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Norway to Strengthen Regulations for Tour Guides

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The Norwegian government has announced plans to introduce stricter regulations for those working as tour guides. It follows reports of misinformation being disseminated to tourists. Here’s what you need to know.

Have you ever visited Norway and taken a guided tour? If so, how was the quality of the tour guide?

A tour guide assisting tourists in Bergen, Norway.

Personally I’ve had nothing but good experiences, including walking tours in Oslo and the specialists that work on northern lights tours in Tromsø and other parts of Northern Norway.

But on a recent trip, I heard from one person on a different tour who was very disappointed. He said their guide was a student new to the area who couldn’t answer basic questions beyond what was in their notes.

It would seem that an increasing number of tourists have had similar experiences. So much so, that the Norwegian government wants to improve the situation. They are considering strengthening regulation by introducing an approval scheme for anyone wanting to work as a tour guide.

Misinformation from tour guides

According to NRK, a guide recently misinformed cruise ship tourists in Måløy, asserting that tsunamis, earthquakes, llamas, and the fish ‘species’ known as stockfish were all common in the region.

Per Christensen, a Norwegian tourist on the trip, expressed his disbelief and concern, stating, “It was quite a bizarre experience.”

Cruise ships in Flåm, Norway.
Many cruise ship passengers take guided tours during port calls.

A spokesperson from Visit Norway didn’t comment on the specific case but said “we are aware of several similar stories.”

Working as a tour guide in Norway

Becoming a tour guide is one of the most popular tourism jobs in Norway. The vast majority of tour guides are not full-time employees, as the tourism market in Norway is mostly seasonal. As such, it's ideal part-time work for students.

In university cities, multilingual students can earn extra money by leading tours in German, Spanish, or one of many other languages.

Currently, there are no formal requirements for someone to be called a ‘guide' in Norway. Anyone can use this title, leading to potential inconsistencies in the quality and accuracy of the information provided to tourists.

Accreditation for tour guides

To combat this, a national approval scheme for local and regional guides, tour leaders, and mountain guides is now under development, following a decision made in the coalition government agreement of autumn 2021.

The colourful trading houses of Bryggen in Bergen.
Many tour guides work in Bergen.

This scheme will potentially introduce basic requirements that all guides must meet. While the details are to be confirmed, it's expected they will emphasize the importance of accurate communication, risk assessment, and first aid knowledge.

Oscar Almgren, head of Uteguiden, a tour company in Sunnmøre, stressed the need for such requirements, saying, “it's a problem for the entire industry when there are no concrete requirements.”

The push for quality standards isn't new. The Norwegian Guide Association has been advocating for higher standards for guiding services for the past 40 years. Some local regions, like Ålesund, have taken matters into their own hands by creating their own certification processes for guides.

Margunn Kristin Vassdal, head of the Ålesund Guide Association, said that their guides must undergo 150 hours of courses and pass both oral and written exams.

The official proposal for the national approval scheme is set to be presented to the government in December.

About David Nikel

Originally from the UK, David now lives in Trondheim and was the original founder of Life in Norway back in 2011. He now works as a professional writer on all things Scandinavia.

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3 thoughts on “Norway to Strengthen Regulations for Tour Guides”

  1. Glad to hear about the tightening up of tour guide requirements. On a tour we took a few years ago, our guide had to keep asking the bus driver about questions that were asked. She didn’t know much about Norway!

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  2. nothing happens without the complicity and complacency of the Norwegian government, let’s not be hypocrites, Who benefits from this million-dollar industry, they get what they pay for, unqualified personnel who work 13 to 18 hours a day for less than the minimum wage.
    Both the shipping companies, the Norwegian government, the subcontractors of tourist services and the legal representatives of the companies know about the problem.
    It is also worth mentioning that bus drivers that make the tours are coerced to work more hours than allowed by law, putting their lives and the lives of others at risk.

    .

    Reply
  3. I believe its best when no such regulations are in place – I’m a certified tour leader from another eu country where at the time where I started working there still was a requirement that later was waived and the whole professions of both tour leaders and tour guides were free to work without any certification. It worked – as many enthusiasts with far better knowledge were allowed to enter the market, those with certifications AND BOTH great skillset were still in demand and some of certified guides were naturally replaced by those enthusiasts mentioned above because they were simply unpleasant with some personality issues – it was no longer the case of “papers”, the market redefined itself very quickly. to answer some arising questions – yes, there were some travel agencies who were hiring some unprepared folks for little money, but these situations were evaluated quickly – these companies were loosing clients and with a little feedback on the internet it was pretty easy to find great people to fill in the spots. I’m a big fan of giving people the freedom to do what they do best 🙂

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