Hiring For Tourism Development Intern

Crow Rock Lodge

Crow Rock Lodge is seeking a Tourism Development Intern to support a 12-month guest experience and tourism development project at our remote fishing lodge in Northern Ontario. This project-based internship will focus on creating a formal Guest Experience and Hospitality Standards Program that will help strengthen guest communication, improve service consistency, and support future tourism growth.

Crow Rock Lodge is a fishing lodge located on Lake of the Woods, offering guided fishing packages, American-plan stays, lodging, boat rentals, dining, remote lake access, and outpost cabin experiences. The intern will work alongside the owners and staff during the active fishing season to better understand the guest journey, then use the off-season to help develop written tools, templates, policies, and tourism materials for future seasons.

Position Summary

The Tourism Development Intern will help review the current guest experience and develop practical resources that improve how guests are welcomed, informed, supported, and followed up with. The goal of this project is to create clear and consistent guest-facing and staff-facing materials that can be used by the lodge after the internship ends.

This is a mentored learning position. The intern will not be responsible for managing the lodge or supervising staff. They will work under the guidance of the lodge owners or a designated supervisor.

Key Responsibilities

The intern will assist with the development of a Guest Experience and Hospitality Standards Program, including:

Reviewing the current guest experience during the active fishing season by shadowing owners and staff, observing guest touchpoints, and identifying where written policies, procedures, or communication tools are missing.

Developing a guest policies package covering reservations, deposits, cancellations, check-in and check-out, lodge expectations, restaurant use, dock use, boat rentals, fishing packages, safety reminders, and common guest questions.

Creating guest communication templates for booking confirmations, pre-arrival information, check-in instructions, packing lists, meal information, boat and dock information, fishing package details, post-stay follow-up, and review requests.

Developing a hospitality standards guide for staff that outlines service expectations, professional conduct, guest interaction standards, appearance of guest areas, issue reporting, and ways to create a welcoming fishing lodge environment.

Creating guest experience checklists for key service areas such as guest arrival, cabin readiness, restaurant service, dock and boat areas, guide interactions, common spaces, and departure follow-up.

Developing a guest feedback system to collect and organize guest comments, repeat guest patterns, common questions, and areas for improvement.

Preparing tourism experience descriptions and guest information materials for guided fishing trips, American-plan packages, self-guided lodging and boat rentals, shore lunch, restaurant dining, outpost cabin stays, boating, dock use, and local area information.

Finalizing the full Guest Experience and Hospitality Standards Program before the next fishing season begins.

Timeline

The internship will run for 12 months, beginning in May. From May to October, the intern will focus on observing the active guest season and developing materials based on real guest experiences. Once the lodge transitions into the off-season after ice-up in October/November, the intern will focus on reviewing feedback, creating guest materials, improving templates, and finalizing the project before the next fishing season.

Qualifications

The successful candidate must have graduated from a recognized post-secondary institution with a degree, diploma, or certificate within the last three years. Preferred areas of study include tourism, hospitality, business administration, recreation management, marketing, communications, or a related field.

The ideal candidate will have at least one year of experience living or working at a lodge, camp, resort, or remote tourism setting. They should be comfortable speaking with guests, working in a team environment, and using computer programs, especially Google platforms such as Google Docs, Sheets, Gmail, Drive, and Calendar. Sales, reservations, marketing, or customer service experience would be considered an asset.

Skills and Experience

The ideal candidate should have:

Strong written and verbal communication skills.

Good customer service skills and a professional attitude.

Comfort working in a remote lodge or tourism environment.

Strong organization and attention to detail.

Basic computer skills, especially with Google platforms.

An interest in tourism, hospitality, guest experience, and remote fishing lodge operations.

The ability to take direction, ask questions, and work with mentorship.

Sales, marketing, reservations, or CRM experience would be an asset.

Training and Supervision

The intern will be trained and supervised by the lodge owners or a designated supervisor. There are usually two to three owners on site during the active fishing season, allowing the intern to receive consistent hands-on training and support. The intern will receive an orientation to the fishing lodge, guest service expectations, safety procedures, guest communication processes, fishing package information, dock and boat use, restaurant service, and current lodge practices.

Supervision will include regular informal check-ins during the workday, along with planned biweekly and monthly meetings to review progress, discuss goals, identify additional training needs, and ensure the project is moving forward.

Additional Training Opportunities

The intern may take part in online customer relationship management training, CRM software courses, guest service webinars, or tourism-related business development sessions. These opportunities will help the intern build skills in guest communication, customer follow-up, organizing guest information, improving repeat bookings, and supporting the Guest Experience and Tourism Development Project.

Expected Project Outcome

By the end of the internship, the intern will have helped create a complete Guest Experience and Hospitality Standards Program for Crow Rock Lodge. This will include guest policies, communication templates, hospitality standards, service checklists, feedback tools, and tourism experience materials.

This project will support a stronger and more consistent guest experience, improve communication with future guests, encourage repeat visitation, and help the lodge prepare for future tourism growth.

• This full-time position is partially funded by FedNor’s Regional Economic Growth Through Innovation Program” must be included.
• Note: The youth intern will need to reside in Northeastern Ontario throughout the length of the Internship
• INTERNSHIP ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA: Successful candidates must:
  • Be unemployed or underemployed youth (persons aged 30 and under);
  • Have graduated within the last three years with a degree, diploma, or certificate from a recognized post-secondary institution;
  • Be legally entitled to work in Canada;
  • Have not previously participated in a youth internship with FedNor’s Regional Economic Growth through Innovation (REGI) or in any other federal or provincial internship program with pay for a period of six months or more;
  • Not be related to the directors, officers, or managers of the organisation
  • Work on project-based activities listed under Canada’s Economic Strategy Tables (Advanced Manufacturing, Agri-Food, Clean Technologies, Digital Industries, Health/Bio Sciences, Resources of the Future, and Tourism)
  • Must reside in Northern Ontario or be willing to move to the region for the period of the internship
• SALARY: This full-time position is partially funded by FedNor’s Regional Economic Growth through Innovation (REGI).