Tourism Internship in the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO)

Hey everyone! I’m going to tell you about my unforgettable experience in the World Tourism Organization. Firstly I would like to thank Partners4Value for this opportunity. My choice to go and try myself in UNWTO for 6 months was made without a big planning, so for this I also would like to thank Inga Anulyte, Career Specialist from Klaipeda University for encouraging me.

I have finished Tourism and Recreation in Klaipeda University. Thus the internship at UNWTO was a good opportunity to improve my knowledge in tourism field. Department where I did my internship is called Fairs and Special Programmes/ Silk Road. My main responsibilities were communicating with each department and gathering material for fairs as WTM London, FITUR Madrid, ITB Berlin and Intourmarket Moscow, writing/answering e-mails, registering ministers from Silk Road countries and observers to the meetings and sending confirmations for them, adding contacts to the data base (CRM), editing publications in Russian and English, making Power Point presentations, updating information in Russian and English on Silk Road website. I also had an opportunity to attend FITUR for 3 days and to help at Investour and at UNWTO stand by giving all desired information to people about UNWTO. In October many interns were asked to help at event “70th anniversary of the United Nations” where I had an opportunity to know more about other UN organizations as UNICEF, UNDP, UNHCR, UNRWA,WFP, FAO and etc. I was glad to make acquaintance with people from World Food Programme (WFP) and Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) from Spain offices, because I helped them at stands.

UNWTO is a place of international, out-going and interesting people, who are passionate about tourism. Internship in UNWTO was personally and professionally rewarding. Iimproved my English, Russian, Spanish skills. Now I am more self -confident, I better know what I want in my life. It was a chance to try myself in big international organization as UNWTO and to know how it works, ditto what is the UN system and how it works.

During my stay there I had a possibility to attend the meeting with UNWTO Secretary-General Taleb Rifai and Lithuanian ambassadors, I met well-known Professor Dimitrios Buhalis who is Strategic Management and Marketing expert with specialization in Information Communication Technology applications in the tourism.

About Spain in brief. I have visited many countries before, but living and just visiting a country is two different things. Now I can’t imagine better place as Spain is. The country is rich of culture, beautiful environment. Six months are not enough to know even Madrid which is full of museums, expositions, concerts and etc. The life there is very alive, people like communicating, going home after work- is not a priority for them, the priority is to spend a good time with friends, family in the bar or visiting events. The main thing that I want to say and what made the biggest impression for me, was people. I have never met friendliest people as I met there, in Spain. They are always ready to help and adopt you in the country which is new for you. To feel that you are stranger there, even without good Spanish skills, is impossible, an adoption there comes through the one week.

If you are person who has a possibility to do your internship there, but you still have doubts about it, do not hesitate to contact me, believe me, I will encourage you!

Sincerely,

Dziuljeta Kirkilaite, KU graduate