GuideandGo

Placement organization

Name of organization: GuideandGo
Town/city: Willemstad, Curaçao
Country: Nederlandse Antillen
Website: https://guideandgo.com/

Student

Name of student: Britt van Leeuwen

Specialist area: ITMC
Placement period: 2018-2019

Information about placement organization

Type of organization: Online Travel Agency
Organization’s activities: GuideandGo is an online travel agency which (re)sells tickets for tours, activities and attractions for destinations all over the world.
Target group of the organization: Mainly Dutch travellers
Company culture: The company culture can be described as very informal. There is no strict hierarchy and you can ask questions to any of the employees whenever you want.
Number of employees: 2 employees and 2 interns
Dress code: casual
Did the organization meet the agreements you made beforehand? Yes

Information about your placement

In which department(s) are you working?

Content Management

Brief description of your daily activities: There are several daily activities I am responsible for within the company, these vary from:

– Writing content for the website in both Dutch and English
– Checking availability of the products with the local touroperator
– Placing (not writing!) German translations on the website
– Customer service via live chat and e-mail
– Processing bookings
Brief description of your company assignment: My company assignment is a partner-satisfaction analysis. I would like to find out what the current partners of GuideandGo on Curaçao think about the company and whether or not they are satisfied with the services we offer.
Comment briefly on your supervision by the organization: The supervision is great. The interns sit next to a supervisor at the office so it’s very easy to ask questions, discuss things and ask for feedback.

Requirements for students on placement

What kind of personal skills are required for this placement? For this placement you need to be: creative, you need to be able to work independently and you need to have good writing skills in both Dutch and English
Additional company requirements for this placement? Writing skills in both Dutch and English and knowledge of MS office
English: Advanced
Spanish:
French:
German:
Italian:
Other languages: Dutch: advanced or mother tongue

The trip

Mode of transport to reach your destination: Airplane

Accommodation

How did you arrange your accommodation? Via the organisation Huisvesting Curacao
How did you go to work every day? By car

Visa / work permit / vaccinations

Do you need a visa? No
Do you need a work permit? Yes you need a Verklaring van Rechtswege
How did you arrange the necessary documents: I arranged the Verklaring van Rechtswege myself via the internet. Start on time because you need a lot of documents before you can request it.
How much time did it take to arrange the necessary documents? It took approx. 2 months to actually receive the Verklaring. Don’t worry if you don’t receive it before you go to Curaçao, proof that you requested the Verklaring is enough to get into the country. You can pick up the Verklaring in Curaçao as soon as the embassy has processed the request.
Did you need certain vaccinations? No
How long in advance?

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? I would recommend a language course if your English skills are not advanced

The costs in euros

Travelling expenses (e.g. return ticket): € 820
Accommodation (monthly): € 345
Local transport (monthly): € 270
General costs of living (monthly): € 350
Costs of visa: € N/A
Costs of work permit: € +/- 300
What did the company pay for/to you? The company pays a financial compensation of 500 ANG per month, which is approx. 245€

Culture

How did you prepare for the country’s culture?
I read a book about Curaçao and looked on the internet
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: Yes
My e-mail address: britt.van.leeuwen99@gmail.com

Other information

Recommendations on what to do and what not to do: – Try to rent a car together with someone else, the costs of renting a car on Curaçao are very high!

– Don’t walk alone on the streets (at night)

– Open yourself up to meet new people, there are a lot of students on Curaçao who are going through the same situation as you are. It’s very easy to make friends!
Leisure possibilities in the city/surroundings of where the placement took place: Curaçao is a small island, you can discover the whole island during your placement period. There are plenty of stunning beaches, touristic sights, good restaurants and great parties with happy hours!

Media

Youtube link Youtube placement video link