#99 Meeting a Tour Guide｜English Phrases for Sightseeing

When joining a sightseeing tour, meeting the tour guide at the designated meeting point can be a slightly stressful moment for travelers.

This is especially true overseas, where many people gather in the same place and multiple tours may be operating at the same time. In such situations, it is often necessary to confirm in English whether the person in front of you is truly your guide and whether you are at the correct meeting location.

In this article, I explain useful English expressions for these situations, following the natural flow of an actual conversation.

Dialogue

A

Hi, I’m here for the city walking tour. Are you the guide?

B

Yes, that’s right. You must be Sato, correct?

A

Yes, that’s me. I just wanted to confirm—are we meeting here at the main entrance?

B

Exactly. We’ll wait here for a few more minutes for the rest of the group.

A

Got it. About how long will the tour last?

B

It should take about two and a half hours, including a short break.

A

Thanks for letting me know.

1. Confirming Whether Someone Is the Guide

When you arrive at the meeting point, the first step is to confirm that the person you are speaking to is actually the tour guide.

This is a direct question, but it does not sound rude. In situations where roles need to be clearly identified, clarity is more important than indirectness.

You can also make the question more specific by mentioning the tour name. This is particularly useful when multiple tours are gathering in the same location.

2. Confirming the Meeting Location

When meeting up, it is important to make sure that you are at the correct meeting point. A commonly used verb in this situation is “confirm.”

The phrase “I just wanted to ～” works as a softening expression. It gives the nuance that you are simply checking something briefly, making the question sound polite and natural.

3. Being Told to Wait

If not all participants have arrived by the meeting time, the guide may explain that the group will wait a little longer.

The phrase “a few more minutes” means “a little longer” and allows the speaker to explain the situation without giving an exact time.

In sightseeing situations, schedules often change slightly, so expressions with this kind of flexibility are commonly used.

The first expression suggests waiting while observing the situation, while the second emphasizes staying in the same place.

4. Asking About the Tour Duration

To understand the overall flow of the tour, it is a good idea to ask about the duration before the tour begins.

“How long” is a standard expression for asking about time. Adding “about” at the beginning indicates that an approximate answer is sufficient.

The expression “should take ～” conveys an estimated duration. It is well suited to situations such as tours, where the schedule may vary slightly.

Summary

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スマホで倍速!英語独学ハック: 英語が話せるようになる黄金ルール

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