What might they ask? Tourists’ questions directed to tour guides due to their information-giver role

Abstract

Interpretation is essential in tour guiding services and it is formed by tour guides’ information. The body of the tour guiding literature has examined tour guides’ interpretation and information-giver role in various aspects. However, tourists’ questions, as a component of tour guide-tourist interaction and interpretation, are under-studied. Hence, this empirical research aims to identify tourists’ questions directed to tour guides in Türkiye. It also examines tour guides’ perceptions of tourists’ questions and their geographic origin. Additionally, tour guides’ strategies to handle challenging questions were clarified. 13 tour guides were interviewed to conduct the qualitative research and the findings reveal that tourists’ questions are related to Geography, Islam religion, History in Anatolia, Sociocultural settings, and Socioeconomic infrastructure in Türkiye. Therefore, this study contributes to the current body of knowledge as it offers a framework for tourists’ questions, tour guides’ relevant perceptions, and strategies. Finally, it provides recommendations for practitioners and policy-makers.