Do you make money as a travel agent

A generation ago, in the heyday of the travel agentfees and commissions were plentiful. There was no Internet, so planning a trip was definitely not just a click away. Travel agents could probably get away with charging you a fee and rake in commission as well booking your vacation. And, unlike today, airplane tickets were the big money. But, in the trvel, airlines dropped commissions to travel agents as technological advances meant people could very easily book their own tickets and trips over the phone or the Internet and actual paper tickets became a thing of the past. As Internet accessibility became the norm and travelers could shop, book and pay for travel themselves online, the life of the agent became a bit more difficult—to say the. The pendulum is agejt back in their favor as a new generation of travelers realizes that the travel agent still provides people with the same thing that they were looking for all those many years ago—value and convenience.

A Typical Day…

One of the first questions most new agents have is about the potential income that can be generated by a home based travel agent. Many are retired from other carriers and have pensions and investments they depend on and enjoy the benefits of being in the travel industry as their primary motivation. Other agents sell travel to family and friends part time and also maintain a full time career in another industry. So, while the numbers seem depressed, be assured that there are a good number of home based travel agents making excellent incomes from their business. And, the answer is certainly much more complex than the question. In its most simplistic form, profits are generated by the payment of a commission from the supplier to the agent. Commissions are paid for handling the sale on behalf of the supplier and virtually every supplier has different remuneration programs. Many suppliers offer override programs based on the total volume of business the agent books with the supplier.

Why Become a Travel Agent?

To make matters even more confusing, a supplier may also have money to invest in promotions and promotional materials on top of the commission and overrides that are paid to the agent. The trick is to access these base commissions, overrides and promotional cooperative funds to generate the highest possible yield in your revenue. This is accomplished by focusing your business in a highly productive and complex niche where the rewards are substantial. NCFs Non Commissionable Fares have increased dramatically thereby reducing the overall percentage of commission on selling mass-market cruises. The River Cruise market is extremely popular right now and also quite competitive among river cruise companies and represents an excellent opportunity to earn very attractive margins. All cruise lines have override programs and also money to invest in well thought out promotions with productive agents. There are also many tour companies such as Globus that offer worldwide tours to virtually every destination around the world.

A Short History

Fees and commissions comprise the bulk of many travel agencies’ revenues. Travel agencies earn money from the clients they serve and the travel vendors they market. How that is proportioned depends on a number of factors: the types of travel they handle, the types of clients they serve and the level of expertise they can offer. The rise of Internet channels for booking — making obsolete the need for the average person to pick up the phone to book a basic flight, for example — has significantly changed the role of many agents and, in turn, their revenue streams. Travel agents often earn commissions from travel vendors they book for their clients, though this is a much smaller portion of their revenue than it once was. Airlines in particular have moved away from giving agents a commission on booking, since the Internet age has made it so easy for travelers to book their own flights.

How much do travel agents make? Travel agent employees only.

As a travel agent, you generally earn money on commissions and fees. While finding those commissions is important, it’s equally important to draw customers in and meet their needs to the best of your ability. Without customers, you have no way of earning commissions, which is why networking and making sales should be one of the main focuses of your job. This article was co-authored by our trained team of editors and researchers who validated it for accuracy and comprehensiveness.

Spread the love. However, a river cruise in a foreign country is a bit more complicated, and you’re just the person to help clients navigate it. However, most people want to feel like they know and trust their travel agent. Without customers, you have no way of earning commissions, which is why networking and making sales should be one of the main focuses of your job.

A Shift in Business Models

Do you love to travel? Enjoy helping people and want to work from home? Consider working as a Travel Agent. Travel Agents are utilized most do you make money as a travel agent for specialized trips like honeymoons, corporate events, family vacations, cruises, international travel or special events.

I had the pleasure of interviewing stay-at-home mom Sarah Bergman who decided to take on a career as a travel agent as a way to make money from home. I book travel! Mostly family travel; Disney, Universal, Beaches, cruises, all-inclusive resorts, and a little bit of Europe! A lot of my business is runDisney. Walt Disney World hosts four race weekends each year, and I help runners, and their families book their trips and secure their race registrations. It depends on what you sell.

Travel Agents earn commission from suppliers airlines, hotels, resorts. Disney will pay me after you travel. On occasion, I will charge a planning fee, but that is typically when I am putting together custom itineraries or managing a large group or wedding. My first year I think I only made 6K — because you get paid when people actually travel, and people plan trips a year in advance sometimes!

You have to have a passion for travel and a lot of patience. Suppliers typically pay commissions once a client has traveled. Most of the time, I will run my clients cards directly with the company they are traveling. For my larger groups like for the races I will accept race registration fees and hotel deposits via PayPal, and then apply that towards our group total. Patience, organization, and a love for what you sell. However, I also have a passion for travel in general.

If I have a family that wants to go to Ireland — I would love to help. You can get discounts from some suppliers, and you make a commission on your own trips too, which I count as a discount. Most suppliers offer travel agent rates for discounted stays, and you can go on trips to learn about products. However, those trips definitely are not vacations!

Family and friends were the best places to start, however, I have learned quickly that they are not my ideal clients. I spend a lot of time on Facebook and in different running-related groups working on relationships and having people know the name of my company. It is great now to see my company recommended the majority of the time when someone asks for recommendations for a Travel Agency!

I work when I can! You never take a real vacation again! Evelyn who is 3. Honestly, not well! It seems like I get my busiest when they need me the. Luckily, I have an incredibly supportive husband and family close by if I need a little help with the girls, so I can get work. You have to LOVE what you do in order to not get burnt out! Find an agent to take you under their wing, there is a ton of information out there and so having someone teach you what they know is key.

Thank you, Sarah, for giving us a little insight into your world. You can work for the list of recommended companies below as travel consultants, making reservations, or customer service. This is also a good start if you want to find out if becoming a Travel Agent is right for you.

Top Companies Hiring Virtual Assistants. Thank you so much for providing such valuable information. I kind of like this field I guess after i reading ur interesting article also as i get to travel many countries by. Currently m staying at home without a job since we have relocated to another country just cz of my husbands job.

I would love to start something CX I feel little boring staying home. Sure, in a nut shell Travel agents sell transportation, lodging, and entertainment activities to individuals and groups planning trips. They offer advice on destinations, plan trip itineraries, and make travel arrangements for clients. This is a wonderful article! I am a first time mom with a passion for travel and I am planning to work from home, but I have a question though how does she get the clients?

What kind of strategy does she have? It looks like Facebook Groups. It takes work but it will be worth it. I see people do this all the time in Facebook Groups. Hello, Did you have to have any schooling to be a Travel Agent? That is my ideal dream job!! Thank You. Sarah suggests finding an agent to take you under their wing, there is a ton of information out there and so having someone teach you what they know is key.

See how Sarah got started and how you can too! How long have you been a Travel Agent? What services do you provide? How often do you get paid? For those wanting to start as an agent can you recommend any host agencies? Do you receive any perks as a Travel Agent? How many clients do you have today? Can you give us a little insight into what a typical day looks like for you? Any cons to becoming a Travel Agent?

How many hours do you work a week? How many kids do you have? How do you manage your time with your work and kids? Any additional advice for someone wanting to become a Travel Agent? Let us know if you have any questions about getting started. Whitney is the founder of Tried and True Mom Jobs, a blog about legitimate ways to make money from home.

She only writes about things that work. She does the research, so you don’t have to. Spread the love. I mean i want to stay and work in home. Search for:. Tried and True mom jobs was created to provide stay-at-home moms legitimate job opportunities that pay well and offer the flexibility to raise their children. Learn more Recent Posts.

It was published 6 years ago, which is about 60 years in internet time. Thus, it was in need of an update! It’s now updated to reflect travel agent salaries. If you’re here, it’s probably not your first time around the Google block. So you know that there are many answers to what you possibly thought was going to be a simple question.

Commissions

There is a whoooole lot to consider when looking at how much travel agents make. There are also major factors such as type of agency or company, job title, niche, experience and whether or not an agent is an employee or independent. We’re also wary of those job salary websites offering travel agent salary data—the one thing travel industry outsiders don’t understand? Most leisure travel agents are now aligned with a host agency. Unsure about what a host agency is? We have a great explanation of host agencies here! But even though they make up a majority of the industry, most external sites don’t include hosted agents in their numbers. So it gets even more complicated trying to look at a full picture of travel agent salaries that includes home based agents, leisure agents, storefront owners and employees, and home based agents. There’s not a single answer when someone asks ‘ How much do travel agents make? Once you open the door, you realize just how many possibilities there are.