Asian Trails Thailand

Placement organization

Name of organization: Asian Trails Thailand
Town/city: Bangkok
Country: Thailand
Website: http://www.asiantrails.travel/

Name of student: Nhung Thuy Vo

Specialist area: ITTI
Placement period: 2013-2014

Information about placement organization

Type of organization: DMC
Organization’s activities: Asian Trails is an inbound DMC over South East Asia countries. It offers a varied product line covering hotels, coach tours, private tours, car rentals, airport transfers, soft adventure tours, cruises, Harley Davidson motorcycle tours, home-stay, biking tours, self-drive package tours and lifestyle packages as well as cooking classes, spa holiday, golfing, private villas, private jets, incentives and luxury train journeys.
Target group of the organization: Upmarket
Company culture: Influenced by Thai culture, Asian Trails has hierarchy culture. Staff have to show respect to the seniors and their bosses by calling full title, respectful and polite behaviours.
Number of employees: 200
Dress code: formal
Did the organization meet the agreements you made beforehand? Yes

Information about your placement

In which department(s) are you working? Wholesales Department
Brief description of your daily activities: Assist Wholesales department team members in communication with travel agents (worldwide) and tour-operator clients, including quotations.

Assist Wholesales department team members in communication with our branch offices in South East Asia.

Assist in creating and updating products outside Thailand-Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar.

Assist Deputy Managing Director in project work.

Brief description of your company assignment: I have 2 company assignments:
Compare SIC product of Asian Trails with other competitors.
Analyse competition in lines of Wholesales Department in Indochina market.

Work on two company assignments. I have developed my knowledge to conduct research in-depth and effectively while data are limited. The assignments have vastly increased my understanding about Indochina market-competition, opportunities and threats and performances of players in the market.
Comment briefly on your supervision by the organization: I have 2 company supervisors and one coach who supervise me directly. My coach is a very enthusiast, helpful and friendly person. She has taught me a lot about the work as well as Myanmar market. She is also a senior with high expertise so I have learned a lot from her experiences when dealing the work.

Requirements for students on placement

What kind of personal skills are required for this placement? Independent, Care for details, Sociable and Flexible
Additional company requirements for this placement? MS office
English: Advanced
Spanish: Basic
French:
German:
Italian:
Other languages:

The trip

Mode of transport to reach your destination: Skytrain

Accommodation

How did you arrange your accommodation? Company
How did you go to work every day? Skytrain

Visa / work permit / vaccinations

Do you need a visa? Yes, student visa
Do you need a work permit? No
How did you arrange the necessary documents: On my own
How much time did it take to arrange the necessary documents? 1 week
Did you need certain vaccinations? No
How long in advance? N/A

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? No

The costs in euros

Travelling expenses (e.g. return ticket): € 530
Accommodation (monthly): € 355
Local transport (monthly): € 30
General costs of living (monthly): € 185
Costs of visa: € 200
Costs of work permit: € N/A
What did the company pay for/to you? The company pays me accommodation and give me allowances.

Culture

How did you prepare for the country’s culture?
As Vietnam and Thailand are both in South East Asia so there are some similarities in culture between the two countries. Thus I have adapted to Thai culture very quickly. Moreover I read beforehand about Thai culture on Internet to know more about it.
Did the culture of the country influence your performance during the placement in any way? Yes

Future students on placement

Future students are free to contact me for further information: Yes
My e-mail address: 121866@edu.nhtv.nl

Other information

Recommendations on what to do and what not to do: You should read about Thai culture beforehand as it’s very different to European style. Thai people are friendly but when meeting a new person, they normally ask a lot about your personal life. Thus you should be aware of that. Moreover King and Buddhism are what they worship so you should show respect to them.

Thailland is always having political problems. Thus you should keep updated with the news and from your colleagues and your friends staying there.
Leisure possibilities in the city/surroundings of where the placement took place: Bangkok is famous for its shopping and night life. Thus you will have many possibilities for leisure there. Also there are many attractions nearby Bangkok that you can make a day/weekend trip such as in Thonburi, Kanchanaburi. Pattaya…

Media

Youtube link Youtube placement video link