Title of Position:  Reservations Agent/Dispatch

West coast sightseeing is looking for friendly, professional and well-organized individuals to join the team as assisting in general tourism and other information. These people must be self-motivated and enjoy the tourism industry. This position entails administrative work, phone services, sales and customer service. The reservation department call center is the primary point of contact for all business functions during normal business hours.

Job Description:

• Presenting the positive public face of the company
• Always maintaining a high level of customer service
• Team player with other reservations agents and Tour guides
• Maintaining customer service in handling sightseeing enquiries via phone calls, fax and emails
• Communicating in a professional and helpful manner with suppliers and guests
• Taking reservations using in-house computer booking system
• Performing daily cash-out procedures and handling deposits
• Dispatching buses for pickup and drop off routing while communicating with tour guides
• Assisting accounting department for preparing semimonthly voucher invoicing
• Responding to emergency situations quickly and effectively in a professional manner
• Providing administrative and moral support for tour guides
• Answer multiple phone lines and provide all the Company information
• Process orders, forms, applications, requests and reports
• Develop a supportive role to other employees and affiliates
• Respond to emails professionally and promptly
• Take bookings and coordinate reservations
• Attend staff meetings and parties

Skills Required:

• Friendly, hardworking, team player, energetic
• Responsible and reliable, completely trustworthy
• Competent in computers (email, word, excel, ect.)
• An understanding of the tourism industry in Vancouver
• Interest in tourism and customer service
• Creative and have good reporting to the Managers
• Multi-lingual and Multi-tasking an asset
• Willing to learn and listen
• Tourism or business related education an asset
  • Good organizational skills interpersonal and time management skills
  • Flexible and adaptable
  • Must be dressed appropriate for office work
    • Familiarity with handling cash reconciliation
    • Excellent phone manner skills
    • Superior sense of humour

Benefits

• Industry Parties and functions
• Networking in the Industry
• Access to the Tourism Passport

Start Date: Between April 20th –May 1^st onwards

 End date: Between September 4^th- Sept 30th

Hours Per week: 37.5 Hours

Wages: $13 + Incentives

Application Dead Line:  April 5th 2013

Please send your resume and cover letter addressed to Pam Edwards, Reservations supervisor to: westcoast@vancouversightseeing.com

Vancouver's raindrop art featured outside of the Convention Centre, taken in the sunshine.

The intention of West Coast Sightseeing’s blog this summer, is to introduce readers to all that stunning Vancouver has to offer! There are certainly plenty of options, and we will feature a variety of attractions, restaurants, festivals and the like – our main goal is to help both tourists and locals discover Vancouver. This means that we will give you a taste of the well-known spots, but also introduce readers to places in Vancouver that may not be on everyone’s radar. What better way to get off the beaten path?! Have someone else do the research for you, and experience the best of Vancouver without the fear of ending up disappointed! Winning.

For this first post, a quick overview of some great things to do in the city should help you get started until next time.

Best way to see the city? By bike! The seawall and the always growing number of bike lanes throughout Vancouver make for a perfect combination. Enjoy the views, explore the streets, and pick where to stop along the way. Your options are endless, but often the best excursions take place on the seawall.

Best way to experience a Vancouverite’s Vancouver? There is no denying that Vancouver loves its sports teams, everyone in the city roots, roots, roots for the home team (summertime cues baseball ditties). TV viewers across the globe have seen Vancouver fans at their best, at the 2010 Olympics, and at their worst, after the Stanley Cup final riots of 2011 (and 1994). This summer is perfect to catch a Whitecaps match or a B.C. Lions game at B.C. Place (good weather also means an open air game), or head to catch summer’s sport – a Canadian’s baseball game! We promise the only riot that will take place is the riot of a good time that will be had by all.

Best way to explore Vancouver’s touristy areas as the locals do? Through your stomach! Gastown is one of Vancouver’s most popular locations for tourists. The steam clock, Gassy Jack, and Water Street’s cobblestones are perfect photo opportunities, but the plethora of authentic restaurants and bars are what bring the locals to the area. No matter your taste or budget, Gastown has a menu and drink special for you.

Let us know what you think of the suggestions, and come back soon for more posts about the best city in the world!

Want up to the minute updates and advice? Follow me on Twitter @amieroth

Monday, March 26

Dear Vancouver Tourism Family,

Effective April 1, we are happy to announce that Big Bus and West Coast Sightseeing will be working together to bring you the best of Hop-On Hop-Off and Sightseeing Tours in the Vancouver market.

There will be an open reception today at the Tourism Vancouver Visitors Centre from 12:00 – 2:00 so please join us.

We will combine our enthusiasm for showing visitors around town and operate with two distinct and expert divisions. The opportunities in a partnership are obvious and we are ready to implement the benefits this season.  Our focus on core competencies, while at the same time being able to offer a full product line to tourists, hotels, concierge and wholesalers, means we can leverage many great and longstanding relationships, coordinate the delivery of best in class tour experiences and offer more choices for tourism locally.

“West Coast learned a great deal last year as we entered the Hop-On Hop-Off business with the Pink Bus.  We gained great respect for the Big Bus operations and staff and saw that open top buses are a huge hit with tourists when the weather is sunny and the novelty and vantage point of the double deckers works best in inclement weather.  Partnering with Living Earth Ecotours and Big Bus for Hop-On Hop-Off is going to be great in Vancouver.“ says Rob Safrata of West Coast.

Hans Klassen of Big Bus said, “At Big Bus, we have always admired the range of products and fun attitude at West Coast Sightseeing and look forward to infusing all of these great attributes at Big Bus.  The combined fleet and management group will open up lots of opportunities locally.”

We will be in touch with suppliers and associates asap and can be reached personally at:

Hans Klassen– 604-690-5589

Rob Safrata – 604-880-1900

See Frequently Asked Questions below:

FAQ’s

Q:    What does this mean for Vancouver tourists?

A:     More choice, more frequency, better value, better service, more fun!

Q:    What will be the specific benefits to customers?

A:    

• For the Hop-On Hop-Off  business:
  • We will be able to offer greater frequency
  • On sunny days – open tops will be available
  • On rainy days – double deckers will be featured
  • Old buses will go to old-bus heaven

• For the Tour Business:
  • Increased capacity on all tours.
  • Increased flexibility –Sprinters available for smaller groups and overflow.
  • A couple special announcements coming soon!

• Benefits of partnership:
  • Special packages to suppliers and associates
  • Central point of contact

• Driver Guide Excellence:  With almost double the number of driver guides – we have a revamped a best in class team training program to dazzle your guests and ensure a great experience.

Q:    What will be the benefits to hotel concierge and staff?

A:

• Single point of contact available 14 hours/day for service and solutions.
• Formation of an Industry Committee to advise on our products and service delivery.

Q:    How will the companies be run?

 A:

The Big Bus Team will focus on Hop-On Hop-Off operations and sales and West Coast Sightseeing will focus on Tours.

Reservations, sales, accounting, payables, fleet and maintenance will be brought together for greater efficiency and coordination.  These efficiencies can then be used for the fleet, driver guide training and tour development.

Q:    Who are the owners of the partnership?

 A:

This is a partnership of industry veterans, proven players and experienced executives.

Tim Bourassa (Operations): Tim has been raised in the tour industry, starting by handing out brochures as a kid on the streets of Toronto. “I have goose bumps about the services we can offer with the combined fleet and talent within the two industry leaders!”

Maria Foo (Accounting):  For the past 2 seasons Maria has enjoyed the experience of being a part of the West Coast Sightseeing family and their focus on service quality.  “The learnings and improvements have been continuous and I look forward to the partnership with Big Bus as the next phase in this journey.  The individual philosophies and skill-sets of our combined team are complementary and everyone can expect us to continue to deliver ‘dazzling memories and experiences’.

Hans Klassen: As a co-founder of Big Bus, Hans has been striving to provide the best service possible at all levels of our business. “The partnership of these two sightseeing businesses will result in many synergies and lots of choices for our visitors. Big Bus and Pink Bus will harmonize their routing to allow for a much lower carbon footprint per guest, together with a much higher frequency than would otherwise be possible. I am very much looking forward to working with the entire team, with the common goal of having fun, and transferring that happiness to anyone we come into contact with”

Blaise Sack (Sales & Marketing): Blaise has been a passionate member of the tourism industry and West Coast Sightseeing for 3 years. “The energy, enthusiasm, and drive to provide service excellence is exciting in our West Coast/ Big Bus partnership. I’m really looking forward to working together!”

Errol Sack (Concierge & Wholesale): For the last 8 years Errol has enjoyed promoting a company he believes in. He has developed great relationships with so many people in the industry. “I look forward to working with Big Bus to strengthen the services we deliver and creatively work toward making our industry an even tighter community.”

Rob Safrata:  Rob is a newcomer to the tourism industry and hopes to emphasize and expand the guests’ experience in all the offerings of the company.”Partnering with Big Bus is a great chance to be involved with a top team and to excel in Hop-On Hop-Off and tour products locally.”

McKay Wood (Sales & Marketing): For the past 6 years McKay has been creating exceptional experiences for guests and working closely with industry partners. “This collaboration will allow our collective strengths to support and uplift all those we associate with.  I am very excited to work with such a talented and dynamic team.”

Q:    Why did you decide to partner?

 A:

Big Bus and West Coast Sightseeing agreed to join together because we are most excited about customer satisfaction and product excellence.  We are truly keen on the opportunities this partnership will bring to the local tourism market and to you, our associates. “If you can’t beat em, join em”

Q:    How will questions and concerns be handled?  Who do I call?

As before, our reservations staff will be available from 7:00 am until 10:00pm to address any and all questions.  Special requests will be handled by key partners.

Winning!

Conor Trainor may be a tough guy on the field, but check out a different side of him in this clip with a couple other players from both the USA and Canada.  Getting to Know the Boys

To visit the official HSBC World Rugby Sevens website click here.

The Host of the 54th Annual Grammy Awards, LL Cool J

Among the most nominated artists were Rihanna, Adele, Bruno Mars, Foo Fighters, Cold Play and Lady GaGa. At the end of the night it was Adele who walked away with 6 Grammy Awards. Considering here year had not gone as planned (she received throat surgery to restore her voice and had to cancel all 2011 live performance dates) her comeback has been phenomenal.

Performances of the night included: Bruce Springsteen, Katy Perry, Bruno Mars, The Cold Wars, RiHanna, Coldplay, Chris Brown, Foo Fighters, Deadmau5, Nicki Minaj, Jennifer Hudson and Taylor Swift.

To visit the official Grammy Site click here!

Click here to check out some Red Carpet Highlights!

The Davis Cup!

Canada and France were drawn to compete against each other in the first round of the Davis Cup. With France’s heavy hitter Gael Monfils out of the first few rounds due to injuries, our chances are looking a little better.

For more information on the rules, history and results of this tournament keep here.

Check out this article from the Vancouver Sun here.

For tickets, times and details click here.

Illuminate 2012

This event comes to us as part of the City and Slope Winter Festival with the intention to directly connect Vancouver’s proximate ski areas and Yaletown’s dynamic nightlife. The other events part of this festival include acts from world renowned musicians and DJs such as Hey Ocean!, Benny Benassi, KO, Kevin Scott, Dave Aude and Alesso!

These events are a great opportunity to become a tourist in your own city and explore all that these areas have to offer. So check out these websites for more information regarding location and tickets!

City to Slope Winter Festival

Illuminate 2012

What do you have to offer?

This musical was written and composed by Veda Hille as well as Bill Richardson. Both are extremely well known and highly acclaimed Canadian cultural icons. Many know Bill as a contributor to CBC radio since 1984 but his influence is apparent at a community level as well. Veda Hille is one of Vancouver’s most well respected indie songwriters and composers whose works have been the topic of admiration.

This show is not one to miss! For ticket inquiries and upcoming shows visit the Arts Club page.

Make reservations ASAP

There is no one food genre and not one price range for diners to pick from. Simply choose a price range and a cuisine type and taste away! Just below is a teaser made to celebrate the 10 year anniversary of this event.

Dine Out Vancouver 2012

To find participating restaurants in your area, click here.