Tour Manager Job Description, Skills, and Salary
Get to know about the duties, responsibilities, qualifications, and skills requirements of a tour manager. Feel free to use our tour manager job description template to produce your own. We also provide you with information about the salary you can earn as a tour manager.
Who is a Tour Manager?
The tour managers manage the logistics, and administration of musicians and their crews while they are on the road. They coordinate transportation and lodging arrangements, communicate with venue management and concert producers to coordinate load-in, soundcheck, and set times, convey the band’s hospitality requirements and ensure musicians and crew members arrive on time.
The tour managers prepare day sheets detailing each day’s schedule and then distribute them to the band members and crew. He also ensures everyone is on track for any media appearances, such as interviews, radio station visits, and record store appearances. The manager is also responsible for managing the finances of the tour. He or she must keep a close watch on all money coming in and out to make sure everything stays within the budget.
The tour manager also resolves any problems that arise, including disputes with promoters, passport emergencies, gaffes on the guest list, and artist behavior. They may work closely with tour publicists in some cases to ensure that the shows are attended. Those who work on smaller tours may also have additional duties such as managing the merchandise table or overseeing the production elements.
Holidaymakers can rely on tour managers to ensure that travel arrangements are as smooth as possible. They also provide support and guidance throughout the trip. You may be asked to act as a guide on a tour if you have a deep knowledge of the area.
You must be able to use your language skills as well as knowledge of the area’s culture and history, to make sure the tour runs smoothly and holidaymakers have a great time.
Tour managers need to communicate well. To secure vacation packages for tourists, tour managers must be able to persuade them. They need to be able to communicate with business owners and leaders who depend on tourism to grow their businesses and keep their services and stores running. No matter what the circumstance, communication between these diverse groups requires grace, openness, and a friendly disposition.
Most positions require applicants to have a minimum of a high school diploma. Highly ranked positions are given to professionals with a bachelor’s degree in tourism or hospitality, especially if they have a relevant field.
Tour Manager Job Description
Below are the tour manager job description examples you can use to develop your resume or write a tour manager job description for your employee. Employers can also use it to sieve out job seekers when choosing candidates for interviews.
The duties and responsibilities of a tour manager include the following:
- Assisting passengers with their travel needs and keeping them informed.
- Accompanying groups traveling by bus, train, boat, plane, or car
- Examining tickets, other relevant papers, seat assignments, or any special requirements.
- Assisting passengers with immigration and passport-related work
- Assisting vacationers in checking in and settling into their accommodations
- Offering a range of facts about itineraries, places, and culture
- Making sure to inform passengers about the arrival and departure times for each stop on your schedule.
- Ensuring that all travel arrangements are made smoothly
- Helping someone who is sick or someone who needs to contact family members immediately.
- Communicating with bus companies, hotels, restaurants, or other clients to get information about facilities, such as sights, restaurants, stores, and shops at each destination.
- Checking tickets, other documents, allocations of seats, and special requirements
- Using your professional knowledge to answer holidaymakers’ questions and fulfill their expectations about the tour
- Making sure that all travel arrangements are in order and that meals, accommodation, and service are excellent
- Organizing entry to attractions or transport such as car rental
- Ensuring that each member of the group can enjoy the tour without any problems
- Answering questions and offering assistance with any problem that may arise. This could be anything from directing someone to the closest chemist to more complex issues like tracing lost luggage.
- Liaising with restaurants, coaches companies, hotels, and other clients
- Providing information about the facilities at each destination, including restaurants, shops, and sights.
- Organizing and attending conferences, workshops, and seminars related to tourism.
- Writing reports and keeping records
- Beginning the tour by welcoming the group and keeping them updated on their preparations and stops.
- Ensuring that all travel documents are accessible and resolving any immigration issues
- Giving verbal comments about different places during the trip
The following are other important tasks:
- Creating tour packages for individuals or groups
Tour managers meet with customers to learn about their interests and offer suggestions for attractions, lodgings, and transportation options that will help them choose the right tour package.
- Negotiating rates
Many tour managers negotiate rates with other vendors such as hotels or transportation companies. They may request a hotel to lower rates for large groups of travelers.
- Arranging traveling
These professionals arrange travel plans for their customers to get them there. They may help customers book train tickets or rent a car to get to different attractions.
- Customer support
Tour managers provide customer support to assist their clients in planning trips. They may answer questions about destinations, give information on currency exchange rates, or inform customers of changes to their itinerary.
- Preparing a tour budget
A tour manager works with clients to prepare a tour budget. They can help clients choose the right accommodations and attractions for their budget and create itineraries that have varying price points.
They research travel options and make recommendations for their clients about places to stay, eat, and where to visit on their trips. To stay up-to-date in their field, they read articles and search the internet for information on travel trends and new destinations.
- Showing logistics
You will also serve as the tour manager between promoters, venue managers, and ticket agents. You will also be responsible for confirming stage times for all bands.
Also, ensure that everything runs on time and that there are no curfews or penalties for violating regulations. Even these things can catch you by surprise.
- Organization
They are responsible for ensuring that all equipment arrives at the correct location. They also ensure that the right people are at the right places.
It includes everything, from organizing accommodation and transport for everyone (everyone leaving at different times) to arranging transportation. They must also ensure that everyone has the right visas, if necessary.
Qualifications
For tour managers, the minimum educational requirement is a high school diploma or GED. Employers, especially tour companies and travel agencies, might prefer candidates who have a bachelor’s degree. The most common degrees for tour managers are tourism and travel service management or hospitality management. These undergraduate programs are offered by many colleges and universities. It typically takes four years to complete this degree. You might take the following classes while you earn your bachelor’s degree:
- Hospitality financing
- Revenue Management
- Service technology
- Event planning
- Management of human resources
- Marketing and sales of hospitality
- Tourism Foundations
- International hotel management
- Information technology for tourism
- Strategies for hospitality management
- Sustainable tourism planning
You can also train to be a travel agent or leisure travel representative, which is another route to this job.
For overseas work, you will need to have a good working knowledge of foreign languages. It is also helpful to have experience working and living overseas.
Essential Skills
- Organizational skills
Excellent organizational skills are a benefit to tour managers to plan their tours. These professionals use their planning skills to organize many aspects of a tour, including transportation between attractions. They pay attention to details to ensure that they create tours that meet their customers’ expectations and needs. They may be responsible for planning multiple tours for customers at once. This allows them to use multitasking and time management skills to ensure they are up to the task and finish their work on time.
- Customer service skills
Tour managers can use their customer service skills to interact with clients and offer them positive travel experiences. They communicate with their customers using active listening skills to learn about their needs and preferences. When customers have questions regarding their tour itinerary, the tour managers try to provide answers as fast as possible.
Customers can make adjustments to their itinerary or extend their stay with tour managers. To help customers make the best travel recommendations, they have an in-depth knowledge of different destinations and attractions.
- Communication
Tour managers need to be able to communicate with customers and provide information about their trips. To communicate with customers about their expectations, they use verbal communication skills. With the possession of this skill, tour managers can work with vendors such as tour bus companies. When emailing their customers, tour managers might use written communication skills.
- Financial management
Financial management skills are used by tour managers to prepare budgets and cost estimates for customers. They work closely with their customers to determine their travel needs and to develop travel plans that meet them. They can solve problems and find solutions for customers who have limited budgets. These professionals help customers find savings opportunities and ways to maximize their money while still ensuring that they get the amenities they desire.
- Safety and health awareness
Tour managers should be aware of the safety protocols in each city, state, and country as well as safe travel destinations.
- Ability to make quick decisions
Tour managers need to be able to quickly respond to emergencies.
- Endurance skills
Tour managers should be able to work long hours while still delivering the same level of energy. You must have the energy and zeal to meet the demands of a variety of people over long hours.
- Interpersonal skills
Tour managers should be friendly, cheerful, and approachable so that people can ask for directions.
- Multicultural skills
Travel groups often include people of different backgrounds and ages. Without bias, a tour manager should be able to relate with all of their clients. To better serve clients, a tour manager might also need to learn other languages.
- Physical and mental fitness
These are important for tour managers who work long hours. They should be able to handle the physical demands of their job. Their mental health should be strong enough to handle the demands of this fast-paced job.
- Independent work and self-drive
In most cases, tour managers work on their own. They must be able to work independently and under minimal supervision to excel at their job.
How to Become a Tour Manager
- Pursue relevant education
While some employers require a bachelor’s degree, others only need a high school diploma. Employers prefer to employ a tour manager with a degree in business management, communication, marketing, entrepreneurship, or another related field. Additional recommended courses like business law, psychology, tourism, accounting, and logistics can help you stand out from the rest of your competitors.
- Gain experience
After you have earned your certificate or degree, you may be interested in an internship to shadow a tour manager so that you can learn about the daily responsibilities and responsibilities of this position. Volunteering is another option. This allows you to learn from the best tour managers and can be a great way to get experience. You might be eligible for an entry-level job with the same company if you do well in your internship.
- Create a professional network
Networking is about building long-lasting, mutually beneficial relationships between colleagues, partners, business leaders, and professionals. You can meet mentors, advisors, and employers by networking with others. You can also network at any stage of your career, whether you’re still in school or on your internship.
- Perfect your social skills
You must have great social skills to be a good tour manager. You will need to communicate with curious tourists and be able to speak well. Your clients will enjoy their tour more if you have excellent social skills.
- Identify a mentor
A mentor in tour management can help you answer any questions about the profession. Mentors can also support you during difficult times, especially when you are dealing with the aftermath of a job change. Mentors can also help you show passion and dedication to your profession.
Where to Work
Tour managers can be employed by large, national, or international tourist centers as well as small specialist tour companies that organize tours and special trips such as music tours and sports tours.
Tour Manager Salary Scale
The average annual salary of a tour manager in the United States is $57,000. One can make as much as $105,000 depending on where you live and what state you are in. High-traffic areas and tourist activities attract tour managers from these regions to make a better salary than their counterparts in other parts of the country.