The main difference between Urumqi’s local travel agencies and tour operators lies in their business functions and role positioning.?
Business Functions:?
Tour operators (group tour operators): They are mainly responsible for attracting and organizing tourists to travel to the destination. They usually do not directly handle the specific execution of the itinerary but instead connect tourist information with local travel agencies, which complete the reception work for the itinerary. Tour operators are more like intermediaries or wholesalers. They will recruit tourists based on the itineraries set by local travel agencies and may earn a certain profit or fee from this.?
Local travel agencies: They are mainly responsible for receiving tourists from the tourist source region, including designing itineraries for tourists and arranging various aspects such as accommodation, dining, transportation, sightseeing, shopping, and entertainment. Local travel agencies are the true source and deliverers of the tourism industry. They usually have their own fleets or cooperate with specialized tourism vehicle rental companies, and may also have their own tour guide teams or hire external guides during peak seasons. The activities of local travel agencies are transparent to tourists, and there are many options for route attractions, so they can provide tourists with more personalized and responsible services.?
Role Positioning:?
Tour operators (group tour operators) mainly play the role of resource integration and channel expansion in the tourism industry chain. They attract and organize tourists to connect the market demand of the tourist source region with the tourism resources of the destination.?
Local travel agencies are more like producers and providers of tourism products. They design and develop various tourism routes and itineraries according to market demand and tourist preferences, and then provide them to tour operators for sales and promotion.?
In summary, there are obvious differences in business functions and role positioning between the local travel agencies and tour operators in Urumqi. When choosing tourism services, tourists can select suitable travel agencies or local travel agencies to cooperate with based on their own needs and preferences.?