Travel Planner Job Description, Skills, and Salary
Get to know about the duties, responsibilities, qualifications, and skills requirements of a travel planner. Feel free to use our travel planner job description template to produce your own. We also provide you with information about the salary you can earn as a travel planner.
Who is a Travel Planner?
A travel planner is a professional who works with clients to organize vacations and travel packages. They perform a variety of tasks during and after a client consultation, including creating an itinerary, booking flights, and arranging for the rental of a car or recreational equipment, all to ensure that the trip runs as smoothly as possible. A travel planner’s primary responsibility is to coordinate all aspects of a trip. Multitasking, scheduling, negotiating, and other interpersonal communication skills are required for this position.
Travel planners must consult closely with their client when planning vacations. Oftentimes, clients who seek the assistance of a travel planner for their vacations do so to avoid having to coordinate every aspect of their vacation themselves. For instance, a travel planner must decide whether the client should fly, sail, or travel by car or rail. While most clients can articulate their exact requirements during a consultation, the travel planner may need to elicit them through a question-and-answer session.
After arranging for transportation, a travel planner must then locate the accommodations that best suit the client’s needs. While this may seem straightforward, many clients are unsure of the type of accommodation they desire. Numerous factors are considered when determining the most appropriate accommodations for a client — price, location within the destination city, proximity to specific attractions or activities, level of luxury, and aesthetic sensibility.
Travel planners typically coordinate all of their client’s vacation activities and ensure that no scheduling conflicts arise. The planner will select activities and excursions that best suit his client’s tastes and interests, while also staying within his client’s budget. This requires the trip planner to become acquainted with his or her clients and develop a rapport with them, gaining an understanding of their interests.
However, travel planners are not limited to vacation planning. They are frequently hired to organize business trips that require a high degree of coordination and competence. Additionally, they may be tasked with organizing corporate retreats, seminars, and conventions, as well as virtually anything else that requires the ability to coordinate travel itineraries for individuals.
A travel planner is someone who is in charge of arranging travel for a client based on their specifications. Additionally, he offers advice and recommendations regarding the destination, mode of transport, hotel accommodations, car rentals, and tours to take.
A travel planner’s primary responsibilities include creating a list of all the client’s requirements, designing packages that fit their budget, recording and updating client information in a database, and explaining the transportation, flight, and hotel accommodation options available to the client. Additionally, travel planners provide clients with a day-by-day itinerary that includes all activities and tours. The final plan also includes hotel and transportation reservations. Travel planners occasionally visit hotels, resorts, and restaurants to ascertain the quality of services that will be provided to clients.
When it comes to vacation planning, a travel planner must collaborate closely with a client. Clients who hire a travel planner for their vacations frequently do so to avoid having to coordinate every detail of their trip themselves. For example, a travel planner must determine whether the client should fly, sail, or travel by car or rail. While most clients can articulate their exact requirements during a consultation, in some cases, the travel planner will need to elicit them via a question-and-answer session.
It should be noted that applicants for travel planner positions should have personal travel experience and strong customer service skills. Individuals and businesses hire travel planners to plan and organize their trips. Additionally, they are employed by tour and travel companies.
Travel planners assist their clients in making the best travel arrangements possible. They recommend destinations, modes of transportation, car rentals, hotel accommodations, tours to take, and attractions to visit. They provide clients with information about their chosen destinations, such as weather conditions, local customs, attractions, required documents, and currency exchange rates. Travel planners occasionally inspect resorts, hotels, and restaurants to assess their quality and make informed recommendations. Additionally, a travel planner’s role is to market the travel packages and services offered by her travel agency.
A travel planner spends the majority of his time behind a desk in an office setting, completing paperwork, communicating with clients, contacting hotels, and booking flights. He’ll be on the phone and at the computer for the majority of the day. A travel planner is under a great deal of pressure during particularly busy travel seasons. He may be required to reschedule flights or cancel hotel reservations on a case-by-case basis. While self-employed travel planners frequently work long hours, some can work from home.
Some travel planners begin their careers as administrative assistants in a travel agency but advance to planners or agents through on-the-job training and experience. Travel planners with experience can advance to managerial positions or establish their businesses. Between 2012 and 2022, the Bureau of Labor Statistics projects a 12% decline in travel planner jobs as the Internet makes it easier for travelers to book their trips. Job prospects are best for planners who specialize in corporate travel or a niche market, such as adventure travel.
Travel Planner Job Description
Below are the travel planner job description examples you can use to develop your resume or write a travel planner 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 travel planner include the following:
- Collecting data from clients and arranging travel according to their specifications.
- Creating cost-effective travel packages that meet the needs and budgets of clients.
- Making travel safety, visa, and immunization recommendations.
- Maintaining and documenting all client data in the database.
- Reservations for excursions, flights, and hotels, as well as transportation based on client specifications.
- Obtaining the best possible rates from hotels, rental companies, tour guides, and restaurants.
- Responding promptly to all client inquiries and complaints.
- Conducting research, including visits to hotels, resorts, and restaurants.
- Maintaining a high level of professionalism and confidentiality with clients.
- Discussing the client’s travel plans with them.
- Creating travel packages that are customized to the client’s specifications.
- Giving suggestions for travel destinations and well-known locations.
- Creating a travel budget based on the client’s specifications.
- Making hotel and flight reservations, as well as booking and reserving other related activities.
- Responding to all inquiries and questions.
- Conducting in-depth research on hotels, restaurants, and cafes, among others.
- Negotiating with tour guides, restaurants, and rental companies to obtain the best possible prices.
- Maintaining a positive relationship with vendors and clients.
- Maintaining current knowledge of the latest travel trends.
Other important responsibilities include the following:
- Help in generating revenue for businesses
They generate revenue for their businesses only when they convince prospects to use their services to arrange for transportation, lodging, and entertainment. Typically, planners receive calls from individuals seeking services or from leads acquired through other means. The objective is to demonstrate the value of working with an experienced travel planner versus attempting to arrange everything on your own.
- Serve as consultants
In addition to their sales responsibilities, travel planners serve as consultants to prospects and customers. This begins with recommendations for possible destinations based on the weather, the season, and local conditions in various parts of the world. Additionally, planners advise patrons on possible attractions to visit while in a particular region of the world. In some instances, travel planners may work in a paid consulting capacity rather than providing full-service travel planning.
- Make Appointments
The most comprehensive group travel planning services include making transportation arrangements for guests. This begins with departure and ends with returning home. At the destination, the planner arranges for transportation, creates a detailed itinerary, makes lodging arrangements, and purchases tickets for all guests to entertainment venues. Effective travel arrangements are a make-or-break responsibility for travel planners, as they have a significant impact on the group members’ experience.
- Payments and Budgeting
Budgeting and payment collection are critical responsibilities of a travel planner to both the customer and his employer. Along with scheduling, the planner must collaborate with the client to determine the group’s budget. When he creates a trip itinerary for a client, he presents it to them along with the proposed cost and payment schedule. From the employer’s perspective, he is responsible for collecting deposits and invoicing the client to collect any outstanding balances by the specified deadline. He must also make payments on the client’s behalf to lodging, transportation, and entertainment companies as necessary.
Qualifications
- Bachelor’s degree in travel, tourism, or a related field, or an equivalent qualification.
- Personal travel experience will prove beneficial.
- Work experience in the travel industry.
- Excellent customer service abilities.
- Multilingualism would be an asset.
- Excellent geographic knowledge.
- Thorough knowledge of travel trends.
Essential Skills
- Communication skills
Daily, a travel planner must communicate with a large number of people. He or she must educate them about travel packages and all available travel and lodging options.
- Organizational skills
Travel planners must be organized. He or she has created numerous travel packages based on the specifications and budgets of individual clients. A travel planner must maintain accurate records of numerous clients and provide them with accurate information.
- Multilingual Skills
Language skills are critical in a career as a travel planner. Being multilingual increases your chances of advancement in this career and employment with larger travel companies. As travel planners are fluent in other languages, they can easily arrange travel for foreign clients.
- Interpersonal Skills
A travel planner is constantly engaged in a variety of tasks. He or she must communicate effectively both internally and with external stakeholders. Interpersonal skills are critical for the travel planner role to avoid miscommunication-related errors.
- Customer Service
A travel planner’s primary responsibility is to provide necessary information to individuals and to resolve their inquiries via phone calls, emails, and other modes of communication. He or she must act promptly in response to client complaints.
How to Become a Travel Planner
- Earn a high school diploma
Most travel planners require a high school diploma, but some college education can help you gain essential knowledge in areas such as tourism, best business practices, international affairs, and marketing. To provide travel plans and advice to your clients, you’ll need comprehensive knowledge in these areas, either firsthand or gained through a degree program.
Additionally, you could pursue a travel planner certification to demonstrate your expertise to prospective clients and travel agency employers. For instance, The Travel Institute offers the travel planner Proficiency (TAP) exam, which you can take to demonstrate your abilities and credentials as an accomplished travel planner.
Following a few years of experience, you can sit for additional exams administered by The Travel Institute or similar organizations to earn more advanced certifications, such as becoming a Certified Travel Associate (CTA).
- Strengthen your interpersonal abilities
A travel planner’s success is contingent on his or her ability to communicate with others, whether via phone calls, emails, or in-person meetings. Effective communication and interpersonal skills will assist you in acquiring and retaining loyal clients, which is critical if you intend to work independently rather than for an agency.
Developing your soft skills, such as the ability to follow up on questions and communicate changes promptly, will also enable you to negotiate more easily with hotels and similar businesses to secure the best deals for your clients.
- Apply techniques for research planning and budgeting
As a travel planner, your clients rely on you to assist them in saving as much money as possible while traveling. This is why it’s beneficial to research local hotels, cruises, flights, and events that may offer discounted rates.
If you work for an agency, you’ll almost certainly receive on-the-job training on how to quickly locate the best deals for clients and make the most cost-effective reservations possible. This experience may be beneficial before starting your own business.
- Increase your knowledge of the travel industry
Vacation destinations and your clients’ itinerary priorities will shift over time, so it’s critical to maintain an up-to-date and growing knowledge of industry developments. Additionally, continuing to take courses designed to help you gain a better understanding of the tourism industry can be beneficial.
Along with the TAP exam, the Travel Institute offers courses in geography and itinerary planning to help you plan memorable trips for your clients. These courses are especially beneficial if you intend to specialize in a particular type of travel.
Where to Work as a Travel Planner
Candidates may apply for travel planner jobs in any of the sectors listed below.
- Airlines
- Companies providing taxi services
- Railways Tour operators and travel agents
- Information Technology Industries
Travel Planner Salary Scale
In the United States, the national average salary for a Travel Planner is $35,428 per year.