The current economic climate is hitting the tourism business pretty hard, with American tourism way down and businesses needing to cost-cut. Tourism Vancouver alone has laid off 20% of its staff.

News article here.

Not good news with the Winter Olympics in Vancouver only a year away, when all these businesses thought they were going to cash in big time. However, the tourism sector is expected to recover towards the end of the year with the Olympics providing a big boost - see article here.

I think I have found the perfect volunteer opportunity, if they will take me on. Tourism Vancouver recruits volunteers to serve as Greeters/Visitor Counsellors. As long as I can get my head around the sales aspect of it (which has always been a bugbear of mine - I like to tell people of all the great things to see and do in Vancouver and BC regardless of if the particular company/tour operator/hotel is paying for us to promote them), I think I’d be perfect at it. I love meeting people from all different backgrounds, I love showing off Vancouver, I love helping people to enjoy themselves and I’m very good at researching questions people ask of me (in fact I’m far better at that than any of the Visitor Counsellors I’ve ever met in this country).

If you are a successful applicant you go through some serious training and orientation:

“All volunteers are required to complete a mandatory 3-day provincial certification training program called Tourism Visitor Information Counsellor training.

During this training, volunteers receive an introduction to Tourism Vancouver’s customer service expectations, a review of a variety of travel counseling tools, and an orientation to the various aspects of the visitor centres. Following this classroom style training volunteers receive additional on-site orientation as well as 1-day Superhost training. After the completion of 40 hours of on-site counseling experience volunteers receive a performance evaluation which is the final step in completing the requirements of Tourism Visitor Information Counsellor Certification.

In addition to the initial training, in-house workshops and member product familiarization tours are organized as part of Tourism Vancouver’s commitment to on-going training and product knowledge development.“

The only problem is that because they spend so much time training you, you need you to commit for 4 hours a week for a minimum of a year, which sounds very doable but when you are working full-time that means you have 4 hours sheared off your weekend every single week, making it extremely difficult to go away for the weekend and explore! I’m going to have to contact them to see if there are any options for me to do evening shifts instead. I thoroughly doubt it, though, so maybe Saturday mornings are doable - if I can get out by 12.30 then I haven’t lost that much of the weekend and can still go on camping trips etc.

I think the kind of job that appeals to me most is Front Desk or Concierge. They aren’t particularly well paid but you don’t need a vast amount of work experience to get them either (i.e. I wouldn’t have to take a year out to study for a diploma), and it’s not as though I’m making any kind of fortune in the library world. I’d probably lose $6 or $7 an hour in the first instance but if I could work my way up to supervisory or management roles the wage would go up too. If it had the right sort of benefits like this one advertised here, then I wouldn’t care so much about the money.

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Company	Middle Beach Lodge
Location	Tofino
Job Status	Full-time
Posted Date	05 Jun 2008
Weigh West Marine Resort and Middle Beach Lodge are seeking smart, fun, hard working people for Front Desk Agent positions on the Wild West coast. Property Description: Weigh West Marine Resort is located on the inlet side of Tofino. It is a full service facility that boasts 63 rooms, 2 conference rooms, marine pub, waterfront restaurant and Marine Adventure Centre. Middle Beach Lodge is situated on 40 acres of pristine west coast wilderness it is a 64 unit lodge which offers a high level of amenities and services in a casual setting. We offer an opportunity to Live, Work and Play on the Wild West Coast. Keep in mind it’s more then just a job it’s a lifestyle! Job Responsibilities and duties Able to effectively provide top quality customer service Answer phone calls and make reservations Have knowledge of all rooms and services provided on property Have basic knowledge of housekeeping, kitchen and bar services Be aware of all upcoming events in the Tofino area Knowledge of local area tour operators, restaurants and other companies in town Job Benefits and perks Staff housing provided Staff camping trips, beach BBQ’s other staff events make for an amazing summer Free whale watching, hot springs and kayaking tours Other small perks such as discounted rates
Job Requirements
Qualifications 1 year previous customer service experience Must be willing to work year round Previous Front Desk experience is an asset
Salary	Negotiable with experience + staff housing