Travel and Tourism : Introduction
Travel and Tourism one of the world's largest foreign exchange earner
among industries, provides employment directly to millions of people
worldwide and indirectly through many associated service industries. A
very wide industry, it includes Government tourism departments, Immigration
and customs services, travel agencies, airlines, tour operators, hotels
etc and many associated service industries such as airline catering or
laundry services, Guides, Interpreters, Tourism promotion and sales etc.
Travel and Tourism enterprises include major internationals with a workforce
of thousands, to the small private travel agent with a handful of employees.
Work in the travel and tourism industry is essentially concerned with
providing services for people who are away from home, on business or holiday.
Travel can be leisure travel involving package tours, pilgrim travel,
adventure travel etc or purely business. Work at every functional level
in the industry involves dealing directly with people. Travel agents assess
the needs of tourists and businessmen and help them make the best possible
travel arrangements from the many travel options available. Also, many
major cruise lines, resorts, and specialty travel groups use travel agents
to promote travel packages to the millions of people who travel every
year.
Travel company personnel must be up-to-date on current rules and regulations
and documentation required, in areas like cargo, ticketing and passports,
visas etc. so as to correctly advise their clients, and to take care of
the paperwork when necessary. Besides this, all tourism staff in marketing,
counter sales, or guide services, should be knowledgeable about the places
their clients visit, in terms of general background, how to get there
connections by air, rail and road and the facilities available.
In India, Travel and tourism, as an industry, has been somewhat slower
to take off than in many other places. However, with increasing
worldwide interest in travel, and with the Government's encouragement
of its activities, it is undergoing massive expansion and improvement.
This forecasts a bright future for all those who choose to make a career
of travel and tourism. Young people with drive and a capacity for hard
work can rise to top positions very quickly in travel and tourism or even
head their own agencies. A job in the industry gives good returns as well
as perks including opportunity to see many locales at low prices.
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