This week Mystery Shopper was in Wrexham looking for a short break to Hong Kong for the Chinese New Year in 2010. There were vast differences between the agencies, but these were not completely down to product knowledge.
The Going Places agent was impressive because she managed to get details that were hundreds of pounds cheaper than her rivals, whilst the Denbighshire Travel consultant shone because of her product knowledge. The Thomson agent could have tried harder.
Thomson
Thomson14 Egerton Street
Score: 35%
The consultants were busy with customers when I entered, although the agent from the Bureau de Change said I would need to wait for the adviser.
After half an hour I was served with apology for the delay. The consultant didn’t appear to know when the Chinese New Year was and had computer problems. She phoned Thomson, but was put on hold. She then did a computer search and read a brief hotel description off the screen and showed me photos. She then found me a nicer hotel in the Kuoni brochure.
When I asked about flight duration she said “they don’t tell us that,” then read out some flight times but didn’t know the time difference. The stay was at the Kowloon Hotel costing £1,600 and the Park Hotel for £1,909, room only.
My visit lasted 54 minutes, 32 of which were spent waiting. The consultant appeared to have poor product knowledge and a lack of initiative.
The Co-operative Travel
The Co-operative Travel5 Egerton Street
Score: 57%
The agent here knew the Chinese New Year was February 14th, and told me it was the Year of the Tiger. She phoned Premier Holidays and waited for a call back whilst they checked availability.
She admitted she didn’t know hotels in Hong Kong but said she always used that operator because their recommendations were reliable. Premier suggested the Harbour Plaza Metro costing £1,660 on a bed and breakfast basis including transfers. She was also able to give me a little information about getting about Hong Kong.
She offered to try another company, but got a message saying all advisors were busy. She then tried online, but the next quote was more expensive. She took my contact details and offered to keep trying and email me with what she found, but 24 hours later the email hadn’t arrived.
She was friendly, seemed to try her best, but the system she used appeared extremely inefficient.
Going Places
Going Places23 Lord Street
Score: 84%
The consultant here asked lots of questions about my request and checked the dates of the Chinese New Year. She offered to check both packages and separate flights and hotel.
She went online and found a cheap flight with Finnair, changing at Helsinki. She offered Cathay Pacific and Qatar as alternatives. She looked at hotels and because the flight arrived at 14.40 there was no need to book an additional night due to early arrival.
She then tried package holidays, but these were more expensive. She hadn’t visited Hong Kong, but she found answers and printed out Gazetteer reviews for me. She showed me a map with the hotels on and offered to email the hotels to check other queries.
The deal was price came to £954 for Qatar flights and the Excelsior hotel or £1,073 for the Harbour Plaza. The agent was efficient and crucially found deals that were hundreds of pounds cheaper than anyone else.
Denbighshire Travel
Denbighshire Travel30 Lord Street
Score: 86%
Unusually the left part of the agency was a café, which offered customers the opportunity to browse brochures.
The consultant here couldn’t have been more helpful or knowledgeable, warning that business would close for several days over this period and those that were open may increase prices.
She talked about different airlines and the merits of each. She found flights from London with Cathay Pacific costing £994 for two. She showed me a map and mentioned about the ferry and rail service between Kowloon Town and Hong Kong Island.
As the flight was due in at 7.05am she recommended booking the previous night so we could go straight to the room. She costed the four-star Excelsior Hotel at £451 and gave me another price for a better room with a harbour view, but also tried to upgrade me to a five star hotel.
She also said she could arrange insurance and excursions. This agent was very impressive and was both enthusiastic and efficient.
Talking point
Talking pointHow important is initiative in a travel agents’ job? Discuss it with community editor Emily Ashwell
Tips
1. Advise customers to arrive in Hong Kong a couple of days prior to New Years day, to make the most of the sales.
2. While some smaller establishments may be closed during this time shops and restaurants accredited by the Quality Tourism Service (QTS) Scheme will be open throughout the Chinese New Year holiday.
3. Advise customers to make their way early to Victoria Harbour between Central and Tsim Sha Tsui to get the best view of the spectacular fireworks display. Book a seat in the spectator stand (HK$150 approx) or stand along the parade route for free to watch the Chinese New Year Night Parade.
4. Take time out from the city to explore Hong Kong’s lush countryside by walking along the Dragon’s Back hiking trail – 70% of Hong Kong’s landmass is green and 40% is country parks.
5. For more product knowledge about hotels in Hong Kong visit Gazetteers.com. The site also contains photos of resorts and hotel reviews from fellow travel agents.