THHGCS01A: Develop and update local knowledge

Develop local knowledge

Activities
Scenarios

Activities

1.      Research and comment on the annual weather patterns in your local area.

2.      Create a comprehensive list of festivals and events to be held over a 12-month period that would appeal to a visitor to your area.

3.      Research the history of your area in relation to the first European settlement? What was its national background? Was it always known by the name as you know it? How did the settlement start out?

4.      Now research the Aboriginal history of your area, e.g. the name of the original Aboriginal tribes that inhabited the area. Are there any examples of Aboriginal cave paintings in the area? Are there any sacred sites that should be respected?

5.      List all the forms of public transport that visitors to your city/town can use to visit local attractions, and the current cost of a ticket to the relevant destinations from the centre of town.

6.      Apart from information on local places of interest, what else would staff members at a visitor information centre be required to know for their job?

7.      Research local customs. Are there any you consider should be explained to visitors to you area? What about colloquialisms? Are there popular sayings you think you would have to explain to visitors?

Scenarios

1.      You are in the travel industry and are walking down one of the main streets in your city when a couple approaches you. They look like tourists as they have cameras, maps, etc.! They ask you for assistance in locating a famous museum. They've heard it is very interesting but have no idea what it contains. Choose a museum in your city and explain its location and why it is so interesting.

2.      You work in your town's visitor information service. A visitor enters and says he has lost his wallet and credit cards. How you would help him in this predicament?

3.      As a coach driver for a day tour company, you have been asked to prepare a new commentary for a forthcoming indigenous attraction that is about to open. How would you source the information and check the accuracy of the information.

4.      You are about to welcome a group of international visitors to Australia. Prepare a speech advising them of the practical things such as currency exchange, weather conditions, local customs including tipping, opening hours for shops, major attractions etc.

5.      You work for an inbound tour operator and your manager has asked you to greet a group that is about to arrive and to distribute their Australian travel documents to them. You arrive at the hotel and find the bi-lingual guide has suddenly become ill and you are left, not speaking their language, to distribute the documents and explain how they should manage their documentation that includes vouchers for transport, hotels, sightseeing, as well as duty free discount vouchers and an itinerary. How would you handle this situation?

6.      Your group in 5 above has settled in and you sit at the hospitality desk in the hotel lobby where the bi-lingual guide was to be located. One of the group approaches you and asks for information on purchasing some very rare items and you have no idea where they can be obtained. How would you handle the situation?

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