Tourist Operation Management Report: Trends and Decisions

This report delves into the intricacies of tourist operation management, using Trailfinders Ltd. as a case study. It begins by examining the effects of current trends and developments, such as technological advancements and globalization, on the tour operator industry. The report then explores the stages and timescales involved in developing holidays, including research, itinerary preparation, pricing, and promotion. Different methods of contracting for holiday components are also discussed, along with strategic and tactical decision-making processes. The report provides a comprehensive analysis of the industry, covering topics such as fixed and allocation contracts, methods of distribution, and the role of governing bodies like ABTA and ATOL. The assignment provides insights into how tour operators adapt to changing customer needs and industry dynamics.

Tourist Operation
Management

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
TASK 1............................................................................................................................................3
P1. The effects of current and recent trends and developments on the tour operators industry. 3
TASK 2............................................................................................................................................5
P2.1. Stages and timescales involved in developing holidays................................................5
P2.2 Different methods of contracting for different components of the holiday and different
types of tour operator..............................................................................................................7
P2.3. Calculate the selling price of a holiday from given information above........................7
TASK 3 ...........................................................................................................................................8
P3.1 Planning decisions taken for the design of a selected brochure ....................................8
P3.2.Traditional brochure for different types of tour operators...........................................12
P3.3 Different methods of distribution used to sell a holiday package...............................13
TASK 4..........................................................................................................................................14
P4.1. Strategic decisions made by different types of tour operator......................................14
4.2 Compare the tactical decisions that could be taken by Trail finder in different situations15
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................16
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................17

INTRODUCTION
Management of travel and tour is the imperative task in which organisation prepare
holiday plans or packages along with the details related to tour. This process attracts visitors
across the nation and enhances sales turnover of tour operator. They are those people who
provide holiday packages and manage them, they advertise and produce brochures to promote
their products, holidays and itineraries. This assignment based on Trail-finders Ltd., it is a travel
company which is founded by Mike Gooley in 1970. It is the largest independently owned travel
company in the United Kingdom, and has 31 travel centrers in the UK and in Ireland (Al-Odeh
and Smallwood, 2012). The company operate its business internationally including Australia,
New Zealand, North& South America, Asia& Africa. In this report discussed about the effects of
current and recent trends and developments on the tour operation industry. The stages and
timescale involved in holidays, different methods of contracting of various components of the
holiday and types of operator are explained. The strategic and tactical decision making for
different tour operators in different situations are defined in the assignment.
TASK 1
P1. The effects of current and recent trends and developments on the tour operators industry
Tour operator
It is a company that provide holidays in which travel and accommodation are booked by
the client (Waligo, Clarke and Hawkins, 2013). Tour operator combines tour and travel
components to create a package holiday. They provide general and specific advice about
different travel destinations and make arrangements for transport, accommodation, tours and
others.
Current and recent trends and developments on the tour operators industry
There are various current and recent tends and development occurs in tourism industry
cause of changes in technologies, customers needs and demands or cause of globalization.
Technological development- This factor create development in tourism industry by
providing various technologies such as internet, smartphone and others. Through HR department,
the organisations can hired skilled people that have good technological knowledge. Research and
development department by doing research through individual websites, Tour operation industry
can provide its information related to tour packages to its customers. With the help of it,

travellers who prefer to not work with a travel agent can easily complete necessary research and
select the vendors with the best prices (B. DiPietro, Cao and Partlow, 2013). there are various
current and recent trends are occur in this industry such as mobile applications, online booking
etc. Consumers can book travel online and they can check their flight status through a website or
a mobile app. The company can promote its product by using online promotional channels and
with the help of travel apps, customer can aware about trip and communicate with the travelling
company when facing problem in tour.
Globalization- It is eliminating the boundaries of countries which is impacted on the tour
and travel industry by enhancing productivity and profitability of the industry (Battini, Boysen
and Emde, 2013). In travel industry, globalisation induced economic growth, cause of
globalisation people can easily travel one country to another country. Globalization create
various positive effect such as economic development, employment opportunities, spread of
technical knowledge, the developments of new products and markets, new consumer values,
environmental and socio cultural changes etc. In tourism industry it help by providing various
opportunities to expend the business of travel industry. It is beneficial for tour industry because it
help in the business of this industry such as providing international tour packages, trading goods
and products international etc.
Infrastructure development- Tourism infrastructure is related to accommodation
facilities, food and beverage facilities, accompanying facilities and communication facilities. In
past time travel were travelling through roads and ships but in present and current trends they
have various other transportation modes such as air way which help in the development of the
tourism industry. In tour operation industry, it help in the development of travel companies by
providing various transportation facilities, health care facilities and others.
Governing bodies that regulate the industry
These bodies exist to make sure that all travel and tourism operates serves the travelling
public safety, fairly and efficiently. There are various government bodies that help in regulating
the travel industry, they are as following:
ABTA( Association of British Travel Agents)- I t is government body that is founded by
British government over 60 years ago. It is the UK's largest association, representing travel
agents and tour operators and provide insurance for holidaymakers in the event of financial
problems for travel companies. This government body provide protection to all kind of travelling

or transportation such as airways, sea based and road transport. If the travellers cancel their
travelling, ABTA members provide protection to the customers monies by the ABTA scheme of
financial protection.
ATOL( Air Travel Organiser's License)- this scheme exists to protect consumers if their
travel organiser should fail (Carlisle and et al., 2013.). The first ATOL regulations requiring
business to hold a licence were introduced in the 1970 and after some time they have been
replaced with the new regulation 1955 and again in 2012. ATOL is the UK's financial protection
scheme and protects the traveller when they book a holiday with UK ATOL holder. It provide
protection to the money of customers.
CAA( Civil Aviation Authority)- it is a British authority that controls the operation of the
air travel industry specially by designing safety rules and directing the traffic of planes in the
UK. This government regulatory body founded in 1975 and it is responsible fro the regulation of
aviation safety in the UK. This body provide protection related to infrastructure, environment,
safety, consumer issues and consumer products.
TASK 2
P2.1. Stages and timescales involved in developing holidays
There are various factors that impacted the process to plan holiday with defining
timescale with it. There are various stages which are involved in the planning process, they are as
following:
Researching the place- In this stage, the manger of Trail-finder, doing research for the
effective place which can be appropriate destination for the tour package which is made by the
company to its customers. For this, the product development department of the company can do
market research and find out its customers need and their taste or preference and include them in
their tour package. For doing the research to search place or destinations the management
department of organisation have time of 8 days so that they can provide a good tour package to
their consumers. For doing the research process fro destination, they can collect the information
from the feedback of client that which location or destination are liked by most to them. This will
make their research process and they will provide suitable destination according the consumers
needs.
Preparing itinerary- Tour itinerary is a tourist rout that includes visits to various
historical places, natural attractions and palaces of cultural interest. It is process of developing

holiday by making effective plan by selecting various activities include destinations,
accommodation and transportation facilities etc. It provide a overview of overall holiday package
(Berne, Garcia-Gonzalez and Mugica, 2012). In Trail-finder, there are a plan preparing for
educational tour for adult students from London, the UK to Brussels and Brugge, Belgium. The
proposed group size is 50 students per group and the tour is for 5 nights in Brugge. For preparing
itinerary, the management department of the company will take 3 days so that they can properly
manage the holiday package. By preparing itinerary, the company can provide a special tour
package according consumer needs and their according their budget.
Pricing of package- It is related to the cost of the holiday package which is mange by the
company. In Trail-finder, it is related to the pricing methods and strategies which are used by
the company for its products (Buckley, 2012). It can be related to foreign exchange rates,
transportation cost, accommodation price and transportation cost, tax framework of various
countries. The management department of the company will needed 5 days to set or make pricing
strategies for holiday package. In this process, the company can prepare a holiday package
according the client budget so that they did not face any problems during their travelling. The
company can take time know about the pricing strategy of different things such as hotels,
transportation and food etc. and make tour package according the consumers.
Promotion of holiday package- This stage is basically related to the promotional and
advertisement channels which are used by the travel company to promotes its business of tour
package. In Trail-finder, the company use these channels to aware the customers about its tour
package. For doing this process it can use various promotional channels such as radio, TV,
newspaper, social media and others. 6 days will be required or needed for promotion and making
promotional strategies by the management department of the organisation. So that the
organisation can adopt that promotional technology which help it to attract more consumers.
Social media is a best option for promoting its tour package because now these most of the
population use it and here the company can introduce them about their holiday package by video,
destination picture that attract more consumers.
Implication of the plan- In this stage, in Trail-finder, the company implement its plan or
come it in process by selling its tour package according the customer's needs. When the client
will use its tour package, the company get feedback about the holiday package or if they face any
problem, it will try to resolve that. 10 days time will be taken by the management department of

the company to implement this tour or holiday plan. It is sufficient for the management
department of the company because they already prepare all things which include in the holiday
package.
P2.2 Different methods of contracting for different components of the holiday and different types
of tour operator
Methods of contracting
There are different types of contract, they are as following:
Fixed contract- In Trail-finder, it is related to a contract in which all services and
benefits which are provide by company in its package are fixed. In this contract, customer can
not add and remove any extra benefits or services. In this contract, the level of risk is high
because there are less customers. For example, the company can make change in transportation
services of the tour package because all of the components are fixed in this contract. So there are
no changes can be make by the company because the tour operate of the company design some
tour package according fixed contract.
Allocation Contract- In Trail-finder, it is contract based activity which is designed
according the customers needs and taste or preference. In it customer can make changes in
services an benefits according their needs. It is beneficial for the company because consumer
prefer it at a large level. For example, the organisation can make change in various components
such as room services, transportation services and meal services etc. For example, in this kind of
tour package, the company make change in holiday package according the consumers needs. If
the client want to go to London than it can make change in the destination and others services.
Ad-hoc contract-In Trail-finder, it is contract which is not fixed and not designed
according the customer. It can provide services to the customer when they meet and can cancel
their services. For example, if a customer booked a room in a hotel and if there are arising any
problem it can be cancelled by the tourism company (Cabiddu, Lui and Piccoli, 2013). The
customer can make change in their services of the holiday package such as by informing to
arrange meeting hall etc. If there are any urgency and client travelling trough train and they can
make change in it and if the client need want to do travel by airway. They can make change
according the sudden arising situation.
P2.3. Calculate the selling price of a holiday from given information above:
Given: Spot exchange rate= 1.14 € = 1£

Particulars Amount in Euro
Room and Breakfast Cost (89 euro per person x 50 Students ) 4450
Luxury Coach Cost including fuel and all road and furry taxes) 6949
Visitor Charges Cost (€ 45.6 per person * 50 Students)
Exchange rate @ 1.14
2000
Local Tour guide cost (€896 / Exchange rate @ 1.14) 785.95
Total Cost 14184.95
Add: Markup @28% (14184.95 x 28%) 3971.79
Selling Price of package (12486.8*100/72) 18156.74
TASK 3
P3.1 Planning decisions taken for the design of a selected brochure
Planning is an important part for implementation of the brochure for meeting the
objectives of informing maximum number of people and lower cost which help the company to
increase the profit of the company (Ellison and Boyd, 2013). Trial finder can make an effective
plans and strategies to perform during designing of brochure. There are two different tour
operator such as Trail finder and Holiday Inn and planning decision of them are as following:
Cost- It is related to the amount that invest in designing of the brochures related to print
brochures and other activities. Trail finders need to find out all that cost which is invested in
designing the brochure. For example, Trail finder and Holiday inn both invest money when they
print designs and pictures of destinations on the brochures that incurred cost.
Budgeting- It is related to the cost which is invested on designing the brochure (Jaafar
and Maideen, 2012). In Trail-finder, it is depend on the company, if company designed online
brochure then it invest money on software or other technologies that incurred less cost than
offline. If the company designed paper based brochure is need paper and others thing that
incurred more cost and for all of them the company do budgeting.
Brochure Formate-It is related to the design and graphics of the brochures. In Trail-finder, the
company always designed a brochure which keeping or setting its image in the customers mind
and attract them. In brochure of Trail finder, it include all the needed information which is

necessary for the customer about the tour package like, company name, price, information about
the services which is provided by the company such as transportation, accommodation and
others.

Target market of brochure- In this, Trail finder designed the brochure according their
customers such if a family go for tour, they involve information and images about visiting place
and others. They include that information which attract their customers according their interest.
To collect this information they do market research. For example, in Trail-finder, the company
designed brochure for the students in which it include information and pictures related to
adventures activities and youth enjoying the holidays. The quality of Trail finder brochure is
high as compare to Holiday Inn to target customer belong to upper class segment.
Time scale and action plan- It can be related to the time which is consumed the brochure
designing process. An action plan has to be made so that the activities can be completed within
the decided time (KhairatPF and Maher, 2012).

It is concluded from the above information that there are various problem faced by
Holiday Inn cause of their Brochures and they are needed to focus on the quality and information
that they provided in their brochure. According to the brochures of Trail finder, they provide the
clear and relevant information and pictures of the destinations that are helpful for the company to
attract the consumers. The quality of the brochures are depend on the size, cost, font, images and
anything which is provided in it and it is important for the companies to focus in this aspects.
P3.2.Traditional brochure for different types of tour operators
Traditional brochure
These brochure are printed and effective an appropriate information and material are
presented in printed form of the brochures. These are important for the business of Trail-finder

because they attract customer and increase the sales of the company. A printed brochure
generally has a longer lasting impact on the audience than a online version. There are various
alternatives, they are as following:
E-brochure- It is a type of brochure that is used by the company to market and advertise
the organisation. It basically establishes the identity of the business of the company which
include information about the product and services that are provided by the company. An E-
brochure is more like a printed medium on the web. These brochures are beneficial because there
are information can be easily changed whenever company want. For example, this brochure is
important for inbound tour operators because mostly they deal with foreign tourist and provide
various services in their package according their needs. If the tour operator deal with different
countries customers it is an important brochure for them because it help them to provide correct
information to their various different counties clients and attract them regarding the holiday
p0ackage.
Social media- It is a medium which is capable to provide information and necessary data
to the company. With the help of social media company can promote its business such as holiday
package, tour packages and other services which the company provide to its customers. For
example, this brochure is important for outbound tour operator because they sells their products
to individuals and groups and they can use social media for that. In this brochure the tour
operator can provide all information to the client and attract them towards the holiday package.
Through social media, they can provide pictures, video clips of the destination which help the
company to attract more consumers.
For Trial finder, social media is important because by using it the company can make
promotion of its holiday package and can attract more existing and new customers. It can design
various multinational tour package according different customers needs.
P3.3 Different methods of distribution used to sell a holiday package
Company use various methods of distribution to sell a holiday package, they are as
following:
Direct sells- It is a selling process in which company directly sells its products to the
customers and identifying their needs and wants provide them holiday package which provide
satisfaction to them (Kotiloglu and et. al., 2017). It is important for the company because in this
the company directly communicate with the customer and identified their desires and problems