Travel Agent job description: duties, skills and qualifications.

Core duties

8

O*NET task statements

Preparation

Job Zone 3 of 5

medium preparation

Typical entry education

High school diploma or equivalent

BLS 2025–35

Median pay

$50,160

BLS May 2025

1. Collect payment for transportation and accommodations from customer. importance 4.6 of 5
2. Plan, describe, arrange, and sell itinerary tour packages and promotional travel incentives offered by various travel carriers. importance 4.6 of 5
3. Converse with customer to determine destination, mode of transportation, travel dates, financial considerations, and accommodations required. importance 4.6 of 5
4. Compute cost of travel and accommodations, using calculator, computer, carrier tariff books, and hotel rate books, or quote package tour's costs. importance 4.6 of 5
5. Record and maintain information on clients, vendors, and travel packages. importance 4.5 of 5
6. Book transportation and hotel reservations, using computer or telephone. importance 4.4 of 5
7. Print or request transportation carrier tickets, using computer printer system or system link to travel carrier. importance 4.3 of 5
8. Provide customer with brochures and publications containing travel information, such as local customs, points of interest, or foreign country regulations. importance 4.0 of 5

Work activities O*NET rates most important here: Working with Computers, Getting Information, Communicating with People Outside the Organization, Performing for or Working Directly with the Public and Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships.

Knowledge areas: Customer and Personal Service, English Language, Sales and Marketing, Geography and Computers and Electronics.

Software O*NET lists for this occupation: Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Office software, Microsoft Outlook, Amadeus CRS, Sabre Central Command, Intuit QuickBooks. These are examples O*NET records for the job, not a list of tools every employer uses or a checklist of what you must know.

• Education: BLS lists a high school diploma or equivalent as the typical entry-level education.
• Experience: BLS lists no work experience in a related occupation as typical to enter.
• Training on the job: BLS lists moderate-term on-the-job training as typical once hired.
• Preparation: O*NET places the job in Job Zone 3 of 5 (medium preparation). Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations.
• Licenses and certifications: not listed here. A license is a legal requirement set by a state; a certification is a credential from a private or professional body. Rules vary by state and employer, and a missing entry on this page does not mean none is required: check with your state's licensing board and see how to become a travel agent.

The most common answer among travel agents surveyed by O*NET is an associate's degree (37%).

Job title: Travel Agent
[Company] · [City, State] · [Full-time or part-time] · [Pay range, where your state requires one]

About the role
[Company] is hiring a Travel Agent to plan and sell transportation and accommodations for customers.
[One sentence on your team and why this role matters.]

What you will 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.
- 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.

What we are looking for
- [Education: BLS lists a high school diploma or equivalent as typical for this occupation; set the level this role truly needs]
- [Experience: BLS lists no related work experience as typical to enter; set what this role needs]
- Strength in service orientation, active listening and reading comprehension
- Working knowledge of Customer and Personal Service and English Language
- [Software your team uses, e.g. Microsoft Excel or Microsoft Office software]
- [Any license or certification your state or company requires]

[Schedule, benefits and how to apply]

Illustrative: every name, employer, school, date and number in these samples is fictional or a bracketed placeholder. Replace each bracket with your own true details; never copy a result you did not achieve.

Not a real job posting. This template is TryHired's illustration built from government occupational data. It is not an opening at any employer, and no employer wrote it.

The median annual wage was $50,160 in May 2025. The median hourly wage was $24.11. BLS estimates about 55,110 jobs in this occupation in the U.S.

BLS projects employment of travel agents to grow 0.2% from 2025 to 2035, with about 5,900 openings a year over that period, including openings to replace workers who leave.

See the full travel agent salary breakdown by percentile, state and metro.

• Read a real travel agent posting next to the core duties above. Duties it repeats, such as “Collect payment for transportation and accommodations from customer”, tell you what that employer weighs most; anything it adds is specific to that team.
• Tailor your resume to the posting, not to this page: describe only travel agent work you have actually done, with your own results.
• Prepare a story for each of the top-rated skills (service orientation and active listening); travel agent interview questions turns them into practice questions.