Travel | The Travel and Tourism Industry

Introduction Components of the Industry Working in The Travel Industry How TTC Training Can Help

Introduction

The travel and tourism industry is an enormous worldwide undertaking, affecting all but the most underdeveloped countries. Large numbers of the world's population are continually on the move whether it's for business or leisure purposes and this requires a vast army of people to provide a wide and complete range of services.

The needs of the business traveller are relatively straightforward and tend to be limited to transportation and accommodation. For the holiday-maker, additional elements are expected to enable them to extract the maximum value from their break away from everyday life e.g excursions to explore the region and visits to places of particular interest.

An increasing percentage of the population take more than one holiday a year. Improved transportation has brought many destinations nearer to home and made them more accessible, not only for longer holidays but also for short-stay breaks as less time is now spent travelling.

For the majority of countries around the world the travel industry is a two-way operation, catering both for their own residents and also for the needs of incoming visitors. For many, travel and tourism is a major source of income and it is economically important, having a knock on effect for other industries. The UK is a case in point and, whilst many of its residents will be pre-occupied with travelling abroad for their holidays, an equal number of visitors from overseas will be coming here. The UK is one of the world's major tourist destinations and has a vast array of natural and man-made attractions which are also very popular with its own domestic market.

Components of the Industry

Here are some examples of companies/organisations which together make up the travel and tourism industry and provide job opportunities:

Transportation

Airlines

Railways

Ferries

Coach companies

Car hire organisations

Cruise ship operators

Accommodation

Hotels

Motor Inns / Motels

Resorts

Guesthouses

Self-catering establishments such as villas and camp sites

Motorhomes

Holiday centres

Other services

Excursion and insurance companies

Guides

Transfer specialists

Tour operators

A tour operator combines the above elements into package holidays; with some specialising in themed packages, for example;

Golfing holidays

Skiing

Wedding packages

Or specialising in a particular destination, for example:

Australia

USA

Asia

Europe

Others

National, regional and local tourist boards

Attractions

Theme parks

Stately homes, etc.

Travel Agents

Leisure Travel Agent

Business Travel Agent