tourism management

Arts & crafts are often significant symbols to a nation’s history; recently, 25 students from our Tourism Management programme guided by 5 of their lecturers visited the National Craft Centre and the International Islamic Arts Museum to learn about Malaysian and Islamic culture, as well as to be exposed to its significant role in the Malaysian tourism industry
 
Throughout the visit, students were mesmerized of the display of local traditional and modern crafts, which included local textile, wood, pottery, crafts, gems, jewels and food from different parts of Malaysia. Master craftsmen were also demonstrating the arts of top spinning, batik printing, basket weaving during our visit.
   
At the Islamic Arts Museum, more than 12,000 artefacts that were on display provided our students exposure on the cultural elements that resemble the religion. Among the 12 permanent galleries that were on display, students managed to gain knowledge of the religion and its relationship with different ethnic cultures such as Indian Muslims, Chinese Muslims and Malay Muslims. Arts & Crafts play a major role in Malaysian tourism, as we have been well-known of our rich heritage, diversity and culture. Our students benefited from the visit, as they discovered the potentials of Malaysian crafts – we look forward to seeing them partake in promoting Malaysian arts & crafts in the future, as they join the workforce as tourism specialists.

Q: What did you do on the programme? How was the experience?
A: I was one of the 48 participants from 47 countries who were selected to take part in the 22nd Asia-Europe Foundation (ASEFSU22) programme. The theme for this year was Sustainable Development. I went through 3 stages of the programme which are:

1. Online Preparatory phase: A preparation phase that introduces the topic and concept of the whole program to the participants through online webinars, additional reading materials, and conversation through email.
2. On-Site Programme: A 2-week program that took place in Slovenia and Croatia in September 2018.
3. Follow-Up phase: A 4-week ongoing feedback session about the whole experience of the program.
The on-site program took place in five towns and cities across Slovenia (Ljubljana, Portorož, and Piran) and Croatia (Poreč, and Zaghreb). It was attended by a total of 48 participants from 47 countries across Europe and Asia, lead by 4 organisers in partnership with Hosteling International (HI). During the 10-days programme, I, along with all the other participants, attended lectures and workshops that were hosted by different professional bodies in regards to the theme of ASEFSU22 this year. 
In addition, we also had the chance to explore Slovenia and Croatia from the eyes of the locals through a guided tour provided by the organisers. The main project of the program was to come out with a proposal in a form of a case study to answer the question of "How Can Hostelling International Achieve Completely Disposable Plastic-free Hostels?" Along with 5 other team members, we worked on the proposal and presented our idea on the last day of the programme itself. 

Q: What was the selection process of the programme? 
The selection process starts with applying through their online application, and ASEF will email their shortlisted participants to schedule for a Skype interview. Afterwards, they will then again email the shortlisted participants stating if they were chosen to take part in the program or not. Once chosen, ASEF advised successful candidates to go for the next step such as looking into flight tickets and visa requirements. I was selected as a representative of my country, Brunei Darussalam – being an undergraduate student who is studying in the field of tourism which includes sustainable tourism has inspired my interest to explore this programme and learn more about sustainability across the globe.

Q: What did you learn most from your trip? 
The programme was attended by so many different people coming from different backgrounds as well as different professions, I learnt something new every day. Talking to different people every day gave me the chance to further broaden my mind regarding the issues of the world. In relation to the programme itself, it was fascinating to see different views and opinions from different people that I could hardly think about. The programme as a whole allowed me to see the world from a different perspective, in which the world today is indeed polluted with waste and corruption. We, as future leaders of the world, have the responsibility to change and make the world a better place. The programme served as an initiative to change the minds of the people today to live on a healthy planet.
This program also allowed me to exchange ideas with other participants, both academically and personally.

Q:  How did the trip change you thereafter?
Due to the theme being sustainable development, one of the challenging tasks given to participants was to live sustainably by reducing single-use plastic usage along with other plastic-related items for the whole month of September. Before the trip, we were advised to bring our own water bottles and use other substitutes instead of using single-use plastics. Therefore, during the whole trip, I have lived sustainably by not using single-use plastics which includes bringing my own water bottle. In addition to the lectures and workshops, the trip was an eye-opener to realizing how harmful plastic is to the environment. Coming back from the trip has definitely changed my habits towards plastic usage by opting for re-usable bags for shopping, using water bottles to drink from, reducing the use of paper by going digital in my studies unless there is a need for physical submission, and more. To date, although the programme has ended a few months ago, I am still trying to reduce my plastic and paper usage as much as possible. 

Q: What are your advice to APU students after undergoing this trip?
My advice to APU students and everyone, in general, is to understand the harmful effect of plastics. APU provides water dispensers in the university for free, students should take advantage of that to refill their own water bottles instead of buying plastic water bottles which will cost you much more than investing in a water bottle. We are the generation that is going to live on this planet, therefore, we need to sustain it as much as possible. Let's all join hands together to save our home.

As we board an airplane, little do we know that a vast amount of resources are involved at an airline’s operations control centre to ensure the smooth operations of flights, 24/7.

20 students from our BA (Hons) in Tourism Management programme, accompanied by 4 lecturers, recently had the opportunity to visit the Malaysia Airlines Operations Control Centre, located at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA). 

At the trip, they met Capt. Reza Abd Rahim of Flight Operations and Ms. Serina Hor, Senior Executive of Emergency Management Operations on-site, as they were briefed on the standard operating procedures (SOP) and day-to-day challenges faced by the operations staff. Apart from an exclusive tour to highly-sensitive areas at the OCC, the students also met Capt. Hamdan Che Ismail, the Director of Flight Operations at Malaysia Airlines who shared briefly on his valuable experiences gained from the industry.

The visit was an eye opener for both lecturers and students who participated; through the trip, the students gained an overview of the concepts and implementation of airlines management and operations, in which these can be translated into useful domain knowledge that will benefit them in their future tourism careers. We look forward to seeing visits like this, that expose students towards the practical experiences that are relevant to their future careers.

The Tourism Management students from School of Marketing and Management (UC2F1801TRM) successfully conducted another “Adventure and Extreme Sports Tour” to Ulu Slim for White Water Rafting, in which the planning, execution and management of the tour were done by the students as part of their out-of-classroom training for the Retail Travel Operations module.

Through the exhilarating trip, students acquired the retailing skills in travel operations; upon the completion of the tour, they now have knowledge in arranging attractive tour packages and grasping the real notion of adventure and extreme sports tourism, while understanding the overall landscape of the retail tourism industry. A total of 32 students were their “customers” this round, where the organizing committee learnt how to deal with customer expectations, purchasing and selling of tickets, reservation of seats – all these provided them with a practical learning experience that is required for successful tour operators in their careers.

The White Water Rafting site is located only 1 hour 30 minutes from Kuala Lumpur near Ulu Slim village. Along the journey, the participants enjoyed and relaxed their mind with the beautiful hills and the serene environment of the aborigine’s village. This tour boasted many exciting features and activities and perfect for those who want to escape from the hustle and bustle of city life. Moreover, it provided a truly remarkable experience and the best extreme exposure for the participants.

Overall, this trip allowed participants to gain great experience and invaluable practical knowledge. The participants for the tour were APU students from various countries such as Seychelles, China, Brunei, Japan, Nigeria and Yemen, who came together and made this tour lively and successful.

In order for one to be successful in the tourism industry, an in-depth understanding of tour locations and its history and geography are required. In view of this, the Tourism Management students from the School of Marketing and Management (SOMM) recently conducted an “Adventure and Recreational Tour” to the Tempurung Cave and Kellie’s Castle, two of Perak’s most popular tourism destination located near Ipoh – the capital city of the state.

Tempurung Cave, known as the oldest cave in Malaysia and this natural wonder is situated in Gopeng, Perak. This cave is lauded as the largest limestone cave in Peninsular Malaysia. Meanwhile, Kellie’s Castle is an unfinished and ruined mansion. It was built by a Scottish planter named William Kellie-Smith. This old building is now a popular local tourist attraction with its own majestic look. Boasting many exciting features and activities, both places are perfect for those who want to escape from the hustle and bustle of city life. Trip to Gua Tempurung and Kellie’s Castle had provide a truly remarkable experience and the best exposure for the participants.

The main objective of this trip was for Tourism Management students to learn the retailing skills in travel operations. After the completion of the tour, the students have acquired the skill to arrange attractive tour packages and grasped the real concept of adventure and heritage tourism. This tour has also benefited the tourism students in terms of understanding the business strategies behind tour operations.

Overall, this trip has allowed participants to gain great experience and invaluable practical knowledge. The participants for the tour were APU students from various countries such as China, Uzbekhistan and Kazakhstan who together made this tour energetic and successful.

Here comes another unforgettable experience, created by students from the UC2F1704 Intake of the BA (Hons) in Tourism Management programme, under the APU School of Marketing and Media (SOMM). 
 
We are delighted to share with you that the students successfully conducted a tour to Skytrex, Shah Alam under the theme of “Adventure Tourism”. Skytrex, Shah Alam Adventure Park is an unusual high elements jungle canopy adventure park situated within the Shah Alam National Botanical Park. Altogether about nine students and a lecturer participated in this tour. 
 
The main objective of this trip was to put into practice the overall tour management which includes pricing strategies, costing, marketing and organising a proper tour for the APU students. It definitely proved to be more effective than just learning through theory about tour arrangement. 

Overall, it was a great experience and invaluable knowledge was gained from this adventure tour by the students. Moreover, the participants had a chance to self-experiment and test both their mental and physical strength, as well as confidence through challenges such climbing, walking, swinging and zipping as high as 22 metres from the ground.  
 
Congratulations to the Tourism Management students in organizing an effective adventure tour!