Andean Travel Company

Placement organization

Name of organization: Andean Travel Company
Town/city: Quito
Country: Ecuador
Website: http://www.andeantc.com

Student

Name of student: Anoek Laarman

Specialist area: ITMC
Placement period: 2012-2013

Information about placement organization

Type of organization: DMC
Organization’s activities: Combining-, organizing- and selling of tours throughout Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands.
Target group of the organization: Any target group, but currently mostly focused on Europe
Company culture: Everybody is really relaxed and informal and treat one another equal. You feel part of the team.
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? DMC; Sales, marketing, operations, accounting, administration.
They have a yacht to Galapagos; The Galapagos Odyssey
I worked in the marketing/sales department.
Brief description of your daily activities: I am busy with the aftersales to clients. Calling them to ask if there were any problems. Furthermore I am updating our database which show all the products we sell.
Brief description of your company assignment: I make an marketing report, because many changes in the company the marketing department needs some changes.
Comment briefly on your supervision by the organization: They let you work independently and if they have a job for you, you will hear it right away. The office is open, and therefore easy to communicate with each other.

Requirements for students on placement

What kind of personal skills are required for this placement? Independent, sociable, flexible
Additional company requirements for this placement? Word, Photoshop, Internet
English: Advanced
Spanish: Intermediate
French:
German:
Italian:
Other languages:

The trip

Mode of transport to reach your destination: Airplane

Accommodation

How did you arrange your accommodation? The placement company provides accommodation to their interns.
How did you go to work every day? By foot, it is only a 5 minutes walk.

Visa / work permit / vaccinations

Do you need a visa? Yes, you need a visa. http://www.ecuadorexplorer.com/html/immigration.html. I had the 12-IX (valid for 6 months) but a voluntarily visa (valid for a year) could be working as well. Then you will have more travel time afterwards.
Do you need a work permit? No
How did you arrange the necessary documents: I went to the Ecuadorian embassy in Den Haag.
How much time did it take to arrange the necessary documents? With the right documents you can get your visa the same day. But have to on time to make an appointment with them. This takes long!
Did you need certain vaccinations? Yes

Language course

Did you take a language course before you started your placement? No, but I should have
Would you recommend to have a language course prior to this placement? Yes, the higher your level of Spanish is, the better!

The costs in euros

Travelling expenses (e.g. return ticket): € 1000,00
Accommodation (monthly): € 0,00
Local transport (monthly): € 25,00 including transport to other cities
General costs of living (monthly): € 500,00 including transport to other cities
Costs of visa: € 180,00
Costs of work permit: €
What did the company pay for/to you? USD 150,00 the first 3 months, USD 250,00 the last 3 months, accommodation, lunch, accommodation and transport from airport to the apartment.

Culture

How did you prepare for the country’s culture?
I did not.
Did the culture of the country influence your performance during the placement in any way? No not at all. There is a really relaxed international atmosphere at the office. The only thing that striked my, was my lack of Spanish.

Future students on placement

Future students are free to contact me for further information: Yes
My e-mail address: anoeklaarman@gmail.com

Other information

Recommendations on what to do and what not to do: Quito at night is not really safe. Take a cab during the nighttime and watch your luggage at all times. In the Bus/Trolley hold your bag as close as possible against your body, they are smart!
Leisure possibilities in the city/surroundings of where the placement took place: Try to do as much as possible, especially in the weekends. My visa ends only one week after my placement which means not much time to travel in Ecuador itself. Ecuador is so beautiful and has so much to offer, especially outside Quito!

Media

Youtube link Youtube placement video link