ABSTRACT Tour guides play an important role in tourism services. However, there is only limited identification of behavior in the tour guiding field based on sociological theories. To fill this gap, this empirical research adopts Bourdieu's field theory and conducts observations and interviews with 14 tour guides in Cappadocia, Türkiye. It identifies doxa, illusio, capital, and habitus in defining tour guides' strategies to surviving in the field. The findings illustrate that tour guides' field strategies are concerned with maximizing their tour numbers and incomes in a competitive environment, with substantial attention to tourists' shopping and purchasing behaviors, although much of this remains under the iceberg and unseen by tour participants since tour guiding requires a hospitable attitude. The paper concludes with insights into the tour guiding field for researchers, practitioners, and policy‐makers.
Çıvak et al. (2026) studied this question.