AS Travel and Tourism

TT03:

Travel Destinations

PORTFOLIO GUIDANCE

Tourist Types

On any given holiday there will be a wide range of different tourist types. Brainstorm in your groups to come up with as many as you can think of.

Now choose FIVE different types and use these spider diagrams to brainstorm the characteristics you would expect your five types of tourists to have e.g. wealth, transport, activities, food, time of year to go,

A01: Background Information

Introduction

Here you should discuss the general background on your location. Start with a paragraph on the country giving some information on where it is and other facts such as history, facts about the country, the population, distance from UK and anything else you think relevant (the more individual you make this the better i.e. try to find something unique that no one else will write about).

Then have a paragraph on the location itself (Paris or Miami). Describe the location in the country, population, culture, distance from UK and again anything else you feel relevant.

You need TWO maps here which show two different scales and are fully annotated.

Landscape

A minimum of two or three paragraphs are needed on the NATURAL landscape. Describe the topography of the area (flat or hilly), the areas/districts/suburbs, mountains, hills, lakes, rivers, parks, forests, gardens and beaches. This part involves research although the travel books are very good for this. Make sure you include facts and figures and annotated maps and photos to illustrate your point. You should compare the landscape to that of London or Belfast or both throughout your description.

Include a paragraph about the BUILT landscape such as buildings, statues, fountains, monuments, (be general about these rather than pick out individual ones). Make sure you do not do more than a paragraph and again make sure you include facts and figures and annotated maps or pictures to illustrate your point and compare this to London or Belfast or both.

Climate

A minimum of three or four paragraphs are needed on the description of climate of the location. For this you need to include climate graphs, tables, and photos and refer to them in your description by quoting facts and figures. You need to describe the climate of the area and any one off weather events that may occur and compare these to the UK by showing graphs and tables of UK so again this will involve detailed research. Throughout this you must compare to the UK.

Attraction to tourists

A minimum of three or four paragraphs are needed on why the location is attractive to your list of tourists based on what you have described in the location (ease of getting there, distance from home etc), landscape (attractiveness of area) and climate (what is good about the climate, when to go or not and why). You can do this season by season or just as general advice.

The Background Information check list

Have you…..

Described the location of the area

Made use of a number of different types of maps from different angles

Referenced its location to the UK’s location

Included relevant facts and figures about the area (try and get unique but interesting and meaningful facts)

Described the landscape – BOTH built and natural - areas/districts/suburbs, buildings, statues, fountains, monuments, (be general about these rather than pick out individual ones) other landmarks, mountains, hills, lakes, rivers, parks, forests, gardens, beaches.

Included facts and figures about the landscape

Included maps and pictures from various angles and sources

Compared these to the UK

Described the climate of the area and any one off weather events that may occur

Made use of climate graphs, tables, photos and referred to them

Compared these to the UK by showing graphs and tables of UK

Provided advice to different types of holidaymakers as to what time of year is best to go, why and what to pack

Above all else make sure your background information makes specific reference to the different types of holidaymakers

Remember you are aiming for….

Mark band 4

Candidates produce developed, well-organised descriptions of the destinations, providing relevant climatic data and information about major landscape features. Candidates demonstrate well developed and relevant knowledge and understanding.

AO2: The Welcome Meeting Script

This is one of, if not the most important parts of being a representative. Welcome meetings consist of all the information that the guests need to know before they begin their journey. You will provide the guests with all the necessary information regarding their holiday trip along with the details on the excursions that are available to them while vacationing. A holiday representative needs to have some basic selling skills. This is where you get to know the holidaymakers, give them your knowledge, help them with any problems, and, probably most importantly for the commercially minded, make the money, for you and the company. The format of the meeting is pretty standard, and is split into the following sections:

Introduction and welcome

Reps visiting times, notice board and information book

Health and safety

Reception and Hotel/apartment information

Resort/local area/town information

Wider area information

Sales and one to one

Introduction and welcome

This may be the first time that you meet most of the guests staying at your property, unless they all arrived on your transfer earlier. Therefore it is important to start off well, and get their trust. People on holiday want to trust the rep, but if they don't like you from the start, it can make things very difficult.

Appear bright and cheerful, and get them involved right from the start. This is where the rep introduces his/herself, and also introduces the company. I would also explain the format of the welcome meeting, and ask that any questions be kept until the end of the meeting, when I would come and see each group of people individually. Get off on the right foot, and remember, first impressions last!

Reps visiting times.

A rep will usually be required to visit a property at least once a day. If there are a lot of people staying there, it may be necessary to visit twice, once in the morning, once in the afternoon. Working hours for a rep are usually 09:00 - 12:00 then 17:00 - 19:00.

However, this is only a guideline, and in this job, you must be prepared to work any hours! It is important to arrange your visiting times so that people have the best opportunity to see you. It is generally regarded that 1 hour, or 2 at the most, is a long enough stay at a property at any one time. Make sure the guests know when you are going to be available.

Notice boards and information book

These are the main sources of information for the holidaymakers when the rep is not available. It is a good idea to make sure they are in good shape, and the guests are fully aware of what they contain, and where they can be found. Otherwise the guests will not use them, and wait to speak to the rep instead. This is often unnecessary, and wastes time, as the questions they ask could easily have been answered by the information book or board

The notice board contains all the most important information, such as the rep's visiting times, hotel information (such as pool opening times or reception facilities), excursions available, important telephone numbers (doctor, dentist or office emergency numbers) and homeward bound flight details. It is important to keep these all up to date, and clearly visible.

The information books have now widely been replaced by small brochures given to guests either at the welcome meeting or on the coach transfer into resort. The brochures contain a condensed version of what used to be in to book. In my welcome meetings, I would go through the book, giving a brief description of what was in it, stopping and describing in more detail some of the more important pages. These would include swimming pool safety, the nearest doctor and pharmacy, as well as warnings about timeshare salespeople and illegal excursion operatives. I would also describe the benefits of hiring a car, as opposed to the dangers of hiring a moped or motorbike.

Another important thing to mention was the dangers of sunburn. Information books also sometimes include some driving routes around the resort that guests could follow if they chose to hire a car. This advice always proves very popular. Towards the end of the book, they would inform guests what they could take home duty free (if outside Europe), and lastly, inform them of where to find their homeward bound flight and coach pickup details.

Health and safety

When people go on holiday, they sometimes tend to leave their sense of danger back at the departure airport. It is so easy for accidents to happen when on holiday, especially when people are in high spirits. It is therefore very important to inform the guests at your hotels of what to look out for to ensure they go home in one piece!

The swimming pool is great fun, but can also be dangerous. A rep should warn people not to dive in shallow water, and watch their children around the pool. Also, most pools have strong chemicals, including chlorine in them at night. Therefore it can be very dangerous to swim at night. Warn people not to climb on balconies, and take care around glass patio doors. In resort, traffic systems are very different to home. For example zebra crossings seem to be pedestrian-targets for some taxi drivers. Then doing this part of the welcome meeting, it would be easy to sound patronising towards

the guests. Therefore it is important to bring some humour into what you are saying - get people to laugh about it, and they will take note! The reception of the hotel or apartments can be a godsend. The staff are, 99% of the time, incredible helpful, so make sure that the holidaymakers know this.

Many people are afraid to approach reception because they don't think the receptionists will understand them. It if vital to persuade guests to use the facility, they will be able to solve many guests problems before the rep even knows about them. Receptionists nearly always speak excellent English, and do like to help.The welcome meeting should also include what facilities are available at reception, such as safety deposit boxes (a must to mention) telephones, money exchange, taxi calling service, postcards and stamps. Many offer much more. A rep must know exactly what is available from reception, and then pass on this information to the guests.

Hotel/apartment information

The hotel or apartment is home to the holidaymaker for the next week or 2 weeks. This part of the welcome meeting is intended to provide the guest with all the information needed in order to make the most of their stay.

It is again an opportunity to mention the reception and supermarket, but also this is the time to explain what entertainment the property provides. Most decent sized hotels will have an entertainment programme, usually geared towards children in the daytime, and families or adults in the evening. There may be a children's club as well. The layout of the property should be described, providing details of the swimming pool(s), games rooms, tennis courts and any other amenities that may be available.

Resort/Local Area/Town Information

It is in this section of the meeting where you will start to use the experience and information you have obtained since arriving in the resort. Many holidaymakers will not leave the resort they are based in for the whole of their stay. They do, however, want to know what is outside the hotel complex. Young guests will want to know where the bars and nightclubs are, whereas families tend to be more interested in the likes of parks. The beach is always very popular as well. It is easiest to provide everyone in the welcome meeting with a map of the resort, and go on a virtual tour of the resort with them, starting at one end. Guests could

then write on the map anything that they found interesting. It is important to point out banks and the post office, as well as the best supermarkets. If there are unfortunate circumstances, and something is lost or stolen, then a visit to the Police station is required, so that needs to be pointed out on the map.

Water parks are always popular in hot holiday resorts, so give details of these, mentioning opening times and prices at the same time. Mention where the restaurants and bars are, and also where guests can find public transport in order to visit other resorts. Finally, if there is a market day in the resort, give details of this, as many people find markets the best place to find souvenirs to take home.

Wider area information

Although many visitors do not leave the resort during their stay, many do. If you are working on an island there is a lot to see away from the resorts, and it is all quite accessible in one day, especially if the guests were to hire a car. The best way they found was to again provide the guests in the welcome meeting with a map of the island, and then stand at the front of the meeting, holding a huge map. Just like the resort information, they would do a virtual tour, pointing out all the places of interest around the island.

For example the main shopping towns, and the capital, any places you feel people may want to visit. It is at this point where you need to examine the type of people staying in the property as older people will not always be interested in visiting the same places as the younger generations. Local sights, best beaches (distance, cost of chairs, umbrellas) shopping facilities, local transport, local regulations/customs, festivals and bank holidays, language basics, recent weather forecasts as well as sports facilities and personal recommendations of bars, clubs and restaurants.

Sales

If you are interested in making some money when you are working as a rep, then this is the most important part of the welcome meeting. Rep's wages are not particularly brilliant, but they do get a percentage of money made from the sale of excursions.

In order to earn more money, you will sell car rental (car hire), telephone cards, kid’s clubs, daily excursions, and other products that are offered by the touring company that you are employed by. You earn commission off of everything you are able to sell in addition to your fixed monthly income. You have the opportunity to make the decision of what products and/or services you will sell for the touring company in order to earn the most commission for yourself. You need to ensure that you know everything about the product or service that you are offering so that if there are any questions you will be able to answer them with no problem at all this will help you sell more of the product or service if you seem like you know what you are talking about. It is no good trying to sell a bar crawl to a large group of elderly couples - they would much prefer the island tour. The excursions I chose to describe would be quite different from each other, to give some variety. Maybe a boat trip, jeep safari, bar crawl and the western night.

In order to sell the excursions effectively, it is important to put a good picture in the mind of the holidaymaker. Glorifying the excursions, as well as emphasising things like a free bar or food, and benefits for children were good selling points. Look at all the benefits of the different excursions, and use these to full effect. This will sell excursions.

The vital point in the effort to be successful at selling is getting people to book immediately. Finish off the meeting by telling everyone that places are strictly limited, and go quickly.

The brochures given out had booking forms attached. It is impossible to stress too much how important it is to have those filled in before people leave the meeting.

SELL, SELL, SELL!

How do you sell?

Five easy steps:

1. Select the target

2. Describe the benefits

3. Eliminate the competition

4. Tempt with price

5. Close the deal

What can you sell at the welcome meeting?

Hotel facilities such as, spa, bar, restaurant, wifi (internet credit to use), nightly entertainment, shuttle bus to and from airport or to and from city centre, crèche, doctor on call, laundry, phone cards, car hire.

Excursions such as, day trips, walking tours, bus tours, queue jumping passes, tickets to tourist attractions, concerts, festivals.

Your knowledge of the local area such as, the best bars, restaurants, attractions, places to go, things to see.

Which one of these will get the most car hire sales, a) or b)?

a) The hotel also offers a car hire facility, this will allow you to drive about the city and get from place to place without having to use the metro buses or trains. Please speak to me at the end if you are interested.

b) I notice there are a number of tourists here over 21 and some of you may be interested in hiring a car to enjoy the freedom of having your own transport to explore Paris on your own terms. This is an excellent way to navigate not only around the city but the surrounding area too. This is particularly true if you have children with you, as some of you have, as this allows you to visit the places you want to without the hassle of getting the whole family on and off the busy public transport system. You’ll be pleased to hear that we have a special arrangement with a local car hire company which enables you to hire a car of your choice for competitive prices from as little as £19 per day! Not only that but the company will personally deliver the car to the hotel car park and pick it up at a time that is convenient to you, all you have to remember is to drive on the right side of the road! A fantastic deal, I’m sure you all agree!

The Welcome Meeting check list

Have you…..

Included your name and phone number

Used the date so you can link events to this and the recent weather…should you wrap up or put on sun cream

Given a safety brief – fire exits, pool rules etc as well as safety when in Paris e.g. when crossing the road, driving etc

Made reference to a welcome pack/brochure, notice board and map you may use during the meeting

Talked up the hotel…briefly mention its stats (rooms etc) facilities available, menu, meal times, room facilities, wifi, currency exchange, phone cards, laundry service, crèche, baby sitters, safety box, reception/concierge desk, cable TV in rooms, parking, spa, meeting/banqueting facilities….prices of these with a sales twist if relevant to holidaymakers

Given your opinion/inside information on best places to shop, eat, see the sights, activities for different types of holiday makers, the best times to go to certain places for different holidaymakers

Mentioned how to get tickets for attractions….sell hotels ability to provide and prices for tickets to attractions around city and festivals/concerts

Explained transport around the city – taxi, bus, train, underground, walk, bike

Focused on sales throughout the script with a mop up at the end

Made your script funny, interesting, fast flowing, packed with info

Above all else make sure your welcome meeting makes specific reference to the different types of holidaymakers and what they are most likely interested in doing

Remember you are aiming for….

Mark band 4

Candidates apply well developed knowledge and understanding to show how tourist facilities and major attractions appeal to a wide range of tourist types. These types are appropriately linked with the facilities and attractions on offer in the welcome meetings.

AO3: Transportation to and around your destination

In this section you have to research and investigate the range of different options available in getting to your Paris/Miami hotel from LURGAN.

Research

You need to start with two or three paragraphs explaining how you researched for this section.

Explain how you will use both primary and secondary data collection techniques (you might want to define these terms) in order to gain an in-depth knowledge of the options available. You will need to use techniques such as making phone calls, sending e mails, travel guides, timetables, internet and talk about the advantages and disadvantages of using both of these.

It is important you keep a record of exactly what you have done and then put this in a bibliography at the end of this section.

Transport to Paris/Miami

You need to look at each option available and set it out in sections, Getting to Paris by boat, Getting to Paris by plane, Getting to Paris by car, Getting to Paris by bus/train and any other you can come up with. Getting to Miami is slightly simpler with only Getting to Miami by Plane. Remember to use Belfast international, City and Dublin for both destinations.

You must take each one of these and clearly show how to get from Lurgan to your chosen hotel in Paris/Miami. You need to describe facilities available to each option e.g. restaurants on boats, airport car parking etc and use screenshots, maps and photos to illustrate your answers.

For each of these you also need to evaluate their suitability to each of your tourist groups and say whether or not they would chose this option and why (or why not). At the end of this each tourist group should have two or three (or more) options and then in the next section you chose the best one so this is just exploring the options. In order to evaluate the suitability you need to examine important issues such as time, cost, convenience, ease of use etc.

Transport around Paris/Miami

You need to look at the options for getting around Paris/Miami once you arrive. This section should deal with each option in turn by giving detailed descriptions, typical prices, benefits etc. Again you need screen shots, maps and photos to illustrate your answers. You also need to evaluate each option according to your tourist groups and say whether they would be suitable or not giving reasons.

Some help with the transport

The main modes of transport are planes, ferry and the Eurostar. All of these involve a transfer i.e. how do you get to the plane, ferry or Eurostar.

Your format should be something like this….

Paris by plane

A common way to travelling from Northern Ireland to Paris is by plane. This is a fast and convenient method of travel and with the range of low cost airlines available it can often be a cheap option too. For these reasons, most tourists tend to choose this option. However, some tourists such as those with young children or a number of children may find it difficult to pack everything they need into a limited number of bags and would instead use another option such as taking their own car and using the ferry or Eurostar. Those tourists who enjoy adventure may also avoid flying and instead would relish the chance to travel overland as it would give them a chance to see more of the countryside. In particular, young adults use planes since their low cost has made it a viable option despite the fact they may not have a full time job. Disabled passengers are also well catered for with special arrangements made on their behalf by the staff and crew of the airline. Indeed on occasion airlines offer a lift service to older tourists which minimises the problems often encountered in walking from the check in desk to the departure gate which may be a long distance away.

Things to think about with different tourist types…

Young couple – flexible, no children, have jobs so have money, might only have a small car, are used to travelling/different cities, facilities available,

Old people – have money, have bus/train passes, may avoid public transport, may not be fit to drive for long periods, may not be used to different countries/languages, facilities available, don’t own car,

Families – children on planes, too much stuff to pack in suitcase, they fly for free, where do they fly to (convenient to get to/from airport), how would children behave in long car journey, may enjoy travelling by car as can stop off and break up journey, money might be tight, facilities available, have large car (expensive fuel)

Disabled –don’t/do own car, access to transport (could they get to bus stop), access when travelling, who would they travel with, facilities available,

Young adults – money tight, flexible, cheapest option, don’t mind roughing it, sense of adventure, facilities available, don’t own car.

The Transportation check list

Have you…..

Examined the range of transport options from Lurgan to your destination

Taken each option in turn and evaluated it as a potential choice

Linked the choice to tourist types it would suit and tourist types it would not suit

Provided each tourist type with number of options

Mentioned the facilities available with each method e.g. car parking, departure lounges, shops, restaurants etc

Examined important issues such as time, cost, convenience, ease of use

Given directions where appropriate

Showed evidence of options offered by the different types of travel e.g. print screens

Referenced your data in a bibliography

Used maps and photos

Above all else make sure your recommendations make specific reference to the different types of holidaymakers and what transport would suit their needs

Remember you are aiming for….

Mark band 4

Working independently, candidates use a range of appropriate research techniques to analyse the reasons affecting the choices different types of customers make regarding travel to the destinations (including travel within the UK) and within the destinations. Candidates use written expression with appropriate specialist vocabulary to analyse information.

AO4 The Recommendations

In this section you have to evaluate the different options available to each tourist type and make recommendations for each of them. The best way to approach this is to take each tourist type in turn and answer the following questions. You can even use these as headings if you want.

When is the best time to go?

What is the best type of accommodation?

What is the best way to travel to here?

What is the best way to get about here?

What attractions and events would they visit?

Where is the best place to dine?

For each of these questions you must suggest one or two recommendations by giving brief reasons why they would suit but then choose one recommendation and give a detailed reason why this would suit them. For example, good to go to Paris at his time of the year for this reason however this means you miss this. I believe they should…. So each answer must be around 2 or 3 paragraphs long at least.

Future Popularity

Lastly, you must examine the “Future Popularity” of the destination. In this section you will examine whether you believe the destination will remain popular or not by looking at how you think it will be respond to a number of factors such as, recession, exchange rates, terrorism, natural disasters, transport options, price, environmental impacts on flight availability, competition from other destinations, will the destination still be fashionable and any others you can think of.

You need to evaluate at least five different factors and back this up by finding evidence to support your viewpoint. Each factor should be 2 or 3 paragraphs and include statistics, graphs and/or charts.

The Recommendations check list

Have you…..

Provided recommendations for your range of tourist types

Examined all aspects of their needs such as, climate, natural attractions, built attractions, festivals, activities, concerts, food and drink (type and recommendations of restaurants/bars), accommodation (not a specific accommodation, although comment could be made on the suitability of the range of accommodation available for the relevant tourist type) , transport to, transport around, (all the things you mentioned in welcome meeting) etc

Evaluated the options, this means you may need to weigh up a number of possible courses of action and decide which is likely to be best so talk about positives and negatives and then decide e.g. good to go to Paris at his time of the year for this reason however this means you miss this. I believe they should….

Discussed the future popularity of the area and reasons for this such as, exchange rate, transport options, security, price, environmental impacts on flight availability, competition from other destinations, will the destination still be fashionable etc

Used data to back up claims on future popularity e.g. graphs, charts, statistics

Above all else make sure your recommendations make specific reference to the different types of holidaymakers and what would suit their needs

Remember you are aiming for….

Mark band 4

Working independently, candidates make appropriate recommendations to a wide range of potential customers based on detailed evaluation of each destination’s appeal. In-depth evaluation, making appropriate and valid predictions of each destination’s likely future popularity. Candidates use written expression which conveys appropriate meaning within developed subject matter.