DIPOLOG CITY - The Department of Tourism (DOT)-IX conducted a two-day training on tour
operations and packaging April 5-6 at Mibang Hotel this city.
Around 40 participants
from city/municipal tourism offices of Dipolog, Dapitan and Polanco as well as
representatives from Liloy town, Jose Rizal Memorial State University (JRMSU),
City Information Office (CIO) of Dipolog, travel agencies, and private entities
attended the training.
“This activity aims to
train, capacitate and enhance the capability of the community to handle tourists
and manage tourist sites,” DOT-IX Regional Director Mary June G. Bugante said.
Paul L. So, Managing
Director of Great Sights Travel and Tours Corporation, a DOT-accredited travel
agency in Metro Manila was, served as resource speaker during the seminar.
So specializes in seat-in-coach
tours, local, inbound and outbound tours, adventure and incentive tours, cruises,
scuba diving and travel insurance, ticketing and hotel reservations worldwide, air,
sea, land and rail reservations worldwide, and many more.
He lectured on tour
packaging, planning, costing, operations and effective customer service.
“Tourism means job and job
for everyone,” Mr. So said.
He also emphasized that “if
tours are offered in package, tourists will not feel the price, provided they
must be satisfied with the services given.”
To him, tour guides are storytellers who know the
stories and culture of the place.
“In tour operations, it is strictly a big no to
overloading of passengers. If something will happen you will never receive
insurance,” Mr. So stressed.
He further advised not to say “for free” but rather
a “complimentary” because “there’s no free in this world.”
Wenceslao Z. Galeza, training officer of DOT-IX,
disclosed that there are no accredited tour guides in Zamboanga del Norte.
Thus, he encouraged interested applicants with at
least two years in college and fluent in English to participate in the 25-day Tour Guiding
Seminar-Workshop on May 2-31, 2013 in Zamboanga City.
There will be pre-screening
and interview of applicants and those who will qualify shall be accepted in the
seminar-workshop.
“Not everyone will be
accredited as tour guide, only those who will be qualified,” Bugante explained.
“This seminar-workshop is
devised to give accreditation to individuals who want to
pursue tour guiding as a career,” she added.
Each participant shall only pay P3 thousand inclusive
of training kits, lunch and two snacks during the duration of the workshop.