SIT07 Tourism, Hospitality and Events Training Package V3.0. SITTTSL003A Source and provide international destination information and advice SAMPLE

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1 SIT07 Tourism, Hospitality and Events Training Package V3.0 SITTTSL003A Source and provide international destination information and advice Learner guide Version 2 Training and Education Support Industry Skills Unit Meadowbank Product Code: 5644

2 Acknowledgments TAFE NSW Training and Education Support Industry Skills Unit, Meadowbank would like to acknowledge the support and assistance of the following people in the production of this learner guide. Writers Jan Jorgensen Teacher, Travel and Tourism TAFE NSW South Western Sydney Institute Leanne Courtney Teacher, Travel and Tourism TAFE NSW South Western Sydney Institute Reviewer Karin Rule A/Manager Industry Teams TAFE NSW Training and Education Support, Industry Skills Unit Meadowbank Project Manager Margaret Heathcote A/Education Programs Manager TAFE NSW Training and Education Support, Industry Skills Unit Meadowbank Enquiries Enquiries about this and other publications can be made to: Training and Education Support, Industry Skills Unit Meadowbank Level 3, Building J, See Street, MEADOWBANK NSW 2114 Tel: Fax: TAFE NSW (Training and Education Support, Industry Skills Unit Meadowbank) 2012 Copyright of this material is reserved to TAFE NSW Training and Education Support, Industry Skills Unit Meadowbank. Reproduction or transmittal in whole or in part, other than subject to the provisions of the Copyright Act, is prohibited without the written authority of TAFE NSW Training and Education Support, Industry Skills Unit Meadowbank. ISBN TAFE NSW (Training & Education Support, Industry Skills Unit Meadowbank) 2012

3 Table of contents Introduction... 7 Topic 1 Obtaining tourism destination information Sources of tourism destination information Topic 2 Providing tourism destination information Situational and descriptive tourism information World overview New Zealand and the Pacific The Pacific Asia Europe Africa North America South America Providing destination information to customers Unit summary Resource evaluation form TAFE NSW (Training & Education Support, Industry Skills Unit Meadowbank) 2012

4 Topic 1 Obtaining tourism destination information Current, accurate and relevant tourism destination information is essential for travel and tourism industry professionals. This information underpins most of the industry s activities. It is required for the development of travel itineraries and tour products. It is essential for the successful sale of tourism products to customers. To provide appropriate customer service, travel and tourism industry personnel must have a sound knowledge base covering domestic and international tourism destinations. Then, constant expanding and updating of this information is required to ensure that the details customers receive are current and accurate. When purchasing tourism products, customers quite rightly expect to receive professional information and advice. Let s consider some of the ways in which travel and tourism industry personnel develop and update their destination knowledge. You should access as many of these information sources as possible so that you can see the type and range of information available for yourself. 1.1 Sources of tourism destination information Current destination information is distributed within the travel and tourism industry in many ways. Many of these information sources can also be accessed by people outside the industry. Key sources of destination information include the following: 1. Industry principals, tour wholesalers, tour operators and national tourism organisations often employ sales representatives to visit other industry firms, particularly retail travel agents, and distribute the latest tourism destination and product information. Sales representatives may call on a regular basis or as required. 2. Many tour wholesalers hold destination and product launches, introducing new destinations and products to those working in other sectors of the travel and tourism industry. This is usually done early in the year when new tour brochures are being distributed. 3. To expand and update the knowledge of industry personnel, travel and tourism firms and organisations also hold seminars and workshops focusing on destinations and products. 4. Internet, and fax destination and product updates are a feature of the industry. This is the easiest method to reach a large number of people quickly with the latest information. 5. National tourism organisations (NTOs) and other government bodies distribute Agent s Manuals, maps, videos and other destination specific information. TAFE NSW (TES, Industry Skills Unit Meadowbank) 2012 Page 11 of 146

5 6. Where possible, industry personnel undertake educational/familiarisation visits and carries out site inspections to improve their knowledge. Educational, famils and site inspections are usually provided by principals, tour wholesalers or tour operators. 7. Destination and product updates are a feature of trade journals like Traveltrade and Travel Week. 8. The general media, particularly newspapers, journals and television, is an important source of current destination information. World news is important to travel industry personnel. We must know what is happening in destinations worldwide since this will have an impact on tourism products and services. Many newspapers and journals also have travel sections or features. Television provides travel shows and documentaries on specific destinations. Visual information of this kind is very valuable. 9. Tour brochures and other industry publications like in-flight magazines contain a wealth of destination information. 10.Travel and tourism industry trade shows open to the industry and/ or public are significant. 11.Many industry staff members undertake formal study to improve their destination knowledge (as you are doing now). 12.Informal discussion with well-travelled colleagues, customers and others is a very valuable source of current destination information. Personal travel is even better! 13.Of course, atlases, maps and publications containing maps are essential to fully understand the relationship between places and how they may be arranged in a sequence to form an itinerary. Maps provide other information too. For example, many maps indicate the distances between places. Since distance and travel time are related, this type of information is also necessary for itinerary planning. 14.Industry personnel use a range of reference books and publications to assist them in their role. These publications available both online and in print form provide advice on destination information, visa requirements, customs and health for example. 15.Travel literature is also important. It covers personal travel narratives, memoirs, biographies and photographic records of specific places or journeys. Travel literature often provides interesting insights into destinations not otherwise available, thereby adding another dimension to destination information. Page 12 of 146 TAFE NSW (TES, Industry Skills Unit Meadowbank) 2012

6 Visa requirements Complete the following short research exercises. Use a current Visa Guide or relevant Internet websites to find out the current visa requirements (for Australian passport holders), customs regulations and health/safety recommendations for the following countries: Country Egypt India Brazil Czech Republic Turkey Vietnam Japan Visa requirements Customs regulations Health recommendations Name three (3) general media publications (newspapers, magazines, journals) which have a regular travel feature or travel section. TAFE NSW (TES, Industry Skills Unit Meadowbank) 2012 Page 13 of 146

7 Visa requirements (continued) a) Name two (2) current television programs which deal with tourism destinations (travel shows or useful documentaries). b) Write a short report providing details about one (1) of these programs. Access a guidebook for an International city, town or region. List the type of information presented in the guidebook. Name and briefly describe five (5) websites which are important sources of tourism destination information. Page 14 of 146 TAFE NSW (TES, Industry Skills Unit Meadowbank) 2012

8 Visa requirements (continued) In your own words, briefly explain the following industry abbreviations. NTO famil How do travel and tourism industry principals, tour wholesalers/ operators and NTOs try to ensure that people working in other industry sectors have current, relevant and accurate destination information? Briefly describe three (3) common industry practices. TAFE NSW (TES, Industry Skills Unit Meadowbank) 2012 Page 15 of 146

9 Visa requirements (continued) List five (5) other sources of tourism destination information. Page 16 of 146 TAFE NSW (TES, Industry Skills Unit Meadowbank) 2012

10 Topic 2 Providing tourism destination information This is a very big topic because we have the whole world to cover. However, the aim is to provide you with a sound destination information knowledge base appropriate for travel and tourism industry employment. In the process, you will refine skills related to accessing, researching and updating information. These skills will enable you to expand your professional destination knowledge throughout your industry career. Always keep in mind that customers have a right to current, relevant and accurate destination information when they seek advice from a professional tourism industry employee. Since it is such a large topic, it is divided into a series of sub-topics which will take you on a journey around the world. 1. World overview 2. New Zealand and the Pacific 3. Asia 4. Europe 5. Africa 6. North America 7. South America Australia is covered in the unit SITTTSL004A Source and provide Australian destination information and advice. To assist your learning, much of the material covered in each sub-topic is presented in the form of activities for you to complete. These activities involve map work, accessing and researching information to answer short questions, and developing itinerary routes for a series of destinations. Follow the instructions carefully. Make sure that you have fully covered the material in each sub-topic before moving on to the next. Collect and read tour brochures. This is essential for the completion of some activities in each sub-topic. The information contained in brochures, particularly the photos, maps and itineraries, helps to explain the significance of specific cities, towns, regions and sites as tourist destinations. Appropriate itinerary routes are also presented clearly and logically. You will also need to access and research information from other sources for some activities. TAFE NSW (TES, Industry Skills Unit Meadowbank) 2012 Page 17 of 146

11 2.1 Situational and descriptive tourism information When it comes to destinations, our customers ask two main types of questions. Firstly, they ask questions about the location or situation of places. A typical question would be, Where is (place X)? Secondly, they ask questions focussing on descriptive information about places. A typical question would be, What is (place X) like? When customers require situational information, your task is to reply in words. You can t simply point to a map. The only way to reply to customers is to explain the location of a specific place in relation to other places. This is the basis of itineraries. The relationship between places is very important. Here is an example. A tourist in Sydney asks, Where is San Diego? How will you reply? There are many other places you can use as points of reference. An appropriate answer could be, San Diego is located on the Coast of California, USA approximately 2 hours drive south of Los Angeles. As you can see, the relationship between San Diego and three other places explains the location of San Diego itself. Many of the activities in this topic will help you to develop your situational destination knowledge. Always note how places relate to each other. Your itinerary plans will then be logical and realistic. Customer questions requiring descriptive destination information take many forms. What is the weather like? or What clothes should I take? What are the people/ lifestyle like? What are the food/ shopping facilities/public transport/money like? What is the country/sightseeing like? or What can I see and do? To provide descriptive destination information, knowledge of a range of issues is required. In order to describe destinations, you must know something about their physical geographic features, climate, peoples/cultures/lifestyles, economic patterns and practices, political issues, and key sights/attractions (including major events). Now, let s begin the task of developing the tourism destination knowledge base you require for tourism industry employment. 2.2 World overview In this sub-topic, the following will be considered: world continents, oceans and major seas latitude, longitude and time zones climate types and factors which influence climate. Issues related to peoples, cultures, lifestyles, economics and politics will also be considered. To complete the mapping activities, you will use three copies of the blank map of the world. Page 18 of 146 TAFE NSW (TES, Industry Skills Unit Meadowbank) 2012