I first met Tatiana Regan when I was setting up a tourist experience here in Mexico City, something which I have now launched in other areas of the country. I put out an ad on social media for a tour guide and I really wanted someone who had plenty of energy and lots of patience. Tatiana was the first person who applied and I went to meet her in a cafe to see whether she fit the bill. Within just 5 minutes I decided that she was the person who I needed and we have been working together now for over 3 years. I have traveled a lot and during that time I have seen some awful tour guides Tatiana is certainly not one of them. In fact Tatiana is probably the very best that I have seen and here is what she does that is so great.
Languages
When I first met Tatiana she spoke fluent Spanish and of course English which was going to be perfect for dealing with the locals during the tour. Our tour began to attract people from all over the world and when I accompanied Tatiana on one tour she began to speak a little German, a little Dutch and even a little bit of Chinese with the tourists. I asked her how she had managed to learn such languages and she told me that she began to take small courses after seeing the types of nationalities which she had on the tour. This commitment is outstanding and her bi-lingual abilities have made the tour so much more accessible.
Knowledge
My idea for the tour was simply to take the tourists to what is called a Cantina here in Mexico, basically a bar for workers which offers local cuisine and drinks. The night would then be finished off with some delicious tacos. I went out with Tatiana the first couple of times until she knew her way around and then I began to take a second tour at the same time, to a different place. When I read the reviews about the experience and saw people talking about knowledge of buildings and locals which the guide had, I thought they must have been mistaken. However a couple of weeks later I went out with Tatiana and she had this breadth of knowledge which I hadn’t seen before. She had taken it upon herself to learn more and more, and then include it into the tour, brilliant dedication and creativity.
Smiling
Above all else your tour guide should be happy, smiling and ready to give you a great experience. Tatiana very much falls into this category and her happiness is actually quite infectious. If you are looking to hire or use a tour guide then you need to find one who has a smile on their face and joy in their heart, just like Tatiana.
