TUI Smiles Academy

Where travel reps train for the new season

What distinguishes the service offered by TUI? What TUI excursions are available in the various destinations? How can you handle a variety of situations to support guests? And what are the key aspects at the welcome event? Answers to all of these questions are provided at specific training sessions for TUI reps carried out prior to every holiday season – the TUI Smiles Academy. The Smiles Academy takes place in 76 destinations worldwide. All new tour reps but also the experienced reps at TUI Destination Experiences take part in the annual training sessions.

Prior to the forthcoming holiday season, around 2,500 employees put the finishing touches to their skills during the two-week training session. This time, the focus is on digitalisation. After all, digitalisation is also highly relevant for travel reps as it creates entirely new ways to customise service and offer new services for the guests. The Smiles Academy participants therefore learn, for instance, how to use iPads, apps and other tools. They are also introduced to a new GPS offer, the “Destination Familiarisation App”, enabling the tour reps to familiarise themselves with all kinds of activities in the destination online. “As a result, they can offer TUI excursions and a wide variety of TUI offers more selectively to the guests,” explain trainers, for instance at the Smiles Academy in Mexico, where around 90 employees from Cancún and Puerto Vallarta have already undergone the training.