Tour Guides as Sustainable Cultural Heritage Tourism Interpreters: The Case of the Odunpazari Historical Urban Site

Abstract

The tour guide, as an interpreter, plays an important role in linking the destination and the tourists. What is the meaning of ‘interpretation’? According to Tilden (1957), interpretation is generally used for education, and the purpose of this particular education is to express the meanings and interactions between people and destinations (Weiler and Ham 2000; Ham and Weiler 2002). Interpretation differs from tour guide to tour guide, from place to place, and even between transportation types and the aims of travel (Weiler and Ham 2000; Ham and Weiler 2002). Tour quality is affected by the skill and capacity of the tour guide’s expert interpretation, performance and transfer of knowledge. Interpretation is not just a simple word, as it changes the form of communication in guided tours. Interpretation about cultural heritage is provided by print and electronic publications, public lectures, on-site and off-site installations that are directly related, educational programs, and community activities; ongoing research, training, and evaluation of the tour guide’s interpretation process itself is important. Tour guides are also representatives of sustainability. The aim of this study is to determine the role of tour guides as interpreters in sustainable cultural heritage tourism in Odunpazari. In this qualitative study, data were obtained from in-depth interviews. The tourism resources of Odunpazari were identified and compiled from secondary sources. In-depth interviews were conducted with the tour guides of Eskisehir, and the results of this study reveal that tour guides play a crucial interpretative role in transferring accurate information to supply sustainable tourism in Eskisehir. The tour guides included in this study are aware of what sustainability is, and they try their best to sustain cultural heritage tourism.