Yesterday I was in front of the Cathedral of Barcelona with a group. When I finished my explanation two girls approached me and asked me about the “Castellers” (a human tower which is a Catalan tradition). They had gone there because the previous day a supposed tour guide told them that it was possible to see the Castellers every Sunday at 7 pm in front of the Cathedral. I told them that it is possible to see the “Sardana“ on Sunday morning but not the Castellers unless it were an special festivity.
I recommended them to choose the next time an official tour guide with the accreditation of the Generalitat (the local government). I have recently seen that there are foreign people who come here to spend some time or their holidays and they decide to work in the meantime as tour guides. They offer their services through the Internet. Some companies contract their services because they are much cheaper than the official guides.
It’s a shame that after deciding to contract a guided tour you only receive a lot of misinformation. In order to be an official tour guide we have to pass a hard exam to prove that we have the right knowledge and the qualification to transmit it.
If you spend a lot of money to travel, please don’t waste it with illegal professionals.
Here you have a picture of the official accreditation and here you can check the list of the official tour guides of Catalonia.
