Some great tips on bagging yourself a job as a chalet host in a ski resort: Do before you are asked. Most companies want four things from you. A CV, a Menu Plan, a cover letter and a photograph. Don’t wait for them to ask you for this, send it all in your initial email. It’s all about who you know. Rack your brain and rack it some more. Do you know anyone who has done a season before? If you do and they worked for the kind of company that you want to work for, get them to put in a word for you. Know your menu. Prepare a solid menu suitable for a winter holiday. Again, get a former chalet host to help you or just remember what you (or someone you know) were served on your last catered holiday. Once you have your menu, make sure you can simply reel off how to make each dish on it. You will be asked about it in the interview. Think of worst case scenarios. Tour operators love to put you on the spot and ask you what you would do in an awkward situation. Before your interview think of everything that could possibly go wrong in a chalet and how you would solve it. Hint: Most can be solved by reassuring guests that you are doing all you can and contacting your manager! Welcome speech. Another favourite thing for TOs to do is get you to give a welcome speech for your chalet. As long as you tell guests the essential things they need to know and ask if there are any further questions at the end you will be fine. Things like meal times, leaving wet shoes at the door and not smoking inside are good but try and throw in a few things about the resort. Even if they are entirely fictional like, “There is a bus stop just 5 minutes down the road and the bus timetable can by found by the front door.” It shows that you are already considering the needs of guests. Know the job. Always read up on the job description before going to the interview. If you can’t find a job description, ask the company to send you one and read it, thrice. It’s not just a cooking job. Cleaning is often forgotten about going into the interview (and sometimes in the chalet with some companies) so be sure to mention it when answering questions. Bonus points will be awarded if you mention keeping on top of snow clearing. The physical challenge. Be aware that tour Operators often like to spring a challenge on you like getting you to make a cake before you come or laying a place setting for a three course meal. If you have never cooked for large amounts of people in a formal setting, don’t be afraid to make dinners with mates round your place sound far fancier than they actually were. Most jobs provide full training and as long as you are capable of spotting when something is burning you should be fine. THEY KNOW YOU WANT TO SKI. You’re mental if you want to go to the Alps to be horrendously underpaid to clean up peoples mess and live in a tiny little room, probably with four other people crammed in for five months. Don’t be afraid to talk about skiing or boarding and how excited you are to get out there and get on the mountain. They want happy staff and without the mountain it would be a pretty dismal experience so show them how passionate you are. And finally - DO A CHALET HOST COOKERY COURSE!!
Posted on: Fri, 30 Aug 2013 09:46:02 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015