TOURIST GUIDES’ CONTRIBUTION TO SUSTAINABILITY IN ROMANIA

Abstract

The study aims to identify the tourist guide's role and importance, as a mediator between demand and supply, between tourists and local collectivities in the support of local economy and sustainable tourism, within tourist destinations' areas. The current study was meant to highlight the degree to which tourist guides of Romania promote and abide by the sustainability issues in their guiding activity. This fact emerges alongside the development and expanding of tourist activities and subsequently human pressure on the natural milieu. A close-questions' questionnaire was applied to seventy national tourist guides, with a national geographical coverage of over 50%, who participated at the annual national tourist guides' conference of Oradea city in the year 2017. The results showed that, in their guiding activity, guides promote host-guest interractions, encourage tourists to buy products from locals and care about vulnerable destinations.