TOURISM CORRESPONDENCE COURSE
Special interest tourism (SIT) is the provision of customised tourism activities that caters to the specific interests of groups and individuals. In this case, tourism is undertaken to satisfy a particular interest or need. It has been proposed that SIT consists of four main experiences:
Rewarding
Enriching
Adventuresome Experiences
Learning Experiences.
Student Comment (M. Soares, Angola): "This has given me insights into world wide tourism, and it helps me to understand how we can develop our tourism without too much damage"
Duration: 100 hours
There are ten lessons in this module as follows:
Sectors of the Tourism Industry –Scope of the travel product (natural & cultural, events & sites)
Types of Tourism –Regional, Rural, Urban.
Accommodation Types: Resorts and Hotels, Camping, Back packers, Cruises, Special interest accommodation, Cultural Tourism –Theatre, Indigenous tourism, Historic parks, Cultural vs Heritage tourism
Events & Festivals –Concerts, Exhibitions, Performances.
Environmental Tourism – Nature based tourism, Wildlife tourism and ecotourism etc
Health & Adventure Tourism – Health resorts & Spas, Bicycle & Walking Tours, Soft vs Hard Adventure Tourism, Rock Climbing, Space Tourism
More Special Interest Tourism –Food & Wine, Senior Tourism, Sex tourism
Visitor Management & Contingency Planning –Risk management (safety, financial, etc), insurance, environmental impacts, etc
Packaging a Tour - Planning the Itinerary; costing; delivery; review etc
The range of special interest tours is enormous. It may range from a women’s only trek down the Larapinta Track in outback Australia to a bike tour of one of France's wine growing regions where it is possible to meet those responsible for the production of the wine being sampled, or from gay-only resorts to whale watching in Antarctica.
One way of classifying different types of tourism is according to the dominant interest or reason that causes people to travel. If a tourism manager understands why a person or group of people are travelling to a particular destination, they can then design a package of services tailored to support that reason for travelling. Some travel aims or categories of tourists occur often enough that tourism providers have found it profitable to establish packages specifically tailored to cater to them. Others may require special packages or arrangements that will meet their distinctive, particular needs
WHAT YOU WILL DO IN THIS COURSE
The course is more than theory, but it offers you choices in what practical tasks you undertake and how you undertake them, for example: you might do some or all of the following:
-Visit travel agencies or information centres
-Search the internet
-Write to a government travel authority/department
-Visit a local or regional tourist centre
-Study travel pages in a newspaper for both articles and advertisements
-Visit a library, bookshop or news stand and look at travel magazines
-Conduct interviews or surveys
-Attend events
To differentiate between different types of tourism on a variety of bases, including:
demographics, geography, economics, and culture.
To compare a variety of different accommodation services provided in the tourism industry.
To describe the operation of heritage and cultural tourism, including: historical, architectural, indigenous, and artistic attractions.
Evaluate the tourism potential of events and festivals.
To describe the management of passive natural tourist attractions, including wilderness areas, beaches, rivers, wildlife etc.
To describe the operation of different types of tourism facilities that have a significant focus on health and fitness, including Health Resorts, Walking Tours and Cycling.
To describe a variety of other types of special interest tourism, including food tourism, senior tourism and sex tourism.
To plan and manage the number of visitors to different types of tourism facilities and develop appropriate contingency plans.
To plan a package holiday incorporating a variety of accommodation and attraction options.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who are our tutors?
Our tutors are all highly experienced and professional, knowledgeable in their field of study. We have staff from around the world, enabling us to gain a wide variety of perspectives. We have a school in the UK and in Australia. If you would like to have a look at our tutors, then click on the “The School” in the boxes above and choose “The Staff” option.
Can I see What course notes are like?
Our courses are all written by highly qualified tutors and writers, who also teach on the courses, so know them well. We strive to update our courses and improve them with new information, methods and knowledge on an ongoing basis. If you would like to see examples of some of our courses, then choose the “Enrolment” option above, and then click on “Sample Course Notes”.
What learning method should I choose?
We offer three learning methods – e-learning, correspondence and online. If you are not sure which is the right choose for you, then click on the “Enrolment” box above, then “Learning Methods.”
How Long will it take to complete the course?
This obviously varies from student to student. Some students will have more time for study than others. Some students may work quicker than others, so it is an individual thing. We estimate that most students will take, for example, 4 – 6 months to complete a 100 hour individual module, but we allow up to 12 months for you to complete it.
Longer courses will obviously take longer. You can find more information on the length of time required and so on the “Enrolment” box, then selecting “Terms and Conditions of Enrolment.”
What Do Our Students think of us?
If you would like to read comments from our previous students, then choose the “Enrolment” option above, then “Student Testimonials”.
I don’t think this is the right course for me.
If you’re not sure about this course, then why not look at our wide range of other courses. Click on the “Courses” box above.
You may also wish to design your own course to fit in with exactly what YOU want. To do so, click on the “Enrolment” box, then “Design your Own Course”.
If you would like more advice on a course, then you can contact us and ask a tutor about the courses. You can contact us by calling 0800 328 4723 or +44(0) 384 442752 or emailing info@acsedu.co.uk
Recognition and Accreditation
ACS is recognised formally by IARC. We have a range of other areas of recognition and accreditation. For more information on our recognition and accreditation, click on “The School”, then “Recognition”.
Who is ACS Distance Education?
If you want to know more about ACS and our history, then please click on “The School”, then “About us.”
Increase your knowledge of special interest tourism
This course aims to develop your ability to manage different types of travel products, with a particular focus on special interest tourism. Builds an understanding of opportunities in such things as business tourism, festival tourism, cultural tourism, environmental tourism, senior tourism, food and wine tourism and much more.
Travel to natural attractions has a very long history, and has probably occurred since humans first developed a sense of aesthetics, may even earlier. Travel to these destinations was often arduous, and required determination, courage, a level of fitness, and sufficient wealth to allow the traveller to purchase food, labour, accommodation, transport and other materials for long periods. Today’s traveller, on the other hand, can reach most destinations easily and quickly, and services and facilities are usually readily available at the site or nearby, and he or she need not be fit or wealthy.
With travel to natural sites easier than ever, and travel more generally affordable, the main concern in developing and maintaining natural sites is manage tourism in order to avoid damage to very attraction that draws people there. This issue is discussed further in the lesson on environmental tourism, but it is a significant issue for all kinds of tourism that attracts travellers to places where they can enjoy the sights, smells, sounds and delights of nature.
Student Comment (M. Soares, Angola): "This has given me insights into world wide tourism, and it helps me to understand how we can develop our tourism without too much damage"
