Tour / Departure - Providers
For Odyssey Clients who use the Tour level Selections Method
This page is currently under development
Once a Departure/Trip/Tour has been created, you can continue populating it with Providers
Providers are any entity which provides a service to your client, whether that is accommodation, transport, meals, or activities, etc.
When the Departure is first created, it will automatically be populated with Providers who were listed on the Master that this Departure is based on.
For more detailed information about providers, please see " Provider Types" and "Provider Facilities"
Using the Tour Selections Method, when a new tour is created the Providers listed on the Master are added to the Provider list on the new tour, and onto any bookings created.
The Provider records for client bookings are managed at Booking level, and can be updated by changes made at Tour level, using the "Update from Departure" button.
To add a new Provider
- From the Tour | Provider Supplier | Accommodation tab
- Click the + Accommodation button (in this case we have used an Accommodation tab, but this works the same for all provider types)
- At the next screen, choose wether you want your list filtered alphabetically by Provider Name, or by location
- Then select the provider of your choice
- A message will appear confirming which provider you have selected, and asking you to either cancel or say Yes to proceed
- The Provider Details screen appears, where you are able to manage details of the booking
- Odyssey will automatically create a Provider record for the next sequential day in the departure. For example, if you already have an accommodation record for Thurs 23 November, it will automatically create the new accommodation record for Fri 24 November. You can modify this date by using the < > arrows )
- Change the Supplier Status, Task Status, (e.g. To Do, Confirmed, Self Booked). Note the colour coding of each of these different status' to alert you to what action needs to be taken, if any.
- Select whether or not Agent commission applies on this calculation
- Make room selections.
Bookings
To add Bookings to this Provider record
- Go to the Bookings tab, and click the Add Client button
- Tick the boxes for those clients you wish to add to this Provider record, then click Continue
- work you way through the screen, choosing the Product (e.g. Queen Room with Breakfast), the Rate (e.g. 1 Pax, 2 Pax, Split), and the number of People who will be using this room, Quality (Economy, Standard), Check in time. You can also move this accommodation to a different day by using the calendar tool.
DEVELOPMENT OF ADDING CLIENTS IS INCOMPLETE
Supplier Info
From an individual provider record, at Trip/Departure level, it is possible store
- Enter a Provider Reference if any in the text field
- a Door Access code (this shows on the Accomodation list output). Note that this is only available at Tour level. If more than one door code is required, then enter "Mary & Jim - 9321354, Jack - 9321845, Sharon xxx" etc.
- Provider Form comments If your business uses the Advanced Online forms module, and have sent a booking email to the provider containing a link for them to complete online, the data they submit in that form will be fed directly back into Odyssey. One of those fields is the Provider Comments field, where they might like to leave you a note of some kind. Perhaps it will say; we have confirmed this reservation, but are almost full on this date. Learn more about online forms Here
- Provider's preferred payment type gets entered at the drop down box (e.g. Prepaid, Cash, Credit Card)
- Alert: Here you can add an alert about this Departure's reservation with the provider. Perhaps although the reservation was previously confirmed, the owner is now unwell and there may be a question as to whether they can now accommodate your reservation. By adding a tick to the Alert, the Departure's accommodation record for this Provider will show you an alert symbol to indicate there is something to be aware of.
Alerts
There are occasionally alerts in red to indicate to the user that something may need their attention.
To learn how to set up a Provider note, click Here
Payments
- Finance Notes An optional space for you to record any Finance Notes relevant to this Accommodation booking for this group
- Total to pay can be calculated from client level bookings, by clicking the circular arrows above that field.
- Amount paid will be entered manually by accounts staff, based on the Pre-Pay 30% figure
- Balance to pay is calculated (Total to Pay - Amnount paid = Balance to Pay)
- Pre-Pay amount is calculated by the settings on each Providers own Finance settings page, in the Pre-payment percentage required field
- Date balance due is calculated by the settings on each Providers own Finance settings page, in the Balance due # of days prior field
Notes
Notes to/for Staff - paperwork: If your business conducts guided tours, here you can leave notes for the guides in relation to this provider. Perhaps it could say "Please leave luggage in the store room, pin code 7853", or "Timing is flexible, please contact the day before to confirm".
Itinerary & App
The Itinerary App Text tab provides you with
- a non editable field, displaying the Itinerary text for this Provider (for your reference only)
- an editable field, displaying Product text for this Provider/product (the green border around the outside of this field indicates that it is editable). This allows you to add any content which is relevant to everyone in your Departure, such as "The dining room will be closed for a private function this evening, so talk to the host about alternative meal arrangements", or "The host has confirmed a dinner reservation for your group at 7pm" There is a Refresh from Provider button to refresh that Product text from the providers record, if you wish to start over.
- a tickbox to indicate if this text should be displayed in the Itinerary or not. This can still be altered when creating the Itinerary.
- a Client Notes button: This great feature opens up the Client's Itinerary Notes about this Provider, so it's ideal to add something which is unique to each client on this Departure, for example, their booking reference with this provider.
All Providers tabs screens have some common elements:
Update from Master
If the Master has changed, and you want the changes reflected in this Departure; OR if you have made changes in this Departure, and wish to restore the original Master records, just click the Update from Master button. The records on the current Departure will be updated with records from the Master.
Start Over
If you have messed up, hit the 'start over' button. This will remove all the records from this screen, allowing you to start afresh.
- Bag movements on the Movement tab do not match this day's selected Provider - go to the Movement tab and change the movement if necessary
- If the Daily Location District for this day, in Daily Locations, differs from the District of this provider, then the Daily Location District will appear in read to draw your attention to this. (Sometimes, this will be correct - e.g. when there are insufficient providers at the daily location district to accommodate your guests, but other times, it could be that you have chosen an incorrect provider )
- Notes from Providers. If you have a Provider alert recorded for this specific Departure, an alert will show beside the Provider Product field. Learn about that Here
Or, there may be some important information you need to know about a Provider - perhaps they are closed on certain days or dates, or have a waiting list - the sort of thing you might stick on a post-it note. If you have written such a note on the Provider record, when you select that provider from a drop down list in Departures, you will get a note like the one below:
- Daily Location. If this Provider's district location does not match the district location defined in the Daily Locations tab, the daily location district will be recorded in red to indicate the variation. Occasionally it is not possible to find accommodation in the daily location district, so this may be correct - it is flagged here to ensure you are comfortable with the variation.
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Task status and Fill down
The task column reflects the status of this Provider task, i.e. if it is confirmed, booked, cancelled etc.
Select the orange triangle button beside a task to change the status
The fill down button above the orange triangles allows you fill down the task status of the first provider record to all the other provider records
The minus sign is a delete button which allows you to delete this Provider record
Provider Details
Hover in the space under the heading P Details (Provider Details) to activate an orange field which will allow you to view edit details about this provider. Here you can view contact and address details, facilities offered by this provider, the departures booked, products offered, prices, etc. These fields are not editable in this view.
To view a list of all client's and any provider type bookings, from the Departure | Providers tab, click the 3 days button
Provider Info tab - on all Providers
- Enter a Provider Reference if you are provided one, this field is not reported anywhere, it is purely for your own internal reference.
- Tick if a Confirmation is required from the Provider (removed March 24)
- Select the Payment type indicated by the Provider, from the drop down list
- Staff Notes - Type notes for office staff, if required
- The ALL Provider Records view on Departures shows WHICH Providers have an alert.
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The Departure | List view will show the Alert, and hovering over it will tell the user how MANY alerts there are
Providers
Accommodation Details
The Provider's availability can be checked on the spot, by clicking the availability button. This will take you directly to the website set up on the Provider's record for making bookings. Learn more Here
Accommodation Provider Info
Notes/Itinerary
Notes - Office
An optional space for you to record any Office Notes relevant to this Accommodation booking for this group
Notes - Itinerary
Depending on your business model, these notes can work one of two ways. An Admin level setting allows you to display either a live version or an editable copy of the Provider Notes for Itinerary.
- Odyssey pulls in the Provider Itinerary content, and Provider Product Itinerary content into the departure level Provider "Notes for Itinerary" record, and makes the Provider product field editable so that you can add any optional /personalised text for the itinerary which is relevant to your group at this specific time. e.g. "Sandy, the Manager, has organised a packed lunch for your group today"
- In the Provider Notes for Itinerary, when the Admin default settings switch is set to black, the text block will be COPIED into the Departure records at the time they are created. They do not remain live, they will not reflect any changes made here after the Departure record has been made. They can be individually refreshed from each Departure record when that is required.
- There is a two headed arrow which allows you to refresh this content from the Provider record.
If there is an alert on the Departure Level Provider Accommodation record, highlighted below, this is to alert the user there is a difference between the Accommodation location that a PAX is staying at, and the Provider that their bags are being moved to
Note that it's at booking level where the real data needs to be correct, as this is what drives the Manifest and the bag labels!
Activity
An Activity Provider is one who provides fun activities for your clients while they are on their Departure, such as a winery visit, visiting a chocolate factory, or a penguin tour.
Any activities included on the Trip Master will automatically be listed here.
Add another activity by clicking the ' + Activity' button
Viewing Activity Records
Click once on an accommodation record to view it
As with the Accommodation screen above, populate this screen with the options your client has selected, and press Close. Remember to set the task status, whether or not confirmation is required, and whether the item is chargeable
Activity Notes/Web
Notes - Office
An optional space for you to record any Office Notes relevant to this Activity booking for this group
Notes - Itinerary
An optional space for you to record any Itinerary Notes relevant to this Activity booking for this group, other than what is already included on the Itinerary Notes from the Provider's record
Notes - Finance
An optional space for you to record any Finance Notes relevant to this Activity for this group
Transport
Any transport options included on the Trip Master will automatically be listed here.
Add another transport option by clicking the ' + Transport' button
As with the Accommodation screen above, populate this screen with the options your client has selected, and press Close. Remember to set the task status, whether or not confirmation is required, and whether the item is chargeable
Transport Notes/Web
Notes - Office
An optional space for you to record any Office Notes relevant to this Transport booking for this group
Notes - Itinerary
An optional space for you to record any Itinerary Notes relevant to this Transport booking for this group, other than what is already included on the Itinerary Notes from the Provider's record
Notes - Finance
An optional space for you to record any Finance Notes relevant to this Transport for this group
Meals
Any meals included on the Trip Master will automatically be listed here.
As with the Accommodation screen above, populate this screen with the options your client has selected, by pressing the ' +Meals' button
Remember to set the Task Status, whether or not confirmation is required, and whether the item is chargeable, and then press close
Provider info
Here you can enter a Provider reference, or if the Provider has submitted their confirmation or otherwise via an online form you sent them from Odyssey, then their feedback to you will be in the Provider Form comments. Notes for staff (i.e. Guides) can be recorded.
Notes | Itinerary text
IF the Accounting ( Xero API ) Advanced Module has been activated by Creative Technology for your Odyssey set-up, there will also be a General Ledger cost drop down list.
Notes - Office
An optional space for you to record any Office Notes relevant to this Meal booking for this group
Notes - Itinerary
An optional space for you to record any Itinerary Notes relevant to this Meal booking for this group, other than what is already included on the Itinerary Notes from the Provider's record, e.g. "At this time of year the hosts do amazing roast dinners using locally sourced veg, we highly recommend"
Notes - Finance
An optional space for you to record any Meal Notes relevant to this Meal for this group, e.g. "Our client charged drinks to a tab which we will need to recoup from them."
Other
Any Other providers included on the Trip Master will automatically be listed here.
As with the Accommodation screen above, populate this screen with the options your client has selected, by pressing the ' +Other' button
Remember to set the task status, whether or not confirmation is required, and whether the item is chargeable
Notes - Office
An optional space for you to record any Office Notes relevant to this Meal booking for this group
Notes - Itinerary
An optional space for you to record any Itinerary Notes relevant to this Meal booking for this group, other than what is already included on the Itinerary Notes from the Provider's record, e.g. "At this time of year the hosts do amazing roast dinners using locally sourced veg, we highly recommend"
Notes - Finance
An optional space for you to record any Meal Notes relevant to this Meal for this group, e.g. "Our client charged drinks to a tab which we will need to recoup from them."
All
The All button displays a summary of all activities planned for this [Departure]
To carry on making your [Departure], please follow the 'Related articles' links below to add Resources, Movements, Paperwork and emails.