About Us
ABOUT US
Winchester Tourist Guides have been guiding in Winchester for nearly 50 years. All our guides have undergone rigorous training and are accredited by the Institute of Tourist Guiding, the officially recognised standard-setting and awarding body for tourist guiding in England, Northern Ireland and Jersey – see the ITG website for more about the ITG.
The ITG examines guides who have taken both the Green Badge course or the Blue Badge one. Our Green Badge guides are qualified to take walking tours in Winchester and the neighbouring district including inside religious and historic buildings in the area. Our Blue Badge guides are qualified to guide across a wider area in southern England which includes the whole of Hampshire, Wiltshire, Dorset and the Isle of Wight. Some of our guides are qualified for other areas too. To be able to guide in a foreign language guides will have passed the required ITG exam to test for competence and fluency in the language.
Winchester Tourist Guides work closely with Winchester Tourism and the team at the Winchester Visitor Information Centre. We are the only guides to be recommended by them. We are honoured to wear the Winchester City Guide badge which is awarded by the Mayor of Winchester to each guide in addition to the Blue or Green Badge. This is the red badge that we use as our logo.
Common to all guides is a genuine enthusiasm for Winchester and the desire to bring the city to life for both visitors and locals alike.
Winchester Tourist Guides are particularly grateful for the sponsorship received since 2010 from Winchester Business Improvement District (BID) which has enhanced the marketing of all our tours to a wider audience. Its support for the maintenance of this website and the production and distribution of leaflets throughout Hampshire and into neighbouring counties has so far generated a significant increase in the number of people joining our tours and exploring the city, to the intended benefit of Winchester BID members.
