Autopia Tours

Placement organization

Name of organization: Autopia Tours
Town/city: Melbourne
Country: Australië
Website: http://www.autopiatours.com.au

Student

Name of student: Gabrielle van de Loosdrecht

Specialist area: MT
Placement period: 2013-2014

Information about placement organization

Type of organization: Tour operator
Organization’s activities: 1, 2 and 3 day tours in Victoria, Australia. For example the Great Ocean Road, Phillip Island and the Grampians.
Target group of the organization: International Travellers/Backpackers
Company culture: Informal business structure.
Number of employees: 30
Dress code: casual
Did the organization meet the agreements you made beforehand? Yes

Information about your placement

In which department(s) are you working? Reservations
Brief description of your daily activities: – Taking bookings by Phone and E-mail
– Preparing drives folders
– Feedback forms
– Ad-hoc duties
Brief description of your company assignment: Strategic marketing plan for the upcoming 5 years.
Comment briefly on your supervision by the organization: Good

Requirements for students on placement

What kind of personal skills are required for this placement? Team player, flexible, social, stress-proof!, willing to learn, customer friendly
Additional company requirements for this placement? Microsof Office (Windows, Exel, Powerpoint).
English: Advanced
Spanish:
French:
German:
Italian:
Other languages:

The trip

Mode of transport to reach your destination: Airplane, 23 hours

Accommodation

How did you arrange your accommodation? Myself (company sorted accommodation for the first month).
How did you go to work every day? Train and foot, 45 minutes

Visa / work permit / vaccinations

Do you need a visa? Yes, Working Holiday Visa
Do you need a work permit? No
How did you arrange the necessary documents: Agencies, of which Stage-Australia
How much time did it take to arrange the necessary documents? 2 months.
Did you need certain vaccinations? No
How long in advance? x

Language course

Did you take a language course before you started your placement? No
Would you recommend to have a language course prior to this placement? Yes!

The costs in euros

Travelling expenses (e.g. return ticket): € 1300
Accommodation (monthly): € 700
Local transport (monthly): € 80
General costs of living (monthly): € 400
Costs of visa: € 400
Costs of work permit: € x
What did the company pay for/to you? Accommodation.

Culture

How did you prepare for the country’s culture?
I was very flexible and watched others, especially colleagues, to fit in the culture.
Did the culture of the country influence your performance during the placement in any way? no

Future students on placement

Future students are free to contact me for further information: No
My e-mail address: gvdloosdrecht@hotmail.com

Other information

Recommendations on what to do and what not to do: Be yourself, be outgoing, be flexible. Do not expect to much and do not compare Australia with your home country. Stay in a hostel in the beginning to quickly make friends, and then move to your own appartment to lower your monthly costs.
Leisure possibilities in the city/surroundings of where the placement took place: EVERYWHERE!

Media

Youtube link Youtube placement video link