February 2, 2011

A Report on Starting a Career in

Adventure Tourism:
Overland Tours

Amba Jacobs Tutors: Maika Te Amo & Wiremu Te Kanawa

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1 Terms of Reference

This report was requested by Maika Te Amo and Wiremu Te Kanawa on January 24, 2011. It will discuss the intricacies of getting a career in the overlanding component of adventure tourism and give recommendations based on the information gathered. It is due on February 3, 2011.

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2 Procedure

Information for this report was gathered from: Interview with Mike Rayner, temporarily out of station from overlanding with Kumuka Worldwide, on January 24, 2011; Books; Internet websites.

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3 Findings

3.1 Personal Requirements

There are plenty of personal requirements that go into being an overland tour guide (overlander). They need to be resourceful, organized and able to work in adverse environments. The conditions are difficult so overlanders (overland tour guides) need to be ready to deal with anything and able to maintain a cool head. They will be away from home for long spans of time working with strangers and should have the personal strength to deal with this (M. Rayner, personal communication, January 24, 2011). Also, overland guides should already be experienced in, and have a strong desire to travel (Dragoman, 2011).

3.2 Entry Requirements

People wanting to be overlanders need to hold a valid passport that will allow them through the borders that they will be crossing. Experience working as an overlander is an advantage (M. Rayner, personal communication, January 24, 2011). Other languages, such as Spanish and French are a benefit but are not required. For different companies the rest of the requirements vary. With Kumuka, applicants need to be 23 or over and have travelled in a minimum of two continents (Kumuka Worldwide, 2011). If applying to work for Dragoman, the minimum age is 25. Overlanders should hold a valid drivers license and need be to capable if not qualified mechanics (Dragoman, n.d.).

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Once accepted the newly enlisted employee will be required to go through training provided by the company before taking charge of a group (Kumuka Worldwide, 2011; Dragoman, n.d.)

3.3 Specialisation and Tasks

Overlanders are responsible for a lot of things. They need to plan the trip across a country or continent and work out the logistics. They need to look after all the people on the trip and get them safely from start to finish. They are responsible for driving and maintaining the truck that transports everyone (M. Rayner, personal communication, January 24, 2011).

Within overlanding there are usually two specializations. One is to become a driver. The driver does most of the driving, keeps the truck clean and in good condition, and needs to be a proficient mechanic. The driver would also coordinate the route and border crossings, look after the paperwork related to the truck (licensing etc.) and ensure that the tools necessary to maintain the truck are on board. The other main specialisation is to become a tour guide. The tour guide focuses on the people: organizing activities, coordinating and overseeing the cooking and other duties roster, keeping the group informed, collecting payments and looking after the accounts (M. Rayner, personal communication, January 24, 2011). The tour guide is also in charge of educating the group to cultural etiquette when required; therefore the theory from Patterson (1991) that the customer I always correct in relation to his/her guide does not apply to overlanders.

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Bigger companies would offer specialisation as a cook or camp helper as well. The cook would then be in charge of buying and preparing food and the camp helper would assist the clients in setting up their tents (M. Rayner, personal communication, January 24, 2011).

3.4 Working Conditions

Overlanders work in many different countries travelling and setting up camp in all kinds of weather conditions and landscapes (M. Rayner, personal communication, January 24, 2011; Stephens, 1999).

Individual trips last from two to eighteen weeks, and while on those trips they are always on duty. The driver can put in from eight to twelve hours of driving a day. Trips often run close together sometimes with as little as two days in between (M. Rayner, personal communication, January 24, 2011).

Overlanders are expected to drive a customized truck which contains all the amenities that people would need from camping. They use a lot of different tools for looking after their trucks such as spare truck parts, jacks, screwdrivers, drills, wrenches etc. They also use sand mats, a sheet of corrugated steel, for when the truck gets stuck. Overlanders will use cooking and camping equipment, like gas burners, pots, pans etc. and tents daily (M. Rayner, personal communication, January 24, 2011). They are sometimes expected to be comfortable with outdoor recreation activity equipment such as kayaks and basic

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diving gear and native forms of transport, from cycles to camels or elephants (Kumuka Worldwide, 2011).

3.5 Pay and progression

Overlanding companies usually pay by the week, for however many weeks are worked. The minimum starting wage per week is around 70 British pounds, although depending on the company it can be up to 120 GBP. The overlanders work will be revised every three months, and if the evaluation comes out positive there will be a raise of 20 GBP per week. This can go up to a maximum of 160 GBP per week (M. Rayner, personal communication, January 24, 2011).

The company will pay for an overlanders expenses on the trip, and will also eventually pay for any tickets purchased. This will be done over a one year period, provided the overlander stays with the company. If an overlander is pulled out of another job and asked to fill a position that will inconvenience them, they will earn double pay and the ticket will be paid for in full right away (M. Rayner, personal communication, January 24, 2011).

3.6 Job Outlook

Getting a position as an overlander can be difficult as there will be hundreds of people applying to fill one or two positions. However if you have previously worked as an overlander you are likely to get the job. The company often loses candidates on their first run (M. Rayner, personal communication, January 24, 2011).

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3.7 Related jobs and industries

Once a job as an overlander has been held other careers paths become available. Overlanders can move on to jobs that they come into contact with along their trips such as outdoor recreation guides or instructors. They can also choose to manage their own guiding company or teach at an educational centre. As this job offers the most rigorous training in the world of tourism, most other sects of the hospitality world are open to them. Overlanders can also become travel hosts on TV programs or pursue their interests as a travel writer or photographer (Kashef, n.d.; Career Services, 2011).

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4 Conclusion
An overlander needs to be able to handle adverse conditions and maintain a level head while doing so. They need to be great mechanics, well travelled, and at least 21 years of age (although the minimum age varies from company to company) with competency in basic accounting.

Overlanders travel all over the world and work with a mode of transport such as trucks and a wide range of tools. They also use cooking and camping equipment. While on the road they are working full time and driving for up to twelve hours per day. Their trips can last from two to eighteen weeks.

Pay starts at around 100 GBP per week and can go up to 160 GBP per week. When inconvenienced, an overlander can earn double pay.

Although it can be a difficult career to get into due to many applicants and few spots a lot comes down to the candidate not dropping out.

A career as an overlander can lead to a position as an outdoor recreation instructor, an educator, a photographer or many others that are within the same field.

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5 Recommendation
A career as an overlander is recommended because: They get to travel and see, in depth, incredible places all over the world; Although the wage is meagre it is all earnings as an overlanders food, board, travel and activity costs are all taken care of; They get to meet and bond with people of all nationalities; It would be an extremely memorable and character defining way to earn a living.

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6 Sources: A Report on Starting a Career in Adventure Tourism

Career Services. (2011). Outdoor Recreation Guide/Instructor - Related jobs, Kairahi Mahi Hkinakina. Retrieved on January 31, 2011 from http://www.careers.govt.nz/default.aspx?id0=80103&id1=J57511#job Dragoman. (n.d.). Work for Dragoman, job requirements. Retrieved on Janurary 29, 2011, from http://www.dragoman.com/work-for-dragoman/work-for-dragoman?start=2 Kashef, T. E., (n.d.). Jobs and Careers Abroad in Adventure Travel. Retrieved on January 20, 2011, from http://www.transitionsabroad.com/listings/work/shortterm/articles/jobs-abroad-inadventure-travel.shtml Kumuka Worldwide. (2011). Employment: Tour leaders. Retrieved on January 29, 2011, from http://www.kumuka.com/employment-tour-leaders.aspx

Kumuka Worldwide. (2011). Frequently asked questions. Retrieved on January 30, 2011, from http://www.kumuka.com/Questions-and-Answers.aspx#12

Patterson, G. (1991). Where the lion walked. London, England: Penguin Group.

Stephens, H. & Podell, A. (1999) Who Needs a Road?: The Story of the Longest and Last Motor Journey around the World. CA, USA: Wolfenden Publishing.

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Appendix

Interview with Mike Rayner

Q. What do you think are the personal requirements that you would need to be an adventure tour guide? A. There is both requirements and personal attributes. The requirements are more of a skill set. Youve got to be a really good mechanic, youve got to be able to find solutions to all sorts of problems whether theyre mechanical, logistic or whatever. Youve got to be super organized. There are a few other things that go with experience like if youve worked with people before. Actually the personal attributes are every bit as important. Because youre working in extremely adverse environments, like Ive had my truck shot, Ive been beaten up at a border by border guards, and Ive had my gear box explode in the middle of the desert. There are constant frustrations, it can be extremely hot. Youve got to deal with people whose version of logic can be completely different to your own, and this is before we even get into the passengers. This is talking about the border officials, policemen at check points, people whove lost your hotel booking or maybe sold it because someone else has come in paying a higher price and so much of that comes down to personal attributes, to be able to take it in your stride, still be friendly to your clients; for instance, one of your clients might walk up in the middle and tell you he wants to talk about his dog at home and you cant bite his head off. You have to be an extremely calm person in those circumstances. Basically you need to be able to maintain your cool while finding a solution. You have some really awful days and you have to just think, tomorrows another day. I was in the military for a while and some of the personal requirements are similar. For example, being about to deal with being away for long periods of time and to live and work very close with other people. Q. So of course you constantly have to coordinate between the group and the locals? A. Yes, talking to the local guides, getting the entry fees, getting the visas to get them in the country, everything like that were dealing with. Thats why theyve paid to do the tour, to make things easier and so thats what we provide for them. And its adventure tourism, so they know what theyre in for as well. We coordinate the cooking of the meals but they actually do the prep and most of the cooking. The tour leader generally just oversees and does the shopping. Its a little different from mainstream tourism. One of the key requirements that an overland tour company will look for is if youve done the job before. If youve done the job before and you can handle it for a year youre a known quantity for them. So they know what theyre going to get, they know that the trip will run the way they expect and would want.

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Q. Is it restricted to experience in their country or could you have worked anywhere in the world? A. It doesnt matter where, if youve done overlanding theyll put you where you want to go. For instance Id never been to the Middle East before but Id done several years in Africa and I didnt apply for the job, I just e-mailed who I was, what Id done beforehand and where I wanted to work. They basically checked out with my previous bosses to see if I was any good. That just takes a simple yes and they say right weve got a job for you. Q. What are the entry requirements to be an overlander? For instance what qualifications would you need and would your nationality factor in at all? A. As long as youve got a passport that can get you through the countries were going youll be alright. For instance South Africans cant go through Turkey without going through a lot of hassle to get a visa, so they end up in the Middle East on the trips that dont go into Turkey because its simply more hassle for the company to try and get them visas or risk them not getting there and having to deal with that, so they would put the people with New Zealand, UK or Australian passports on those particular runs. So your nationality can dictate the route your company will send you on. In Africa they have a lot of Kenyans, Tanzanians, and Zimbabweans working as well as your Kiwis, Aussies, South Africans and English. As far as entry requirements, a lot come down to what you as a person are like. At the end of the day youre the same as the captain of a ship. Youre somewhere with no communication, no support, your group are simply relying on you to make good and sound judgments several times a day. They will put you on a training trip first with an experienced team partner. So if you were lacking any of the knowledge that would be required you would learn it there. Q. So did you apply to the country that you wanted to work in? A. No, the companies work through many different countries so Kumuka for example, my last employer, was an English company. Once youve been on the road you tend to know who the main companies are. You know from talking to crew who treats their crew well and who doesnt. But theres a raft of companies, because the English actually started overlanding about 15 years before the South Africans decided that that would be a good idea of doing in their own country. Some of the earlier companies were Economic Expeditions and Absolute Africa. Actually the owner of Absolute Africa was one of the main founders. In the 70s he modified a London taxi and drove from London to Cape Town with his vehicle, passing through the Sahara. He decided that if they had good trucks they could start taking people through, and many others started popping up at around the same time.

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Q. Do they also hire people who dont already have experience? A. If you dont have experience, like for my first job, they advertise it in the Gumtree or the TNT which are the Kiwi, Aussie and South African papers in England, if its an English company. They get hundreds, if not more, applicants and theyre usually looking to fill one or two positions max. What theyll do then is go through the applications, check them out, the ones that they like theyll put to one side and go and check the references that theyve given. They might bring thirty people in for an interview. From the interview they might short list about ten. From those they might send between five to eight trainees out at different times. From that shortlist theyll keep those details for another position as well. Lets say you have six trainees, theyll go on different trucks; the likelihood is that two thirds of them wont get a job so youre down to two. And then of the two that get a job the idea is that hopefully one of them can last it out for a yearthe dropout rate is extremely high because the job is a lot more than people realize. And thats why if youve done a year you dont apply, because they know you can handle it. You need to be a very good driver. Over there a very good driver is someone who, after having next to no sleep the night before, can drive for twelve hours continuously, in hot conditions, and on very narrow roads, with absolutely insane drivers all around them in a twenty ton vehicle with thirty people reliant on them and still bring that days drive in safely. And be driving as well in their eleventh and twelfth hour as they were in their first. There are a lot of trainee drivers that come out with all the personal attributes and all of the mechanical skills, whove been put to work as tour leaders but because of their driving skills theyre not good enough to be a full time driver. Youve definitely got to have very good mechanical skills. They check for a combination of qualifications and mechanical skills. There are a lot of drivers who arent qualified mechanics but are very good mechanics. If youre not you basically dont have any business being there because a good mechanic preempts breakdowns and fixes them before they stop the truck from moving. Like you would want to fix it at the campsite rather that trying to drive it the next day and have it explode. Q. What tasks are you required to do and what did you eventually specialize in? Like, what did you end up focusing on within that field? A. Well with specialization youre going to get an odd answer because its nothing and everything. Every facet of your job you need to be an expert in and as I said its the dealing with people and what have you. However, in the overlanding community most companies have two main roles, sometimes three, or four. The first role and usually the senior crew is the driver. Thats just usually because if the driver is good at the job they tend to stay longer. The driver mainly looks after the truck: all of the maintenance, all of the repairs, all of the driving, border crossings, paperwork, insurance, fuel, making sure theres everything to take care of all that in terms of tools, oils, grease-gun on the truck. Thats their specialization, and the category that I would fall under. They still have to be good with passengers and organized and all that.

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Then youve got the tour leader, and their specialization is the people. Most tour leaders cant drive the truck. Some can, which makes them more saleable. You wouldnt have a tour leader driving the truck all day, because their driving isnt good enough. For example, if the tour leader has to leave the tour to take someone to the hospital, the driver can take over the tour indefinitely by themselves. The tour leader liaises with the passengers to let them know whats going on, organizes the shopping, organizes the passengers with their luggage and their requirements organizes duty rosters for cleaning the truck, for cooking, for everything like that, oversees and manages all of the cooking and cleaning, organizes local guides for all the sights and activities, organizes payment for all the sights and activities, also payment for all optional activities. So they have to do their own accounting. Other specializations in the more upscale companies are a cook. They would be only responsible for buying and cooking the food. Like is said, if theres no cook the tour leader would take care of all that. Some of the really fancy companies have a camp helper who helps people putting up their tents. What we do is I usually show them how to do it once, and if they still cant do it someone else from the trip will help them out cause were not baby sitters. Kumuka runs with a two crew truck, and so do most of the other companies. What we do is a talk, usually at dinner time, about the next day in detail and then the next few days in overview. So then people always know whats going on. Driver and tour leader always eat last. If theres no food left, and thats happened a few times, you miss out. Q. What are your working conditions? Like, your hours, interaction with people and the equipment you need to use? A. In overview first of all working conditions are absolutely shocking and absolutely brilliant. And it can be both in one day. Hours that you work: every hour youre awake youre on duty and quite likely working. This is why you get so many people dropping out. When youre asked questions every waking minute of your day, a lot of people cant handle that and burn out. Actual hours driving, I once tallied them up and I think they were three times the legal hours in Europe. And thats only driving hours, not counting organizing things and repairing my truck. You could say eight to twelve a day sometimes more, driving continuously with only a stop for lunch. In the Middle East the trips went for between two and six weeks. In Africa it was between three and sixteen weeks. (Sixteen weeks: Cairo through to Cape Town) Often you dont have breaks between trips, so you dont count on time off. To give you and idea after every eleven week trip I did from Nairobi to Cape Town I had two to three days in Cape Town and then I had to drive continuously back to Nairobi which is between five and six days driving eighteen to twenty hours a day back. You arrive in

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Nairobi so tired and then you have to start your next trip sometimes, other times you have to fix your truck. Thats the bad side of it. Now the working conditions, the great side of it: you get to meet many different people, both your passengers and the locals along the way. And you get to experience things that even the passengers dont because youre continuously going around the same places. Like if I got back to Africa, and I havent been there for several years, I would be welcomed so much more because Ive been away that the passengers would be taken aback. And I dont mean just the people who own the campsites, Im also talking about the people who own the little craft shops etc. they all know you. Those are the friendships that you make- you also make a lot of friendships with your passengers, and you get to see and do amazing things that very few people actually get to do. Youve seen a lot of my photographs, but nowhere near all of them. I mean the pay is not very good when youre on the road but you dont spend any of that money because everywhere you go everythings pretty much free. That includes things like, Ive been white water rafting thirty times, Ive been sky diving ten maybe fifteen times, Ive been in a hot air balloon five or six times in Capadocia (which is normally 300 euros to do), Ive been ballooning in the Valley of the Kings about four times. Because youre bringing people there they give you everything in order to keep you happy. I didnt dive until I had been on the road, and I got my entire way to my dive master paying for only the certifications from Paddy and not actually paying for any of the courses I had to do. Every time I go through Dahab I can just go pick up dive gear and go for a dive myself whenever, wherever I want to or go on my passengers dives, or nowadays take my passengers diving and get paid as a guide for doing it- because they would have to pay a dive guide anyway. Q. So do you have time for yourself on these trips to actually enjoy these benefits? A. You get to do them with your passengers. Youre still on call and if during an activity something happens youre still the person who now needs to sort things out and make sure everythings alright. That just goes with the job. The cultures one thing and just meeting the people, making the friends and doing activities, but seeing the sights- Valley of the Kings Ive been to more than twenty times. I get to go in and out of tombs that most tourists dont ever get to see. I went to one where it was down a side valley and someone had to unlock it for me and I was the only one in there. The rest of the tourists are just shuffling along in big lines only seeing the main big ones. As well as the sights, the food. I love all of the different food, particularly in the Middle East. That varies from little falafel shops through to Dahab which is all great seafood down to Luxor which has anything and everything catering to people from all over the world. Its actually made me quite hungry!

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Q. Is there any other equipment aside from your truck that you need to work with? A. We have a lot of tools on the truck, and by tools I dont just mean a little tool box. I mean if something goes catastrophically wrong you have to be able to replace it, repair it, whatever. Weve got more tools than the average workshop does and we only have one model of truck. One time when the road was really hard on the vehicle I traveled with six spares, whereas usually we only carry two to four. I was carrying a spare differential, a spare radiator, a spare drive shaft, a whole lot of other parts in case they failed- a whole lot of springs, break parts. Another vital piece of equipment is something called sand mats. These are corrugated steel sheets that we use when the truck gets stuck. Theyre an army piece of equipment, and they use them for making air fields. They just link them all together and make an airfield that a plane can land on. You generally have them bolted to the side of your truck so if you get stuck theyre easy to access. We have lots of cooking equipment, six big gas burners on board, four big bottles of gas. A lot of times we buy and carry firewood and cook off bonfires as well. We have all the common kitchen equipment for camping: pots, pans, knives, forks, etc. Q. Whats the average starting wage per annum? A. Well if I break it down weekly, Phoenix paid 70 pounds per week to a tour leader and 90 to a driver and the maximum was 90 for a tour leader and 120 for a driver. They put me straight on 110 because of my experience as a driver. That was the lowest paying company. Kumuka starts everyone on 120 pounds a week and every three months depending on experience the wages go up with a maximum of 160. They started me on 140 and in my second week they put me on 160 because they had fired my tour leader and they realized that I was doing a lot of the work. Thats your standard rate, but if theyre in trouble, for example Kumuka just offered me a job in South America- thats on double wages. If its for a short period, they realize theyre pulling you out of what you should be doing. I that instance they would also pay for your airfare. Normally you pay your airfare and then you get it back to you over the year. Lets say every three months you get paid a quarter of it, so if you dont last a year they havent paid your whole airfare. Going back to the wages, when they reevaluate you every three months they raise your wage by 20 pounds if youre an asset. They evaluate on a few things: one is customer feedback, that people are happy with you. Youll have people who are not, but theyll know that someone good has consistently higher feedback than someone not. If you get a lot of comments about how great youve been youll be going up a pay step. For a drive its also the condition of the truck, that youve e looked after it and preempted everything. For a tour leader its that youve got your accounts in on time, having everything organized and bookings made and everything like that.

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You dont need to learn the language, but it will help especially to get you through checkpoints faster. Also its easier for the group to respect you as a guide if you can converse and communicate with the locals rather than frantically waving your hands and expecting them to speak English. Q. What are some related jobs that you could get into having done overlanding as an adventure tour guide? A. If you can handle overlanding youd be able to work anywhere in the tourism industry: from working at game parks to the dive schools. Most people in tourism know how hard it is and know what the dropout rate is. Theyll know that you can work with people and that you can handle stress. Q. Do you think it was the best job you could have done with your time? A. Oh yes. Its something that, even if I didnt go back to it, its one of those defining things in your life. You could look over a ten year period and youd focus most on that one year that you spent there. Its just something so far removed and exciting and different from the ordinary.

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