Meet Our Tour Guides
“Aspire greatly; anything less than a commitment to excellence becomes an acceptance of mediocrity.”
Victor. B.
“Traveling to San Francisco Bay Area, California Wine Country, and Yosemite National Park should be on everyone’s bucket-list. This is our home, and we want to share it with you,” says our operation manager, Victor.
He first fell in love with San Francisco and Yosemite in 1978 and has spent his life championing conservation efforts through his support of the San Francisco Tour Guides Association and other community services as well as the Sierra Club, Yosemite Conservancy.
Born in Florida, Victor was enamored with the unique culture of San Francisco and Yosemite. Following a decade abroad, he and his family made California their permanent home 40 years ago. His background as an international student and traveler cultivated a deep understanding of literature, art history, and language (he speaks 6 languages including English, French, German, and Spanish). Victor is also an artist and a photographer, and community volunteer.
Jonathan
Jonathan hails from Auckland, New Zealand where he was a professional rugby player in college. In 1998, Jon moved to New York where he lived and worked as a tour guide for a couple of years, before relocating to Las Vegas. In Vegas, he worked as tour guide with small groups doing daily and weekly tours to the Monument Valley, Grand Canyon, Brice Canyon, Lake Powell, Sedona, and Antelope Canyon. He later moved to Los Angeles and worked there as tour guide for 5 years. In 2004, he started working as a professional tour guide in the San Francisco Bay Area. Jon has 2 main passions: Golf and Guided Tours. He recently reached a new milestone of having done 1,000 guided in in the San Francisco Bay Area and Yosemite!
Leo
Leo is a native of the San Francisco Bay Area. He is an experienced and professional tour guide specializing in backpacking and hiking. He knows the famous sights and hidden gems of the San Francisco Bay Area like the palm of his hand. His excellent guiding service and unique style has earned him hundreds of 5-star reviews.
When not guiding, Leo spends time as a professional artist and sculptor plus volunteers as a firefighter. Leo is always willing to go the extra mile so our customers can have an unforgettable tour experience.
Mary
Mary is a native of San Francisco with an Irish heritage. She is passionate about her job and has 25 years’ experience as a certified professional tour guide in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Her knowledge, personality, and sense of humor makes her a terrific tour guide. She has a way of blending in with any travel group, particularly families with kids. She loves leading private tours in the San Francisco Bay Area, Yosemite National Park, Lake Tahoe, Redwood National Park, Monterey, Carmel, Big Sur, and Hearst Castle.
Tom
Tom grew up in western Ireland and moved to the Louisiana in the early 1980s, where his two sons were born. He later moved to San Francisco and since then has led over 1,000 private guided tours and private motor coach charter trips in the in the San Francisco Bay Area and California. He is a dedicated professional, well organized, and very meticulous about his job. He served as the president of the San Francisco Tour Guides Guild – the organization where all tour guides study to become professional and certified tour guides.
Tom also leads escorted vacation packages to the western USA states. He loves national parks, and he is very knowledgeable about the biology, geology, fauna, and flora of each national park of the Wild West. His favorites, however, remain Yosemite National Park and San Francisco Bay Area.
Denis
Denis is a biker, professional ski instructor, and avid cyclist. He specializes in leading guided biking tours to Yosemite, Eastern Sierra, and Lake Tahoe and in the San Francisco Bay Area. He especially loves doing guided tours to Yosemite, Mammoth, and Lake Tahoe in winter. As a ski instructor, Denis enjoys showing the white Mountains of Yosemite, Lake Tahoe, and Mammoth Lakes to our valued customers and sharing his deep knowledge of the Sierra Nevada Mountains.
David
David is a US veteran who served on active duty in the U.S. Armed Force overseas. He has been working as tour for the last 8 years and loves sharing San Francisco Bay Area and attractions with visitors. His favorite destination is California Wine Country.
Adam
Adam grew up in Paris, France where he studied art history and literature. He worked as a certified tour guide in many of Paris’ top museums, including the Musee d’Orsay and Le Louvre, and led guided tours to all France’s top attractions, parks, and monuments. He also worked as tour guide and led travel package tours and journeys to Belgium, Holland, UK, Switzerland, Italy, and Spain.
In 1996, Adam traveled to the US as volunteer for the Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia. He then spent time exploring most of the states in the US, before settling down in San Francisco in 1997. In 1998, he started working as tour guide leading tours to California, Oregon, Arizona, Nevada, Utah, and Colorado.
In 2000, he decided to specialize in private tours and has since led hundreds of guided tours in the San Francisco Bay Area, Yosemite, Mammoth Lakes, Lake Tahoe, and Nevada. With his rich experience, combined with a fun personality, he guarantees to bring your tour experience to life.
Antony
Antony is from Bilbao in northern Spain but has been living in San Francisco for over 25 years. Antony is an excellent tour guide and driver, thanks to his background in teaching, plus he’s also a professional actor and comedian. He has performed in many movies with famous actors like Nicole Kidman, TV commercials, and standup comedies. He has a strong passion for international cultures and cuisines.
Peter
Peter grew up in England and moved to California in the early 1990s. He loves leading guided tours in the San Francisco Bay Area and Yosemite. He also enjoys the Alcatraz and Napa Valley tours. He has a great sense of humor and is very knowledgeable and very passionate about his job. Peter is an excellent hiking tour guide and photographer as well.
Gerard
Gerard is from Paris, France, where he led escorted group tours from Paris to Normandy, Châteaux of the Loire Valley, and to the Champagne wine region. He has been living in Oakland since 1980 and works as professional tour guide. He has an intimidate knowledge of Northern California, but nothing makes him happier than leading guided tours to Yosemite National Park. Gerard is very patient, knowledgeable, a professional driver, and passionate about everything he does.
Luis
Luis grew up in Argentina where he studied tourism and hospitality. He then become a state certified tour guide and led guided tours all over Argentina for many years. Chile was his next home, where he guided whitewater rafting tours and acted as a multi-sport vacation travel agent.
In early 2005, Luis moved to California to settle down in San Francisco, where he started working as tour guide for Yosemite Private Tours and has been with the company ever since. Luis has vast knowledge of the region and of Yosemite. Luis specializes in Spanish guided tours. He is truly an amazing tour guide, you’ll love him!
Marina
Native to San Francisco, Marina has worked for the San Francisco Police Department (SFPD) and become an instructor in martial arts. She also lived in Spain and South America where she volunteered as a schoolteacher, which gave her the perfect background to become a tour guide, especially for families with kids.
Jimmy
Jimmy loves going fishing and playing golf. His favorite destination is Yosemite National Park. When he was younger, he often visited Yosemite to fish and hike, which is how he fell in love with the Yosemite wilderness and why he became a professional tour guide. Jimmy has unsurpassed knowledge of the park – he spends more time in Yosemite than in his own home! As an avid hiker and tour guide. Jim loves sharing his passion with his customers and taking them to hidden and magical places off the beaten path.
We are hiring new tour guides and will update this page accordingly.
Thank you for your interest in San Francisco Private Tours. We appreciate your interest in our business. Should you need any further assistance, don’t hesitate to contact us.
