Greeter Programs: A Worldwide Travel Feature

The idea for Big Apple Greeter came from Lynn Brooks, who started it back in 1992. She wanted to dispel the myth that New York City was a dangerous and unfriendly place to visit by pairing up visitors with volunteers, who could show them around the area and explain about how the city works -- even down to demonstrating how to ride the subway. Today, there are 300 volunteer greeters who, collectively, speak about 25 languages and have welcomed thousands of visitors from 112 countries.

As Lynn explains, the whole thing started from a simple idea. "Every single town or city that I've visited has had the same reaction from the people that live there -- they love where they live, and they love to share where they live with visitors to the area. Of course they can share information about the place, but more importantly than that, they can share their personal experiences that a visitor would never have known about otherwise and they can share their friendship. For the visitor, it's like spending time with a friend or a family member, as people talk about the things that make you feel at home.

One thing Lynn is careful to clarify is that greeters aren't tour guides. "They're friendly and enthusiastic volunteers and they're not expected to be experts about their home town or city. They don't have a script to stick to, but instead talk about places from a personal point of view and what the neighborhood or individual buildings mean to them.

So how does the Greeter program work? The first port of call for visitors who want to learn more about a greeter in a city they're planning to visit is to check out the relevant web site. There you'll find a visitor request form to fill in. Some programs need the form submitted a month or more before your visit so that you can be matched up with a greeter, so don't leave this until the last minute. Some programs ask you to specify which neighborhood you'd like to visit, but if you're not sure, fill in the words "Greeters Choice" and the greeter will select the neighborhood they most enjoy.

Every greeter program differs slightly, as they're adapted to each location, but you can expect your visit to last for between two and four hours during the daytime. Greeters don't meet visitors in the evening or at night. They take out groups of up to six people and included in that group must be at least one adult over the age of eighteen. Because the program is voluntary, it's important to remember that it's not always possible to match visitors up with greeters, as it depends on how many volunteers are available on any one day and how many requests they get for visits.