There are not enough trekking bookings in Luang Namtha for any of us to work as a guide every day. We therefore take turns. When we are not guiding visitors, some of us teach at the local school and others do different kinds of work.
Even though it is not full-time employment, we consider guiding a very good job. It pays better than most other work available here, and it is also more enjoyable. Every trekking group is different, and every journey gives us a new experience.
We work from the tourist information centre, which was built with support from development organisations. Some of these organisations are still involved. They help train new guides and work with us to create new activities that may attract more visitors to the area. Rafting trips on the river are one of the latest additions.
Before any group leaves on a trek, the visitors must attend a briefing. We explain where they are going, what they need to bring and how they should behave in the villages and forest. This meeting is not optional. If someone refuses to attend, that person cannot join the trip.
A trek is not only a walk through beautiful scenery. It is a visit to people’s homes, beliefs and sacred places.
We are strict because tourists can easily cause problems without intending to. Some villages have sacred gates at their entrances. Visitors who do not know their meaning may touch them or lean against them. For the tourist, it may seem like a harmless action. For the village, the gate may then need to be purified through a special ritual, and that ritual can be expensive.
A guide makes the difference between a respectful visit and an accidental insult. We can explain the local rules before a mistake happens. Ideally, the guide for a particular area comes from the village being visited.
Guides based in the city may know a great deal about village life, but we cannot know every detail of every community. We may not speak all the local languages either. A village guide understands the customs, language and concerns of the people who live there. That person can also answer visitors’ questions more accurately and ensure that the village has a direct role in tourism.
Protecting the natural environment is another important part of our work. The riverbank was recently cleared of rubbish so that visitors on rafting trips would not pass piles of waste. Every trekking group is also told to carry its rubbish back to the city. Nothing should be left in the forest or in the villages.
Most tourists understand this very well. They have usually come because they appreciate nature and want to experience the landscape, not damage it. Clear instructions help them act on that intention.
Visitors usually want to behave respectfully; our responsibility is to give them the knowledge they need before they enter the forest and villages.
Guiding has given us benefits that are difficult to express only in money. Our English improves because we speak with visitors from many countries. During long hours on the trail, we learn about life in places we may never have an opportunity to visit ourselves.
Most groups are good company, and friendships sometimes develop along the way. Tips provide additional income on top of a wage that is already relatively good by local standards.
The information centre also sells handicrafts made by villagers. Most of the money from each sale goes directly to the maker. Only a small share is kept to help the centre continue its work. In this way, tourism creates benefits not only for guides but also for people in the villages who produce goods for visitors.
We would like more tourists to come to Luang Namtha, because additional bookings would create more work. But growth must be organised carefully. Visitors need preparation, village guides need to be involved, and the environment must remain clean. More tourism is only useful if it respects the very things people come here to experience.
For us, good guiding means more than showing someone the path: it means connecting visitors and villages in a way that brings income, prevents misunderstandings and leaves both culture and nature respected.