Handout 2 Flashcards
Travel Agency assists individuals or groups who wish to do any of the following
o Take trips
o Plan different itineraries
o Make a reservation for tours, transportations, and hotels
o Obtain or prepare airline tickets
o Perform other related services
A travel agency can serve as the source of information, especially for first-time travelers. It can provide a brief history, culture of the people, and specialties of a traveler’s target destination
Provide information and expertise
A travel agency can recommend a specific mode of transportation or an airline schedule that best suits the client’s location preference, budget, and the purpose of the travel itself.
Recommend a particular destination, suppliers, products, and services that tailor fit the needs of the client
A travel agency can assist in securing the necessary travel documents, such as a passport, a visa, and immigration clearances.
Assist in securing tourist or business travel documents
an official travel document provided by the government of a country which proves that the owner is a citizen of that particular country. It also allows people to travel overseas.
passport
an official document or mark made on a passport that will enable one to enter or leave a particular country.
visa
A travel agency can determine the total cost of the travel arrangements and the issuance of the transportation documents and tour vouchers.
Take care of travel arrangements by placing a reservation, obtaining confirmation, and issuing corresponding tickets or tour vouchers
If the travel arrangements made for a client’s trip didn’t go as planned due to unavoidable circumstances, and legitimate claims for a refund is in order, a travel agency may assist a client to secure the refund from the supplier of services
Assist in cases of refunds and cancellations
If an accident took place during the tour or trip, the clients should be aware of what liabilities the agency can cover and which ones cannot.
Ensure the clients’ safety
travel agencies can help clients maximize their tour/trip, most especially for those who have limited time.
Make time-saving itineraries
a travel document that serves as a record of the schedule, timetable, agenda, program, tour, destination, accommodation, and mode of transportation for a trip or tour
itinerary
Skills Required in Travel Agency Management
- Verbal and written communication
- Ability to work independently and with a team
- Problem-solving
- Initiative
- Planning and organizing
- Interest and willingness to learn
- Technology-savvy
- Ability to think on one’s own feet
- Maturity
- Ability to create rapport with different kinds of people
- Confidence
- Leadership
the ability to speak clearly and directly, to establish and use
networks (people-connection) and fluency in other languages aside from English.
Verbal and written communication
the ability to know how to define one’s role as a member of a team and identify the strengths and weaknesses of team members.
Ability to work independently and with a team
the ability to develop creative, innovative, and practical solutions, to show independence and initiative to identify and solve problems, and to resolve customer concerns about complex project issues.
Problem-solving
can translate ideas into action, generate a range of options, and identify opportunities not
obvious to others.
Initiative
can manage time wisely and set priorities, can allocate people and other resources to tasks, and is resourceful.
Planning and organizing
has the enthusiasm for continuous learning, open to new ideas, and has the ability to acknowledge the need to learn to accommodate change.
Interest and willingness to learn
has a foundation of basic information technology (IT) or computer skills, which includes documentation, research and support, and able to use IT to organize data and use technology as a means of communication.
Technology-savvy
the ability to think and react quickly
Ability to think on one’s own feet
has a sense of responsibility.
Maturity
has no issue to work across different ages irrespective of gender, race, religion, or political persuasion.
Ability to create rapport with different kinds of people
the ability to express oneself confidently and has self-recognition.
Confidence
has adaptability or the ability to adjust to change; team-oriented; being positive at all times to motivate others; and passionate in one’s craft.
Leadership
Travel Agency Revenues
- Package tour commission
- Hotel room reservation commission
- Transport booking commission
- Meetings, Incentives, Conventions and Exhibitions (MICE) commission
- Transaction of foreign exchange commission
- Insurance commission
- Revenue from bank interests
- Revenue from card payments
Travel agencies sell package tours directly to customers on the price printed on tour brochures, making them earn commissions or incentives after selling the suppliers’ products and services which are inclusive in package tours.
Package tour commission
Travel agencies generally find the sale of hotel rooms for a certain
duration as very profitable and attractive than other sources of income
Hotel room reservation commission
Earning commissions for reservation of ground transport is a traditional source that a travel agency heavily depends on while booking different types of transports for their own clients.
Transport booking commission
Travel agencies organize MICE activities for business houses and companies. Specialized event management companies deal with trade fair, exhibitions, conference, conventions, congress, political rally, and meetings of different scale and size.
Meetings, Incentives, Conventions and Exhibitions (MICE) commission
Travel agencies do the retailing of foreign currency directly to customers who plan to travel abroad
Transaction of foreign exchange commission
They also earn commission from the wholesale foreign exchange dealer for the transactions of foreign currencies
Transaction of foreign exchange commission
Travel agencies take the insurance services from insurance companies for package tours and suggest the clients to apply for an insurance policy covering medical aid in case of emergency
Insurance commission
Travel agencies receive advance payments and they get time to rotate the money or go for term deposits for which they can get interest or make down payments for borrowing loans from banks.
Revenue from bank interests
The concept of “travel now and pay later” has gained more leverage. With this, travel agencies get a percentage if their clients opt for card payment.
Revenue from card payments
Organizational Structure of a Travel Agency
- Small-sized
- Medium-sized
- Large-sized
has no more than 10 employees, with the manager supervising all the three (3) departments
Small-sized travel agency
had about 20 or so employees, with three (3) department heads
Medium-sized travel agency
has at least 30 employees headed by the managing director or a general manager—the former being a stockholder and member of the board of directors, the latter an
employee
Large-sized travel agency
