Tour Operations Management: Functions, Roles, and Costing

Tour Operations
Management

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
MAIN BODY..................................................................................................................................3
PART 1- Exploring Tour Operating Sector.....................................................................................3
Functions and Roles of Tour Operators.......................................................................................3
Scale and Structure of the Tour Operating Industry....................................................................5
PART 2- Process of Designing and Costing a Holiday Package.....................................................6
Stages of Designing Holiday Package.........................................................................................6
Changes in Demand of Tour Operator’s Customers....................................................................8
Costing a Holiday Package..........................................................................................................9
Brochure....................................................................................................................................10
Part 3- Review of Packaged Tour Programmes.............................................................................11
Reviewing Various Packaged Tour Programmes......................................................................11
PART 4- Tactical and Strategic Decisions....................................................................................12
Strategic and Tactical Decision Making in Tour Operators......................................................12
External Factors that have an Adverse Impact on Tactical and Strategic Decision Making.....13
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................14
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................15

INTRODUCTION
A tour operator is a business organisation that tries to combine the components of tourism
and travel operations in order to effectively design and create a dedicated holiday package for the
tourists and consumers within the travel and tourism industry. There are various different types
of tour operators with their roles and functions varying accordingly (Holland and Leslie, 2017).
This report analyses the tour operations management functions of TUI, which is an international
organisation that has operated within the travel and tourism industry even since in foundation in
1923, 97 years ago. TUI operates from its headquarters in Berlin and Hannover in Germany and
through its expanded and diversified operations has been able to become the largest travel,
leisure and tourism business organisation in the entire world. TUI owns various travel agencies,
retail stores, airlines, hotels, cruise ships in order to effectively conduct their operations within
the travel and tourism industry and also has come to own the biggest holiday fleet in entire
Europe, through TUI owning five different European airlines. This report places focus on the
tour operator functions of TUI which are conducted by its numerous subsidiaries such as the
First Choice Holiday Limited in the UK, Sunwing Travel Group in Canada, TUI UK Limited in
the UK etc.
MAIN BODY
PART 1- Exploring Tour Operating Sector
Functions and Roles of Tour Operators
The functions and roles of tour operators are quite varied and important within the travel
and tourism industry as they are service providers to the customers of the industry, providing
customers with packaged holiday deals that are effectively able to satisfy their needs, demands,
requirements and preferences. The main roles and functions of tour operators are as follows:
Tour Planning: One of the most important and significant roles of a tour operator relates to them
effectively planning the entire tour in order for their customers to not face any kinds of issues,
problems or challenges during their holiday and have an overall enjoyable and pleasurable

experience through the tour operator, so that their long term loyalty can be effectively retained
by the tour operator (Masele, 2019). For the successful long term operations of tour operators,
tour planning is an essential role and function.
Designing Tour Package: Another major role of tour operators relates to them designing the
tour package for their customers to purchase. This requires them to buy individual travel
components themselves, separately from the various different suppliers within the external
environments and combine these into one single holiday package for their customer to make use
of towards their holiday operations. The tour operator combines the individual travel components
bought by them into one package and charges the customers for this package as per their need
and demand.
Arranging for Tour: Arranging for tour is also an important roles and function of a tour operator
as man of the tour packages are created dedicatedly based on the customer’s individual demands,
requirements, needs and preferences and it is the role of the tour operator to be able to effectively
arrange a tour based on the wishes, preferences and demands of their customers.
Gathering Relevant Travel Information: Another major function of the tour operator relates to
them having to provide their customers with all the relevant and valuable information that might
be required by them for their holiday operations. The tour operator are required to possess all the
necessary information related to transportation, accommodation, travel destination that their
customers might require.
Reservations: Another immensely important role of tour operators pertains to them having to
make all the due reservations for their customer’s holiday packages and operations by linking
and interacting with the transportation providers, accommodation providers, event holders etc.,
in order to reserve a place, seat or room for their own clients and customers, so that they can
have a stress free enjoyable and relaxing overall holiday with no issues or problems.
Promotion: The tour operator’s role also requires him to effectively advertise and promote to the
audiences in the external markets about the holiday deals and packages that have already been
created by the tour operator, so that the potential customers from external markets can become
interested with the operations of the tour operator and their created tour packages and engage in
financial transaction with the tour operator by purchasing their created holiday deal or package