Travel Agent

Travel agents assist customers planning vacations. They help people determine places to visit and coordinate hotel and car rentals, as well as schedule tours. Travel agents book tourists for the majority of cruise line companies. Travel agents usually offer special deals to people interested in visiting resorts.

Travel agents should know about the weather, customs, and attractions of the areas they recommend travels visit. Agents who schedule vacations for people traveling to foreign countries should be aware of exchange rates, health hazards, and the documents required for entry into the country. Sometimes travel agents must make new travel arrangements for clients who decide to change their plans in the middle of their vacations.

Travel agents rely on a variety of sources to find information about airfares, airplane departure times and dates, group discounts, and hotels. Travel agents sometimes visit the restaurants, resorts, and hotels in the areas where they book vacations to determine the quality of these institutions.

Some travel agents work exclusively for resorts planning and selling travel packages. They find new clients advertising, conducting telemarketing, making presentations, and meeting with businesses to discuss company retreats.

Travel agencies must now compete with travel websites offering low prices. However, those seeking service tailored to their travel needs, still utilize travel agencies, especially those visiting exotic locations. To draw more customers, many agencies specialize in specific regions.

Work environment. Travel agents spend their working hours in their offices meeting with customers, making travel arrangements, conducting marketing, doing paperwork, and talking on the phone. Travel agents deal with stress during periods of peak travel and often have to reschedule their clients travel plans.

Agents running their own businesses usually work long days. Many agents telecommunicate from home, but money travel agents still prefer to work in offices to attract business walk in customers.