A travel agent’s job has never been more important than in this age of technology. Due to continually changing airline schedules and costs, a myriad of available vacation packages and travel dialog on the Internet; the need for someone to sort out the confusion is great. A variety of people consult travel agents. Vacationers, business people and tourists all will seek the help of a travel agent. Many businesses will consult travel agents to arrange meetings and getaways for their employees and clients. In addition, many tourist industries will use a travel agent to advertise their services.
The job of a travel agent is to counsel their clients on many facets of their vacation destination. The agent will find the best arrangement for their clients on transportation to and from their destination, living accommodations, best ways to get around the destination, and tours and activities. In addition, they may find out climate of the area, topography, popularity of the destination and ease of accessibility. The travel agent should be able to offer his or her client with the best possible value for what each client is interested in.
The travel agent is also responsible for helping the client arrange all the necessary paperwork for international travel. The agent should be able to provide information on customs regulations, required paperwork and currency exchange rates. The paperwork for international travel includes visas, passports and records of vaccinations.
Travel agents will confer with an array of both published and Internet sources for information on airline and hotel accommodations. The agent must be able to get the best possible arrival and departure times of airlines that meet the needs of the client. They must also provide the best possible hotel or living arrangement accommodations. The agent may actually go to many of the hotels, resorts and eateries to assess the comfort, sanitation and quality of food and advantage of that particular destination. These evaluations help the travel agent make recommendations to their clients.
A travel agent is responsible for promoting his or her own services and uses. The agent will use a variety of methods to do this; telemarketing, direct mail and the Internet. They will make appearances to groups, coordinate advertisement displays and confer with businesses to arrange trips. In response to competition from the Internet, many travel agents now specialize in travel to a particular region, or to particular groups of people (retirees, newly married couples or ethnic groups). These niches in the market can be the most profitable to work with.
Travel agents will work mostly from behind a desk. During peak travel times, the job can be particularly stressful. There is a great deal of pressure to get the best packages for the clients. Many agents, predominantly the self-employed, will work extensive hours to achieve their goals. The agent must also have a sophisticated computer system and telecommunication system. It is widespread practice for travel agents to work from their homes these days.
To become a travel agent, the minimum schooling you will need is a high school diploma or equivalent. However, technology has become so much more advanced in the past several years that most employers will desire an employee with technical training. Many vocational schools offer training in the area of travel agency. These programs often last several months. And most of these programs offer weekend and night classes.
A few community and state colleges offer degrees in travel agency. These programs seldom include many classes designed around travel or tourism. Instead a degree from a four-year college will focus on computer science, geography, world history, foreign languages and communication. It is important to take courses dealing in accounting and business management for obvious reasons, especially for those thinking of becoming self-employed in travel agency. For those unwilling, or unable, to attend classes there are correspondence programs available. The American Society of Travel Agents is one source of correspondence classes. These courses will offer a basic understanding of the travel agent business.
Some sort of degree, or continuing education, in travel agency is really essential in today’s world. With the wealth of information on travel and vacation destinations on the Internet and other sources, customers want the best expertise their money can buy. If they are going to employ a travel agent, the client will want an agent with the most qualifications. The more specialized the agent is, the more job opportunities there will be.
Once the agent becomes an authority on the job, he or she can take courses from the Travel Institute. This will lead to the Certified Travel Counselor title. This designation allows a travel agent to offer detailed information and packages to specific regions. These regions may include North America, Western Europe, The Pacific Rim and Western Europe; destinations many clients will seek. As discussed earlier, this specialist is increasingly important in today’s competitive market.
Personal travel experience, or experience in a related field, is an advantage to a travel agent because specific knowledge of a region or destination is preferred by clients. This specified knowledge could certainly influence a clients travel plans. Travel agents should have certain skills to make them more sought after by clients. Travel agents should be organized, thorough and accurate in assembling a clients travel itinerary. Also, a travel must be able to work quickly and efficiently under pressure. This is especially true in dealing with business clients, who often need their arrangements immediately. Extensive knowledge of the World Wide Web is certainly an advantage in this line of work.
Experience, salesmanship, area of the country and whom you work for will be some of the factors affecting a travel agents salary. As with any profession, how effective and skillful you are will regulate the salary you receive. Travel agents held about 103,000 jobs in 2004. Travel agents are found in every part of the country. Approximately 3 out of 5 agents work for an agency. Around 14 percent of travel agents in North America are self-employed.
Salaries of self-employed travel agents depend in large part on commissions from bookings and service fees they charge their clients. It will most often take some time for a self-employed travel agent to build up his or her business. It takes time to build up a sufficient number of regular and non-regular clients. Therefore, it is not unusual for newly self-employed travel agents to report low yearly earnings. Even experienced self-employed agents will most likely experience low yearly earnings during economic downturns. Another expense of self-employed travel agents is benefits. They must cover their own insurance and death benefits, which agents employed by an agency will often have provided for them.
Salaries for travel agents employed by an agency vary by region and size of agency. For a “travel coordinator”, which is your basic travel agent and is responsible for travel agendas and the procurement of documents for international travel, the median salary, as of March 2006, is 41,268 dollars yearly. This varies slightly, the bottom 25th percentile of travel agents make 36,014 dollars yearly; while the top 75th percentile will earn 48,629 dollars yearly. For a “corporate travel manager”, whom have similar duties of the travel coordinator, but more responsibility, the median yearly salary as of March 2006 is 72,725 dollars. The bottom 25th percentile of managers will earn 61,193 dollars yearly; while the top 75th percentile of managers will earn 84,439 dollars yearly.
Salaried employees of travel agencies generally benefit from standard employer-paid benefits. Self-employed travel agents must provide these benefits for themselves. One considerable perk of travel agents is reduced personal rates for travel expenses. Travel agents very often get discounts on lodging and transportation. Also, travel agents often get to take “familiarization” trips. These trips are designed to learn about various vacation destinations and regions, and are offered at discounted prices, and occasionally at no cost to the agent. These benefits appeal to many people considering this profession.