Tour guides who recently completed phase one of the Aquila International Certification training programme have been encouraged to form an association.
The advice was given by Chief Executive Officer at the Grenada Tourism Authority, Patricia Maher, at a ceremony to mark the completion of the training course.
Maher told the operators that “Forming an Association will be critical to their development and their ability to take advantage of opportunities for training and certification. Working together as a group will be more professional and together we are stronger.”
More than thirty tour guides completed phase one of training facilitated by the Aquila Center for Cruise Excellence, the official training partner of the Florida Caribbean Cruise Association (FCCA).
Sponsored by the Grenada Tourism Authority (GTA), the four-day training course was an opportunity for the tour guides to become master storytellers about the experiences in their country, while becoming the first to have the opportunity to receive internationally recognized certification.
The course was facilitated by Claudine Pohl, Manager, International Business Development and Training at Aquila. Topics covered included, the art of storytelling, customer service excellence, daily preparation and problem solving.
Pohl indicated that the tour guides will now have to pass two assessments before they can receive their certification.
One assessment is a multiple choice exam in which they will need to secure a 70% pass rate or higher, followed by a video component in which they will display their newly learnt skills.
The training precedes the 2019/2020 Winter Cruise Ship Season.
