Join the Hood Huggers Team!

Hood Tours Guide

We’re looking for passionate & talented folks to join the Hood Tours guide team!  Hood Tours is an intimate, interactive experience that is guaranteed to leave you looking at this mountain town with new eyes—a Social Enterprise that provides opportunities for young people while helping to spark more grassroots economic development in the places we visit on the tours.

Our Guides ~ Are you a part of the region’s  vibrant African American Community?  Are you passionate about Asheville’s Black History and telling the story of our collective resilience and ingenuity?  Are you invested in building community, deepening connections, and cultivating a culture of sustainability  and health that is inclusive and economically just?  

Our guides bring Asheville’s Black history to life!  They are comfortable speaking in front of groups, are charismatic  storytellers, provide excellent customer service, and are committed to cultivating meaningful and rewarding tour experiences for our guests.  Spoken word, music, or other performance experience is an added bonus!   Must be able to lead walking tours in various areas of the city that include hills, as well as have a good driving record and be comfortable driving a 15-passenger bus (diesel).

Have More To Offer? Our guides help us tell our story by capturing photos of our tours, as well as contributing to our social media. There may also be opportunities for you to use your talents in writing, videography, photography, website management, marketing, tour design, and more.

Hood Huggers/Hood Tours is Rooted in Community ~ Hood Huggers International’s mission statement is, “Creating a culture of sustainability that is inclusive and economically just using the arts, environment, and social enterprise.” Our core values are Integrity, Creativity, Celebration, Community, Collaboration, and Commitment.  Our team is a close knit and culturally diverse collective – we work hard to support each other, embody our values and build capacity in our communities.

Work Schedule ~ Though we always try to accommodate employees’ preferred schedules and hours, it is important for interested candidates to understand the variable nature of our tour bookings. We operate year-round, though our peak season is March-October.

What we offer:

  • Meaningful work that builds community
  • A supportive work environment built on trust, mutual respect, and excellent communication
  • $18/hour + tips
  • Flexible hours and scheduling
  • Enjoyable work in the outdoors
  • Potential to grow your role in the business as the company grows
  • Paid Holidays

Preferred skills:

  • Dedicated to exceptional customer experience and service
  • Part of the BIPOC community 
  • Experienced and knowledgeable in Black history of Asheville
  • Experience in basic technology such as microphone headsets, apps, and Google suite
  • Enjoys working outdoors
  • Enjoys telling stories! Guiding, teaching, public speaking, poetry background a plus.
  • Responsible and safety-conscious
  • Works well under pressure
  • Dependable, punctual, patient, respectful, and a good listener
  • Loves people of all ages- including kids!
  • Able to work some weekends, holidays, and/or on-call hours
  • Must be able to lift, push, pull 50 lbs
  • Social media and/or photography skills a plus

Job Type ~ Part time or Seasonal Position



Hood Tours Entertainers

Are you a musician? singer? poet? or other performing artist?  Do you want to share your talent with guests on Hood Tours ~ where we share the deeply moving stories of Asheville’s Black history and incredible ingenuity?

We’re expanding our network of Hood Tours entertainers and would love to see if you’re a good fit!  Performers must have their own amplification/instruments and align with Hood Huggers’ values and culture.  

$50 per tour / 15+ minute performances / punctuality is important

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