AI exposure by occupation, O*NET 39-7011.00
Will AI replace Tour Guides and Escorts?
Tour Guides and Escorts: AI can already handle 12 of 19 tasks; the work mostly needs a frontier-tier model.
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Every task, scored
The 19 tasks O*NET 30.3 lists for Tour Guides and Escorts, from most to least exposed. 12 reach 60 or more, the level at which AI already handles a task.
| Task | AI exposure | Evidence | Model tier |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monitor visitors' activities to ensure compliance with establishment or tour regulations and safety practices. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Conduct educational activities for school children. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Provide for physical safety of groups, performing such activities as providing first aid or directing emergency evacuations. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Greet and register visitors, and issue any required identification badges or safety devices. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Distribute brochures, show audiovisual presentations, and explain establishment processes and operations at tour sites. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Provide directions and other pertinent information to visitors. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Provide information about wildlife varieties and habitats, as well as any relevant regulations, such as those pertaining to hunting and fishing. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Collect fees and tickets from group members. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Select travel routes and sites to be visited based on knowledge of specific areas. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Solicit tour patronage and sell souvenirs. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Speak foreign languages to communicate with foreign visitors. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Teach skills, such as proper climbing methods, and demonstrate and advise on the use of equipment. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Describe tour points of interest to group members, and respond to questions. | Observed | Efficient | |
| Research various topics, including site history, environmental conditions, and clients' skills and abilities to plan appropriate expeditions, instruction, and commentary. | Observed | Efficient | |
| Perform clerical duties, such as filing, typing, operating switchboards, or routing mail and messages. | Observed | Efficient | |
| Train other guides and volunteers. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Escort individuals or groups on cruises, sightseeing tours, or through places of interest, such as industrial establishments, public buildings, or art galleries. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Assemble and check the required supplies and equipment prior to departure. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Drive motor vehicles to transport visitors to establishments and tour site locations. | Estimated | No tier |
Observed: scored from AI use recorded in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), 3 of 19 tasks. Estimated: scored from the task's O*NET 30.3 work activity, 16 of 19. Importance is O*NET's 1 to 5 rating of how central the task is. Model tier is the lowest tier that can do the task under the published rubric; "No tier" marks hands-on work.
The model tier this role needs
A frontier-tier model or lower covers 83% of the role's importance-weighted task work. 83% of the work is something AI can address at some tier, and 17% is hands-on.
Efficient, standard and frontier tiers come from the JobRoute model tier reference. The recommended tier is the lowest one that covers 80% of the work AI can address. How the method works.
Wages, employment and outlook
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2025) publishes no national employment or wage figure for this O*NET occupation.
Adjacent roles
The occupations that reuse the most of this role's skills, with the usual time to move. These are the first places to look when you plan to redeploy or retrain people in this role.
- Travel Guides 79% skill overlap, about 8 months to move Exposure36
- Ushers, Lobby Attendants, and Ticket Takers 60% skill overlap, about 15 months to move Exposure34
- Travel Agents 57% skill overlap, about 15 months to move Exposure31
- Baggage Porters and Bellhops 56% skill overlap, about 16 months to move Exposure28
- Concierges 55% skill overlap, about 16 months to move Exposure32
Skill overlap and transition time from the JobRoute role adjacency graph on O*NET 30.3 skills.
Questions about Tour Guides and Escorts and AI
Will AI replace Tour Guides and Escorts?
AI already handles 12 of the 19 tasks O*NET lists for this occupation, at a task exposure of 60 or more, and the role's importance-weighted exposure is 56 out of 100. JobRoute scores tasks, not whole jobs, so the score shows how much of the work changes rather than whether the job disappears.
What is the AI exposure of Tour Guides and Escorts?
56 out of 100 on JobRoute's task exposure measure, the importance-weighted average of the role's O*NET task scores. Higher means more of the work is AI-doable today. 3 of the 19 task scores are observed in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), and the other 16 are estimated from each task's O*NET work activity.
Which Tour Guides and Escorts tasks can AI already do?
The tasks with the highest exposure are: Monitor visitors' activities to ensure compliance with establishment or tour regulations and safety practices; Conduct educational activities for school children; Provide for physical safety of groups, performing such activities as providing first aid or directing emergency evacuations. They are three of the 12 tasks that reach 60 or more.
What AI model tier does this role need?
A frontier-tier model or lower covers 83% of the role's importance-weighted task work. JobRoute assigns each task the lowest tier that can do it under a published rubric and recommends the lowest tier that covers 80% of the work AI can address.
How to cite
Data version 2026-11-02, JobRoute method v1.0.0. Download all occupations or this occupation as JSON. Methodology.
JobRoute (2026). AI exposure: Tour Guides and Escorts. Data version 2026-11-02, method v1.0.0. Built on O*NET 30.3, BLS OEWS May 2025 and the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026). CC BY 4.0. https://www.jobroute.ai/jobs/tour-guides-and-escorts
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