W&M/Weather/Blog/7th-Best-Tour-Guide-in-the-Nation

As the 7th best tour guide in the nation (self-proclaimed but my Italian grandmother would easily agree with this statement), I am going to give you a few tips on how to survive a tour during extreme weather conditions.

1) While on a summer tour, the death wrenching Williamsburg heat can sometimes make the Sahara desert look like a vacation spot. Luckily, the William & Mary admission office provides tour groups with ice cold water bottles. My tours have a 100% survival rate primarily because I strategically navigate between air-conditioned buildings – I can confidently tell you that all our tour guides possess the innate ability to talk while walking backwards in extreme heat. I would highly recommend bringing sunglasses, a hat, sunscreen, and a small towel. From a personal stand point, cheer your tour guides on and motivate them to go beyond the call of duty. Many times, this moral boost can help a tour guide discard the invisible heat blanket that wraps itself around ones energy reserves and vocal chords.

2) Encountering the rainy phase of a monsoon on the East Coast is a very unlikely event; however, if you experience an intense rainstorm during a tour then hopefully you came prepared with an umbrella or raincoat. My only advice for this situation is to check the weather beforehand and don’t be embarrassed if one of your parents is equipped with various raingear (while its not raining). Also, since guys do not normally wear rain boots I would recommend investing in some Nike boots!

3) Being equipped with Nike boots (from a guys perspective…not too sure what the equivalent would be for girls but any who) during/after a snowstorm will enable you to playfully maneuver through the snow. In regards to Williamsburg, receiving a few inches of snow may shut down the whole town. However, William & Mary breeds the best tour guides in the nation, and snowflakes do not detour our operations. As a matter of fact, I will personally offer the whole family (and friends) a VIP winter wonderland tour (hot chocolate will not be included). If we embark on this journey, I would advise the standard winter gear and hand/feet warmers.

If you are still reading this – I commend you. I hope that you come and visit the admission office where our staff and current students will enthusiastically answer all of your questions and concerns. Nonetheless, do not let inclement weather discourage you, and take advantage of the vast resources that are available in the admission office and on the website.