“ TOURISM OPERATORS NEED EXTENSIVE ENGLISH TUTORING FOR EMPLOYEES...KING TUPOU VI ADVISED: "LEARN ENGLISH FIRST AND FOREMOST" THAN THE 7 POINTS LISTED HERE.
Effective communication skills dealing with tourists must be first skills possessed by taxi drivers, handicraft vendors, hospitality personnel, tour guides, food service attendants, and entertainers, as well.
They must learn and memorize basic verbiage to tourism important features in history, geography, politics, religious sects, local food supply, answers to basic tourist inquiries, and avoid using Tongan non-verbal communication habits (raising eyebrows and shifting eyes during conversation; looking away or downward while someone is asking a question, etc) .
Most Tongan youngsters brag about their English communication skills learned from computer games and movies. But they have difficulties replying to questions or describing a situation to a tourist. Communication skills are the most important traits a country must have to be tourist friendly.
If Tonga wants her people to be tourist friendly, they must learn effective communication skills to explain what is beautiful about Tonga. Don't allow "street smart talk" to service our tourists. Why brag about 98% literacy but we cannot learn our own history and explain it to our tourists? ”