Interview with Globe Trotter and Tour Guide Sascha Ghods
““I believe experiences are worth so much more than material things. We can own all the toys in the world, but when it’s all said and done, what we will remember most are there experiences we had in life””
Having developed many connections over the years, Ghods has been able to form partnerships with many different types of organizations that capitalize on his well-thought-out tour planning, execution, and leadership skills. With such an impressive background in the travel industry, I wanted to find out more.
K.C.:Do you have a particular goal in mind when taking your guests on tour?
Sascha: Traveling is such an adventure, with the opportunity to immerse oneself in a new culture or even just a city nearby that’s yet to be explored. That’s why I aim to create experiences. I believe experiences are worth so much more than material things. We can own all the toys in the world, but when it’s all said and done, what we will remember most are the experiences we’ve had in life. Those we can share with our loved ones and others along the way are truly priceless. I believe travel is the ultimate way to create lasting memories.
K.C.: What advice would you give a new tour guide?
Sascha: It’s important to be genuine, meaning be yourself. You know what your strengths are so you should use them to your advantage to create your own unique style rather than copying others. We all have different aspects about ourselves that we can bring to the table. It’s also important to prepare, but don’t over prepare, leave time for some spontaneity and personal interactions. You want to be ready to provide facts and other helpful information people can relate to without sounding like a professor giving a lecture. Be a natural, keeping in mind that most travelers appreciate being entertained while learning something new.
It’s also important to be proactive while leading a tour, expecting the unexpected. If you’re prepared for a surprise, you’ll be able to stay calm and level-headed, ready to take it on when it occurs.
K.C.: I have been on multiple trips with you all over the U.S. and have wondered how you conduct these tours with barely any notes. Conducting tours across the globe requires massive knowledge. How do you make it look so easy and effortless?
Sascha: Well, that’s not entirely true. I do have plenty of information at my fingertips. I compare it to being an athlete. For example, look at tennis star Roger Federer, he makes playing tennis look easy and practically effortless. But that’s what you see in the foreground – making it look that way still requires a lot of preparation and work in the background.
K.C.: Isn’t it hard to constantly travel, lead tours and be in the public eye?
Sascha: Like everything in life, you need balance and time to recover to be at your best. The only way I can perform at my highest level is to have a well-planned out tour schedule. I usually know far in advance what my schedule will look like for the entire year. I plan accordingly, only accepting and confirming a certain number of tours each year.
K.C.: How do you stay in shape and maintain a healthy lifestyle while on the road traveling so much?
Sascha: I am usually up well before my workday officially starts. I make it a habit to go to the gym in the morning. Fortunately, most of our hotels have them. I usually do some cardio and strength training in addition to the frequent walking and hiking that’s involved in the tours I conduct. I easily surpass over 10K steps a day on a regular basis. I also focus on nutrition, following a 90% vegetarian diet, rarely eating meat, while avoiding processed foods.
K.C.: I noticed that you basically travel with carry-on luggage and a backpack. How do you travel so light when you’re gone for several weeks at a time?
Sascha: I think traveling so much has given me the necessary packing experience. And kidding aside, I really don’t like to check my bag with the airlines. That’s too time consuming for me not to mention, should a bag get lost, I would have that to deal with too. I prefer getting in and out of airports as quickly as possible. Packing for me has practically become an art form. I took a page from the late Steve Jobs’ habits, keeping things simple. I usually wear the same thing which makes it easy: a black shirt and a pair of jeans. That avoids the struggle with decision-making over what to wear each morning. Of course, I bring multiple black shirts so I’m not running around in dirty clothing. Plus, most hotels have laundry facilities, so it isn’t difficult to wash what I bring.
Another big bonus has been totally cutting out paper from my daily routines. Before technology, I had to travel with a ton of paperwork, itineraries, name list, reference materials, and so on. Pretty much everything you need to run a good tour but carrying it around was inefficient as it’s so heavy. Today, everything is in digital form so I can store it on my iPad Pro and iPhone. Not only do I run most of my business digitally, using these compact, light gadgets, I use it for my social media campaign “OnTour with Sascha Ghods.” I capture all videos and photos using my iPhone and edit material on my iPad.
K.C.: What apps do you use most when on tour?
Sascha: Most of my day-to-day planning is spent deciding on routes and times. For that, Google Maps typically provides the most accurate information I need to estimate how long it will take to get from point to point. It also tells me how much time I should allocate for certain highlights of the day. Google Earth is great too. I’ve been lucky having traveled to so many places across the U.S. and throughout the world. However, there will always be someplace new, and it would be nearly impossible to explore each place before a tour begins. That makes Google Earth ideal as part of my preparations before bringing a group somewhere. In most cases, I can find plenty of good information that allows me to get comfortable with a destination.
Some of the others I use include:
Gaai GPS and All Trails – These are outstanding apps when we are looking to explore trails in national parks. Every group is different, some like to include lots of hiking and some just like to take pictures and enjoy the various panoramas.
Scanner Pro – This app is basically for the business aspect of my work. I get a lot of receipts that I need to save for expense purposes. Scanning them and sending them off in a PDF file at the end of a tour is the simplest and most efficient way. No more saving all that paper and then sending it via snail mail. That’s all so yesterday. I take advantage of technology as much as I can. In fact, I will be writing a blog post on all the tools that I use. If you’re interested, be sure to stay tuned for that.
K.C.: Thank you for that very helpful information. One last question. What is your favorite place in the world to go?
Sascha: This is an interesting question and I get asked it a lot. To be honest, it’s one that I can’t really answer. I visit so many fantastic places: different cities, different national parks, different countries. All have their own unique aspects that I enjoy. When it comes to cities, I have many favorites that I particularly enjoy conducting tours in. Some of them include NYC, Chicago, San Francisco, Nashville, Barcelona, and Vienna. All of these spots are very different from each other, all with various dynamics. When it comes to Nature, the U.S. national parks are great. Whether I’m in Utah doing the “Mighty 5” or in California, visiting Yosemite or Sequoia national parks. There are so many incredible national parks in the U.S., I’ll never get tired of visiting them.
K.C.: Many readers will probably want to get in touch with you to find out more, so that brings up one more final question. How should they contact you?
Sascha: The best way is via social media: Fb.com/saschaghodstours or Instagram.com/sgetours
