| It is certainly true that Mali possesses some | | | | importantly, they need to have a higher than |
| amazing assets that make visiting this country a | | | | general understanding of all the big tourist |
| true pleasure. Its natural and raw beauty mixed | | | | attractions and cultures of Mali. These guides will |
| with its generous and welcoming people make for | | | | have a Blue Identity card featuring their name and |
| a hypnotic combination that captivates all | | | | photograph and stating they are a registered |
| travellers both new and old. While all of this is | | | | National Guide for Mali. |
| true, your first quest and perhaps one of your | | | | The Regional guide is someone who has an |
| hardest when travelling in Mali is to escape the | | | | intimate knowledge of a certain region of Mali. For |
| confines of the airport with your sanity intact. Mali | | | | example, your guide may be a regional guide for |
| is a poor country and unemployment is a real and | | | | Mopti region and therefore he will be well versed |
| omnipresent issue. Many a man in Mali is struck | | | | in this area of Mali. You can be assured that these |
| down with the desire to become a guide and | | | | guides will have a better than general knowledge |
| make the 'big money' that people working with | | | | on their respective regions and they will hold a |
| westerners can earn. In their mind they are a | | | | Yellow Identity Card featuring their name, |
| Malian and if anyone should show tourists around | | | | photograph and stating that they are a registered |
| then why not themselves. Not that long ago it felt | | | | Regional Guide for Mali. It will also state which |
| like perhaps every person in Mali was an expert | | | | region they are registered for. |
| on the entire country and whether you wanted to | | | | Ensure you ask your prospective guide for his |
| travel to Timbuktu by boat or discover the | | | | card. This will go a long way to ensuring you are |
| secrets of the Tellum in Dogon country you were | | | | closer to getting the experience in Mali that you |
| nearly always incredibly lucky because | | | | bargain for. These guides are answerable to the |
| inadvertently, whilst looking for a taxi for a hotel | | | | tourism board so if they try to be less than |
| you had read about on 'thorntree', you would | | | | honest or fail in your expectations in any way |
| stumble across the greatest guide in Mali and he | | | | then you have avenues for recourse should the |
| would be ecstatic to show you around his country | | | | need arise. |
| and impart his knowledge to you, for a small fee | | | | This being said, there is a great number of brilliant |
| of course. | | | | guides in Mali that are both passionate about their |
| OMATHO, the Malian tourism board, in their | | | | country and their chosen profession and whilst |
| wisdom, discovered that this complete lack of | | | | many may suit your tastes, others may not. |
| control had led to some rather horrific | | | | Don't be afraid to move on should you feel the |
| experiences by travellers who either through | | | | need and on the other hand, be generous when |
| deliberate mismanagement by their faux guide or | | | | you find a gem and be sure to tell your friends |
| sheer incompetence from an inexperienced | | | | and other travellers. |
| 'chancer' had had their dream experience in Mali | | | | If the guy telling you that he is an expert on all |
| turn into a nightmare. As such, it is now | | | | things Malian also tells you that you should go to |
| compulsory for all guides to attain a license in their | | | | this Hotel rather than the one you had planned on |
| selected field and in doing so, ensure that the | | | | and travel on this Bus Company as opposed to |
| standard of tour guiding in Mali is both uniform and | | | | the one you were recommended then unless he |
| honest. There are two types of genuine guides. | | | | can produce a valid ID card, he is a tout. Tout's |
| The National guide is someone who has | | | | work for commission and will direct you were |
| undertaken and completed a one year full time | | | | they can make the most money. There only |
| course at college and learnt all aspects of the | | | | interest in you is how much money they can |
| tourism industry from basic accounting, to | | | | make and once the deal is done, you are |
| reservations. They learn how to communicate | | | | superfluous to their needs. |
| effectively with tourists in Mali but most | | | | |