Name: Rahul Pradhan
Position: Tours Manager, BCD Travel
Age: 38
Time in the travel industry: Over 20 years
Time at the company: Three years
What’s the biggest booking you have ever made?
A difficult one but the most recent I can recall was a group of 30 to begin with, and the size rose to 100. What better can you expect?
What is your ambition for the future?
I have a wish list and am on track with this.
Where’s your favourite place to travel to/and why?
It’s difficult to choose one so I would like to mention three here which are all different:
Kenya - one must go there to experience this destination, for the nature. Imagine yourself in the middle of the jungle with no phones, emails and only the ‘quirking’ of birds.
New Zealand - every corner is a different experience. I just love the place. I have done the North Island and the most beautiful experience was to drive along the Pacific Ocean.
Cruise - a great way to holiday. Every cruise line is different and has its own USPs. You can laze around when you want, there are different ports
of call everyday and great dining experiences, entertainment and most important of all is the value for money.
What are the biggest challenges facing the travel trade today?
The Internet and the lack of professional consultants. People call and take a quote / ideas / recommendations and then start comparing it with the internet not realising the missing links. I always feel the client still needs someone to recommend or guide, it is not the internet alone they can rely on.
On the other hand the industry lacks professionalism, which is reflected in the calibre of consultants. If the consultant does not take the initiative and use tools like the internet themselves, then we are allowing the client to ride on top of us and leave the agent out.
This is the second time you have been nominated for travel agent of the month – what do you think makes you stand out?
Our job is a thankless job, you need to be self-motivated. What more can I say when I have been motivated with this nomination? I’m overjoyed! Thanks to the trade partners who believe in me.
What do you love most about your job?
Every day is different, whilst the nature of the business remains the same, the challenges and client requirements vary day to day. Nothing can beat this as it’s not monotonous. Patience and passion are the two key ingredients in our business, which makes me love my job.
What's the worst thing about being a travel agent?
Someone testing your patience.
“Rahul is very committed to the industry. He has been very supportive to us in all our activities. He has the willingness to learn more about the destination. He is proactive, professional, knowledgeable, motivated, well experienced and most importantly, he understands the market thus is able to sell the destination.”
Rahul’s nominee, Milanie Manalo, Seychelles Tourism Office Middle East
ATN’s ‘Travel Agent of the Month’ is a chance for suppliers or agencies to nominate agents who deserve to be recognised for going above and beyond. To nominate someone for ‘Travel Agent of the Month’ email: monika.grzesik@itp.com
Search our database of more than 2,700 industry companies
