iGCSE Travel & Tourism

4.1 Identify and describe tourism products

Learning Objectives
 Understand relationship between travel and
transport, catering and accommodation, attractions,
leisure and recreation and business facilities

 Know components included in different tourism

products (e.g. package, independent, all-inclusive
holidays)

 Know the types of Ancillary services – guiding,

currency, marketing services
Starter Task

List 5 products and services offered by

the T&T industry.
1. .
2. .
3. .
4. .
5. .
Introduction

 What is the difference between a product and a

service?

 With the T&T industry it can be difficult to

differentiate the two as they are strongly
connected.

 This unit links to everything we have learnt so far

Describing Tourism Products

 Thecomponent title tells us what type of

product/service is being offered. For example – We
know that hotels provide .............?

 However, we must be able to describe. E.g. The

difference between the type of accommodation.
Describing Tourism Products
Activity

Describe the difference

between the two
accommodation types on page
133.
 Inter-relationships
 Aninter-relationship is when a business works with
other companies.

 Example: The British Museum in London has links

with lots of components such as shops, cafe's and
transport in which they have an interrelationship
with.

 Without these the company wouldn't be successful as

they wouldn't be able to attract people coming from
long distances which would cause people not to visit
the museum.
Relying on one another

 T&T providers rely on one another to provide additional

components supporting the overall experience. From leaving
home to returning.

 Travel and transport providers therefore rely on

accommodation, accommodation rely on attractions and all of
them reply on transport. This is interdependency and inter-
ralations.

 Example: The Covid-19 pandemic affected ALL travel and

tourism industries around the world which had a negative
economic effect on all the countries affected around the world.
Activity - ‘Taste of Spain’ Package

• Read case study on page 134

1. Identify the various ‘inter-

relationships’ of travel and
tourism product and service
providers within the package

2. What would be the inter-

relations with catering and
accommodation, attractions,
leisure and business facilities?
Components Included In Different Products

3 main types of tourism products that are

currently available:
A package product
An independent product
An ‘all inclusive’
Package
 Includes at least 2 of these components:
 Transport

 Accommodation for at least one overnight stay

 Other tourist services such as attractions, car rental,
transfers etc.

 Usually put together by travel operates but marketed and sold

through travel agents.

 Form of ‘product bundling’ which are then sold at a special

price.
Most UK families chose to go on
package holidays because of the
convenience they offer. People can
have a limited knowledge on travelling to
different countries, so they completely
relied on the tour operators to decide
and prepare everything for them.

In the past people knew little about

travelling around the world. As they
desire to know more and see more, they
turned to package holidays, which
prepared and organise all the
necessary things needed for the
tourists.
Package holidays are good value for money
because of the safety, reliability and cheap price
they provided. The transportation in the old days
was not that well-developed. As a result, people
feared to travel to far away without any guarantee.

In this way, package holidays including insurance

encouraged people to travel. Also, the package
tour operator needed to make block bookings for
travel, accommodation and so on, so they were
able to offer lower prices than you would be able
to find as an individual. Larger operators also offer
free or cut-price child places on some of their
holidays. Some do special packages for single
parents too. Many people find it reassuring to
know that their holiday is all paid for before they
even get on the plane..
• Tour guides meant a lot to the people
in the past as they had limited
access to get information.

• There wasn’t the internet to learn

new information.

• The tour guide at a resort was a

service included in the package
holidays was an essential part of the
holiday, especially helping people
learn about a new culture.
The Internet
But in the recent years, package holidays have become less
fashionable. The popularity of package holidays has fallen to the
lowest point since 1970 and also for the first time, the number of
families choosing to arrange a trip themselves is higher than the
number going on package holidays.
When tourists book their package holidays through the travel
agency, there must be a cut from the money they paid, which
is considered to be profits of the agency. In other words,
tourists pay more than they really need when booking a
package holiday.

So there is greater use of on-line bookings which has

simplified the process as it was cheaper than visiting a travel
agent.

Second, tourists pay lower price for the same thing

shown in the travel agency as more budget airlines
and accommodations appear. Air remains the
dominant mode of transport used by UK holiday
takers. Low-cost airlines really help a lot in saving
money.
Independent
 Purchased directly from the provider by
individual customers. Excursion example? Hotel
example?
 Can be purchased online or face to face
 Customers can create their own package – how
do you think they could do this?

 Advantages and disadvantages of this?

All Inclusive
 ‘Everything included’

 Usually includes a package with

flights, transfers,
accommodation and all meals
with unlimited drinks and
snacks, as well as activities.

 Often have some restrictions

Cruise holidays tend to be all inclusive –
why is this?

Advantages and disadvantages?

Ancillary Services
Ancillary Services
What are they?
Any additional service offered by travel
and tourism providers beyond the main
product or service.

 Can gain competitive advantage.

Examples
 Travel insurance
 Foreign currency exchange
 Excursions and sightseeing tours
 Car hire
 Airport transfers
 Passport and visa info
 Coach and rail tickets
 Attraction tickets
 Guidebooks and guiding services
Travel Insurance
 Insurance– something that cover
you in case anything happens (for
a fee)

 Travelinsurance is intended to
cover medical expenses, trip
cancellation, lost luggage, flight
accident and other losses
incurred while travelling, either
internationally or domestically.
3 Main Ancillary Services

 Guiding services
 Currency services
 Marketing serviced
Guiding Services
 These can enhance a tourists visit to a destination

 List the skills/knowledge a tour guide needs to have.

 Page 137 will help you

 On some occasions it may be necessary to have a tour

guide for protection of the area and the tourist

 Let’s read the case study on page 138

Currency Services
 Each country uses different currencies
around the world.

 Travellersneed to ensure they ‘exchange’

before travelling

 Let’s have a look: http://www.xe.com

Currency Services
 Traditionally,
tourists used the services of
banks and specialist services to exchange
their money.

 Itis now possible in: post offices, online,

travel agents and money exchange bureaus.

 Technology has developed which means

debit/credit cards can also be used
Case Study Page:139
 Travellers cheques – Once an alternative to carrying cash
Marketing Services
How the t&t market and promote their products
and services – e.g. Stocking Leaflets on racks,
exhibitions etc.

Case study on page: 140

Plenary
 Ina short paragraph explain the concepts you
have learnt about within this topic.

Tip
Youmay wish to look at your notes and
summarise them.