How much does a travel agent make?

The median pay is $24.11 per hour — roughly $50,000 a year, with the real range running from about $16.64/hr (10th percentile) to $36.86/hr (90th percentile). Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Do you need a degree to be a travel agent?

The typical entry-level education is: High school diploma. Overall preparation level: medium preparation (Job Zone 3 of 5).

What does a travel agent actually do all day?

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.

Sales

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.

What it pays
Travel Agents earn a median of $24.11/hr — about $50,000 a year. The lowest-paid 10% earn $16.64/hr; the top 10% earn $36.86/hr. (Annual figures are approximate: hourly × 2,080.)

What you'd actually do

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.

How you get there

Typical entry-level education: High school diploma. Overall preparation: medium preparation (Job Zone 3 of 5).

The feel of the work

The work is mostly indoors; precision matters — small details carry weight. (Compared against the other 818 careers in the guide.)

Working for yourself

About 11.2% of travel agents are self-employed.

Who it tends to fit

This work tends to fit people who are take-charge, organized and detail-focused and people-focused.

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Quick questions

How much does a travel agent make?: The median pay is $24.11 per hour — roughly $50,000 a year, with the real range running from about $16.64/hr (10th percentile) to $36.86/hr (90th percentile). Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Do you need a degree to be a travel agent?: The typical entry-level education is: High school diploma. Overall preparation level: medium preparation (Job Zone 3 of 5).
What does a travel agent actually do all day?: 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.

Wages: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS. Tasks & interests: O*NET. Career pathways shown in the app are draft archetypes — verify before relying on them. Trailhead is a free career guide for students — honest numbers, no hype.

Trailhead is operated by FLEXVermont LLC. It is intended for high-school students age 13 and older, and the educators and families who support them, and is not directed to children under 13. Trailhead is provided for general informational and educational purposes only. It does not offer professional, financial, or career advice, and its wage figures and pathways are estimates that may not fit your situation — they should not be relied on as the sole basis for any decision.