INTRODUCTION TO TRAVEL AND HOTEL OPERATIONS MTTM 202 INDEX Title Page No. Block – I Travel Trade Sector Unit 1 Travel Trade Sector – Origin, Developmental History and Present Status in 2-20 International Context Unit 2 Travel Agency and Tour Operations Sector – Intra and Inter-sectoral Linkages 21-31 Unit 3 Types of Travel Agents and Tour Operators 32-47 Unit 4 Travel Trade Business – Scope, Opportunities and Challenges 48-68 Block - II Functions, Organization and Management of Travel Agency and Tour Operations Unit 5 Travel Agency: Core Functions, Departmentation and Organizational Hierarchy 69-84 Unit 6 Organization and Management of A Standard Tour Operations Enterprise 85-97 Unit 7 Role of Travel Agents and Tour Operators in Tourism Chain of Distribution 98-114 Unit 8 Fiscal and Non-Fiscal Incentives Available to Travel Agencies and Tour 115-127 Operators in India Block – III Hospitality and Hotel Sector Unit 9 Hospitality : Meaning, Nature, Purpose and Typology 128-156 Hotels & Hoteliering: Origin of the concept; growth & development of the 157-173 Unit 10 Years. Core Areas of a Standard Hotel: Front Office, Food & Beverages (F&B), 174-198 Unit 11 Housekeeping, Food production; Functions of the Back Office Hotel Classification : Need and Scope; Procedure and Criteria of Hotel 199-213 Unit 12 Classification in Indian Context Multinational Hotel Chains Operation India; Advantages vis a vis 214-257 Unit 13 Disadvantages of Multinational Chains with special Reference to India Block – IV Some Key Issues Related to Travel Trade and Hospitality Sectors Unit 14 Ethical, Legal and Regulatory Aspects of Travel Trade and Hotel Operations 258-279 Unit 15 Challenges in Marketing of Travel Trade and Hospitality Services 280-296 Unit 16 Procedure for Setting up Travel Agency and Tour Operations and Hotel 297-312 Enterprise in India : A Brief Over view Unit 17 Role and Contribution of Leading International and national 313-330 Association/Organization like TAAI, IATO, IATA, IHA and HAI in Promotion of Tourism. Uttarakhand Open University 1 INTRODUCTION TO TRAVEL AND HOTEL OPERATIONS MTTM 202 UNIT-1 TRAVEL TRADE SECTOR – ORIGION, DEVLOPMENT HISTORY AND PRESENT STSTUS IN INTERNATIONAL CONTEXT Structure 1.0 Objectives 1.1 Introduction 1.2 Evolution of Travel Agency 1.3 Early Stage of Travel Agency Business 1.4 Landmark Period 1.5 Period of Innovation 1.6 Intra-Continental Tour 1.7 Intercontinental Tour 1.7.1 Second Generation Thomas Cook Business 1.7.2 The Great Episode of John Mason Cook 1.7.3 Merger and Acquisition 1.7.4 Technology Driven Period 1.8 Summary 1.0 OBJECTIVES After reading this unit, you will be able to: discuss the evolution of travel agency business in the world; explain the contribution of Thomas Cook to the growth of world travel agency business; describe the comprehensive overview of the contemporary travel practices since Thomas Cook travel agency; and explain the various stages and turning points in the history of global travel agency business. 1.1 INTRODUCTION The business of travel agency has witnessed a buoyant growth in the recent years. This upbeat sector provides enormous income and employment opportunities and offers complete travel solutions to the new age travelers. While making such study on travel agency and its development in different stages can enlighten learners to a great extent in gaining extensive ideas and knowledge. Therefore, it is essential to have an insight of the origin of travel agency business in the world. Uttarakhand Open University 2 INTRODUCTION TO TRAVEL AND HOTEL OPERATIONS MTTM 202 In this unit we shall study the history of travel agency and the early stages of travel agency business. We shall also discuss the landmark period, period of innovation, intra and inter-continental tour, Second Generation Thomas Cook Business and so on. 1.2 EVOLUTION OF TRAVEL AGENCY In the beginning, the travel agency business was in a state of experimentation and community help. Gradually, the business grew up in such a scale that competitive travel companies around the world forged into the sophisticated business. The nature of the business was a sort of intermediary role to cater holiday related services to those who were away from home. Travel agencies made all possible efforts to ensure the service quality for enhancing the level of satisfaction. In practice, travel agencies were principally driven by the needs of the customers. It is very strange to see that travel agency business in those periods were run with reasonable investment and used to make reasonable amount of profit amidst certain risks such as confirmation of hotel rooms, security of customers, quality of foods, frontier formalities, political system, ethnic difference, long traveling hours, language, etc. Despite of confronting with all impediments, traveling to places other than the place of own domicile was a status symbol of society that pushed people in Europe to undertake travel. The invention of railways and sophisticated steamship also motivated people to travel because travelers urged for comfort and relaxation in the tour. Thus, Thomas cook’s voluntarism to experiment his noble idea to assist people to reach at their destinations is really a matter of great contribution to the history of travel agency. Several travel simplification mechanisms were successfully experimented and proved to be the best options till today in the travel world. Thomas is credited to have rekindled interests among the people in England to plan holidays in advance. On 9th June 1841, a 32-year old cabinet-maker, evangelists and Baptist book seller named as Thomas Cook walked from his home in Market Harborough to the nearby town of Leicester to attend a temperance meeting. It was a milestone day in the annals of world travel history. A former Baptist preacher, Thomas Cook was a religious man who had a firm opinion that most Victorian social problem revolved around the consumption of alcohol and that the lives of working people would be greatly improved if those people were refrained from drinking alcohol. They can be better educated. As he walked along the road to Leicester, he later recalled his thoughts, “The thought suddenly flashed across my mind as to the practicability of employing the great powers of railways and locomotion for the furtherance of this social reform”. The introduction of pleasure travel and continental travel round the world by Thomas Cook and other contemporary travel agencies ushered a new Uttarakhand Open University 3 INTRODUCTION TO TRAVEL AND HOTEL OPERATIONS MTTM 202 horizon in the international tourism. Travel coupled with hotel coupons, circular notes, credit cards, advance reservation of all required services for visitors were some of the travel innovations of those periods. Although, certain modifications have taken place today but the origin of the concept has certain significance in the study of history of travel business in the world. The history of professional travel agency may be traced back to 1841 when Thomas Cook organised his first excursion tour for his own friends to attend a temperance meeting held in Leicester. To make the journey more comfortable and relaxed, he devised a creative method of engaging a special train hired from the British Railway to transfer his friends from Leicester to Loughborough and back to attend a rally. A group of 570 participants were signed of at the rate of one shilling per person for a twenty-two mile round trip. The tour gave birth to the idea of all-inclusive packages. Thomas Cook was so articulate and enterprising that the trip embraced a band to play typical hams, a picnic lunch of hams as well as the afternoon tea for refreshment. During the next three summers, Thomas Cook arranged a series of trips between Leicester, Nottingham, Derby and Birmingham on behalf of local temperance societies and Sunday schools. Within these limits many thousands of people experienced rail travel for the first time, and Thomas Cook was able to assess his strength to expand the areas of operations within the country. That brief success gave him ample solace to think for deepening his aim and interest to enlarge the scope of travel business in Europe. This turnaround has laid foundation of his future travel business. He later described this period as one of 'enthusiastic philanthropy' since, beyond the printing of posters and handbills; he had no financial interest in any of these early excursions. It may be the grace of almighty to make the coincidence of the existence of the two giant travel companies in the world. The opening up of the American Express, a Travel Agency Company in USA in the year 1841 brought about a significant change in the system of banking transaction. The company was contemporary to Thomas Cook Travel Agency and both in the initial period operated the business in their own continents. In its early years, the American Express was focusing on freight business and gradually penetrated into other areas of travel and financial services. Its largest and most consistent clients were banks. The core business of the company was revolving around the supply and delivery of small parcels like stock certificates, notes, currency and other financial instruments to the banks across the USA. The company was giving considerable priority to small parcels services rather than transporting larger freight. Over the periods, the company shifted to other financial and travel solutions. Uttarakhand Open University 4 INTRODUCTION TO TRAVEL AND HOTEL OPERATIONS MTTM 202 One of the early travel agencies is Cox & Kings, which has a special distinction of having the longest established travel company in the world. The company was drafted for making travel arrangements for the regiment in India. The company did not have diversified travel business as Thomas Cook used to operate in the beginning period.