“Everyone can be a guide until something goes wrong”: adventure guides’ competencies and tourist safety in the Arctic

Extreme weather, wildlife encounters, and rough terrain are integral to guided adventure tours in the Arctic. Guides are expected to ensure safety while facilitating adventurous tourist experiences. Although this balancing act is of vital importance, there has been limited research on the competencies needed to facilitate tourist safety. This study responds to this gap by identifying the competencies necessary to ensure tourist safety during guided trips in the Arctic environment, with a particular emphasis on the relationship between competencies and the situated knowledge of guides. The results are based on 16 in-depth interviews with guides leading adventure trips in Iceland, Svalbard, and Greenland. The research draws upon existing theoretical studies on outdoor leadership to relate to operational conditions of guides working in the Arctic. The findings indicate that various skill sets are needed to ensure safety, with emphasis on a balance between technical, interpersonal, and operational skills as well as situational knowledge. Recognizing competencies essential to facilitating tourist safety, the study introduces a safety competency framework that positions knowledge, acquired through experience and training, as a mediating factor between various skillsets. Lastly, recommendations for further research on the guide’s role in safety management and safety practices are presented.