Tourism and Hospitality Management Training Course

Duration 5 days 10 modules · 33 contact hours
Level Intermediate Certificate on completion
Who attends Hotel Managers, Hospitality Supervisors and others
Fee from USD 1,100 KSh 95,000 for Kenyan organisations
Where 52 cities + online See dates by city
Next start 7 Nov 2026 Course code SD-TH-026

Before you join: Participants should have basic experience in a hotel, restaurant, attraction, tour operation, event venue, travel business or destination organisation.

Dates & prices

Two start dates a month in every city, and live online on weekdays or weekends. Fees are per participant; classroom fees include tuition, materials, lunch and refreshments, and the certificate.

Suggest a date or city

Showing the next six months. Later dates, other cities and private deliveries for your team are available on request.

Course overview

Tourism and hospitality managers must protect service quality while responding to changing demand, seasonal staffing pressures, distribution costs, guest expectations and safety obligations. Hotels, resorts, restaurants, attractions, tour operators and event venues depend on coordinated decisions across sales, operations, people, finance and guest service. Small failures at booking, arrival, dining, housekeeping, complaint handling or departure can affect reviews, repeat business and profitability.

This course develops practical management capability for professionals responsible for guest-facing operations and visitor experiences. Participants examine tourism demand, destination dynamics, guest journey design, service standards, revenue measures, distribution channels, operational planning, departmental budgets, food safety, risk controls, sustainability and team performance. They learn to interpret occupancy, ADR, RevPAR, food cost, labour cost and guest-feedback data, then translate findings into operational priorities and measurable improvements.

Instructor-led sessions combine concise briefings with sector cases, group analysis, operating simulations and structured planning. Cases reflect realistic situations such as managing a sold-out hotel during a major event, improving restaurant service flow, responding to a serious guest complaint, controlling peak-season labour costs and reducing waste without reducing guest satisfaction. Participants leave with a practical tourism and hospitality management toolkit containing service, revenue, operational, risk and improvement-planning documents ready for adaptation to their own property, venue, destination or tourism business.

The course suits managers and supervisors moving into broader operational responsibility, as well as commercial, guest-experience and destination professionals who need a clearer understanding of how tourism and hospitality operations perform.

What you will be able to do

  • Analyse tourism demand, visitor-economy indicators and destination lifecycle risks
  • Design guest journeys and service blueprints for priority hospitality experiences
  • Interpret ADR, RevPAR, occupancy, pickup and distribution-cost reports
  • Prepare operating plans for rooms, food service, events and guest arrivals
  • Build departmental budgets using contribution margin, labour cost and break-even analysis
  • Apply HACCP, incident reporting and emergency-response controls to hospitality operations
  • Develop sustainability actions using GSTC criteria, carbon hotspots and local sourcing measures
  • Produce a 30-day hospitality improvement plan with owners, measures and review dates

Benefits of attending

For you

  • Improved confidence managing guest service failures and recovery conversations
  • Practical ability to read hotel and hospitality performance reports
  • Stronger readiness for hotel, venue or tourism operations management roles
  • Clear methods for reducing service delays, complaints and avoidable operating costs
  • A documented improvement plan for applying course methods at work

For your organisation

  • More consistent guest experiences across booking, arrival, service and departure
  • Better revenue decisions through clearer pricing, channel and demand analysis
  • Lower avoidable costs through labour, food, inventory and productivity controls
  • Stronger safety, food hygiene and incident-management discipline
  • Practical sustainability actions linked to resource use, sourcing and visitor impacts

Course modules

10 modules over 5 days

Participants can assess tourism demand, destination conditions and stakeholder priorities using relevant visitor-economy indicators.

  • Tourism value chains mapped from source markets to visitor spend
  • Destination lifecycle stages assessed using Butler's Tourism Area Life Cycle
  • Stakeholder maps distinguish destination management, operators, communities and regulators
  • Visitor economy indicators interpreted: arrivals, length of stay, spend, occupancy
  • Seasonality patterns diagnosed through monthly demand, capacity and staffing data
  • Tourism carrying capacity considered across physical, social and environmental limits
  • Source-market risks prioritised using PESTLE and travel-intent evidence

Participants can design service standards and recovery processes around critical guest journey moments.

  • Guest journey mapping identifies moments of truth from booking through departure
  • Service blueprinting links frontstage actions, backstage processes and failure points
  • SERVQUAL gaps translated into measurable reliability, assurance, empathy and responsiveness actions
  • Standard operating procedures specify ownership, timing, escalation and service standards
  • Queue design applies demand patterns, capacity limits and perceived waiting time
  • Recovery conversations use LEARN: listen, empathise, apologise, resolve and notify
  • Accessibility audits examine mobility, sensory, digital and communication barriers

Participants can evaluate market segments, distribution choices and core hospitality revenue measures.

  • Segmentation targets guests by purpose, value, behaviour and booking channel
  • Positioning statements align distinctive experiences with credible competitive advantages
  • Rate fences protect value across advance purchase, flexibility and inclusions
  • RevPAR, ADR and occupancy analysed through daily pickup and pace reports
  • Distribution mix compares direct bookings, OTAs, wholesalers, agents and GDS costs
  • Channel parity decisions account for commissions, inventory controls and brand promises
  • Campaign briefs connect audience insight, offer, channel, budget and conversion

Participants can plan daily hospitality operations using demand forecasts, departmental controls and service priorities.

  • Demand forecasts convert reservations, events and seasonality into operating volumes
  • Labour scheduling matches forecasted arrivals, covers, occupancies and service standards
  • Front office controls manage reservations, overbooking, no-shows and room status
  • Housekeeping productivity standards balance room credits, quality checks and turnaround
  • Restaurant service flow coordinates reservations, seating, courses, payment and table resets
  • Supplier specifications set quality, delivery windows, substitutions and acceptance criteria
  • Daily briefings align departments around VIPs, groups, disruptions and priorities

Participants can use operational financial measures to improve departmental profitability and cost control.

  • Departmental budgets separate fixed costs, variable costs and controllable expenses
  • Contribution margin analysis tests menu items, packages and distribution channels
  • Food cost percentage calculated from purchases, inventory movements and sales
  • Labour cost ratios monitored against revenue, productivity and service commitments
  • Break-even analysis determines required covers, room nights or visitor volumes
  • Capital requests compare payback period, NPV, operating savings and guest impact
  • Management dashboards connect revenue, cost, quality and demand indicators

Participants can apply practical risk, food safety, security and incident-response controls in hospitality settings.

  • Risk registers score likelihood, impact, controls, ownership and review dates
  • HACCP plans identify hazards, critical control points, limits and corrective actions
  • Food allergen controls govern labelling, separation, communication and incident response
  • Emergency procedures cover fire, medical events, severe weather and evacuation
  • Incident reports preserve facts, witness accounts, actions and follow-up requirements
  • ISO 22483 principles inform accommodation safety, security and service controls
  • Crisis communications establish spokespersons, holding statements, channels and approval routes

Participants can identify and prioritise sustainability actions that support operations, communities and visitor experiences.

  • GSTC criteria translate environmental, social, cultural and management commitments
  • Carbon hotspots identified across energy, transport, food, laundry and waste
  • Water stewardship measures track consumption, leaks, reuse and guest communication
  • Local sourcing policies assess provenance, seasonality, quality, price and supplier capacity
  • Community consultation records benefits, concerns, mitigation commitments and feedback channels
  • Visitor dispersal strategies redirect demand using timing, itineraries and transport information
  • Green claims checked against evidence, scope, measurement methods and approvals

Participants can organise, coach and assess hospitality teams against service and operational requirements.

  • Role profiles define service behaviours, technical tasks, authority and performance measures
  • Workforce plans balance permanent staff, casual labour, contractors and peak demand
  • Onboarding checklists cover induction, safety, brand standards and system access
  • Coaching conversations use SBI feedback: situation, behaviour, impact and agreed actions
  • Cross-cultural communication adapts language, etiquette, expectations and nonverbal signals
  • Employee engagement indicators link turnover, absence, guest feedback and productivity
  • Performance reviews document evidence, development actions, recognition and accountability

Participants can coordinate group business and event operations from feasibility through post-event review.

  • Event feasibility assesses audience, venue, capacity, programme, budget and risks
  • Function sheets coordinate timings, layouts, menus, equipment and responsibilities
  • Group contracts define deposits, attrition, cancellation, concessions and payment terms
  • Banqueting operations sequence setup, service, replenishment, clearing and breakdown
  • Site inspections verify access, flows, safety, branding and contingency arrangements
  • Supplier run sheets synchronise production, transport, installation and collection schedules
  • Post-event reviews compare attendance, spend, feedback, incidents and margin

Participants can prepare a measurable hospitality improvement plan for implementation in their workplace.

  • Property action plans prioritise service, revenue, cost, safety and sustainability improvements
  • SMART objectives assign measures, owners, milestones, resources and review dates
  • RACI matrices clarify accountability across front office, housekeeping, food service and sales
  • Thirty-day pilots test changes before wider operational adoption
  • Performance scorecards combine guest, people, financial, quality and environmental measures
  • Management review agendas convert data findings into decisions and corrective actions
  • Personal application commitments identify stakeholder conversations, barriers and first actions

Exercises and examples are adapted to each cohort's sectors and roles.

What you take back to work

  1. Guest journey and service blueprint template
  2. Hospitality revenue performance dashboard
  3. Departmental operating control checklist
  4. Hospitality risk register and incident report template
  5. Sustainable tourism action checklist
  6. 30-day hospitality improvement plan

Who should attend

  • Hotel Managers — need to coordinate service, revenue, people and operating performance
  • Hospitality Supervisors — need structured methods for managing daily guest-facing operations
  • Restaurant and Food Service Managers — need tighter control of service flow, labour and food costs
  • Tour Operations Managers — need to manage visitor experiences, suppliers and service risks
  • Destination Management Professionals — need to balance visitor demand, community interests and sustainability
  • Events and Venue Managers — need to coordinate group business, functions and event delivery

Skills and tools covered

Guest experience designHospitality revenue managementOperational planningService quality controlTourism risk managementHospitality financial analysis

Tools and standards

SERVQUAL, HACCP, GSTC Criteria, ISO 22483

How the course runs

Training methodology

The course uses short instructor briefings to introduce management methods, measures and standards, followed by tourism and hospitality cases. Participants analyse guest journeys, operating data, service failures, staffing requirements, event plans and risk scenarios in small groups. Simulations focus on realistic management decisions such as responding to a complaint, managing peak occupancy, allocating labour and handling an operational disruption. Guided discussions connect each method to participants' own properties, venues, destinations or tourism services. The final sessions support individual application planning and peer review.

Requirements and prerequisites

Participants should have basic experience in a hotel, restaurant, attraction, tour operation, event venue, travel business or destination organisation. They should be familiar with common hospitality terms such as bookings, guests, occupancy, service standards and supplier arrangements. The course is designed for professionals with some supervisory, operational, commercial or customer-service responsibility. No finance qualification, formal tourism degree, revenue-management certification or specialist software expertise is required. Participants do not need prior knowledge of HACCP, GSTC criteria or ISO 22483, as these are introduced and applied during the course.

A typical training day

08:30 – 10:30First session
10:30 – 10:45Refreshment break
10:45 – 12:30Second session
12:30 – 13:30Lunch and networking
13:30 – 15:00Third session
15:00 – 15:15Refreshment break
15:15 – 16:30Workshop and daily review

Live online deliveries follow the same structure in East Africa Time, with shorter screen blocks and longer breaks.

What the fee includes

  • Instruction by a practitioner facilitator
  • Full course workbook and materials
  • Exercise files, templates and case studies
  • Refreshments and lunch on classroom deliveries
  • Certificate of completion
  • Post-course application plan

Frequently asked questions

You should have some experience in tourism, hospitality, events, food service, accommodation, attractions or travel services. No formal tourism qualification or specialist finance background is required.

Bring a laptop if possible, along with examples of current operating reports, guest-feedback themes or service issues you can discuss without sharing confidential information. Course materials are provided.

It is designed for supervisors, managers and experienced coordinators with responsibility for service, operations, revenue, people or guest experience. It is also suitable for destination and venue professionals who work closely with tourism operators.

Revenue management and customer service are both included, but neither is treated in isolation. This course connects demand, guest experience, operations, financial control, safety, sustainability and team management.

Participants use the methods to review a real service process, operating issue or business-performance measure from their workplace. They leave with a 30-day plan assigning actions, owners, measures and review dates.

Each training day runs from 08:30 to 16:30 and provides about 6.5 contact hours. Time is divided between instructor input, cases, group analysis, simulations, discussion and structured application planning.

Questions about this course?

Ask about dates, fees, group bookings or running it for your team. Our training team replies by email.

Ask on WhatsApp info@skillsetdevelopment.com

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