Tourist Guiding in Palestine an Assessment and its Prospects

This study aims at the investigation of the present tourist guiding situation in Palestine. It explored the personal characteristics of Tourist guides form point view of the themselves, and their managers. It also investigated the management of tourist groups this impediments of tourist guides in addition to the interrelationships of the following variables , age, education, in come managing skills, personality and self perspectives. The study used 164 samples 52 of which included tourist office managers, the rest were for tourist guides. The results were introduced in means, percentages, ANOVA and Scheffe Comparisons of means. These results were obtained by using SPSS. The following results were obtained 84.66% of the Tourist guides agreed that a good Tourist guide should have the following characteristics self- confidence ambition, sincerity, enthusiasm, good social relations, communicative, organization, honesty, and openness. The study showed that tourist trips management from the view point of tourist office managers and Tourist guides valued highly 80% this includes, tourist arriving procedures, hotels procedures and trips plans. Trip pre-planning, in vehicle time management responses were 79%. 76.2% respectively. Trip management in Palestine reached 80.6%. The differences in trip management between office managers and tourist guides. In the age under 30 years and those 31-35 year for fourist guides. This means that the present situation shows that trip management in Palestine in preferred by those 31-35 years. Education is also a major factor differentiating between office managers and tourist guides; those of high education scored high. Income differences affected tourist trip management between office managers and tourist guides, those of high income were more efficient. Foreign languages: the more feign languages a tourist guide speaks the more efficient the person is in managing tourist arrival procedures. Geography major graduates according to office managers and tourist guides scored high in comparison to other majors. Statistical differences in the present trip management appeared between office mangers and tourist guides at all levels except for tourist guides. Working plan during the trip was in favor of office managers. Concerning to office managers and tourist guides. obstacles facing tourist guides in Palestine included, administrative plans, tourists, equipments assets, incentives both moral and materialistic, upgrading; mean percentages ranged between 70.41 — 79.61. Obstacles in the nature of work, relations among Coworkers ranged between 66.2%- 69% Total obstacles facing tourist guides scored high reached 73%. Age variances among tourist guides; it showed that obstacles facing tourist guides increase after the age of 35 years. No statistical significance based on monthly income ollifferences tourist guides prevailed. The study showed that there is a negative relation between obstacles facing tourist guides and the number of languages spoken by a tourist guide. This could be explained as follows; any person who speak more than one language could adapt, and work with tourists of different backgrounds, that person faced obstacles could quick solutions. Geography graduates showed less obstacles compared to other majors. The study showed that office managers face more obstacles than tourist guides, the study prevailed statistical significance between office managers and tourist guides, according to the present position variable. The researcher concluded the following recommendations; upon the selection of tourist guides attention should be paid to the following traits: "enthusiasm self confidence, public relations, flexibility, honesty, appearance, knowledge, communicatively, organizing ability, good health, rational decision making, self appeal, openness". All respondents agreed that a good tourist guide should be characterized with the above traits. All tourist guides agreed that they should think of how to spend the time either by reading, sleeping or relaxing when the trip takes long time.