TRAVEL: Countries are investing in "specialist" Indian travel agents to better sell the destination |
A good travel agent could be your ticket to a great holiday. While countries like Australia, South Africa and New Zealand had launched their specialist programmes to train such agents in India a few years back, a new group of countries is waking up to the need to educate travel agents who know the destination inside out. |
Holiday favourite of the world "" Switzerland "" is planning to launch a Swiss Specialist programme in India "" its first in the country "" by the end of the year. The Swiss tourism board is targetting 500 agents across India for the training programme, though they will start with 100 agents. |
The difference in this programme is that, unlike other such programmes where agents need to proactively seek enrolment, Switzerland Tourism will choose and invite the 100 agents, informs Ritu Sharma, country manager, Switzerland Tourism. The country has always had such a programme in US and Europe. |
These specialists will become eligible for a referral on the Swiss Tourism website and will also qualify for familiarisation tours to the country. |
Tour operators who have been through similar programmes of other countries are a happy lot. Take Prateek Shah of Kulinkumarholidays, who is both an Aussie as well as Kiwi specialist. |
Apart from the obvious benefit of up-to-date and indepth information on the destination, he is very impressed by the preferential treatment that Aussie specialists get at the visa counter. While it takes 7-10 days for other non-specialist agents to get a visa, Shah says he manages it within three working days. |
Shah derives other advantages too since he is the only Aussie specialist doing "Gujarati-Jain" tours with their special dietary requirements. Any related enquiry at the consulate, therefore, is generally referred to him. Since getting the Aussie and Kiwi specialist certificates around September last year, the company has seen a growth of 30-40 per cent in departures to Australia and New Zealand, says Shah. |
Maneesha Nangia of Saltours "" a wholesaler of travel packages "" feels that with her in-depth knowledge about the destinations, she can be a useful "information centre" to her clients who in-turn interface with the actual travellers. |
Rajesh Sethi of Armaan Tours & Travels too is excited about faster visa handling for Australia. He is an Aussie as well as a Kiwi specialist and is upbeat about other benefits like regular product updates as well as brochures. |
So the next time you venture out to buy a holiday, do look for the specialist tag to ensure a special experience. |