Travel and Tourism

Course Aims

The aims of the course are to enable candidates to develop:

An understanding of the skills required within key sectors of the travel and tourism industry.
A clear understanding of the geography of tourism.
An awareness of the economic, social, cultural and environmental impacts of tourism.
An understanding of what motivates people to travel.

Assessment Objectives
The examination at the end of the course will assess the candidate’s ability to:
Identify and describe how geographical features and resources affect tourism.
Appreciate the importance of product development in the travel and tourism industry.
Identify key structures, problems and opportunities within the industry.
Analyse simple numerical data to interpret trends and opportunities.

Target Audience and Candidate Progression

This course requires candidates to:
View tourism change and development in terms of actual and potential beneficial and
harmful impacts on destinations.
Understand the kinds of skills which are needed to make tourism development a success and
to apply this understanding to a specific workplace.
Consider the range of factors which determine and help to explain the behaviour of tourists
and the decisions that they make about tourism products.

The Travel and Tourism course will be particularly suitable for:

Those seeking employment in travel and tourism.
Those intending to progress to higher level vocational qualifications.
Those already in travel or tourism employment (eg. with hotels, airlines or tour operators) but
who wish to broaden their understanding of the industry in which they work.

Level of English Required

Candidates should have a standard of business English equivalent to at least IELTS 5.5 or a
good upper-intermediate score on the ETC placement test.

Guided Learning Hours

The ETC course in Travel and Tourism is designed to run for 24 weeks, with 20 lessons (ie.
15 hours) of direct contact hours per week.  These lessons will be classroom-based in groups
of 14 students maximum.
A range of methodologies and activity types will be employed, including lectures, mini-
presentations, group assignments, individual assignments, and there additionally will be
significant amounts (approximately 10 hours per week) of directed self-study beyond the
contact hours.

Syllabus Topics
Geography of Tourism.
The Impacts of Tourism.
Tourist Motivation.
Skills for Key Sectors of the Travel and Tourism Industry.

Recommended Reading List and Support Material The following book would provide
useful background reading for students:
How to Pass Travel and Tourism First and Second Levels by Ron Munro, LCCIEB, ISBN
code: 1 86247 093 6.
 
Syllabus Topic / Items Covered

1.Geography of Tourism
Candidates must be able to:
Explain the difference between inbound and outbound tourism.
Identify and describe the main characteristics of some of the major tourist destinations in
either Europe, East Asia, the Pacific, Africa or South America.
Show how resources such as climate and landscape play a part in attracting tourism.
Show how transport networks and links affect domestic and international flows of tourists.
Identify and explain factors which may deter people from travelling to particular destinations.
Interpret simple tables and diagrams which relate to tourism activity.

2.Impacts of Tourism
Candidates must be able to:
Explain the ways in which tourism can affect local employment.
Show how tourism can create wealth.
Describe the social impact of contact between tourists and host communities.
Describe the ways in which the presence of tourism affects aspects of a destination’s culture,
such as dress, performance, and arts and crafts.
Explain how tourism development can affect the local people’s way of living.
Explain the ways in which tourism development may have a harmful effect on natural and
man-made environments.
Identify some ways in which tourism development can contribute to sustaining and
improving local environments.

3.Tourist Motivation
Candidates must be able to:
Explain how family composition can motivate people to opt for particular types of tourism.
Show the importance of age in determining tourists’ destination choice.
Consider how factors of race and gender can influence the demand for tourism.
Show how personality type affects destination choices made by tourists.
Demonstrate the role of special interests in motivating people to select destinations.
Show how special needs influence tourist choices about transport, accommodation and
destinations.

4.Skills for Key Sectors of the Travel and Tourism Industry

Candidates must be able to:
Identify important customer relations skills (eg. establishing rapport – providing good service
– dealing with complaints) and demonstrate the impact that they have on customers.
Demonstrate how communication skills such as conveying information clearly in speech and
writing, and listening carefully, contribute to the successful operation of a tourism business or
organisation.
Demonstrate the value of personal qualities such as honesty, reliability, initiative, enthusiasm
and confidence in service industry employees.
Identify and show the importance of information skills used by tourism industry employees
(eg. product knowledge – awareness of sources of information – storing and retrieving
information – IT capability).
Understand and demonstrate the need for and benefits of good teamwork in a tourism
workplace.
Explain the relevance of these skills to a specific workplace – either a hotel or a travel agency
or a tourist attraction.

Course Duration
This course is designed to run for 24 weeks.

Structure of the course

Each Travel and Tourism course consists of :
20 lessons per week of specialised tourism tuition.
Projects, assignments, case studies, seminars, lectures and group sessions.
Pprogress reports and assignments.
Optional visits to relevant places of interests.

Entry Requirements
Please consult the Director of Studies for information regarding the course entry dates.  The
minimum age for entry to this course is eighteen.  Furthermore, (except by special
arrangement) a level of English equivalent to at least IELTS 5.5 is required for entry to the
course.  Students may be required to take an aptitude test (prior to arrival at ETC) to judge
whether their standard of English is sufficient for this course.  They may wish to follow a
course of English Language Studies (General English) before beginning their course of
Travel and Tourism to make sure that they gain the maximum benefit from their studies.

Maximum Group Size

There is maximum group size of fourteen, in order to allow optimum interaction between
group members and the teacher / lecturer. We also stipulate a minimum group size of four, so
that the student may benefit from certain projects and class activities which require a high
level of student input.

Assessment and Certification

If a student follows an ETC Travel and Tourism course, he or she will receive a certificate on
satisfactory completion of all coursework and assessment pieces.  By prior arrangement with
Director of Studies, we will also supply periodic progress reports.

Effective teaching
Built into every student’s course are the following:
Placement test.
Needs analysis.
Skills development.
Task-based activities.
Systems work.
Learner skills development.
Progress tests.
Tutorials.
Homework.
Academic counselling.
Supportive error correction and constructive feedback.