EcoColors tours

Placement organization

Name of organization: EcoColors tours
Town/city: Cancun
Country: Mexico
Website: http://www.ecotravelmexico.com

Student

Name of student: Kelly Wiersema

Specialist area: Tourism Management (EN)
Placement period: 2018-2019

Information about placement organization

Type of organization: Tour operator
Organization’s activities: Tours like whale shark tour, bike tour, snorkel tour.
Target group of the organization: Tourists
Company culture: Informal but there is a bit of a hierarchy I would say. However, my supervisor Kenneth Johnson (who is also the owner), is very nice
Number of employees: 30 (20 in the office itself)
Dress code: uniform
Did the organization meet the agreements you made beforehand? Yes

Information about your placement

In which department(s) are you working?

I was working in online marketing

Brief description of your daily activities: Social media, SEO, google ads, making the newsletter, adjusting the website, etc.
Brief description of your company assignment: I analyzed their online marketing and researched what/how they could improve in terms of online marketing .
Comment briefly on your supervision by the organization: Supervision was good. My supervisor Kenneth was at the office most of the times. He was really busy but I could always ask him aquaetion if I couldn’t figure it out myself (or at least ask a colleague). A thing I also really liked is that once a week I had to show my planning and we would discuss it and he gaveinde give me tips.

Requirements for students on placement

What kind of personal skills are required for this placement? Independent,
Additional company requirements for this placement? –
English: Advanced
Spanish: Basic

The trip

Mode of transport to reach your destination: Airplane

Accommodation

How did you arrange your accommodation? Air bnb
How did you go to work every day? Shuttle bus especially for employees (Free)

Visa / work permit / vaccinations

Do you need a visa? No
Do you need a work permit? No
How did you arrange the necessary documents: –
How much time did it take to arrange the necessary documents? –
Did you need certain vaccinations? Yes
How long in advance? I already had Theo way Bedford Mexico.

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? Not necessary

The costs in euros

Travelling expenses (e.g. return ticket): € 600 (varies a lot of course)
Accommodation (monthly): € 300
Local transport (monthly): € 30 (I used taxis a lot, you could definitely do it cheaper)
General costs of living (monthly): € 700 (300 accommodation, 200 food, 200 activities/trips/etc)
Costs of visa: € –
Costs of work permit: € –
What did the company pay for/to you? 3800 pesos per month = 190 usd = around 170 euros per month, in cash

Culture

How did you prepare for the country’s culture?
Read about Mexico and Mexican culture online.
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: kellywiersema@hotmail.com

Other information

Recommendations on what to do and what not to do: Show initiative at this placement, is really expected of you and be independent when you can. Also, travel!! Cancun gets boring a bit quickly.
Leisure possibilities in the city/surroundings of where the placement took place: Tulum, Chichen Itza, Playa del Carmen, Holbox, Merida,

Media

Youtube link Youtube placement video link