A mountain guide is a professional climber who has been specifically trained and is accredited by local government or mountain guide organisations. They are regarded high-level mountaineering professionals and are contracted to train or guide individuals or small groups that require this advanced knowledge. 

• The Professional Mountain Climber is an athletic, adventurous person that enjoys the excitement of conquering mountains as well as assisting others in appreciating all that nature has to offer. 
• What distinguishes a Professional Mountain Climber from a hobbyist is understanding of safety and good technique, as well as motivation for climbing. They climb not just for enjoyment, but also as part of an expedition or to assist newbies in learning the ropes. 
• They go on expedition and researching missions when they are not instructing others. This category includes climbing mountains to find out what happened to a missing climber or going to a local mountain pass to gather and transport materials to a group of scientists. 
• Many climbers also work for climbing media as independent writers or photographers.