update

Immediate Opening for a Part-Time Waterfront & Group Tour Coordinator.

The Thames River Heritage Park (TRHP) is looking for a talented individual who can handle a variety of responsibilities throughout the year and who will have a visible role in our growing non-profit organization. TRHP is a collection of national and historic sites in Groton and New London, CT, linked by water which capture the history and culture of life along the Thames River. It’s a new kind of state park — one without boundaries.

In this part-time position you will be on the front lines of our water taxi and boat tour operation promoting and coordinating boat and land tours Memorial Day Weekend through mid-September and growing our tour business in the off season.

RESPONSIBILITIES

In Season (May through September)

Coordinate all group, boat and walking tours.

Liaison with boat operator, tour groups, historic partner sites and tour guides on the day of tours.

Make sure tours run smoothly and troubleshoot any logistical issues that may arise with schedules.

Coordinate with TRHP Communications Coordinator for all online and point-of-sale ticket sales, refunds, reconciliations and cancellations, and respond to customer inquiries.

Schedule and oversee volunteer docents for land and boat tours.

Make sure boat operator has TRHP materials on boats. Provide boat operator with any weekly sponsorship or other signage changes and instructions.

Oversee the distribution, collection and safety of all patron individual listening devices for all tours.

Coordinate with Communications Coordinator for social media promotions of park events.

Off Season (October through April)

Build our group tour business by identifying and selling prospects, building relationship with tour operators and other tour groups and maintaining relationships with group leaders. You will:

Assist in creating tour materials and send to groups throughout New England/NY/NJ. Follow up on materials sent.

Locate, connect and build relationships with tour operators.

Build database of groups/operators for tours.

Send information to and follow up with area businesses and organizations for group tours, water taxi rides and boat charters.

Schedule tours, get deposits, get contracts signed, coordinate payments with treasurer, liaison with the group leaders, schedule tours at historic sites and coordinate and schedule TRHP tour guides and boat operator.

Maintain all tour schedules.

Coordinate with non-profit heritage and cultural partners for their tour/boat needs, as well as other initiatives.

Coordinate and schedule TRHP Foundation Committee Meetings. Prepare and distribute meeting minutes as needed.

Support Sponsorship, Membership, marketing efforts and the Park’s administrative needs.

QUALIFICATIONS & SKILLS

You must have:
Excellent interpersonal and communication skills.
Excellent organizational and project management skills.
Proficient in Microsoft Office, Google Suite, some experience with boating and an interest in American history a plus.
Good customer service skills.

The right candidate must be a self-starter, able to ride on the boats and have experience working with the public or preferably in tourism or travel trades.

This position reports to the Executive Director and requires some weekend hours during the water taxi season.

Interested candidates should send a cover letter and resumé to Executive Director Amy Perry at [email protected].

New London, CT — The Thames River Heritage Park will offer history-themed walking tours at Fort Trumbull and downtown New London on three August weekends.

The downtown tour covers general history of the city from pre-Colonial days through the 20th century with an emphasis on celebrating the city’s diversity. The Fort Trumbull tour focuses on the fort’s importance during numerous historic eras starting in the Colonial period and also covers the history of the Fort peninsula through the 20th century.

Both 40-minute tours leave from the Thames River Heritage Park’s water taxi docks at the respective sites. The downtown dock is at City Pier and the Fort Trumbull dock is at Pier 7, near the site of the US Coast Guard’s Eagle dock. The Fort Trumbull tours are scheduled at 3 p.m. on Saturdays, Aug. 1 and Aug. 15 and Sunday, Aug. 9. The downtown tours are scheduled at 4:20 p.m. on Saturdays, Aug. 1 and Aug. 15 and Sunday, Aug. 9.

The tours are free to water taxi riders and season pass holders and $5 for others. Tours will be led by Gail B. MacDonald, a New London resident, University of Connecticut journalism professor and author of two local history books. Advanced tickets may be purchased here.

All walkers must wear masks and listening devices will allow for appropriate social distancing. For more information about these tours see our Events Calendar.

2020 TRHP sponsors include: Groton Utilities, Yale New Haven Health/L&M, Atlantic Broadband, The Day, Thames Valley Communications, The Garde Arts Center, Hall Communications and Chelsea Groton Bank.