What or who inspired you to become a tour director?

Traveling with my mother for the last few years of her life exposed me to some wonderful tour directors, and it looked like a good way to make a living and see the world.

How do you balance your personal life with your travel career?

My family and friends have been very patient with my frequent absences. We just make sure we set aside time to see each other when I am home. It is pretty easy to keep in touch with email and social media. I always set up dates with friends before I come home from touring.

What qualities do you feel make for a good tour director? 

Patience, flexibility, and a high tolerance for stress are the first things I think about. A good tour director must also really like people, be organized, and know how to be kind while being a leader. It also helps not to take yourself too seriously.

What advice would you give to a first-time traveler? 

Be open-minded, embrace the differences you find, and remember you are an ambassador.

What are three things you must always take with you? iPhone, paper maps, notebook

What would it look like if you could design your own customized tour to reflect your passions? 

I would pick a country and design a tour that follows a series of local festivals (such as those for foods such as truffles, chocolate, mushrooms, etc.). This would immerse the tour in the local culture and history.

Name someone famous you’d like to travel with and where you’d like to take them. 

Omar Sharif is my favorite actor of all time and a racehorse owner. I would love to construct a tour to take him to the world’s best horse racing and breeding locations—a theme I would love to pursue with anyone!

How has tour directing impacted your perspective of the world? 

It has made the world much smaller for me. I have learned that I can be comfortable and effective almost anywhere. The most important revelation was that people everywhere want the same things: personal security and good health for themselves and their families and to satisfy curiosity about the rest of the world.

What advice would you give someone who wants to become a tour director or guide? Contact ITMI! I thought I had the temperament and at least some of the necessary skills to be a tour director, and ITMI showed me that I did and taught me how to use them. Another thing to do would be to take a guided tour somewhere and see how the job is done.

“We are the filter through which people see the world, so we have a unique chance to open their eyes to things they may have never thought about.” Beth Meredith