What Travel Agents Do?

Important Types of Tour Operators

1. Inbound Tour Operator:

Tour operators who deal and handle directly inbound foreign tourists, provide them various services on their arrival and departure such as transfer, accommodation, transportation, sightseeing, entertainment, currency, insurance services etc. are known as inbound tour operators.

These tour operators formulate tour package individually or in collaboration with foreign tour operators. The packages may be marketed directly or by means of the intermediaries. In fact, inbound tour operators are the ‘image’ builders of a country as they convert all touristic resources of a nation into a saleable commodity.

2. Outbound Tour Operator:

These categories of operators are specialized in promoting and designing multi-national tours especially foreign countries. The outbound tour operator sells a package tour to an individual or a group of people of his own country to another country.

3. Domestic Tour Operator:

A domestic tour operator refers to a person who makes arrangements for transport, accommodation, sightseeing, entertainment and other tourism related services for domestic tourists.

Generally, domestic tour operators operate within the boundary of home country and cater the diverse needs of individual and group travelers.

In fact, they are contributing to the cause of national integration.

4. Ground Operator:

Person or firm that provides ground services (such as accommodation, sightseeing, local transportation) to arriving passengers. Also called purveyor.

a tour operator must consider service concept to compete others and to match the demands of the travelers. He should arrange, plan and manage the travel services/ingredients – travel information, travel tickets, travel documents, itinerary, accommodation, transportation, car rental, cruise ship, travel insurance, currency, and other ground services in an efficient, extensive and profitable manner

However, in the operational aspect, service delivery process is very complex and complicated, which requires strategic management.

Travel agents sell transportation, lodging, and admission to entertainment activities to individuals and groups who are planning trips. They offer advice on destinations, plan trip itineraries, and make travel arrangements for clients.

Travel agents help travelers by sorting through vast amounts of information to find the best possible travel arrangements.

Travel agents may also visit destinations to get first-hand experience so they can make recommendations to clients or colleagues. They may visit hotels, resorts, and restaurants to evaluate the comfort, cleanliness, and quality of the establishment. However, most of their time is spent talking with clients, promoting tours, and contacting airlines and hotels to make travel arrangements.

Some of the duties of travel agents are: booking hotel rooms and flights for clients, advising clients on travel destinations, following travel and tourism trends and attending travel seminars to gather industry trends.

Дата добавления: 2014-12-23