LADIES COLLEGE- COLOMBO 7

MAY 2014

ANSWER KEY

9
2014

QUESTION 1- (Refer figure 1 on the insertion)

1.

2.
a.

b.

Identify four products and services provided by Arabian Adventures [4]

Leisure, cruise, Corporate and MICE
Multi lingual staff
Professional Associates throughout the Gulf
Destination management arrangements
Fleet of luxury vehicles
Consumer collateral
Arabian Adventures is a public sector travel and tourism organisation. State two services rendered by a
public sector organisation [2]
Creating an institutional framework for tourism development
Increase the attractiveness of tourism destinations and improve their management
Investment in tourism and community infrastructure
Development of SMEs
Improvement and construction of corridors
Incentives for education and employment increase
Suggest two reasons why organisations such as Arabian Adventures need to continuously develop their
products and services [2]
Face the competition
Benchmarking
Avoid stagnation
Attract new markets/ consumers
Rejuvenation
Enhance reputation
Increase loyalty and customer satisfaction
Improve staff morale and contribution

c. Identify two differences between a tour operator and a travel agent [2]
Tour Operator
A tour operator is a company that has tours to destinations. People go on tours with a tour operator. Examples of
tour operators are American Express, Globus Gateway, and Tauck Tours.
A tour operator is the person responsible for actual arrangements of transport and accommodation facilities in
any tour or vacations. The hotel, the conveyance, the flight, and all other amenities and facilities are looked after
by tour operators. All the finer aspects of a tour are the responsibilities of the tour operators. A tour operator has
greater stakes attached with a vacation, and he is also the person who derives maximum benefits through a deal.
However, he is also the one who has to sweat right from the preparations to the time when the tourists finally
return to the starting point.

Travel Agent
A travel agent helps people book airline reservations, hotel reservations, car rentals, cruises, and tours. A travel
agent works for a travel agency which may be a small business or a large company.
The inclusion of the word agent in travel agent gives a clue to the role and functioning of these people. A travel
agent sells attractive tour packages to people interested in vacations. In fact, travel agents are middlemen
between tour operators and prospective clients as these people have a client base and are expert in matching
tours and vacations according to the needs and requirements of their clients. Travel agents have various packages
under their belt and can help a family looking for vacation destinations an ideal tour, customizing the package to
make it tailor made for a family. Families go up to travel agents with specific budget, tentative travel dates, and
preferred destinations, and it is the job of a travel agent to match the requirements of a family with the best
available vacation plan at his disposal. This they do after consulting with tour operators and the plans they have.

What is the difference between Travel Agent and Tour Operator?

While both tour operators and travel agents are involved in providing a tourist with relaxing and wonderful
vacations, there are differences in roles and functions between the two.
A travel agent is like a waiter at a restaurant as he welcomes the guests and takes orders that are prepared by the
tour operator.
A travel agent has many vacation packages under his belt, and he suggests or recommends tour plans to their
clients based upon their budgets and other requirements.
A tour operator has the responsibility to look after the finer details of a vacation or tour such as hotel,
accommodation, meals, conveyance etc.
With a tour operator taking up the bulk of the responsibilities, his fee is obviously much greater than that of a travel
agent.
With the advent of the internet, more tour operators have obliterated the need of travel agents and are directly
providing their services to their clients.
However, there are people who love to go the traditional way by involving a travel agent before embarking on a
vacation.
Thomas Cook and Cox and Kings are two of the most popular travel agencies of the world.

3. Arabian Adventures is a company acquired by the Emirates Group through vertical integration. Briefly
explain why tourism organisations engage in vertical integration [6]- Thomas Cook
Maximise and retain profits, Negotiated internal agreements can bring discounts to customers
Cheaper and quality assured ,Control over what is sold, Less dependency on other suppliers, Guaranteed line
of supply, Career opportunities to staff, Increased incentives
4. Destination Management companies are responsible for the growth of tourism in countries. Assess how
Arabian Adventures can the work with stakeholders in tourism development [9]
Maximising visitor spending, increasing multiplier effect, developing infrastructure, tourism education and
awareness, planning and control, using the principles of sustainable tourism, intra regional co operations,
training development and employing locals, sharing resources, internal sharing,

QUESTION 2 (Refer to figure 2 on the insertion)

1.

Name the two managing bodies under which the new projects will operate [2]
PHRI (Indonesian Hotels and Restaurants Association).
Bali Tourism Promotion Body (BPPD).

2.
a. State four ways by which the Indonesian Tourist Board can assist in developing the destination for
the identified niche markets. [4]
Weddings Promotions, Incentives, legal advice, marketing campaigns, registration of businesses,
standardize services for customers, preserve local customs and traditions
MICE promotions, marketing campaigns, incentives, infrastructure development, promote SMEs and self
employment, soft loans,
b. The identified niche tourism can have social, cultural and economic impacts on the host population,
Describe briefly two such impacts of one chosen niche market [4]
Weddings illegal marriages, Westernization, Demonstration effect, leakages, promoting local culture,
multiplier effect,
MICE High COL, Environmental imbalance with development, improved infrastructure, investments
3. Briefly explain three ancillary services that can be offered in MICE tourism [6]
FIT services, leisure activities, drivers, multilingual staff, luxury vehicles, overseas reps, destination guides,
turnarounds, team building activities, inspiring venues, Airport parking, Luggage transportation, Event tickets
Insurance, Car hire, Foreign exchange, Tour guide, Equipment hire, Passport and visa services
4. With reference to a destination you are familiar with evaluate the impact of changing consumer needs and
expectations of a tourism destination [9]
Variety exposure, wonderlust
Quality disposable income
More short breaks stress relievers, family time
Globalization businesses, VFR
Intra regional travelling

QUESTION 3 (Refer to figure 3 on the insertion)

1.

Identify four services offered to package tourists at Pita Maha Resort [4]
All in-house facilities

2. Describe two internal pressures that the resort might face and how they would handle them [2]
Maintaining standards
Consolidating business
Leakages
3. State four ways by which the resort might contribute towards the socio-economic growth of the residents of
Ubud [4]

Employ local staff

SMEs multiplier effect
Improve/ contribute to infrastructure development
Environmental consciousness

4. Pressure groups can create impact on the operations of a commercial tourism organisation. Suggest three
such pressure groups and explain how they can work with Pita Maha Resort. [6]

Environmental
Cultural
Local business

5. Managers have to motivate staff to deliver high quality customer service. Justify the range of approaches
and techniques that can be used to motivate the staff [9]

Incentives
Empowering
Training
International exposure
Targets

QUESTION 4 (Refer to figure 4 on the insertion)

1.

Identify two ways by which the FTAs can enhance tourism in the region [2]
Brings economies together
Stimulate travel
Increase mobility

2.
a. Identify two countries with outbound travellers greater than Korea in 2010 [2]
India, Japan, China

b. Describe briefly two areas that can be considered important when benchmarking tourism products [4]
c. : Process of comparing performance and activities among similar organizations either against an agreed
standard or against those that are recognized as being among the best
Mystery Shoppers
Advantages
Disadvantages
Offers deep insights into feelings and motivations Raises issues by observing people without their
behind services and practice
knowledge
Experience is natural and not contrived for the
Based on assumption that needs to be made explicit
sake of observer
and addressed
Serves as a management tool for improving
Information collected may be biased as a result of
standards in customer service by providing
arbitrary or careless selection of observation periods or
actionable recommendations
prejudices
Ideal for investigating services
In the long term, advantages for improving customer
service can wear off if not integrated with other
measures delivery process
Serves as management tool for HRM
Can be very costly and time consuming

3. Mobility of people engaged in trade activities in the region is considered important to the growth in tourism.
Briefly explain the requirements of travellers engaged in trade in a destination [6]
Accessibility
Accommodation
Amenities- wi fi, gym, meeting rooms, wake up calls, laundry, pool, hotel taxi, conference equipment,
PR,
Ancillaries- visa, luggage, taxis, guides, chauffer, foreign exchange, airport parking, event tickets,
insurance
4. Evaluate the external pressures organisations have to deal with when providing products and services
mainly for the domestic market [9]
Stakeholders
Investors
Employees
Governments
Shareholders
Pressure groups
Local businesses

Political situation, economic growth and GDP, technological advancement, perishability, seasonality,
social norms and expectations, mass markets/ visits, honey-pot sites, lack of infrastructure, open skies
and FTAs, leakages, price stability,

TOTAL 25 MARKS