Bloque 1
Tema 4
Negociación con proveedores y profesionales del sector de la prestación de servicios turísticos
Tourism facilities suppliers and professionals negotiations
Negotiation is the most important task of a tour operator.
Tour operators make contracts with hotel chains, airline companies and other travel suppliers in order to
acquire a great bulk of travel services and combine them into the package tours offered to customers. The
success of these contracts or negotiations depends on the tour operator's ability to buy this bulk of services
at a lower price but with no difference in their quality. The negotiations usually start a year in advance.
During this time, meetings, modifications, e-mails, phone conversations are continually taking place.
A tour operator must
1.
2.
3.
4.
collect information about a client`s need.
offer alternatives.
maintain the balance between both sides.
came to an agreement.
Stages in negotiation

Preparation stage. It is very important to be prepared and know everything about the meeting,
sides, points to discuss, etc.
 Setting the agenda stage. In a negotiation, it is important to make clear all the tasks to be discussed
and give the reasons for each item.
 Clarification of ideas stage. References to what has been said can be made to improve the real
comprehension of arguments to avoid misunderstanding.
 Disagreement with the other side stage. When one of the sides disagrees with the other, it is suitable
to give alternatives and choices.
 Making concessions stage. In order to create an equal situation in which both sides win, making
concessions could be the solution.
 Bargaining stage. This is the real core of the negotiation. It is advisable to connect the things required
by both sides and then offer them as a unit.
 End stage: It is important to make a short summary of what has been agreed.
Some key elements of negotiations are:
pág. 1

Verbal communication: linguistic elements

body language: eye contact and gestures
pág. 2
Did you know that…
communication consist of around 80% body language and 20% consist of just words.
pág. 3
Hoteliers negotiations
Tour operators buy tourism services in bulk with the intention of obtaining discounts from the travel
suppliers (hotel chains and airline companies) and, lately offering tourism products and packages at lower
price.
When negotiations with hoteliers begin a year in advance, tour operators must think about what type of
contract they prefer before closing the deal:


Allocation contract, in which tour operators pay for an estimated number of rooms to be sold.
Fixed contract, in which tour operators pay for a fixed number of rooms regardless of how many will be
sold.
DEFINITIONS
Rack rate: the published price of a room.
Quote: provide a price for something in particular.
Complimentary rooms: rooms free of charge.
Rooming list: a list of guests and their type of accommodation and facilities provided by a hotel
Airlines negotiations
airline companies play an important role in making of package holidays. In negotiations with airline
companies, tour operators may take into account the following relevant aspects:






Long-haul vs. short-haul flights.
Number of seats booked.
Fuel price.
On-board extras.
Times of arrival and departure.
Airports to be used.
Besides, tour operators have to look for the lowest price in order to ensure that they are going to be able to
resell customers the seats bought in an aircraft. Dealing with airline suppliers is a really difficult task, since
customers can also buy their tickets directly from the airline company, being these cheaper than those
acquired through the tour operators and travel agents.
Airline companies normally put some conditions:



A fixed booking period.
The type of clients, usually groups.
The price of the flights.
Definitions
Long-haul flight: aircrafts which cover journeys over six or more hours; long distance.
Short-haul flight: aircrafts which cover journeys fewer than three hours; short distance.
Stopover: the time you spend in a city en route as an interruption in a long-haul flight.
Landing and take off charges: fees paid by an airline company to an airport for using its facilities.
Turnaround time: the time spent between an airplane landing and taking off.
Low-cost carrier: more economical flights or budget airline companies.
pág. 4
pág. 5