How to Select the Right Guide For the Right Job From your Adventure Travel Guide You wouldn't take a mountaineering guide on a jungle safari, or a sailboat captain to the Outback. Selecting the right guide can mean the difference between success and failure, sometimes life and death. Choose wisely! Here's How: First, be honest with a guide prospect about what you expect. And ask him/her to be honest with you. Don't set the trip up to be a disappointment by expecting more than offered. Get it straight in the beginning. Choose your guide before the adventure begins. Use the phone and talk to them about the trip you want. Ask friends and family if they know a guide to recommend. Ask for names of customers in your area to contact. You can't get referrals from a backcountry guide in Nepal, but you can find others that know him/her professionally. Start by asking questions in the guide's hometown if you can. Don't hesitate in using the Internet to locate a guide. Most who maintain web sites are professional operators. You can get better referrals too. And many of the sites provide good specific information. Ask the potential guide about licensing and insurance. Most pro guides in the states are, many third world guides are not. But by asking you are strengthening the argument for your requirements being met. Confirm the rates and outline what you get -- and be perfectly clear. Too late to argue when in the bush. Ask for a written agreement if possible, otherwise, cover the specifics carefully and shake on it. Bargain! Most guides establish set prices, but slow season or periods can and should result in discounts. Tell the guide what you think the trip is worth, and expect an honest response. Gage the compatibility factor. You should be able to tell right away whether you and the guide are going to get along, or clash in personality. Judge carefully, you can't change easily later. Find out a little business history about your guide. Is he/she local, or an adventuring transplant? How long have they been doing it in the same place? Ask the guide and his references or neighbors. The final question to a guide candidate: What do you do in your time off? If the guide doesn't do what he takes others to do, chances are good someone else would be a better guide. Tips: Never agree to something you have a bad feeling about. Never pay-in-full up front, and never use cash without a written receipt. Trust your guide for guiding, not for keeping up with your valuables. Don't mix business with pleasure. Keep the relationship simple and professional. Make sure you and the guide speak the same language well enough to fully understand the conditions. Related Information: