Membership

Tour Guide

Become part of our nationally-recognised professional Institute for excellence and help maintain standards and safeguard your qualification.

At the end of completion of an Institute accredited course, once you have qualified as a tourist guide, you are invited to join the Institute at the level and subscription appropriate to your qualification.

A guide talking to a group of tourists

  • MEMBER – for Blue Badge Tourist Guides
  • ASSOCIATE – for Green Badge Guides
  • AFFILIATE – for White Badge Guides
  • CAREER BREAK - available to guides who expect not to work for the registration year (1 September – 31 August) and are therefore deemed to be non-active in the profession for that time.
  • RETIRED - available to guides who are not working for a fee and are therefore deemed to be retired from the profession.

Annual registration 2024-25 payable as an online payment via your bank or by direct debit:

  • Member £110
  • Associate £70
  • Affiliate £35
  • Career Break £47
  • Retired £30

To sit an Institute language examination, replace a lost or stolen photo card - remove badge, train as an Institute examiner, return from a career break - these are just a few of the many reasons why tourist guides whose membership has lapsed may want to re-join the Institute.

To ensure continuing and consistent high standards of tourist guiding among our members, the Institute has a Revalidation Policy (see below) for lapsed members who wish to re-join. Please read the policy before completing the membership forms for your appropriate qualification.

Students on Institute accredited tourist guide training courses are automatically registered free of charge as Institute members for the duration of their course. At the end of the course, if they have qualified as a tourist guide, they are expected to join the Institute at the level and subscription appropriate to their qualification.