Service At The Highest Level – A Contineous Endeavor

A tour operator who aspires to provide service at the highest level continues to worry whether he/she has been able to deliver the best that is possible - long after the group has departed for home, and long after the profits have been banked in. As a person engaged in the service and hospitality industries, I have long recognized the correlation between right price for the right service. But once the preliminary stage is crossed - that of obtaining the asking price, my focus shifts to the most important part of the deal - that of preparing for the delivery of the asking service. In its pursuit, I become completely oblivious of the asking price. The price is no longer important.

Nothing should gratify a tour operator more than the praises of their satisfied clients.

Recently I had a couple group from USA for whom I arranged a 9-days trek to Jumolhari/Soe Yaktsa. At the end of the trek, they described my facilities thus:

“Our tent and facility were like a palace among shanties".

This was an obvious reference to my tent and other facilities, compared to those close to 40 tents that were pitched at Jangothang camp site.

 Extreme high altitude tent that can withstand gusts of upto 100 KMs/hour - comfortable at center height of 5'.10"

A whooping 580 lumens Dining/Kitchen LED Lantern

133 lumens Head lamps that can brighten up the whole forest

Extreme protection for the guests' luggage - no less than Pelican hard cases - photographed at Dochu-La with the Himalayan rage as the backdrop

Soft comfort for the head and neck - Premium goose down pillows proudly made in the USA

 Super high 340 lumens LED lamps that brighten up the entire tent

I need no further feed back from my clients on how I performed in the delivery of service. However, the guide is as important as the facilities you provide on a trek ---- so I sent a mail to my clients asking them to rank the guide’s performance. The following is what the husband wrote:

Yeshey-

Xxxx Xxxxxxxx was a wonderful guide. He was very knowledgeable about the trails and terrain and weather. Xxxx Xxxxxxxx always told us what to expect and when we would arrive at different milestones or destinations. And he was very good about setting a hiking pace to fit our abilities. He seemed to work very well with the rest of the trail team. He is young and energetic, and sometimes very funny. For instance, when he heard his cell phone ring, he would excuse himself from our conversation by saying, “Oh, sorry, it’s the Prime Minister calling." Xxxx Xxxxxxxx took us on adventures we would never have dreamed of and left us with unforgettable memories.

 
-Steve

So it seems that even my guide scored 100%. Thus the guide will remain a team member on my future treks.

FOOTNOTE:
In fact the clients were so happy that they donated US$ 4,765.00 to the Rotary Club of Thimphu - to do 2 filtered water supply project to Soe ECR in Jangothang and Bitekha school, Paro.