ITC donates $5,000 to Auckland City Mission

Auckland City Mission Fundraising Team Leader Alexis Sawyers is pictured with ITC Directors Claire Huxley and Kerry Priestley. ITC generously donated $5,000 to the Mission’s 2015 Christmas Appeal.

The International Travel College of New Zealand (ITC) is lending a hand to those in need this festive season.

Instead of enjoying a large staff Christmas party, employees at the college voted to donate $5,000 to the Auckland City Mission – a generous show of support for deserving families in the local community.

“We asked the ITC team if they would prefer to have a big Christmas do or if they wanted to donate the money we’d usually spend to charity and have a smaller celebration,” says ITC Marketing Director Claire Huxley.

“We’re proud to say 98 per cent of the team voted for a smaller Christmas party, which allowed us to make a sizeable donation to the Auckland City Mission.”

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ITC students meet industry leaders at Tourism New Zealand Roadshow

ITC Level 5 students are pictured with Tourism New Zealand chief executive Kevin Bowler at the recent Tourism New Zealand Roadshow, held at SKYCITY Hotel and Convention Centre.

A selection of tourism students from the International Travel College (ITC) recently attended the Tourism New Zealand Roadshow in Auckland, where they had the good fortune to mingle with several industry leaders.

Held at the SKYCITY Hotel and Convention Centre, the Roadshow included updates from Tourism New Zealand, Auckland Tourism, Events and Economic Development (ATEED), Service IQ and more.

ITC tutor Inder Singh took some of his Level 5 students to the event so they could benefit from the knowledge and expertise of top industry professionals.

“The Tourism New Zealand Auckland Roadshow was an excellent opportunity for students to hear first-hand about the Tourism 2025 goals,” says Inder.

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ITC short courses inspire secondary school students to study tourism at tertiary level

A group of secondary school students learn about NZ’s exciting tourism industry thanks to an interactive ITC short course.

The International Travel College of New Zealand’s passion for the tourism industry has inspired a cohort of secondary school students to pursue this exciting career choice.

Every year, the ITC short course team educates hundreds of 15, 16 and 17 year olds about New Zealand’s airline, travel and tourism industry, through interactive lessons, practical activities and industry visits.

The aim of these short courses is to show students what it’s really like to work in tourism, so they have plenty of information when it comes to making a decision about what to study when they leave school.

While some go on to pursue other passions, many short course students ‘catch the tourism bug’ and decide to study the subject at tertiary level. This is a great win for the tourism industry, which is currently in a high-growth phase in New Zealand and in need of skilled, motivated workers.

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ITC’s team building tenpin bowling fun

Students from ITC enjoy a fun day tenpin bowling at Metrolanes in Queen Street.

Last Tuesday students from the International Travel College of New Zealand (ITC) descended upon Metrolanes in Queen Street for a day of tenpin bowling fun.

Every class from the City Campus participated in this team building event, a wonderful opportunity for students to get to know each other outside of college.

ITC organises events like this every few months to help students to stay motivated and engaged. Just a few weeks ago, the South Auckland Campus organised an X-Factor competition for similar reasons. Sometimes a break from the classroom is the best thing for productivity levels.

“These events are a great chance for students to make new friends, improve their self-confidence and just generally have a bit of fun. After all, that’s what the tourism industry is about – working with people and having a great time!” says Tisi Tupou, Student Services Adviser.

What’s more, the better students get along, the more likely they are going to look forward to coming to college. Having a good group of friends in the classroom helps students stay on track. By the time graduation rolls around, most students have made lifelong friendships.

“It’s heart-warming to see friendships blossom around the college,” says ITC’s City Campus Manager Michelle Chatfield.

“As long as students are attending class on time, abiding by the college dress code and of course completing their work to a good standard, then we encourage them to have as much fun as possible while they’re here. Like Tisi said, tourism is a fun industry and we like to reflect this on campus.”

With the year nearly coming to an end, the next student event is likely to be Christmas related – watch this space!

Pretty in pink: ITC raises money for breast cancer

Staff and students at the International Travel College participated in the NZBCF’s Pink For a Day campaign to raise money for breast cancer.

Students at ITC always love an opportunity to dress up for college – especially if it’s for a great cause. Last Wednesday everyone ditched the smart black and white dress code in favour of pink, pink and more pink to raise money for the New Zealand Breast Cancer Foundation (NZBCF).

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ITC Famil Trip August 2015: Kelsi’s Story

ITC student Kelsi (far right) with some of her classmates on the August Famil Trip to Rotorua and beyond.

Student blogger Kelsi recently went on a four-day Famil trip around New Zealand’s central North Island. This trip is included in the New Zealand Certificate in Travel Level 4 and is one of the highlights of studying at ITC, as it’s a chance to experience the travel and tourism industry firsthand. Kelsi gives us a rundown of this amazing trip, featuring adrenalin-pumping white water rafting and the best Maori fry-bread ever!

Day 1: Bye for now, Auckland!

On Monday the 10th of August, three combined classes and one (brave) teacher set off with Stray for the ITC Famil to Rotorua! Tutu was our driver and once we were out of the CBD, he told us what to expect from the trip and a little bit about the company. A popular option with tourists, Stray offers a hop-on, hop-off bus service and guided coach tours throughout New Zealand and Asia.

Our first stop was Matamata, the home of Hobbiton. We had lunch at the I-site, which is shaped like a hobbit house!

Some of Kelsi’s classmates at the i-site in Matamata

After photos had been taken and lunch eaten, we continued on to Agroventures in Rotorua. Debbie, the Sales and Marketing Manager, talked a little about her career and the activities they offer at Agroventures. The most popular attraction is the Swoop, a 40 metre high swing. You are safe inside a full body harness but have to pull your own rip cord, swing down toward the ground before cables catch you. You can reach speeds of 130kph.

Debbie had some great advice for us: “Build excellent working relationships as they will make a difference in your travel and tourism career.”

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We took our intern bungy jumping and this is what happened

Pictured: ITC intern Vaheana bungy jumps off Auckland Harbour Bridge. Thanks for the great day AJ Hackett Bungy!

Vaheana, our intern from French Polynesia, has been helping out the ITC marketing team over the past several weeks. She recently joined ITC tutor Mel on a short course and was given the opportunity to bungy jump off the Harbour Bridge – a true New Zealand tourism experience! Vaheana shares what happened on this exhilarating day out.

Thanks to Lesley and Mel, who kindly offered to take me on an ITC Adventure Tourism short course, I had the amazing opportunity to jump off the Harbour Bridge.

As soon as we arrived at AJ Hackett Bungy the friendly staff started to get us ready for the attraction. We had to wear a suit, a harness and of course a helmet. Once everyone was ready Sophie – our tour guide for the day – gave us a little bit of history about the Auckland Harbour Bridge. The Bridge was originally built in the 50s to link the North Shore to the Auckland CBD. Before that, people had to take a ferry to go to the North Shore.

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ITC students experience some of NZ’s top tourist activities

ITC organises field trips for its students so they can experience first-hand what it’s like to be a tourist in New Zealand

How would you like to be a tourist in New Zealand for a few days?  This is an experience students from the International Travel College (ITC) get to enjoy during their studies.

ITC organises a field trip (Famil) for its travel and tourism students, so they can see first-hand what it is like to work in the industry and to be a visitor in New Zealand. (more…)

ITC customer service superstars help at International Student Welcome

Students from the International Travel College working at the International Student Welcome Event held at the Cloud yesterday (Thursday 12 March)

On Thursday 12 March hundreds of international students were welcomed to Auckland at a special event held at The Cloud.

Organised by ATEED, the International Student Welcome is hosted annually and an excellent way to introduce new students to Auckland. (more…)

Why do you spend time mentoring?

Auckland Central MP Nikki Kaye speaks to YES students at the South Auckland Speed Mentoring Day. The ITC Marketing Team attended to provide the budding entrepreneurs with business advice

By ITC Marketing Director Claire Huxley

This is a real question that I’ve been asked many times. Why do I give up my time and energy to do something that has no real impact on my role, my business or even career?

In fact, someone once said to me: “What is the real pay off here Claire?” I held my tongue and now I wish I hadn’t. This is what I should have said. (more…)