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5.it’s tour rep’s responsibility the guests after to look.
6.at the airport the guests up tour reps pick.
7.the itinerary up she drew.
8.her uncle her up put for a few nights.
Listening and reading |
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Listen to the tape and read the text. |
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Pre-reading
In what way(s) do you think selling space on an aircraft differs from selling cars, food or other consumer goods?
Skim and scan
1. Which of the following words would you expect to find in a text with the title “The tour operator”? When you check your choices against the text, make sure you understand the words. 
budget |
stock |
pricing |
volunteer |
conservative |
fixed |
institution |
flight |
sell |
loan |
retail |
customer |
profit |
brand |
passenger |
alliance |
revenue |
variable |
costs |
negotiate |
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2. In the text the abbreviation is used which refers to a packaged tour, i.e. a tour which 
includes both flight and accommodation. What is the abbreviation? What does it stand for?
The tour operator
From the 1950s onwards tour operators have been very useful to transport carriers, especially airlines. If a carrier knows he will have vacant seats on a journey, rather than leave them empty it is worth offering them at almost any price to someone who can fill them. Let us take an example.
Example
Suppose the fixed cost of flying a 100-seat plane from London to Athens and back is
£8000 (that includes capital costs, fuel, crew’s wages and so on). Suppose also the additional, or variable, cost per passenger is £10 (to cover writing a ticket, in-flight refreshments and so on). If the airline wants to budget for a small profit and knows it normally sells sixty seats, then the pricing looks like this:
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Fixed costs |
£8000 |
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60 passengers x £10 |
600 |
Cost of return flight |
£8600 |
Sell 60 tickets at £144 each |
£8640 |
Profit |
£40 |
Of course, if only fifty-nine passengers show up then sales drop by £144, costs by only £94. This is a very risky business!
This is where the tour operator proves useful. By agreeing to purchase in bulk, say, twenty-five seats, he can virtually ensure that the airline will fly at a profit. The question arises: What should the ticket price be?
As far as the airline is concerned, anything above £10 a head will be profitable, as the fixed costs are already paid for. The tour operator will want the lowest price possible to ensure he can resell all twenty-five seats. Obviously customers are not willing to pay anything like £144 or else they would already have bought tickets directly from the airline.
Perhaps airline and tour operator negotiate and fix the price of £60 per head. The
airline’s budget now looks like this: |
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Fixed costs |
£8000 |
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85 passengers* x £10 |
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850 |
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Cost of return flight |
£8850 |
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Sell 60 tickets at £144 each |
£8640 |
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Sell 25 tickets to tour operator |
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at £60 each |
1500 |
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Revenue |
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£10140 |
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Profit |
£1290 |
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*Assuming the tour operator will reserve all his twenty-five seats.
The airline should now be happy; even if it loses three or four passengers it will still be in profit.
The tour operator now has the onus of selling the seats, which may entail heavy costs, but as long as he is sensible he should be able to resell at a reasonable and profitable price.
To ensure that tour operators do not poach carriers’ existing passengers, carriers have in the past imposed various conditions on the resale of tickets. The main condition has been that the tour operator must build the journey in as part of a package or IT. Other conditions from time to time have been:
a)a fixed or minimum length of stay permitted at the destination;
b)a minimum (or maximum) advance booking period;
c) a minimum price at which the IT can be sold; |
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55
d) stipulation of the type of customer (such as a group).
These conditions have all been used to protect carriers’ existing business, but have been progressively relaxed as tour operators and carriers have become more interdependent.
From filling empty seats on a particular journey, tour operator progressed to chartering whole planes or other vehicles that were unused for a period of time. The proportion of fixed costs, and consequently the potential saving in ticket price, was rather less, but still provided carriers and operators with exploitable opportunities. Eventually many tour operators came to own their own planes, coaches or railway carriages. The economic value of this lies not in the discount buying as above but in economies of scale,
controlling one’s own transport and ensuring it is fully and efficiently used. |
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“The Business of Tourism”, Holloway, J. |
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Christopher (MacDonald & Evans), 3rd edn, 2001 |
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Notes on the text
1.capital costs – капитальные издержки, затраты
2.variable costs – непостоянные затраты
3.fixed costs – постоянные издержки
4.refreshments – освежающие напитки, закуски
5.to budget for - предусматривать в бюджет
6.onus – бремя; ответственность
7.in bulk – оптом, гуртом
8.stipulation – условие, соглашение
9.the economies of scale – экономия на масштабе
Vocabulary
1. Find words or phrases from the text which, in the context, are closest in meaning 
to the following.
a)buy tickets as expected
b)a large number at the same time
c)per passenger
d)responsibility
e)lead
f)persuade (someone) to switch
g)precondition
h)used as a basis for making money
i)savings produced by dealing in large quantities
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Comprehension |
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1. |
What is the difference between fixed costs and variable costs? Give examples |
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of each with reference to airline operation. |
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2. |
Why it is in an airline’s best interest to sell seats “at almost any price” rather |
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than leave them empty? |
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3. |
In what ways are tour operators “useful” to airline companies? |
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4. |
The following is part of the budget for a coach tour. |
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Coach capacity |
– 50 |
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Fixed costs |
– $1500 |
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Variable costs |
– $5 per passenger |
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a) |
If tour operator knows in advance that 30 seats can be sold and wants to |
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budget for a profit of $150, at what price should the individual seats be sold? |
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b) Suppose a social club now offers to buy the remaining seats at $35 each. How |
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much additional profit will that produce for the coach operator? |
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c) |
How many of the 30 passengers originally budgeted for can the operator now |
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afford to lose and still make a profit? |
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5. |
Why do airlines sometimes |
impose conditions on tour operators who buy |
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blocks of seats from them?
6. What potential advantages to tour operators are there in owning their own planes?
Sum up the information you’ve learned from the text.
Reading
Pre-reading
If you were planning a holiday trip, what are some of the arrangements you might need to make?
Would you ask a travel company to take care of these arrangements, or would you prefer to make some or all of them yourself?
What are the advantages and disadvantages of each way?
Skim and scan
Choose a heading for each paragraph of the text by putting a paragraph number in the appropriate box.
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57 |
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Heading |
Paragraph number |
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a) |
Destination amenities |
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b) |
Roles of travel agent and tour operator |
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c) |
Pressure groups |
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d) |
Definition of tourist services |
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e) |
Definition and importance of “destination” |
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f) |
Destination accessibility |
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g) |
Destination attractions |
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a)h) Tourism organization |
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The components of tourism
A major component of tourism is location. The location of tourism is known as the tourist destination and its importance depends upon three major factors:
Attractions
Accessibility
Amenities
The attractions of a destination can be either natural, such as the climate, or humanmade, such as historical buildings. Attractions can also be events such as festivals, exhibitions and congresses.
Accessibility is related to the distance from centres of population, or to tourist generating regions, and to the transport facilities. Time taken to get to tourist destination is also important in relation to accessibility.
Amenities at the location include entertainment, accommodation and catering facilities, as well as local transport services. At the destination there is usually some tourist organization which provides the framework within which tourist operates.
The journey undertaken by tourists and their stay in the destination give rise to tourist services. These include transport for passengers to the location, as well as accommodation, catering and entertainment at the destination.
In the past 35 years the growth of overseas tourism has increased the importance of two 
service providers. The travel agent and the tour operator. The travel agent acts as an intermediary between the tourist and the accommodation and transport providers. The main
role of the travel agent is to sell holidays, particularly package holidays or inclusive tours, and travel tickets. The tour operator put together a package of accommodation, catering,
transport and often entertainment, and sells this package, frequently via a travel agent. 
Most countries now have active public sector tourism organizations. These
organizations include national and regional tourists boards offices. At the local level
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these are often tourist information centres. One of the main functions of public sector tourism is to provide information.
As tourism has grown in importance at local, regional, national and international level, a 
number of pressure groups have become involved in tourism issues. Such pressure groups include Friends of the Earth, Greenpeace, church groups and community organizations.
“Tourism: Environment and Development Perspectives”, 
Mason, P. (World Wide Fund for Nature) 2000
Vocabulary
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1.The opposite of “human-made” (paragraph 2) is ___________.
2.Which word in paragraph 6 means “a go-between”?
3.The official expression for “package holiday” (paragraph 6) is __________.
4.A number of multi-word expressions (collocations) are used in the text. Match the 
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expression you make. Make up your own sentences with them.
1. regional tourist |
a. region |
2. catering |
b. tour |
3.national tourist |
c. facilities |
4. travel |
d. group |
5. service |
e. operator |
6. pressure |
f. board |
7. tour |
g. agent |
8. inclusive |
h. provider |
9. tourist accommodation |
l. office |
10. tourist generating |
j. centre |
5. “Most countries now have active public sector tourism organizations” (paragraph 
7). Choose the best meaning of the expression in italics:
a.a) organizations for tourism in the public sector which are active b.b) organizations for tourism for an active public sector c.c) organizations for active tourism in the public sector
Comprehension
1. “The importance of a tourist destination depends upon three main factors”. 
Complete the table below, noting those factors and giving examples of each.
Destination
Factor 1 ___________ |
Factor 2 __________ |
Factor 3 ____________ |
e.g. (a) ___________ |
e.g. (a) __________ |
e.g. (a) ____________ |
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e.g. (b) |
___________ |
e.g. (b) |
__________ |
e.g. (b) |
____________ |
e.g. (c) |
___________ |
e.g. (c) |
___________ |
e.g. (c) |
____________ |
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2.Give four examples of tourist services.
3.What is the role of a) a travel agent and b) a tour operator?
4.a) The text gives some examples of pressure groups who are concerned about 
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b)What is the function of a pressure group?
c)What tourism issues are pressure groups likely to focus their attention on?
Sum up information you’ve learned from the text.
UNIT IX CAREERS IN TOURISM
Part one
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Words to remember
-to generate – производить; создавать
-to be tolerant of – быть терпимым
-to gain the experience – приобретать, получать опыт
-expertise – знания и опыт (в данной специальности); компетенция
-to keep up with – следить за новейшими достижениями; не отставать от современных тенденций
-to be in charge of smth – отвечать за что-л.; руководить чем-л.
-lavish – щедрый; обильный; расточительный
lavish treatment – щедрое угощение
-a fee – плата; гонорар; вознаграждение
-on a fee basis – на платной основе
-to supervise – руководить наблюдать (за чем-л.)
-free-lancer – журналист, не связанный с определенной редакцией, работающий не по найму
-common denominator – общий знаменатель
Reading
Read the text, then look through the comprehension exercise and speak on the text.
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Careers in Tourism |
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Like most service industries, tourism is labor-intensive; that is, it employs a high 
proportion of people in comparison to the number that it serves. The range of jobs is 
also very wide, from unskilled, like a dishwasher in a restaurant, to semi-skilled, like a waiter or chamber-maid, to skilled, like a travel agent or a statistician. In addition, 
tourism generates many jobs that are not usually considered to be within the industry 
itself – jobs in construction, manufacturing, and merchandising. In addition, tourism generate many jobs that are not usually considered to be within the industry itself –
jobs in construction, manufacturing and merchandising. 
A majority of the jobs in tourism have one common denominator: contact with the 
public, including both the positive and negative aspects of dealing with ordinary human beings. Anyone who has chosen a career in tourism should enjoy working with people and be tolerant of their failings, especially since the irritations of travel can bring out the worst qualities in some people.
In many of the jobs in which it is necessary to deal with the public, language skill is necessary or desirable. People who hold jobs of this kind include travel agency employees, ticket and reservations agents, airline flight personnel, front-desk 
employees in hotels, tour conductors or guides, waiters, barmen, and so forth. The degree of language skill may vary, from using special terms in catering service jobs to speaking fluently among travel agents and tour guides. The degree of language skill
may also vary according to the location of the job.
The tourist industry differs from many others in that it employs more women than 
many other kinds of business. Indeed, women are found at all levels. Many successful travel agents are women who have established independent enterprises after gaining experience elsewhere in the industry.
Experience is necessary for the successful operation of a travel agency. There are many different ways to acquire the necessary experience. Some agents begin as clerical workers or secretaries in travel agencies or in the transportation companies. Particular jobs that provide useful knowledge include those of ticket agent and reservations agent for the airlines. 
In addition to dealing with the public, the travel agent must deal with people who work for the other components in the industry. One of the most important aspects of the job is keeping informed of the highly complex pricing policies of both scheduled and nonscheduled airlines, and the resort hotels. The agent must also keep up with other developments in the industry – new resorts, changing travel regulations, changing travel regulations, new services. 
There are some advantages of being a travel agent. One of the most important is the 
economic independence that comes from owing and operating a small business. There 
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is of course an element of risk. Another advantage is the opportunity to travel. The treatment that is given to travel agents on familiarization tours is often lavish so as to impress them favorably with the services that are being offered.
The people who write about travel also receive lavish treatment from the tourist 
industry. There are relatively few travel writers, but they fill an important place in publicizing the industry. Some of them work full-time for magazines or newspapers. Others are free-lancers: that is, they work for themselves and sell their articles to any 
publication that is interested in them. There is also a small industry involved in writing 
and publishing travel guidebooks.
The tour operators work much more within the framework of ordinary corporate practice 
than small retail agencies do. That is, they have the usual hierarchy of clerical workers and 
management personnel. Companies like Cook and American Express employ people in nearly all phases of tourism, ranging from the jobs that would be found in retail travel agency to those that deal with packaging tours or establishing overall policy for the companies. They also employ a large staff to work on advertising and publicity.
Official and semi-official tourist bureaus also employ many people who perform 
different kinds of work. Some of the jobs are related to promotion, which is extremely 
important to the whole industry. Others are involved with research, such as gathering travel statistics and trying to work out systems that increase their accuracy. Others are 
concerned with planning and development of new tourist facilities, or with the maintenance and improvement of existing facilities.
Consulting firms also play a part in the tourist industry. A consultant offers the 
expertise he has acquired through study and experience to individual clients on a fee basis. In tourism, consultants are called in to give advice to government tourist bureaus
or private developers. Some of them may perform market research; some may analyze statistics that have been collected; and some may help in the planning of new resorts.
Perhaps the most distinctive and difficult job in the entire industry belongs to the 
tour guide or conductor. The term guide is used for one in charge of local sightseeing 
and conductor is the one accompanying a group throughout its travels and making all 
the arrangements for the group. The sightseeing guide must of course be familiar with
the points of interest that he is showing to the visitors. He usually gives a prepared talk that describes the points of interest, but he must also be prepared to answer a lot of questions. And of course he has to deal with any problems that occur during the tour or excursion. These may include bad weather, sudden illness, an accident – it would be impossible to name everything that might happen. A sightseeing guide needs two qualities above all – an outgoing personality and language skill.
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The guide or conductor who stays with a group throughout its trip needs these same 
two qualities. He also needs to have a thorough knowledge of the workings of all kinds of transportation systems and of the regulations and red tape that the tourists will meet when going from one country to another. One of his jobs involves handling the baggage for his group; another concerns easing them through government formalities; and yet another involves making sure they get the kind of accommodations, food, and entertainment they
have paid for. These are the aspects of travel that are likely to cause the most problems and create the most irritation when they go wrong. The guide often has to display the
qualities of a diplomat dealing with many people. 
Another distinctive job in tourism is that of social director. Many resort hotels and nearly
all cruise ships employ a person who is in charge of the activities that are supposed to 
entertain and amuse the customers. The social director not only has to organize these activities, he must also involve the willing and the reluctant guests in the fun and games. A
good social director should really enjoy the games and parties that are planned for the guests. In addition to social directors, resorts employ people to supervise activities in which the resorts specialize – golf and tennis pros, or swimming, skiing, and scuba diving instructors.
There are many facilities for formal training in the industry. Many hotel companies, airlines have training programs and give training courses to people who will fill both 
skilled and semi-skilled positions. 
Some universities offer courses in tourism as a whole. People who get a university degree after completing such a curriculum can be considered professionals in the field. 
Tourism is an industry that is still growing rapidly. It continues to provide people 
with the choice of a variety of occupations that require many different kinds of skills.
No matter what aspects of the industry one may work in, the final result of the effort should be a satisfied customer who remembers his trip or his vacation with pleasure.
Comprehension
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1. Answer the questions
1.Why is tourism labour-intensive?
2.Do all the jobs in tourism require skills? Does tourism ever create jobs in other 
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3.What is one common denominator of a majority of the jobs in tourism?
4.What are some of the jobs in which language skills are desirable or necessary? Do all these jobs in all places require the same degree of language skill?
5.How can people working in tourism acquire the necessary experience?
6.What are the most important aspects of different jobs?