A travel agent is someone who arranges excursions and vacations for their clients, picking the best offers for them and determining good conditions for their trips. A good travel agent would do their job by searching the market until they’ve found several deals that match their clients’ needs, then arranging those deals and picking the ones that can truly benefit the traveler in some way. The travel agent must also be able to strike a fine balance between quality and price, in order to satisfy every taste.
Becoming a travel agent requires at least a Bachelor’s degree in a field related to the job, like tourism, in some cases – while in others, it can be obtained merely by displaying sufficient knowledge of traveling and a friendly, yet persuasive personality. A good travel agent must be able to find the best available deals for their clients, since they’re paid a percentage of the trip’s cost in most cases – though some companies don’t use this practice due to trends of exploiting it.
Travel agents receive moderately good salaries for the most part, ranging between $25,000 – $40,000 in most cases. The job is sometimes seen as too demanding for the salary received by some of those who practice it, and the truth is that a travel agent does have to put in a lot of extra effort in some cases – though they tend to be compensated for that accordingly, too. Travel agents have some flexible hours attached to their jobs and can progress on them relatively quickly, making the job an overall good one.