Created by Joseph Secrest, February, 2004
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Table of Contents
The
Task
How are you to answer these questions?
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How are you to answer these questions?
Using the sites in Reading 1, answer the questions from Mr. Smith’s letter.
Record complete answers to the questions, including the website address where
you found the information.
I am planning to do
some extensive traveling in the near future, but before I can finalize my
plans, I need some information. Can you assist me by answering the following
questions? (I am sending this same request to several travel agencies. The
first one to respond with the information I need will handle all of my ticketing
for the next year.)
1. I
plan to do some fishing near the town of Hudson Bay, Saskatchewan, Canada. I
don’t want to run short of cash on my trip, so can you tell me whether (and
where) there are any ATM’s in Hudson Bay that will honor my Mastercard?
2. I’ll
be traveling to Casablanca in the near future. I’ll need to get cash at the
airport upon my arrival, using my VISA card, but I hate to stand in long lines.
How many ATM’s are there at the airport in Casablanca that honor VISA?
3. Is
there any organization I could call, toll-free, for information on finding a
pet sitter for my dog?
4. I’ll
be traveling to San Jose, California, at some point in the near future, and I’d
like to take my dog with me. Are there any doggie daycare centers in San Jose?
5. My
passport was issued several years ago, and I want to make sure it hasn’t
expired. How long are passports valid?
6. I
intend to take a honeymoon trip with my bride within the next few months. I
have heard of a good book titled The 100
Best Romantic Resorts of the World: Perfect Places in All Price Ranges for
Honeymooners and Others in Love by Katharine Dyson. Where can I
buy this book, and how much will it cost?
7. I
may go to the tropics of South America soon. Are there any diseases that I
should get vaccinated against before I leave?
8. I
love the Caribbean and I love scuba diving. Does any company offer scuba diving
trips to the Caribbean?
10.During
my upcoming visit to Disney World in Orlando, Florida, I might like to take a
side trip to see the Kennedy Space Center, if it’s not too far away. How far is
Kennedy from Disney World? What is the lowest fare I can get from United
Airlines for a round-trip flight, with 30 days’ notice, from my home in Los
Angeles (I use LAX) to New York City (I prefer JFK)?
11.I’ll
be in Chicago on business for a couple of weeks, and I’d like to take a one-day
break for a quick trip to visit friends in Memphis, Tennessee. (a) What is the
earliest nonstop flight from Chicago
(ORD) scheduled to Memphis and the latest nonstop
flight returning the same day to Chicago? (b) Are there any Cajun
restaurants near the airport in Memphis where I can take my friends for lunch?
(c) What if I wanted to drive to Memphis from Chicago; how far is it, anyway?
12.I
have been asked to set up accommodations for the annual conference of a science
club I co-chair. I need a hotel in San Francisco that has a meeting room to
accommodate 500 people. We will need 250 double occupancy rooms and hope to
keep the price below $100 a night. What is available?
Good luck on
beating the competition for the answers to these questions. I’ll be waiting to
hear from you.
Sincerely,
John Smith
Below are a few of the many travel-related Web sites
available via the Internet, with brief descriptions of the type of information
that each provides. Visit these sites to answer Mr. Smith’s questions.
Preview Travel
A wide variety of reservations and general travel information
Expedia
Plan a trip, buy airline tickets, and make hotel and car reservations
Travelocity
A site for the SABRE reservation system; make airline, hotel and rental car reservations
Fodors
Extensive information on reservations and travel worldwide
Priceline
“Name your own price” for an airline seat or a hotel room
Disney
Information about trips to Disney theme parks, cruises, etc.
Economy Travel
An international travel consolidator offering discount airline prices, even without advance ticketing
Centers for Disease Control
Government-provided health information you may need to know before traveling
The State Department
Includes travel warnings, addresses of embassy and consulate Web sites; also includes extensive passport information
Traveldog
Lists accommodations and amenities for dogs, including camps, day care, parks and pet sitters
Island Scuba
www.islandscuba.com
Information about scuba diving trips in the Caribbean
Mastercard
Lists of ATM machine locations worldwide
Visa
Lists of ATM machine locations worldwide
How Far Is It?
Distances between cities worldwide, plus maps
Yahoo! Travel
Extensive information on almost any travel-related subject
American Airlines
Reservations and information on American Airlines flights
Southwest Airlines
Reservations and information on Southwest Airlines flights
United Airlines
Reservations and information on United Airlines flights
Amazon.com
“The world’s largest bookstore”
Write a letter to Mr. Smith that not only answers his questions but also invites him to come in and take “The Virtual Guided Tour” at Real Travel Agency. Review the “Write Traits” Rubric below for Technical Content.
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Technical Content |
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Write Traits is an instructional and assessment model that supports and improves a student’s writing performance by drawing focus to the specific elements that strengthen writing.
Bravo! Well Done!
You’ve successfully beaten the competition for the answers to these questions, and now you’re ready to close the sale.
Can you develop 3 ways travel agents can market their services on-line that will keep them competitive with other on-line services?
South Carolina Hospitality &
Tourism Competencies
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1) Travel Agencies |
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54760854 |
Identify those products sold over the Internet. |
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Identify
internet tools for tourism research and travel planning. |
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54760503 |
Utilize
travel planning resources. |
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54760504 |
Identify
and use technology resources for travel planning. |
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Source: The National Academy
Foundation, Academy of Travel and Tourism, Introduction to Travel &
Tourism, Unit 05 Travel & Tourism Marketing, Lesson 02 On-Line Services, www.naf.org |