ABOUT US

Currently it unifies over 450 people – professional tour guides fluent in 20 languages. The members of the Association of Bulgarian Tour Guides are of different age, with various interests and broad range of education and specialization. Many of them are graduate philologists in their basic work language or they are graduates of prestigious language high schools. Their common level is the professional tour guide qualification – acquired as a result of passed certification course and many years practice.

For raising the competencies and knowledge of the tour guides, on annual basis we are organizing training excursions in Bulgaria and abroad, during which getting familiar with theory and practice is performed in real environment.

The auditorium held annually also enjoys the great interest demonstrated by the members of the Association. Visiting lecturers for the Association of Bulgarian Tour Guides were reputable Bulgarian archaeologists, historians and economists, specialists in art, theology, international relations and many other.

The tour guides of the Association of Bulgarian Tour Guides are profiled in the cultural-historical tourism and they have excellent knowledge about Bulgaria and its sights. They have developed their professional image in working with groups of various types, including groups of visitors specialized according to interests, business trips and VIP guests.

Many of our members have significant experience as guides of Bulgarian tourists for excursions abroad. In addition to representatives from the capital and the Sofia region, we have representatives from Plovdiv, Sandanski, Varna, Burgas, Veliko Tarnovo, Blagoevgrad etc. We take pride in the prestigious fact that our members are licensed local tour guides in states such as Austria, Greece, Italy, Turkey, France, Sweden.

We are seeking for establishing active relations not only with the state institutions, but with non-government organizations, associations and other actors in the tourist branch. It is in our interest to facilitate sector’s work, via giving convenient access to quality tour guide service in the person of our members. The Association of Bulgarian Tour Guides has undertaken the cause to counteract the disloyal competition and to regulate the professional ethics. Our basic demands are well-deserved payment of this highly intellectual labour, as well as not allowing people without professional qualification to become tour guides servicing the tourists on the territory of Bulgaria.

The association actively participates and is desired co-operative partner at round tables, conferences and work meetings for discussing current issues of the tourist field in Bulgaria. One of the basic and most pressing priorities of the Association of Bulgarian Tour Guides is connected with the elaboration of new Law for Tourism. This issue faced by the Bulgarian institutions, business and non-governmental sector is leading accent for the branch. After detailed review of the good European practices and consulting its members for their opinion, the Association of Bulgarian Tour Guides supports the position for the necessity of certifying the tour guide work and state protection of the profession.

The Association of Bulgarian Tour Guides is member of the Bulgarian Association of Tour Operators and Travel Agents, the Bulgarian Association for Alternative Tourism, the Bulgarian Association of Travel Agents and the Sofia Tourist Region.

ABTG is very active in most of the popular social networks.