St Mary’s College (Ponsonby)
Travel Agent/Adviser Māngai Whakarite Haerenga/Kaitohutohu Whakarite Haerenga
Travel agents/advisers provide information about tourism attractions, sell travel, accommodation, tours and attractions, do ticketing, and process payments.
Travel agents/advisers may do some or all of the following:
- give advice on travel or holiday plans, accommodation, transport, and places of interest
- book accommodation, transport, tours and cruises
- advise clients about visas, passports and insurance
- prepare itineraries, issue tickets and collect payments
- organise and book conferences.
Useful Experience
Useful experience for travel agents/advisers includes:
- work in travel or tourism
- sales or retail work
- overseas travel.
Personal Qualities
Travel agents/advisers need to be:
- skilled in sales and customer service
- good at listening, and understanding of their clients' needs
- able to relate to people from a wide range of cultures
- enthusiastic, friendly, patient and helpful
- professional, responsible and resourceful
- excellent at time management and planning
- very accurate.
Skills
Travel agents/advisers need to have knowledge of:
- New Zealand's and other countries transport systems, accommodation and tourist attractions
- computer reservation systems
- airline routes, alliances, and safety and security regulations
- passport and visa requirements, travel insurance and foreign currencies
- current affairs, including areas where travel may be dangerous.
Conditions
Travel agents/advisers:
- usually work regular business hours, but may have to work long hours and weekends, or be on call
- work in travel agencies and offices, from their home, or in tourist information centres
- may take familiarisation trips within New Zealand or overseas.
Subject Recommendations
No specific secondary education is required for this job, but English, maths, geography and languages to at least NCEA Level 2 are useful.
For Year 11 to 13 learners, trades academies and the STAR and Gateway programmes are good ways to gain relevant experience and skills.
Related Subjects
Travel Agent/Advisers can earn around $48K-$55K per year.
Pay for travel agents/advisers varies depending on experience and employer.
- Travel agents/advisers usually start on the minimum wage or a little more.
- After five years travel agents/advisers can earn up to $55,000 a year.
- Senior travel agents/advisers and travel wholesalers with more than five years' experience can earn up to $100,000 or more (including bonuses or commissions).
Travel agents tend to earn a low base salary, and receive commission and bonuses based on their sales.
Source: Trade Me Jobs, 'Salary Guide', 2017.
Travel agents/advisers may progress to set up their own business as a travel broker, or move into management.
Travel agents/advisers may specialise in travel wholesaling (selling airline tickets, accommodation and tours to retail travel agents).
Years Of Training
<1 year of training usually required.There are no specific entry requirements to become a travel agent/adviser as skills are learned on the job.
Travel wholesalers generally require a travel qualification, such as a degree or New Zealand Certificate in Travel, and relevant experience at a retail or wholesale travel company.
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