Career as Travel Planner

Last Updated By Kamayani Meghawal on 08 Mar, 2023

How to Become a Travel Planner

About Travel Planner

A travel planner is a person who is responsible for making travel arrangements for a client based on their requirements. He also provide advises and suggestions about the destination, mode of transport, hotel accommodation, car rentals and tours to take. 

Some major responsibilities of a travel planner are planning a list of all the requirements of a client, designing packages for clients falling inside their budget, recording and updating the information of clients on the database, explaining transportation, flights and hotels accommodation options available for the clients. Besides this, travel planner provides a day by day itinerary to the clients which include all the activities and tours. The final plan also includes booking of hotels and transportation. Sometimes travel planners visit hotels, resorts and restaurants to check the quality of services which will be offered to clients. 

Candidates who are interested in planning and managing travel-related activities may choose a career as a travel manager. It must be noted that those who are applying for a job as a travel planner should have personal travel experience and strong customer service skills. Travel planners are mostly hired by individuals and companies to plan and organise a trip for them. Apart from this, they are also hired by tour and travel companies. 

Highlights of Travel Planner 

Aspirants who want to make a career as a Travel Planner should know all the details about Travel Planner. Check the table mentioned below to know a quick overview of Travel Planner. 

Details 

Specifications 

Industry

Tourism

Eligibility

10+2 class or graduate 

Average Salary

INR 3,50,000 - INR 4,50,000 (Per annum approx)

Employment Opportunities

  • Tour Operator
  • Corporate Travel Planner
  • Holiday Planner
  • Travel Agent
  • Travel Consultant 
  • Office Manager 

What does Travel Planner do?

A Travel Planner is responsible for various things including travel arrangements, tour plans, package designing, suggesting the right option to clients, and so much more. To understand how to make a career as a travel planner, it is important to understand what a travel planner does. Travel planners also visit hotels or resorts to check the quality and services. 

Travel Arrangements - A travel planner is responsible for making travel arrangements for the client. The travel planner gathers all the information on stay, meals, travel, and other information. They collect information from clients in order to make arrangements as per the client’s preferences and budget.

Package Design - Designing a package according to the client’s needs is the responsibility of the travel planner. A travel planner's job involves making a cost-effective and client-preferred package depending on the budget.

Explaining Options and Understanding the Preferences - A travel planner’s job involves understanding the preferences of clients according to their budget, preferred options, and other information. The travel planner is also responsible for arranging and giving details of flights, car rentals, routes, attractions and other information.

Advising - A travel planner is responsible to explain the best available options to the client and advising them on travel packages that suit their requirements and budget. A travel planner also recommends travel safety, visas and travel options.

Customer Support - A travel planner is responsible to book accommodations, flights and travel itineraries. If the customer gets into any problem or issue with the travel plan, the travel planner is responsible to arranges transport as per the client's specifications. 

    Eligibility to become Travel Planner

    Candidates must meet the minimum eligibility criteria set out below

    Education: Candidates with a bachelor or master degree in travel, tourism or any equivalent specialization may apply for a job as a travel planner. The eligibility requirements for career a travel planner will vary for all companies. Candidates may check the job description of the company to know more details about education requirements. 

    Experience: Career as a travel planner requires a lot of experience. Candidates must have some experience in the industry so that they provide some best recommendations and options to the clients. They can work at any junior-level position in any travel agency to get some experience about the industry before applying for a job as a travel planner. Besides this, they can also work independently by starting a travel agency for local places. 

    Skills: It is necessary to have some good communication skills for a travel planner. There are many other skills which may help a travel planner to get growth in his career. 

    • Technical ability
    • Time management
    • Organisation
    • Communication
    • Creativity
    • Analytics
    • Customer service
    • Literacy
    • IT
    • Interpersonal skills
    • Project management
    • Problem-solving skills

    How to Become Travel Planner in India

    Candidates who are completing schooling and wants to become travel planner can easily start the process early. There are ways to become a Travel Planner including after the 12th class and graduation and even post-graduation. Students can also pursue diploma courses to make a career as Travel Planner. 

     

    How to Become a Travel Planner in India After 12th Class

    Students from any stream can make a career as a travel planner, whether you are from Arts, Science, or Humanities. Students can start preparing while in class 12th with any stream. Once the students complete their 12th-class education, they can enrol themselves in various travel or management courses. Here are some famous courses for a Travel Planner:

     

    Course Name

    Duration 

    Bachelor of Arts in Hotel Management (BA)

    3 years

    Bachelor of Travel and Tourism Management (BTTM)

    3 years

    Bachelor of Tourism Management (BTM)

    3 years

    Bachelor of Business Administration in Travel and Tourism Management (BBA)

    3 years

    Bachelor of Tourism Studies (BTS)

    3 years

    Bachelor of Tourism Administration (BTA)

    3 years

    Bachelor of Travel and Tourism (BA)

    3 years

     

    Entrance Exams to Become a Travel Planner in India After 12th Class 

    To pursue graduation courses to become travel planner in India after completing the 12th class, students can opt for the entrance exams. Here are some famous entrance exams for Travel Planners in India after the 12th class. 

     

    Exam Name

    Full Form

    CUET

    Common University Entrance Test

    AMU EE

    Aligarh Muslim University Engineering Entrance Examination 

    IPU CET

    Indraprastha University Common Entrance Test

    DUET

    Delhi University Entrance Test

    JMI EE

    Jamia Milia Islamia Engineering Entrance Examination

     

    How to Become a Travel Planner in India After Graduation 

    Students can become a Travel Planner in India after completing graduation or post-graduation. Students can also pursue post-graduation courses or internships after completion of graduation. Here are some famous post-graduation courses mentioned in the table to become a travel planner:

     

    Course Name

    Duration 

    Master of Travel and Tourism Management (MTTM)

    2 years

    Master of Travel and Tourism (MA)

    2 years

    Master of Arts (Honors) in Hotel Management (MA) 

    2 years

    Master of Business Administration in Travel and Tourism Management (MBA)

    2 years

    Master of Tourism Management (MTM)

    2 years

    Master of Tourism Administration (MTA)

    2 years

     

    Entrance Exams to Become a Travel Planner in India After Graduation 

    Students can easily pursue post-graduation courses to become a successful Travel Planner in India after graduation. Here are some top entrance exams for Travel Planners in India. 

     

    Exam Name

    Full Form

    BHU PET

    Banaras Hindu University Post Graduate Entrance Test

    AMU EE

    Aligarh Muslim University Engineering Entrance Examination 

    CUET

    Common University Entrance Test

    JMI EE

    Jamia Milia Islamia Engineering Entrance Examination

    CAT

    Common Admission Test

    CMAT

    Common Management Admission Test

    XAT

    Xavier Aptitude Test 

    MAT

    Management Aptitude Test

    Types of Job Roles Travel Planner

    A travel planner spends the majority of his time in an office environment. He has to take care of confirmation of all activities including the accommodation, transportation and destinations which are promised to the client. His roles and responsibilities depend on the job profile and type of industry. Some common profiles available for a travel planner are 

    Holiday Planner -  A holiday planner plans and provides the essential facility to travellers in order to make their travel arrangements. The holiday planner is responsible for making reservations, booking flights and arranging stay. 

    Travel Agent - A travel agent is responsible for booking flights, hotels, and tours for clients. The travel agent also makes insurance coverage and other plans.

    Travel Consultant - Travel Consultants meet the clients to learn, discuss, and understand their travel requirements and budget. They are responsible for creating and advising suitable travel packages. 

    Office Manager - Office Manager is responsible for managing staff, implementing procedures, and administrative systems. 

    Travel Coordinator - The Travel Coordinator is responsible for arranging business travel for employees and other people. They identify cost-effective arrangements and make a suitable itinerary. 

    Travel Executive - A travel executive organizes and prepares holiday tour packages for clients. This responsible includes transportation, accommodation, and sightseeing arrangements. 
     

    Employment Opportunities for Travel Planner

    Travel planners are hired mostly by travel agencies and tour management companies. Every company offers different kinds of roles to a travel planner. Candidates may select any of the sector listed below for applying for a job as a travel planner. 

    • Airlines
    • Taxi companies
    • Railways
    • Touring and travel agencies
    • IT Industries

    Top Recruiting Agencies for Travel Planner

    Check out some top recruiting agencies available for a travel planner. 

    • Cox and Kings
    • Thomas Cook
    • MakeMyTrip
    • Travelguru
    • Club Mahindra Holidays
    • Expedia
    • Yatra
    • SOTC
    • Kesari Tours
    • Goibibo
    • Travelite

    Employment Sector/Industry for Travel Planner

    Skills needed to be Travel Planner

    In order to become a successful Travel Planner, candidates are required to posses some basic skills. The candidates should have an interest in communicating, meeting new people, travelling, and so much more. Here is a list of the skills required to be an outstanding travel planner:

    Excellent Communication Skills

    Multilingual Skills

    Highly Organized 

    Interpersonal Skills

    Quick Thinker

    Customer Support

    Scheduling

    Sales

    Negotiation Skills 

    Information about Field 

    Money Handling

    Time Management 

    Good Listening Skills  

    Attention to Detail

    Planning to choose Travel Planner as your career?

    Pay Scale/Salary of Travel Planner

    The average salary of a fresher in this profile is around 21k to 22 k per month. The average salary offered to a travel planner will totally depend on the location, experience and skills of the candidate. Any experience candidate in travelling sector will surely get more salary than a fresher. They can check the table provided below to know the average salary of starting level, mid-level and senior-level of a travel planner. 

    Profile

    Starting Salary per annum (in INR)

    Mid Level Salary per annum (in INR)

    Senior Level Salary per annum (INR)

    Travel Planner

    2,53,000

    4,17,000

    7,06,000

     

    Fees to Become a Travel Planner 

    The aspirants who wish to become a Travel Planner and want to know the fees for Travel Planner can check the details mentioned below. 

    • The average fee of pursuing the bachelor courses in India to become a Travel Planner ranges from INR 30,000 to INR 2,00,000.
    • The certification and diploma courses in India to become a Travel Planner are from 20,000 INR to 1,00,000 INR. 

     

    Internships & Certificates for a Travel Planner 

    Candidates looking to make a career as a travel planner and pursuing some internship or certification can opt for multiple options. Students can choose the online course from various program of certification programs from IGNOU. Students can also choose to learn the skills with an internship at a travel company. Here is the list of some Travel Planner certifications. 

    • Certificate in Tourism Studies 
    • Tourism and Hospitality Management Certificate
    • Professional Certificate in Tourism and Travel Agency Management
    • Introduction to the Travel & Tourism Industry

     

    Books & Study Material to Become Travel Planner

    A travel planner should be experienced enough to offer good recommendations and deals to the clients. He should be able to plan a trip that matches the expectations of that client. Apart from this, he must make sure that the budget of the trip does not exceed the limit decided by clients. There are many other things such as time management, good communication skills and negotiation skills which are required for being a good travel planner. He can develop his skills by reading books related to travel and tour planning. Some recommendations for travel manager are provided below. 

    • Start Your Own Travel Business: Cruises, Adventure Travel, Tours, Senior Travel by Entrepreneur Press
    • Explore India by The Unscripted Life
    • My Travel Journal by The Unscripted Life
    • The Wordless Travel Book by Jonathan Meader
    • How to Be Your Own Travel Agent:  A Practical Guide to Vacation-Planning for the Independent Traveler by Nina Thomas
    • Drowned Under by Wendall Thomas
    • The Easy Way Out by Stephen McCauley

    Pros of becoming a Travel Planner

    • Travel planner doest require any particular degree to start his career.
    • Travel planning provides an option of part-time earning for the students.
    • A career as a travel planner is full of adventures and excitement.
    • Three are many opportunities available for a travel planner. He can choose his option according to his interest and expertise.

    Cons of becoming a Travel Planner

    • Travel Planners has to take care of all major and minor thing which are covered in the plan offered to the client.
    • Sometimes travel planner has to suffer a loss if he misses any promise made to the client.
    • They have to visit the hotel and other destinations to check the quality of service which will be offered to the client.
    • Travel planners have to deal with different kinds of requirements and problems while planning a tour/ trip for a client.

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