Tourism translation

Few industries have the international reach that tourism does. Travel is a key part of life for the millions of people, who travel tens of thousands of kilometres every year on holiday and business trips. Travel agencies, means of transportation, hotels, restaurants, guides... do we really appreciate the huge numbers of professionals directly or indirectly involved in the tourism industry? Let's look at why professional translation is especially important for tourism.

Globalisation - key to understanding the tourism boom

Today's global scenario, in which new technologies are accessible to greater numbers of people than ever, means that tourism services can now be offered to many more people than could be reached using traditional methods. Until a few years ago, the only way to arrange travel was by going in person to book it through an agency. Although this is still a perfectly valid method, tourists are increasingly choosing to book their travel via the internet.

This can be done by booking a package (the old-fashioned way) or by booking travel, transfer, accommodation and meals separately. The tourism industry is becoming ever more flexible so that it can meet the requirements of an increasingly demanding target market. This means that it is particularly important that every company involved in the tourism industry has a well-translated website in many different languages.

Booking a trip (business or leisure) is also an example of the importance of marketing. Even if a customer goes back to a destination, their travel experience will be determined by a number of factors and may therefore be completely different from their previous trip. And someone who has not yet travelled to a particular part of the world will, of course, experience it as something totally new. In both cases, knowing how to present the service to the customer will be fundamental if you want them to choose you and your company.

All this will only be possible if the texts describing the traveller's destination are expressed in his or her own language: the brochures that list each location's places of interest, the history and cultural aspects of the region, the range of hotel and restaurant services available, and information about means of transport.

Professional translators who specialise in tourism

In view of the importance of bridging the language barrier, professional translation services play a crucial role in the tourism industry. Why is this?

• Because customers need to understand the details presented to them, whether they are provided by a travel agency or by websites containing tourist information.
• Because companies need to expand their range of products and services to customers in all nations. There are fewer and fewer barriers within the industry, meaning that anyone from almost anywhere in the world could be a potential customer.

Professionals who translate tourism projects are international translators who have in-depth knowledge of the culture of each country and are able to correctly localise content according to the nationality of each target client. That is to say: the kind of translators who work with an agency like sanscrit.