Eased requirements on tour guides put travel firms in high spirits

Travel firms now feel elated when many international tour guides who have been practicing without practice cards, may escape punishment if they can get temporary practice cards.
The Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT) has sent a document to local departments of culture, sports and tourism, requesting the departments to submit reports about the tour guides who use less common languages to VNAT for consideration.
The document has lifted the big worry of travel firms which are seriously lacking tour guides, especially the ones who can speak less common languages. They understand well that VNAT requests the list of the tour guides because it is considering the measures to help ease the difficulties travel firms are facing.
Prior to that, travel firms cried for help from the watchdog agency, saying that the overly high requirements on tour guides have led to the fact that many tour guides have to leave their jobs.
Under the current regulations, one can get the international tour guide practice cards only if he has university degree. As a result, thousands of tour guides, who got practice cards in the past, have to stop working because they cannot meet the requirements.
In many cases, travel firms still have to hire the tour guides who do not have university degree. They well understand that this is a violation of the law, but they have no other choice than breaking the regulations. Local authorities have admitted that they do not punish the travel firms even though they know the firms are hiring the tour guides with no practice cards, because they fear this will badly affect local tourism.
The problem is that Vietnam has excessive tour guides who can speak English, but there are very few tour guides who can use less common languages. Vu Duy Vu, Deputy General Director of Saigontourist, has confirmed that it is very difficult to find the tour guides who can speak Spanish, German or Italian, therefore, he believes that easier regulations should be applied to these tour guides, or Vietnam will fail to attract foreign tourists.
In fact, the tour guides, who got international tour practice cards in accordance with the old regulations, are capable to undertake their jobs. Most of them finish tourism junior colleges (3-year training) or have higher education degree. Especially, they have good foreign language skills and good experiences. Therefore, travel firms believe that it would be a reasonable decision if VNAT grants practice cards to the tour guides.
The decision not only helps “legalize” the capable tour guides, but also can ease the shortage of tour guides, thus helping encourage the tourism development.
Le Huu Minh, Deputy Director of the Thua Thien-Hue Department for Culture, Sports and Tourism, has applauded the decision by VNAT; saying that from now on, travel firms will feel secure to attract international tourists.
To date, 7537 tour guides have got new practice cards, including 2265 domestic tour guides and 5272 international tour guides. 2683 international tour guides can speak English, 873 can use French, 694 Chinese. There are only 13 tour guides who can speak Korean, while Vietnam receives 500,000 South Korean tourists every year, which means that every tour guide needs to serve 38,000 South Korean tourists a year.
Experts heard at a conference on tour guides one month earlier that about 500 international tour guides do not meet the requirements to get new practice cards.
According to VNAT, seven localities including Dien Bien, Lai Chau, Son La, Ninh Thuan, Binh Phuoc, Bac Lieu and Ca Mau, still have not got any tour guide who has international tour practice card. The tour guides who have got new practice cards are mostly in HCM City, Hanoi, Thua Thien-Hue and Da Nang.
In related news, the UNESCO office in Hanoi has said it is cooperating with the Quang Nam Department for Culture, Sports and Tourism and the My Son Relics and Tourism Management Board, to organize two training courses to cultural heritage guides. After finishing the training courses, the tour guides will get the certificates on cultural heritage guides in accordance with UNESCO standards.