco said in an interview that they wanted the guides to become more competitive in the tourism industry and deliver quality service.

Mr Vasco said Wilderness Safaris had started receiving new bookings for the season and they saw it fit to drill tour guides first, as they were the true ambassadors of the tourism industry, tasked with a huge responsibility to make the guests’ experience a memorable, entertaining and informative one.

Tour guides, he said, were the windows to the wilderness as they were responsible for ensuring safety of the visitors, hence the quality of guides was also paramount. 

“This training was ideal as we prepare for the new season and we wanted to re-ignite passion and spark among our staff post the pandemic so that they can boost the travel experience and level of customer satisfaction,” he added.

Mr Vasco further noted that through the training, they also wanted to motivate staff and realign their operations to the new brand, which aimed to position the company for global growth. 

Competition in the industry, he said was stiff, hence they were re-branding to get more recognition and build strong relationship and trust with the audience. 

He also revealed that Wilderness Safaris was the only company with a training department, citing that they also trained staff for other tourism companies.

The company’s guides manager, Mr Silas Mafoko noted that e-fresher courses played a vital role in the tourism industry. 

Tour guides, he said, were the link between tourists and nature, adding that the training was essential as it would sharpen and expand their know-how to boost their confidence in delivering quality services.

“Our guides had been inactive for two years due to COVID-19 and the whole idea is to boost their morale as well as to professionalise the tour guiding services by giving them knowledge, skills and right attitude relevant to tour guiding. 

It is our commitment to offer perfect safe trips to our clients all the time,” he said.

Mr Mafoko further noted that guides worked in areas dense with a variety of game and they had to prioritise safety of guests and also appreciated that the company had never experienced any incidents that exposed clients to risky situations.

One participant, Mr Ronald Masule who has been working in the company for 17 years, thanked the employer for organising the refresher course, noting that it would help them improve their guiding skills and become more competitive in the industry.

Good guides, he said, did not only boost travel experience, but were also responsible for making sure the trips created positive impact on the destination and minimised negative impacts. 

He also appreciated the company’s efforts towards staff development, noting that taking good care of employees always benefitted the business and made the company more successful in the long run

“This training will help us to excel in our jobs. 

As committed and happy guides, we will continue to do our best to provide clients with the trip of their lifetime by taking an extra step.

This will eventually result in having satisfied customers,” he said. ENDS