SIXTY agents have completed the Viking Challenge training programme launched three years ago to help retailers become Scandinavia specialists.
Another 430 agents have taken one or more of the five tests – on Denmark, Norway, Iceland, Sweden and Finland – that they have to pass before getting a certificate. Danish Tourist Board marketing manager leisure travel Anne Madsen, who has been co-ordinating the programme, said: “We believe they will all complete the training programme.
“Our target was to have 500 agents actively taking part in the course by the end of 1999, which we have achieved. In total, 3,000 are using the programme in their agency as a reference manual.”
The Viking Challenge folder, which is free for agents, is divided into five sections, one on each of the Scandinavian countries, and includes general information such as the best time to travel, driving regulations, and sightseeing suggestions.
To become a specialist, agents have to answer the questions at the end of each section and return it to the relevant tourist board for marking. If they pass, they are put on the database.
They can then continue to take the other tests in their own time, and once they have passed all five, they become a specialist and will have their name and agency details passed to customers enquiring about Scandinavian holidays. They also get the chance to go on educationals.
“We have not yet been able to judge how much business the referral scheme has produced,” said Madsen.
She added that the tourist boards are hoping to run a Mastermind quiz, with Magnus Magnusson as question master, for the top 10 scoring specialists this year.