Training courses in a wide range of tourism-related subjects, including bartending, housekeeping management, starting a bed and breakfast and customer service, are being offered by HIE Inverness and East Highland (IEH), as part of a programme to help develop and improve the quality of local tourism businesses.

The training programme consists of many different courses, which are designed for tourism operators and their staff in the Inverness and East Highland area, and are being held between February and June this year.

Practical courses in housekeeping management for all establishments will run alongside more theory-based sessions on legal responsibilities within the industry.  There will even be an opportunity to experience the fun and adventure the outdoors has to offer during a session on activities that the Highlands have to offer to enhance their guest experience.

Taking place in Aviemore, Inverness and Dingwall, the courses are being co-ordinated on behalf of HIE IEH by Jenny Devlin in partnership with Marina Huggett who is, a specialist in tourism business and development training.

The Magical Mystery Tour led by a Highland tour guide will provide delegates with a tour of local knowledge, getting to know the area better so that visitors can be directed in an enthusiastic and positive manner. Places are also available on the two-day learning journey to Glasgow which includes attendance at the Customer Service Conference.

Marina Huggett said: "This year's programme covers a wide range of topics, and the courses are designed to be fun and enjoyable as well as helping to improve the performance of local tourism businesses.  With rising customer expectations we need to ensure that our tourism operators have every opportunity to continually improve their product and service."

Gerry McGuigan, head of developing skills at HIE IEH said: "These training courses have been very successful in the past and proved popular with many tourism businesses in the local area.  It is vital to any business to continually strive to improve, and these courses give tourism operators a great opportunity to develop and train their staff.  They are also a great chance to network with other tourism professionals''

For further information about the training programme, please contact Jenny Devlin on 0800 389 0888 or jdtrainingpool@aol.com.

Further information is also available on The HIE Inverness and East Highland or Learningworks websites