Tourism

Travel agent

Travel agents book business and leisure travel for customers.

Annual Salary

£18,000 to £27,000

Working hours

37 to 40 a week

You could work: evenings / weekends / bank holidays; on a rota

0.5%
Future employment

There will be 0.5% fewer Travel agent jobs in 2027.
In your local area

What's it all about?

Day-to-day tasks

In this role you could:

  • talk to customers to understand their needs
  • help customers find a suitable package holiday or plan independent travel
  • make bookings and payments using online computer systems
  • advise customers about passports, insurance, visas, vaccinations, tours and vehicle hire
  • inform customers of changes like cancelled flights
  • arrange refunds and handle complaints
  • meet sales targets
  • keep up to date with developments in the travel industry

Working environment

You may need to wear a uniform.

You could work in a contact centre or at a store.

You can get into this job through:

  • a college course
  • an apprenticeship
  • working towards this role
College

You could do a Level 3 Diploma in Travel and Tourism.

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

  • 4 or 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C), or equivalent, for a level 3 course
For more information
Apprenticeship

You could do a travel consultant advanced apprenticeship.

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

  • 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C), or equivalent, including English and maths, for an advanced apprenticeship
For more information
Work

You can start as a trainee travel agent and receive on-the-job training from your employer.

There are no set entry requirements, but a good general standard of education is expected. Some employers may ask for English and maths GCSEs or equivalent. Good geographical knowledge will also be helpful.

More information

Career tips

It may help if you have customer service experience and can speak a second language.

Further information

You can find out more about careers in travel from the Institute of Travel & Tourism.

With training and experience, there may be opportunities to progress into senior roles like:branch or call centre manager; operations director; regional director

You could also move into other roles in the travel sector, like tour operating.

You can find out more about careers in travel from the Institute of Travel & Tourism and Careers that Move.

Skills required and how your skills match up

What skills are required?

  • customer service skills
  • excellent verbal communication skills
  • the ability to sell products and services
  • to be thorough and pay attention to detail
  • administration skills
  • active listening skills
  • persuading skills
  • a desire to help people
  • the ability to read English
  • to be able to use a computer and the main software packages competently
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