A number of 25 tourist guides of Moldova on December 16 received certificates of participation in courses accredited by the World Federation of Tourist Guide Associations, which is one of the most important documents confirming that high quality standards are met in the field, IPN reports.

Natalia Peronkov said that she took part in these courses because she felt the need to make progress in her 15-year activity as a tourist guide. “Life does not stagnate. We daily experience something new. Everything changes and the tourists who come to the country are very informed, know a lot and we cannot remain at the same level. We must grow so as to meet tourists’ expectations,” stated Natalia Peronkov.

“We always need to enrich our knowledge, to become better, especially because tourism in the Republic of Moldova only started to develop and it matters a lot what impression the tour guides leave on the tourists who visit our country,” stated Tatiana Lupașcu, a travel agency tourism guide.

According to Irina Badiuc, a guide at the Museum of Ethnography and Natural History, they should always improve the quality of the provided service. “When the things done daily seem ordinary to you, a day comes when someone tells you that the European standards dictate something else. We are making effort to implement them,” she stated.

Nina Belei, president of the Association of Guides, Lecturers and Translators, said tourism has a big potential in Moldova. “We have a lot to show about Moldova on the international arena,” she noted.

There are almost 150 tour guides in Moldova at present. The first class of 24 guides received certificates of participation in courses accredited by the World Federation of Tourist Guide Associations in March.

In 2018, Moldova was visited by about 160,000 tourists from such countries as Germany, Poland, Italy, the UK, the U.S. and Romania.