Sales and Related · Holland code ECS
Travel Agents
Plan and sell transportation and accommodations for customers. Determine destination, modes of transportation, travel dates, costs, and accommodations required. May also describe, plan, and arrange itineraries and sell tour packages. May assist in resolving clients' travel problems.
Also called: Destination Specialist, Travel Agent, Travel Consultant, Travel Counselor, Auto Travel Counselor, Beach Expert, Corporate Travel Consultant, International Travel Consultant.
O*NET 41-3041.00
At a glance
- US median annual pay
- $50,160
- Middle half earn $41,950 to $63,060. BLS OEWS, May 2025.
- Most common education
- Associate's Degree or other 2-year degree
- 37% of workers surveyed by O*NET report this level.
- Preparation needed
- Job Zone 3 of 5
- Medium preparation. Zone 1 is little or none; zone 5 is graduate-level.
- US employment outlook, 2024 to 2034
- +2% · Slower than average
- 65,700 jobs in 2024, projected 67,200. BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, which groups this with similar roles as "Travel agents".
What the work involves
The tasks workers in this occupation rate as most important, from the O*NET survey.
- Collect payment for transportation and accommodations from customer.
- Plan, describe, arrange, and sell itinerary tour packages and promotional travel incentives offered by various travel carriers.
- Converse with customer to determine destination, mode of transportation, travel dates, financial considerations, and accommodations required.
- Compute cost of travel and accommodations, using calculator, computer, carrier tariff books, and hotel rate books, or quote package tour's costs.
- Record and maintain information on clients, vendors, and travel packages.
- Book transportation and hotel reservations, using computer or telephone.
- Print or request transportation carrier tickets, using computer printer system or system link to travel carrier.
- Provide customer with brochures and publications containing travel information, such as local customs, points of interest, or foreign country regulations.
Skills and knowledge it leans on
Skills
- Active Listening4.1 / 5
- Reading Comprehension4.0 / 5
- Speaking4.0 / 5
- Writing3.1 / 5
- Critical Thinking3.1 / 5
- Active Learning3.1 / 5
Knowledge areas
- Customer and Personal Service4.3 / 5
- English Language4.0 / 5
- Sales and Marketing3.9 / 5
- Geography3.4 / 5
- Computers and Electronics3.4 / 5
- Administrative3.2 / 5
Importance ratings on O*NET’s 1 to 5 scale. Higher means the occupation depends on it more.
Who tends to enjoy it
How strongly this occupation draws on each of the six Holland interest types, which is the same profile the career interests test compares you against.
- Realistic2
- Investigative9
- Artistic15
- Social55
- Enterprising80
- Conventional80
The same work abroad
Other countries classify jobs differently, so these are the closest matches through the international ISCO-08 standard, not exact equivalents.
European occupation titles (ESCO)
- tourism contract negotiator · DE Tourismushändler/Tourismushändlerin · FR négociateur des contrats touristiques/négociatrice des contrats touristiques
- ticket sales agent · DE Fahrkartenverkäufer/Fahrkartenverkäuferin · FR agent de réservation/agente de réservation
- travel agent · DE Reisevermittler/Reisevermittlerin · FR agent de voyage/agente de voyage
- travel consultant · DE Reiseberater/Reiseberaterin · FR conseiller voyage/conseillère voyage
Closest UK occupation groups (SOC 2020)
- Travel agents (6212)27,200 employed
- Managers and directors in the creative industries (1255)67,300 employed
- Leisure and travel service occupations n.e.c. (6219)26,800 employed
Employment is the UK Annual Population Survey for April 2025 to March 2026, all workers in the group, which can be broader than this one occupation.
Pay across Europe, for the whole group
Median annual earnings of all employees in “Clerical support workers”. This is the broad ISCO group this occupation falls in, not the occupation itself, so treat it as context for the wage level, not as a salary for this job.
| Country | Median pay |
|---|---|
| Belgium | €40,035 |
| Austria | €38,296 |
| Germany | €37,844 |
| Netherlands | €35,854 |
| Sweden | €33,483 |
| Ireland | €32,144 |
| Italy | €29,311 |
| France | €25,943 |
| Spain | €22,026 |
| Portugal | €12,602 |
| Poland | €10,250 |
Eurostat Structure of Earnings Survey, businesses with ten or more employees outside public administration, in euro and not adjusted for the cost of living. Reference years differ between sources: the US, Japan and Europe figures on this page come from different survey years, so compare them as rough levels, not to the euro or yen.
Exposure to AI
This occupation sits in the higher third of the 774 occupations scored, with an exposure score of +1.13. The scores are standardized across those occupations, so 0 is the average and a score of 1 is about one standard deviation above it.
Our note on reading it: the dataset links AI applications to the abilities that occupations require, so the score reflects overlap between the two. It is a comparison between occupations, not a forecast about jobs. It does not say whether exposure means tasks are replaced or workers get more done with the tools, and it says little about one employer or one role.
Source: Felten, E., Raj, M., & Seamans, R. (2021). Occupational, industry, and geographic exposure to artificial intelligence: A novel dataset and its potential uses. Strategic Management Journal, 42(12), 2195-2217. Matched to this page by 6-digit SOC code (41-3041).
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