Tour Guiding Level 3

Who it is for. People who have finished Tour Guiding Level 2, or can show the same skills, and who want to work as a lead guide, a tour manager for an operator, a trainer of guides, or the owner of a guiding or tour business anywhere in Ghana. Ghana's TVET framework places National Proficiency II below National Certificate I. This module is written at an advanced level, comparable to National Certificate I; that comparison is the author's judgement, not a CTVET ruling.

Bridge from Level 2: what you already know

Level 2 made you a professional on one tour at a time. Level 3 joins tours into a product line, guides into a team, and your work into a licensed, profitable and fair business.

How the module works

Each unit has learning outcomes, performance criteria, the range and the evidence your assessor needs. You are judged Competent or Not Yet Competent. About 60% of the time is practical. Every unit ends with a three-question Check yourself. Money examples are examples unless a source is named: always replace them with your own real prices. Site fees from published tables must be confirmed by phone before you quote them.

Competency standard

Range. A tour of 3 to 7 days for 8 to 20 guests by road, with hotels, several sites and local site guides, anywhere in Ghana. Evidence. Pre-tour file; run-sheet; daily briefing observed; float reconciliation; incident report from the table-top exercise; end-of-tour report; oral questions.

Who does what on a multi-day tour

The World Federation of Tourist Guide Associations (WFTGA) uses the European and ISO definitions. A tourist guide guides visitors in their chosen language and interprets the cultural and natural heritage of an area, normally with a qualification for that area. A tour manager manages an itinerary for a tour operator. A tour leader goes with a group for the whole tour and focuses on managing the group; a tour leader does not normally interpret sites unless also a qualified guide.

In Ghana the same person often does all three jobs. On a five-day tour you may be the tour manager who runs the plan, the tour leader who looks after the group, and the guide who tells the story at the castle. When you are all three, remember which hat you are wearing. When a site guide at a castle, a park or a palace takes over, you step back and become the tour leader: you count heads, watch for tired or upset guests, and keep time.

Act 817 lists tour guides, site guides, tour operators and car rental as separate tourism enterprises in its Schedule. Do not do another licensed person's job. You do not drive the bus, steer the boat or guide inside a site where the site's own guide is required.

The pre-tour file

The pre-tour file is a folder (paper and phone) that holds everything you need to run the tour without calling the office every hour. Build it at least a week before the tour (course method).

Ghana's general emergency number is 112; police 191 or 18555, ambulance 193 and fire 192 still work as back-ups, and emergency services "may be limited". On a multi-day tour you are far from your home base, so write down the nearest hospital and clinic for every night stop before you leave.

Reconfirming suppliers

Most tour failures start with a supplier who "did not know". Reconfirm every booking twice (course method):

1. Seven days before: send each supplier a written message: date, time, number of guests, special needs, and the booking number. Ask for a reply.
2. One day before: phone each supplier for the next day. Confirm the time, the number and the name of the person who will meet you.
3. Morning of the day: message the driver and the first site. Check the weather and road news.
4. Write each reply and the name of the person in your run-sheet. If someone does not reply, call the operator and start Plan B.

Sites change their hours. Castles run by the Ghana Museums and Monuments Board (GMMB) list 9:00 to 16:30 daily. Kakum National Park lists 6:00 to 16:00. Manhyia Palace Museum lists 9:00 to 17:00 every day, including holidays. Always phone to confirm.

A full run-sheet: five days, Accra to Kumasi (example)

Below is a complete run-sheet for an example five-day heritage and nature tour for 14 international guests. The route uses real sites and their published facts. All times, drive times, prices and supplier names are examples; check every drive time with your driver and every opening time with the site before you use it.

Tour: "Coast and Kingdom", 5 days, 14 guests, one 22-seat coach with a licensed driver, one tour manager (you), local site guides at each site.

Day 1 · Arrive in Accra (example)

Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park reopened in July 2023 after redevelopment, with a Presidential Library, an amphitheatre and Freedom Hall. It was the most visited attraction in Ghana in 2025. The 2023 fees were GH¢100 for a non-Ghanaian adult and GH¢25 for a Ghanaian adult; they may have changed, so confirm.

Day 2 · Accra to Cape Coast and Elmina (example)

Elmina (St George's) Castle was founded by the Portuguese in 1482 and is on the UNESCO World Heritage List; Fort Coenraadsburg (St Jago) is within walking distance. Cape Coast Castle grew from a 1555 Portuguese trade lodge; the slave trade was its main activity until the British ban of 1807, and it is now a museum. Two castles in one day is heavy for many guests. Build in quiet time and do not rush the dungeons.

Day 3 · Kakum, then to Kumasi (example)

Kakum's canopy walkway has seven suspension bridges, up to 27 m above the forest floor; Visit Ghana gives the length as 333 m, other sources give about 330 to 350 m, so say "about 330 to 350 metres" and let the park sign be the authority. Guests need hands free for the ropes, and there is a shortcut exit after the first bridge for anyone who feels unwell or afraid. Start early: the park opens at 6:00 and mornings are cooler and quieter.

Day 4 · Kumasi (example)

At Manhyia Palace Museum photography is allowed on the grounds but prohibited inside the galleries, and guests should dress casually but decently. Kejetia is described as the largest single market in West Africa, with over 8,000 stores and stalls. A crowd that size needs small groups, a meeting point and bags worn in front.

Day 5 · Kumasi to Accra via Boti Falls (example)

Boti Falls is about 17 km from Koforidua and about 90 minutes from Accra; visitors walk down over 70 steps, and the Municipal Chief Executive has urged visitors to take care. Ask every guest before the steps: "The way down is more than seventy steps, and the way back up is the same. If your knees or heart do not like steps, you are welcome to wait at the top with our driver." Never push anyone to go down.

The daily rhythm

Every day of a multi-day tour has the same shape (course method):

Model script: the morning briefing (2 minutes).

"Good morning, everyone. I hope you slept well. Quick plan for today. We leave at 7:15 sharp, so please be on the coach at 7:10. Our first stop is Elmina Castle at about 11:30, then lunch, then Cape Coast Castle at 3:00. Today is a heavy day. Inside the castles you will see the dungeons where enslaved Africans were held. Take your time. If you need to step out, tell me or just walk to the courtyard, and I will find you. Please carry water, a hat and your phone. Photos are welcome in most places, but the guide will tell you where to stop. Before we go, is anyone unwell this morning? Please tell me now or quietly after. Thank you. Let's go."

Model script: the welcome dinner talk (day 1).

"Akwaaba. Welcome to Ghana, and welcome to our tour. My name is Ama, and I am your tour manager for the next five days. That means I am the person to come to for anything: a question, a worry, a room problem, a health problem, anything. My phone is on all day and all night, and the number is on your welcome card. Over the next five days we will see Accra, two of the most important castles in the history of the world, the forest canopy at Kakum, the Asante kingdom in Kumasi, and a waterfall on the way home. Three promises from me. First, I will always tell you the truth, including when something changes. Second, I will never rush you through the castles. Third, your safety comes before the timetable. And one request from you: if anything is wrong, tell me early, so I can fix it early. Now, please enjoy your dinner."

Managing local guides and drivers

Handing over to a site guide. Arrive five minutes early. Introduce the site guide by name. Tell the site guide, privately, about any guest with a mobility need, a health issue or a strong emotional connection to the site (for example, a diaspora guest on a first visit). Then step back: do not interrupt or correct the site guide in front of guests. Walk at the back as the sweep, count heads at each door, and watch for anyone who is upset or tired. Thank the site guide by name at the end, in front of the group.

Working with the driver. The driver is your partner, not your servant.

Handling group money

On many tours you carry a float: cash or mobile money from the operator to pay entry fees, toilets, porters, tips to site staff and small costs on the road. You must account for every cedi.

Tips. No official Ghana tipping norm was found. A travel-advice source suggests guests ask locally whether cedis or US dollars are preferred and use tip envelopes for guides and drivers at the end of a trip (summary only). The tour manager's rule: never ask for a tip; explain on day 4 how guests may tip if they wish; share tips exactly as your company policy says, and include the driver and assistant guides.

When things go wrong over several days

A problem on day 2 of a five-day tour does not end at 5 p.m. It changes the plan for the days that follow. Use this routine for any crisis (course method):

1. Make people safe. Stop, move the group to a safe place, give first aid only within your training, and call 112 if anyone is hurt or in danger.
2. Count heads. Know where every guest is.
3. Call the operator's duty phone. Say what happened, where, who, and what you have done.
4. Tell the guests the truth, calmly, with what happens next.
5. Change the plan: what can still happen today and tomorrow? Reconfirm the new plan with every supplier.
6. Record it on the incident report the same day: date, time, place, people, what happened, what you did, witnesses.
7. Follow up each day until it is closed: the guest in hospital, the lost passport, the refund.

Model script: giving bad news with an alternative.

"Everyone, I have some news about today. The park has closed the canopy walkway this morning because of the storm last night. They do this to keep visitors safe, and I agree with them. I know many of you were looking forward to it, and I am sorry. Here is what I propose: we walk the forest trail with the park guide this morning, which is open, and we look at the canopy from the ground. If the walkway opens by 11:00, we go up then. If it does not, the operator will tell you this evening how the entry fee will be handled. Does anyone have a question?"

Never promise a refund you cannot authorise. Say: "The operator will decide and I will tell you this evening."

Closing the tour

On the last day, thank the group, collect the feedback forms, hand over to the airport transfer and count every guest to the door. Within three working days write the end-of-tour report (course method):

The last line matters. The GTA's annual return form for a licensed tour guide (Form Three D in L.I. 2389) asks for the number of international tourists handled, the number of groups, the average group size, tours outside Ghana, the three most-visited sites and tourists' general impressions. Record these after every tour, and the return is easy at the end of the year.

Check yourself

1. How does a tour manager differ from a tour leader, according to WFTGA?
2. Name four things in a pre-tour file.
3. What do you do the same evening if the float does not agree with the cash?

Competency standard

Range. A 1- to 7-day tour for a named segment (diaspora heritage, school, adventure and nature, festival, accessible, international leisure or domestic weekend), anywhere in Ghana. Evidence. Segment profile; itinerary; cost sheet with checked sums; price and break-even workings; product sheet; oral questions.

Start with the guest, not the map

Ghana's tourism is growing. International arrivals were 1,306,962 in 2025 against 1,288,804 in 2024, receipts were about US$4.34 billion, and domestic visits rose from 1.68 million to 1.79 million, about 7%. Domestic travellers are now a market in their own right, not only foreigners.

The Year of Return in 2019 marked 400 years since the first recorded enslaved Africans arrived in Virginia; Ministry figures quoted about 1.1 million arrivals in 2019 against 956,372 in 2018. Beyond the Return followed in 2020 and is framed as a programme for 2020 to 2030 (summary only). Diaspora heritage tours are a lasting market, and they carry a special duty of care.

Step by step: design an itinerary

Festivals move. A travel publisher's calendar lists, for example, Aboakyir in Winneba on the first weekend of May, Bakatue in Elmina on the first Tuesday of July, Oguaa Fetu Afahye in Cape Coast on the first Saturday of September, and Akwasidae in Kumasi on a 42-day cycle. Dates move with tradition and the calendar, so confirm with the traditional council every year before you sell a festival tour.

PANAFEST and Emancipation Day. PANAFEST is held every two years, and Emancipation Day every year. The 2025 programme ran along the slave route: atonement ceremonies at Salaga and a durbar at Pikworo, a river crossing at Assin Praso, the Assin Manso crossing and travel to Cape Coast, then a symbolic return through the "Door of No Return" and an Akwaaba ceremony. If you design a tour around these events, work with the organisers and the communities; do not stage a private copy of a sacred ceremony for profit.

Fixed costs, variable costs, contingency and margin

You met fixed and variable costs at Level 2. A multi-day product has more lines, and small errors multiply.

• Fixed costs (per tour): costs that stay the same whatever the group size: vehicle hire, driver allowance and room, tour manager fee, room and meals, ceremony or community fees charged per group, first aid and water kit.
• Variable costs (per guest): costs that rise with each guest: hotel rooms (per person, sharing), meals, entry fees, community fund per guest, water and snacks.
• Contingency: a small percentage (in this course 5%) added to the total cost for price rises and surprises (course method).
• Margin: the profit as a share of the selling price. In this course the example target is 20% (course method; choose your own).

Price per person = total cost with contingency ÷ (1 − margin) ÷ number of guests. Round up to a clean figure.

Worked example: cost a three-day heritage route (example)

Product (example): "Route of Return", 3 days, 2 nights, Accra to Assin Manso, Cape Coast, Elmina and Kakum, for 12 diaspora guests sharing twin rooms. One tour manager, one licensed driver and vehicle.

All prices are examples for practice except the castle fees. The castle fee of GH¢80 is the GMMB non-Ghanaian adult rate in the table marked "reviewed 1 July 2023"; GMMB says fees have been reviewed again but has not published new figures, so confirm. Kakum's fees appear only in an image on Visit Ghana and could not be read, so GH¢150 below is a placeholder. The Assin Manso fee was not verified.

Fixed costs per tour (example)

Variable costs per guest (example)

The sums for 12 guests

• Cost before contingency = 14,650 + 2,120 × 12 = 14,650 + 25,440 = GH¢40,090.
• Contingency 5% = 40,090 × 0.05 = GH¢2,004.50.
• Total cost with contingency = GH¢42,094.50, which is GH¢3,507.88 per guest.
• Price for a 20% margin = 42,094.50 ÷ 0.80 = 52,618.13, which is GH¢4,384.84 per guest. Round up to GH¢4,400.
• Revenue = 4,400 × 12 = GH¢52,800. Profit = 52,800 − 42,094.50 = GH¢10,705.50. Margin = 10,705.50 ÷ 52,800 = 20.3%. Mark-up = 10,705.50 ÷ 42,094.50 = 25.4%.

Break-even group size. With contingency on every line, fixed costs are 14,650 × 1.05 = 15,382.50 and the variable cost per guest is 2,120 × 1.05 = 2,226. Each guest adds 4,400 − 2,226 = 2,174 towards fixed costs. Break-even = 15,382.50 ÷ 2,174 = 7.08, so you need 8 guests to avoid a loss.

Sensitivity table at GH¢4,400 per guest (example)

Set the minimum group at 8 and say so on the product sheet, with a date by which you will confirm or cancel. Check the vehicle seats before you sell more than 16.

Single supplement. A guest who wants a room alone pays the difference. If a single room costs GH¢700 a night and the twin-share rate is GH¢450 per person, the extra cost is 2 nights × (700 − 450) = GH¢500. With the same 20% margin, the supplement is 500 ÷ 0.80 = GH¢625.

The product sheet and the tour licence details

The product sheet is your promise in writing. L.I. 2389 says a person shall not organise or operate a tour in Ghana without a licence, and an applicant gives the proposed routes, the start date, the estimated all-inclusive price per tourist and the accommodation and refreshment arrangements. A good product sheet already holds that information.

Advertising. Act 817 says an advertisement or promotion of tourism information shall be certified by the Authority and must not mislead consumers; breaking this rule is an offence. How certification works in practice was not found. Before you print brochures or run paid adverts, ask the GTA what is needed, and never show a photo of a site or an animal you cannot deliver.

Check yourself

1. Write the formula for the price per guest with a target margin.
2. Why do you set a minimum group size?
3. Name the four pieces of information L.I. 2389 asks for when you apply to operate a tour.

Competency standard

Range. A team of 2 to 10 guides, including new guides, freelancers and assistant guides, on day tours and multi-day tours. Evidence. Team standard; induction plan; session plan delivered; two completed observation checklists; feedback record; oral questions.

Why training matters now

The GTA began nationwide training, registration and licensing of tour, site and coach guides in September 2018 with the Tour Guides Association of Ghana (TORGAG). Topics included tourism trends, the guide's role, functions and ethics, the tourism product, guiding tools, communication, presentation and interpretation, and safety and security, with field visits and certificates. In 2022 TORGAG's Greater Accra chairman asked the GTA to remove "charlatans" and make sure all guides renew their licences. In April 2026 the Ghana Tourism Federation (GHATOF) and the GTA launched a national training and certification programme for frontline workers, including tour guides, and a graduate programme to train and certify 200 graduates as professional tour guides. Trained, licensed guides are what the industry is asking for.

The team standard

Write one page that every guide on your team signs. Build it from the UN Tourism Global Code of Ethics for Tourism, whose ten articles include mutual understanding and respect, cultural heritage, benefit to host communities and the rights of tourism workers, and from the GTA's duty to take measures for the safety and security of tourists.

How adults learn a skill: tell, show, do, review

Guiding is a practical skill. People learn it by doing it while someone watches. Use four steps for every skill (course method):

1. Tell: explain why the skill matters and the steps (5 minutes).
2. Show: do it yourself, at real speed and then slowly (5 minutes).
3. Do: each trainee does it while you watch; others observe with a checklist (15 minutes).
4. Review: ask "What went well? What would you change?" then give your feedback (5 minutes).

An induction plan for a new guide (example)

A new guide does not lead alone until they are Competent on the checklist with no gate failed (course method).

The observation checklist

Use the same checklist every time so guides know what good looks like. Score each line 0 (not seen or unsafe), 1 (seen, needs work) or 2 (done well). Lines marked gate must score at least 1; a 0 on any gate means Not Yet Competent, whatever the total (course method).

Decision rule (course method). Competent at 14 or more out of 20, with no 0 on a gate. The observer writes one example of what they saw for every score of 0 or 2.

Example (Kofi's castle tour). Scores: 2, 2, 1, 2, 1, 2, 2, 1, 2, 1. Total = 16 out of 20 (80%). No gate scored 0. Result: Competent. Action points: count at the second door as well as the first (line 3); slow down and pause after key facts (line 5); give the five-minute warning before moving (line 8); ask for feedback in the close (line 10).

Giving feedback

Feedback should be private, soon, specific and kind. Use praise, improve, praise (course method):

Model script: feedback after an observed tour.

"Kofi, thank you. Can we sit for ten minutes? First, what do you think went well? … I agree. Your opening at the Door of No Return was quiet and respectful, and I saw two guests thank you afterwards. That is exactly the standard. One thing to improve: at the second dungeon door you did not count, and for about a minute we had 13 guests instead of 14. The lady in the green scarf had stayed behind to pray. Nothing went wrong, but next time count at every door, even when it feels slow. What will you do next time? … Good. And one more thing you did well: you said 'historians estimate' before the numbers. That is honest guiding. Let's write the action on your record."

When a guide breaks the rules

Some problems are not training problems. A guide who takes hidden commissions, overcharges a guest, drinks on duty or ignores a safety gate has broken trust.

Model script: a guide caught overcharging.

"Yaw, I need to talk with you about Tuesday's market walk. Two guests told me they paid you GH¢50 each for the craft workshop, and our price list says GH¢30. The workshop owner confirmed he received GH¢30 each. I want to hear your side before I decide anything. … Thank you for telling me. Our rule is clear and you signed it: no price different from the company price. We have refunded the guests. Because this is the first time and you were honest with me now, I am giving you a written warning and you will be observed on your next three tours. If it happens again, we will end your agreement. Do you understand? Do you have anything to add?"

Preparing guides for registration and recognition

GTA registration. L.I. 2389 includes Form One D, "Application for Registration of Tour/Site Guide". It asks for the type of service, citizenship, ID, education, tourism experience, language proficiency spoken and written, trade association (TOUGHA, TORGAG or others), two references and a declaration to follow GTA rules under Act 817. The official-use part includes an "Interview Mark". Attachments include a CV, certificates, a police (CID) report on criminal record and a copy of a passport or national ID. Help your guides prepare each item and practise for an interview. The current interview format and dates were not found; ask the GTA or a TORGAG branch.

Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL). Experienced guides without certificates may be assessed against a standard through CTVET's RPL policy, using evidence of real work. Keep each guide's observation checklists, logbook and feedback records: they are RPL evidence.

International benchmark. WFTGA supports EN 15565:2008, the European standard for the training and qualification of tourist guides; its detailed content needs the paid standard. Use it as a name to know, not as a rule in Ghana.

Check yourself

1. What does a 0 on a gate line mean in the observation checklist?
2. What are the four steps for teaching a practical skill in this course?
3. Name three documents a guide attaches to the GTA registration form (Form One D).

Competency standard

Range. A licensed guide or small tour operator working with communities, hotels, transport companies and other operators anywhere in Ghana. Evidence. Community-benefit plan; sustainability self-check; compliance register; one drafted guide service agreement; oral questions.

What responsible tourism means

Act 817 says the GTA's object is to promote the sustainable development of tourism, and its functions include ensuring pro-poor, sustainable and responsible tourism. In plain words: tourism should earn money today without spoiling the places and people it depends on tomorrow, and it should leave real income with ordinary local people, not only with big companies.

Two international tools help you turn that into a plan:

• The UN Tourism Global Code of Ethics for Tourism (adopted 1999, endorsed by the UN in 2001) has ten articles, including respect between peoples, sustainable development, cultural heritage, benefit to host communities, and the rights of tourism workers.
• The GSTC Criteria group good practice into four pillars: sustainable management, socio-economic impacts, cultural impacts and environmental impacts; there are industry criteria for tour operators (summary only).

Sustainability self-check (course method)

Score each line yes or not yet. Every "not yet" becomes an action with a date.

The community-benefit plan

The Tour Guiding and Community Homestay course (Level 2 and Level 3) teaches a benefit-sharing rule for a community tourism project. A tour company that passes through many communities needs a slightly different tool: a community-benefit plan with targets you can measure on every tour.

Worked example (example numbers, using the Unit 2 route). For one 12-guest "Route of Return" tour at GH¢4,400 per guest (revenue GH¢52,800):

Share of revenue = 5,100 ÷ 52,800 = 9.66%, just below the 10% target. If the company also buys the group's water and snacks (GH¢1,020) from a local women's group, the total becomes 6,120, which is 6,120 ÷ 52,800 = 11.59%. Target met, without raising the price.

Model script: talking to a chief about fair fees.

(Through the linguist, after greetings and the drink or gift that custom requires.) "Nana, thank you for receiving us. We bring visitors from abroad who want to learn the history of this place with respect. We want our visits to help the town, not to be a burden. We propose to pay the community fund fifty cedis for every visitor, to hire two young people from the town as local guides at every visit, and to buy lunch from the women's group. We also ask Nana to tell us any day when visits are not proper, and any place our visitors must not enter. We will put what we agree in writing, and every year we will bring the figures and read them to the elders."

Child protection

The Code is an international industry initiative to protect children from sexual exploitation in travel and tourism, which tour companies can join (summary only). Name a child protection lead in your company and train every guide.

Wildlife, heritage and what guests may take home

• The Wildlife Resources Management Act 2023 (Act 1115) bars disturbing, molesting or interfering with any wild animal in a protected area without authorisation. At Shai Hills the Wildlife Division says baboons are a partially protected species and feeding them is not permitted.
• At Mole National Park walking safaris must be led by an armed ranger; walking outside the motel grounds without a ranger is forbidden.
• Some community sanctuaries have their own rules. At Tafi Atome the entrance fee has included bananas for feeding the monkeys. Follow each site's own rule; never carry one site's rule to another.
• Under Act 817, a tourist shall not export a trophy except under the Wild Animals Preservation Act 1961 (Act 43), and antiquities only under the National Museum Act 1969 (NLCD 387). On shopping stops, warn guests about ivory, skins, shells and "old" carvings.

Licensing: the duties of a guide and a tour enterprise

This is the legal core of the business. Read it slowly.

Who must be licensed. The Schedule to Act 817 lists, under "Travel Trade Enterprises", tour operator, travel agency, car rental, tour guide, charter flight operator and site guide; its activity list includes "tour guiding including tour guides employed by a tour operator". A person shall not operate a listed tourism enterprise without a valid GTA licence; the offence carries a fine of not more than 100 penalty units or up to six months' imprisonment or both. L.I. 2389 repeats that a travel trade enterprise, including a tour guide and a site guide, must register with the GTA and hold a licence. The value of a penalty unit in cedis today was not verified.

The GTA does enforce. In October 2023 its Western Regional Directorate ran a week-long closure exercise with police support against unlicensed facilities. Licensed tourism enterprises rose from 6,702 in 2024 to 7,109 in 2025, and trade and travel enterprises from 678 to 804. Your competitors are getting licensed; your clients will ask for your number.

Contracts: put every deal in writing

A contract is an agreement the law will enforce. It does not need to be long. It must be clear. Have a lawyer check your standard forms once; then use them every time.

Guide service agreement checklist (between your company and a freelance guide):

Other contract checklists (key points):

Model guest cancellation terms (example; set your own and show them before payment): 30% deposit to confirm; balance 30 days before the tour; cancellation more than 30 days before: lose 25% of the deposit; 15 to 30 days: lose the deposit; less than 15 days: lose 50% of the price; if you cancel (for example below the minimum group), refund in full. Make sure the terms are fair and in plain words, and keep the guest's signed or written acceptance.

Insurance

Before licensing, the GTA must be satisfied that the applicant has insurance covering fire and public liability. L.I. 2389 asks a travel trade enterprise for insurance covering its operations. Buy only from insurers licensed by the National Insurance Commission; check at nic.gov.gh (summary only). Ask quotes for public liability (harm to guests and others), professional indemnity (errors in arrangements), personal accident for staff, and cover for equipment. Ask whether canopy walkways, waterfalls, hikes and boat trips are covered or excluded. No Ghana premium figures were found.

Guest data

Guest names, passports, health notes and phone numbers are personal data. The Data Protection Act 2012 (Act 843) asks those who process personal data to register with the Data Protection Commission and to follow its principles (summary only). Whether a small tour company must register was not verified; ask the Commission. Collect only what you need, keep it locked, share only with suppliers who need it, and delete it when you no longer need it.

Check yourself

1. How long does a GTA licence last, and when must you apply to renew it?
2. Which insurance must the GTA be satisfied about before it licenses an enterprise?
3. Give two reasons in L.I. 2389 for which the GTA shall suspend a licence.

Competency standard

Range. A one- to six-person guiding or tour business based in a gateway town (Accra, Cape Coast and Elmina, Kumasi, Ho and Hohoe, Tamale, Takoradi or another). Evidence. Business model choice; registration checklist; start-up budget; payroll sample; one-page plan; pitch.

Which business are you starting?

Act 817 lists tour guide, site guide and tour operator as separate travel trade enterprises. Decide what you are, because the licence route follows from it. Many owners start as a freelance guide with a business name, earn a reputation with operators, then become a tour operator when they have regular clients and the money for the manager, premises and insurance rules.

Where to base yourself. Look at where visitors already go. In 2025 the top ten attractions included Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park, Kakum National Park, Bonsu Arboretum and Eco Park, Cape Coast Castle, Manhyia Palace, Kumasi Zoo, Accra Zoo, Elmina Castle, Shai Hills Resource Reserve and Aburi Botanical Gardens. A base in Accra, the Cape Coast and Elmina area or Kumasi puts you near most of them. A base near Mole, the Volta Region or the Western Region gives you less competition and a specialist story.

Choose a legal form

Company annual returns cost GH¢175 a year, with late fees of GH¢1,000 (1 to 4 years late) or GH¢2,000 (5 years or more).

Which form for a tour business? A freelance guide can start as a sole proprietor. A tour operator carries guests in vehicles, in forests and on walkways: one serious accident could cost more than everything you own. Most operators should become a company limited by shares once they run their own multi-day tours, so the company, not your house, carries the business risk (the company still needs insurance). L.I. 2389 also asks a travel trade enterprise to be a business entity registered in Ghana.

Registration, step by step

Tax: what applies and what to ask

Income tax for a sole proprietor. Residents with business income only and no VAT registration may use the Modified Taxation Scheme: fixed instalments for turnover up to GH¢20,000, and for turnover from GH¢20,001 to GH¢750,000, 3% of turnover or the modified cash basis. Professionals, partners and owners of several businesses are excluded. The GH¢750,000 ceiling came with the Income Tax (Amendment) Act 2026 (Act 1178); GRA's own page still showed the old GH¢500,000 in October 2026. Whether a tour guide counts as a "professional" was not verified; ask GRA.

Company tax. Companies pay 25% as the standard rate, with other rates by sector and location; provisional tax is paid quarterly and the annual return is due within four months of the year-end.

VAT. VAT 15% plus NHIL 2.5% plus GETFund 2.5% gives an effective rate of 20% from 1 January 2026. The registration threshold for goods rose to GH¢750,000, but for services there is no turnover threshold: a taxable person making taxable supplies of services registers within 30 days of starting. A VAT-registered business cannot use the Modified Taxation Scheme. Whether guiding and tour packages are taxable, exempt or zero-rated, including tours sold to foreign guests, was not verified. This is the biggest open tax question for a tour business: write to your GRA office before your first booking, and keep the reply.

Withholding tax. Operators and companies that pay you may withhold 7.5% on services (where the payee is paid over GH¢2,000 a year); always ask for the withholding tax certificate.

Equipment and start-up budget

A tour operator does not need to own a bus. Hire licensed vehicles with drivers until your bookings are steady. Spend first on safety, licences and the things guests see.

Example start-up budget for a small tour company (examples except where a source is named):

Financing

Options, from safest to most demanding: your own savings; a susu or village savings and loan association (VSLA); family; microfinance; a bank loan once you have six to twelve months of records. The Ghana Enterprises Agency (GEA) offers SME GO, Business-in-a-Box, SME High Growth and Kaizen support, and runs Business Advisory Centres in many districts. The 2026 Budget set aside GH¢401 million for the Women's Development Bank, GH¢170 million for a National Apprenticeship Programme and GH¢160 million for Adwumawura. Ask your nearest GEA centre what is open now. The Bank of Ghana policy rate was 14.00% when this module was written (summary only); loans cost more than that, so borrow only when bookings are clear.

Hire and pay staff lawfully

Employees and freelancers. An employee works under your control, with a contract, leave and SSNIT. A freelance guide runs their own business and invoices you per tour. Do not call a full-time worker "freelance" to avoid your duties.

The Labour Act 2003 (Act 651) requires a written contract for work of six months or more (s.12), a written statement of terms within two months (s.13), 15 working days of paid leave a year (s.20) and 12 weeks of maternity leave (s.57); casual workers are paid the full minimum for each day worked (s.74), and notice rules apply (s.17). The national minimum wage for 2026 is GH¢21.77 a day, about GH¢587.79 a month at 27 days (summary only).

What do guides earn? No official figures were found. Online pay surveys suggest that most "travel guides" in Ghana earn roughly GH¢2,119 to 5,896 gross a month (fewer than 20 respondents), and another survey suggests GH¢1,484 to 6,578 net a month at the start. Freelance day rates and operator commissions in Ghana were not found. Agree pay in writing and review it every year.

SSNIT and PAYE. The employee pays 5.5% and the employer 13% of basic salary, 18.5% in all; the employer pays by the 14th of the following month, and late payment costs 3% a month. PAYE uses the 2026 monthly bands: the first GH¢588 at 0%, the next 80 at 5%, the next 100 at 10%, the next 2,900 at 17.5%, and higher bands above that, after deducting the employee's SSNIT; PAYE is due by the 15th of the next month. The tax-free band rose to GH¢588 a month from 1 September 2026.

Worked example: an office and bookings assistant on GH¢1,200 basic a month (example).

Accessibility and inclusion

The Persons with Disability Act 2006 (Act 715) bans discrimination and asks for accessible public places; reports say many places are still not accessible (summary only). UN Tourism's recommendations on accessible tourism say staff should be trained to serve persons with disabilities courteously and quickly, give complete information on accessible services, and help with access to services that are not accessible (summary only). European training frameworks cover disability types, barriers and design for all, customer service and etiquette, and service animals and personal supports (summary only). No disability-specific rules for Ghanaian heritage sites were found.

Guests with disabilities: what your business does.

Staff with disabilities: what they can do.

Ask each worker what they need. The hub's sign language and assistive technology courses help with deaf-guest and deaf-guide training.

Marketing yourself honestly

The one-page plan and pitch

Fit on one page: who you serve; what you sell and at what price; where you are based; your licences (and what is not yet found); your team; start-up cost and how it is funded; monthly fixed costs and break-even; your community-benefit target; how you will find customers; your safety, child protection and ethics rules.

Model script: the pitch opener.

"Good morning. My name is Ama Mensah. I have guided in Cape Coast for six years and I am licensed by the GTA. Every year thousands of diaspora families come to the castles, and many leave saying they were rushed. My company, Route of Return, offers three-day heritage tours with time to reflect, ceremonies arranged with the communities themselves, and ten per cent of every tour price paid straight to those communities. We need GH¢43,708 to start. Here is how we will earn it back."

Check yourself

1. Why should a tour operator think about becoming a company rather than staying a sole proprietor?
2. What is the VAT registration threshold for services in 2026?
3. A worker earns GH¢1,200 basic. What does the employer pay to SSNIT in total by the 14th?

See the hub's Money Skills for Small Business Level 2 for the general basics. This unit is specific to guiding and tours.

Competency standard

Range. A small tour company selling multi-day packages, day tours and guide services. Evidence. Booking and deposit registers; cash book for a month; trial balance; income statement; balance sheet; reconciliation; oral questions.

The core rule

Assets = Liabilities + Equity. In double entry every transaction has a debit and a credit of equal amount: debits increase assets and expenses; credits increase liabilities, capital and income. A trial balance checks that total debits equal total credits, but it cannot catch every error. Keep owner money and business money apart: pay yourself a fixed drawing.

The records every tour business keeps

Money that is not yet yours, and money that is never yours

• Deposits. A deposit in October for a November tour is in your bank in October, but it is not October income. You still owe the tour. It is a liability (customer deposits) until the tour is delivered. Then you move it to income. Never spend deposits on personal needs.
• Cancellation fees. When a guest cancels and your written terms let you keep part of the deposit, the part you keep becomes income and the part you refund leaves the bank. Both reduce the deposits liability.
• Tips. Tips given by guests to the guide and driver belong to them, not to the company (course method). They do not go in the company's books unless your written policy says the company collects and shares them.
• Withholding tax. If a client withholds 7.5% from your guide fee, you receive less cash, but the full fee is your income. The amount withheld is a tax credit you hold a certificate for. Ask GRA how to use it against your tax.

Depreciation

Straight-line depreciation = (cost − salvage value) ÷ useful life. Example: equipment costing GH¢9,600 (laptop, speakers, first aid kits, ponchos, signs), salvage 0, life 4 years: 9,600 ÷ 4 = 2,400 a year, GH¢200 a month. Four two-way radios bought for GH¢1,600, life 4 years: 1,600 ÷ 48 months = GH¢33.33 a month.

Worked month: November for "Esi Trails" (example)

Esi runs a small tour company (example name, invented numbers). This is her November.

Opening balance sheet, 1 November (example)

What happened in November

1. The 12 guests on the "Route of Return" package (GH¢4,400 each, Unit 2) had paid deposits of GH¢15,840 in October. They paid the balance of GH¢36,960 on 2 November. The tour ran 6 to 8 November. Revenue: 12 × 4,400 = GH¢52,800.
2. The tour's direct costs were exactly the Unit 2 cost sheet, GH¢40,090 (the contingency was not needed). All were paid in November except GH¢6,000 of the hotel bill of GH¢12,400, due on 15 December.
3. On 14 November Esi ran a school trip to Cape Coast Castle for 45 pupils and 3 teachers, invoiced at GH¢6,750 (45 × 150). The school will pay in December. Costs paid: bus 2,800; castle entry 45 × 6 + 3 × 20 = 330 (GMMB Ghanaian JHS and adult rates in the castle table; confirm); 2 guides × 300 = 600; water 45 × 5 = 225.
4. Esi guided 4 days for another operator at GH¢900 a day (GH¢3,600). The operator withheld 7.5% (GH¢270) and paid GH¢3,330, with a certificate.
5. Deposits of GH¢20,000 came in for December tours. One of those guests, who had paid a GH¢1,200 deposit, cancelled; under her terms Esi kept 25% (GH¢300) and refunded GH¢900.
6. Payroll: the assistant's November pay as in Unit 5 (net 1,055.95 paid; SSNIT 222 and PAYE 78.05 to pay in December).
7. Overheads paid: rent 1,500; phone and data 400; marketing 600; insurance (monthly share) 500; bank and MoMo charges 85.
8. Bought 4 two-way radios for GH¢1,600.
9. Owner drawing GH¢3,000.
10. Depreciation: 200 + 33.33 = GH¢233.33.
11. The guests gave tips of GH¢1,800 to the tour manager and driver. These are not company money and are not recorded.

Cash book, November (bank and MoMo together, example)

Check: 30,000 + 60,290 − 47,685.95 = 42,604.05.

The hotel bill (12,400) includes the guests' rooms (12 × 900 = 10,800) and the driver's and tour manager's rooms (1,600). The meals (9,450) are the guests' 12 × 750 = 9,000 plus the tour manager's 450. The water line (1,020) is 12 × 60 = 720 plus the group kit 300.

Income statement for November (example)

Expenses in total: 40,090 + 3,955 + 1,200 + 156 + 1,500 + 400 + 600 + 500 + 85 + 233.33 = 48,719.33; income 63,450 − 48,719.33 = 14,730.67.

Trial balance at 30 November (example)

Balance sheet at 30 November (example)

Check: assets 42,604.05 + 6,750 + 270 + 9,366.67 = 58,990.72. Liabilities 18,800 + 6,000 + 222 + 78.05 = 25,100.05. Equity 15,000 + 7,160 + 14,730.67 − 3,000 = 33,890.67. 25,100.05 + 33,890.67 = 58,990.72. Assets = liabilities + equity.

Month-end routine

1. Total the cash book and agree the closing balance with the bank and MoMo statements.
2. Reconcile: list any difference (often charges not yet recorded) and correct the book.
3. Close every tour float (Unit 1) and file receipts.
4. Update the deposit register, debtors list, supplier ledger and guide pay record.
5. Record depreciation for the month.
6. Run a trial balance: debits must equal credits.
7. Write the income statement and the balance sheet; check that assets equal liabilities plus equity.
8. Measure your community-benefit share for each tour (Unit 4).
9. Update the next three months of the cash-flow forecast (Unit 7).
10. Pay SSNIT by the 14th and PAYE and withholding tax by the 15th; file everything.

Bank and MoMo reconciliation

Example: the cash book says GH¢42,604.05. The bank and MoMo statements together say GH¢42,574.05. The difference is GH¢30. Checking line by line, you find two MoMo transfer fees (GH¢18 and GH¢12) not yet in the book. Record GH¢30 as bank and MoMo charges; the book becomes GH¢42,574.05 and agrees. If a difference remains, look for a missed payment, a number typed wrongly, or a deposit not entered. Never ignore a gap.

Tax records and filing calendar

Keep records in Ghana for at least six years from the end of the year of assessment or VAT period, longer if under dispute. Filing calendar: SSNIT by the 14th; PAYE and withholding tax by the 15th; VAT (if registered) by the last working day of the following month; provisional company tax quarterly; annual return within four months of the year-end. Company annual returns go to the ORC every year. The GTA annual return dates were not found; ask.

Free tools: a paper cash book, Excel or Google Sheets, the Zoho Books free plan or Wave (summary only). From 1 January 2027 the 2025 edition of IFRS for SMEs applies to entities that use that standard.

Check yourself

1. A guest pays a GH¢5,000 deposit in October for a December tour. Is it October income? Where does it go?
2. Why are guests' tips to the guide not company income in this course?
3. Esi's assets are GH¢58,990.72 and her liabilities GH¢25,100.05. What is her equity?

Competency standard

Range. A guiding or tour business in its first one to three years. Evidence. Quality checklist; growth option table; agent rate sheet; 12-month forecast with stress test; panel score sheet; oral questions.

Quality systems

A quality system makes sure the hundredth tour is as safe and as good as the first, whoever is guiding.

GTA can suspend a licence for consistent complaints from patrons, and a guest can complain to the GTA in writing within 30 days. Handle complaints quickly and fairly (see the L-A-S-T method in Tour Guiding and Community Homestay Level 2), record them, and fix the cause.

Growth paths

Ghana's market is growing: international arrivals reached 1,306,962 in 2025 and domestic visits about 1.79 million. In April 2026 tourism was said to be 5.7% of GDP, with a target of 10% by 2030.

Agents, operators and commission

When another business sells your tour, it keeps a commission. No verified Ghana norms for tour commissions were found, so agree each one in writing.

• Net rate: what you must receive.
• Retail price: what the guest pays.
• Commission: the difference, often written as a percentage of the retail price.

Example. Your net rate for the three-day route is GH¢4,400 per guest. An overseas agent wants 15% of the retail price. Retail price = 4,400 ÷ (1 − 0.15) = 5,176.47; round to GH¢5,180. Commission = 15% × 5,180 = 777; you receive 5,180 − 777 = GH¢4,403, which covers your net rate. Never give the agent your net rate as the price you sell at directly to the public, or your own direct guests will pay less than the agent's.

Reputation and reviews

Model script: answering "Why should we trust you with our guests?"

"Three reasons. First, we are licensed: here are our GTA licence numbers and our insurance certificate. Second, we train and observe every guide against a written standard, and no guide leads alone until they pass. Third, we keep records: every tour has a run-sheet, a float record and an end-of-tour report, and you are welcome to see last month's. And if anything ever goes wrong, you will hear it from us first."

Records for a loan

Lenders ask for: ORC registration, TIN, GTA licences, insurance, six to twelve months of cash book with bank and MoMo statements, the booking and deposit registers, the income statement and balance sheet, and a plan with a 12-month forecast (course method). Tidy books are your best collateral. Ask about guarantees and programmes at the GEA; Ghana EXIM has SME and export facilities (summary only).

Succession and ethics

Write your procedures down (the tour cards, the team standard, the forms) so the business runs without you. Name who takes over if you are ill, and make sure that person can reach the bank, the float and the duty phone. Write your ethics on one page and live by it: never operate without a licence; never hide a commission; never take guests to orphanages; never photograph a child without consent; never feed or disturb wildlife where it is banned; never sell protected-species items or antiquities; never joke about the suffering of the enslaved; never promise what you have not checked.

Capstone: one-page plan and 12-month cash-flow forecast

Your capstone is a one-page business plan and a 12-month cash-flow forecast with a stress test, presented to a panel in five minutes.

Assumptions for the example forecast (all examples; Esi Trails' plan for next year):

• A three-day package for 12 guests brings in GH¢52,800 and costs GH¢40,090 (Unit 2).
• A school day trip brings in GH¢6,750 and costs GH¢3,955 (Unit 6).
• A guide day for another operator brings in GH¢832.50 in cash (GH¢900 less 7.5% withholding tax) and has no direct cost.
• Fixed cash costs GH¢4,441 a month: staff 1,356; rent 1,500; phone and data 400; marketing 600; insurance 500; bank charges 85.
• Owner drawing GH¢3,000 a month. Tax set-aside 3% of receipts (example rate only; see Unit 5).
• Opening cash GH¢15,000. Money is received and paid in the same month (a simplification; in real life deposits arrive earlier). Figures are rounded to whole cedis each month.
• The number of tours each month is an invented seasonal pattern. No verified seasonal data for Ghana tourism was found; build your own from your booking register.

Check: 15,000 + 384,221 − 352,681 = 46,540. Notice that cash falls in every month without a package (January, April, May, June, September): fixed costs and the drawing do not stop. The five packages carry the business.

Stress test: only 70% of the planned tours happen (as an average across the year), drawing unchanged at GH¢3,000.

Cash falls to GH¢456 in June and GH¢193 in October: one late payment and the business cannot pay its staff. Fix: cut the drawing to GH¢1,500 in the same bad year and the lowest cash is GH¢9,456 in June, ending the year at GH¢28,288. Other fixes: collect deposits earlier, sell more day trips in the slow months, delay hiring, and keep a lean-season reserve of three months of fixed costs (3 × 4,441 = GH¢13,323).

Panel scoring (20 marks each): customers and products; licences, insurance and safety; money (start-up, prices, break-even, forecast and stress test); people (training, team standard, community benefit); clarity and answers. Competent: at least 60 out of 100 with no zero in safety, licensing or ethics (course method).

Check yourself

1. Why does cash fall in months without a package, even when the business is profitable for the year?
2. Your net rate is GH¢1,800 and the agent's commission is 10% of retail. What retail price covers your net rate?
3. What is the lean-season reserve for a business with fixed cash costs of GH¢4,441 a month?

1. According to WFTGA, what does a tour manager do?
2. Name five items in a pre-tour file.
3. What do you do the same evening if your float does not agree with the cash?
4. Write the formula for the price per guest with a target margin.
5. In the Unit 2 example, why is the minimum group 8?
6. Which four pieces of information does L.I. 2389 ask for when you apply to operate a tour?
7. What does a 0 on a gate line in the observation checklist mean?
8. How long does a GTA licence last, and when must you apply to renew?
9. Which insurance must the GTA be satisfied about before it licenses an enterprise?
10. What is the VAT registration threshold for services in 2026, and what must a tour business ask GRA?
11. Is a deposit received in October for a December tour October income? Why?
12. Why do you run a stress test on your cash-flow forecast?

What this module does not cover: a GTA guide or operator licence; first aid, lifesaving, driving or boat-operating certificates; the GTA fee amounts, the tourism levy base for tours and the value of a penalty unit (none found); whether guiding and tour packages are VAT-taxable (not verified); current site fees at Kakum, Mole, Manhyia and other non-GMMB sites (not found on official pages); Ghana commission norms and freelance day rates (not found); legal advice on contracts (have a lawyer check your standard forms).

Every source used in this manual is listed, with links, in the Teacher Copy.