Careers guide
Your A-Z Guide to Travel
Find out who does what within the travel industry and get an inside look
at some of the key sectors to consider
Account manager
Increases awareness and sales by representing travel brands to people who sell, write about or work in travel – for example a member of a trade team whose accounts are specific travel agencies.
Advertising
Includes a variety of tasks from creating words and images to digital and tech roles that work to raise a brand’s profile via TV ads, print and digital advertising and social media campaigns.
Associations
From the cruise and escorted touring sectors to travel agents and tourist boards, membership organisations represent different areas of the industry, providing training, support and guidance.
Attractions
Theme parks, museums, heritage buildings and more: working at an attraction in the UK or abroad puts employees at the front line of travel experiences.
Business development manager
Responsible for identifying gaps in the market and developing new commercial opportunities, generating sales leads and managing relationships with suppliers.
Call centres
Selling holidays and taking payments over the phone, as well as helping customers with enquiries, problems and post-booking feedback.
Accommodation
Accommodation types span large‑scale resorts and business‑focused city hotels to rural homestays and holiday rentals – and job roles are equally varied. Whether you like dealing with guests in person or prefer to work for an international hotel chain from afar, the accommodation sector has a wide range of positions available.
They might include working in guest relations for a boutique luxury hotel where it’s all about individual attention for VIP clients, or rising through the ranks to general manager of a large resort, leading a sizeable team to keep things running efficiently behind the scenes. The serviced apartment and holiday letting sector is also growing, so positions in property management are on the up, plus there are varied roles in everything from reservations and operations teams to corporate events and weddings. Entry‑level roles might include guest service agents, activity coordinators and housekeeping attendants on site, or graduate schemes (think accounting, marketing and more) in the head office. New roles are emerging all the time, too – increased use of AI means there’s greater need for web developers, business analysts and database administrators.
The hospitality industry – which encompasses accommodation, restaurants, entertainment and nightlife – was named the third‑biggest employer in the UK in 2023, so there’s plenty of opportunity both at home and abroad.
Campsites and caravan parks
Manage and maintain the site and facilities, assisting with bookings and leading activities.
Car hire
Provide vehicles for hire. Roles range from sales and administration to accounting, purchasing, customer support and vehicle servicing.
Coach operators
Coach holidays range from breaks in the UK and Ireland to road trips in France, Spain, Italy and beyond – with roles including drivers and guides on the road, along with route planners, operations managers, sales teams and marketing staff at head office.
Content creator
Produce a range of digital content, from videos and photos to posting blogs. Also manage affiliate partnerships to inspire an audience and encourage bookings. These can be posted on social media or used as part of an in-house campaign.
Data manager
Whether analysing booking data to provide insights that help a company perform better, or managing the safety of confidential client information, there are myriad roles in data management for travel brands.
E-commerce
Like online shopping sites, many travel companies now rely on being able to accept web payments, which requires a combination of skills across web design, communications, tech and finance.
Aviation
According to the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport, some 200,000 people in the UK currently work for airports or airlines. Airlines operate and sell flights that get travellers where they need to be, and are responsible for maintaining a safe fleet, as well as passenger comfort.
Working for an airline could be ground-based, with roles including sales, marketing, social media and airport check-in, alongside manufacturing, engineering, training and maintenance teams.
Meanwhile, flight crews take to the skies to keep passengers safe and happy. Consider applying to become cabin crew if customer service is one of your strengths – seek out recruitment drives in your local area or set up alerts on airline job boards to find opportunities. If you’re interested in actually flying the aircraft, many airlines run pilot training programmes, which usually take 18-24 months to complete.
However, if you prefer to keep your feet on the ground, consider a career within an airport. Roles range from baggage handlers and ground crew (responsible for checking aircraft while on the ground) to security, special assistance and air traffic control.
Extras
Travellers need a range of add-ons to basic hotel or flight bookings, which can offer great job opportunities, from working in an airport VIP lounge to providing travel insurance or car hire.
Events
From conferences and travel exhibitions in the UK to corporate events abroad, there are wide-ranging roles in arranging and delivering small-scale and larger travel events to ensure they run smoothly.
Ferries
Ferry companies operate in the UK and abroad to transport people and cargo. On board, bridge staff, engineers and stewards look after safety and operations, while land-based staff keep the business shipshape.
Finance and accounting
Travel companies have finance teams, including qualified accountants, that manage cashflow staff salaries, audits, taxes and more.
Foreign exchange
Assist travellers by dealing in foreign currency and prepaid cards for transactions abroad.
Global distribution systems
This central reservation system acts as a go-between for suppliers and buyers – for example, a travel agent searching for available flight seats in real time. Jobs can be customer-facing or technology-focused.
Business Travel
Overseas travel for meetings, events and corporate trips has bounced back in a big way following the pandemic. As with any other kind of travel, there’s a whole array of people working around the clock to ensure business travellers have a seamless experience.
Business travel consultants are travel agents that arrange trips for business people and executives, researching the best places to stay and booking optimal flight times (and often premium, business or first-class air cabins) to suit their clients’ needs. They can be in-house or external, and may have additional skills such as speaking another language to negotiate deals with foreign markets or expertise in a certain industry sector, such as entertainment or sports.
The ‘bleisure’ market is also on the rise – meaning when business travellers choose to add on a few extra days of leisure travel to explore the destination as a tourist, perhaps bringing their family and friends along too. Business travel consultants could find themselves planning an itinerary that combines business meetings with free time, buying tickets to attractions and sourcing family-friendly yet business-appropriate hotels.
Health and safety
Ensure travel companies comply with safety regulations, from building inspections to risk analysis, while providing regular training and education.
Human resources
Help travel companies recruit new employees and manage relationships between staff, as well as being responsible for time off, company perks, training and development in a range of people-focused roles.
Insurance
Risk assessors, product developers, client services and call centre workers all keep travellers properly insured – they are the first port of call if things go wrong.
Instructor
Many big hotels and attractions hire on-site instructors for adventure activities like kayaking, as well as gentler pursuits such as painting, yoga and cookery.
Interpreter
Provides valuable translation services for businesses working in multiple countries.
IT
An integral part of any business, IT professionals do everything from maintaining essential equipment and troubleshooting software to developing more efficient systems that keep the travel industry ticking.
Cruise
The cruise sector is big business within travel, supporting thousands of jobs in British ports and UK cruise company offices, as well as an even wider network of crew members working on river, ocean and expedition ships around the world.
Cruise ships can carry as few as a couple of dozen passengers up to more than 7,000. Roles range from bridge staff, engineers, emergency medical staff and destination experts such as scientists and historians, through to more traditional resort-like roles – accommodation managers, housekeepers, entertainers, spa staff, chefs, waiters, sommeliers, reservations teams, personal trainers and more.
Crews enjoy a a unique lifestyle, with crew decks featuring gyms, canteens, bars, doctor’s offices, sports facilities and staff cabins. They are away from home for months at a time, but may get time to explore the ports of call and have long gaps between stints on board to return home. Where cruise ships call, there are plenty of landbased jobs. A harbour master decides where ships should berth and sail within their bounds; pilot boats escort ships to the dock; and safety and security officers work in the terminal buildings. There are varied roles in the UK offices of cruise lines too, from reservations and trade teams to PR, marketing and operations – helping to support the 2.2 million people in the UK and Ireland who took a cruise holiday in 2023.
Law
Lawyers and legal advisors work with travel companies to ensure they comply with legislation. They can be based in-house or within a law firm.
Marketing
Increases brand awareness and sets the tone for advertising that can drive more customer enquiries. There are roles across the creative and commercial sides.
Media
Journalists report on key travel developments and hold the industry to account. They might work in print media, TV, radio or online, alongside production, advertising and design teams.
MICE
Standing for meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions, the MICE sector is a lucrative area of the industry that arranges large-scale business events.
Operations
Operations teams manage the day-to-day running of holidays and travel companies, from negotiating contracts with transfer providers and hotels to arranging flights and in-destination activities. They also need creative problem-solving skills to adapt when things change.
Product manager
A product manager creates itineraries and holiday packages for a travel company to sell, using their in-depth destination knowledge and expertise to plan trips that will appeal to a range of travellers.
Digital Technology
From sales software to marketing emails, everyone uses digital technology to reach customers and manage bookings – so there’s a huge variety of jobs in creating, maintaining and developing tech solutions.
Established tech includes e-commerce, which powers how most customers make their bookings – from swiping and searching on mobiles to receiving booking confirmations. Web developers and designers are responsible for creating and maintainingwebsites, while apps are another avenue for IT skills as developers build transport, attraction and hotel mobile interfaces.
Data analytics and security are also crucial to the success of travel businesses.Tasks include collecting and assessing data, such as business insights around the most searched-for travel destinations, to help travel companies improve their services and marketing.
There are also plenty of opportunities for innovation and AI-powered tech. Roles here might focus on using new technology to increase revenue, solve problems and enhance the customer experience; while virtual reality is growing as the metaverse is being used to entice visitors to book real-life travel experiences. AI is already in use by many online travel agents, hotel companies, airlines and more to manage bookings, plan trips and answer customer questions – but the true range of itsapplications is only just beginning.
Public relations
Also known as PRs, they are employed by travel brands or agencies to communicate news and updates to media organisations. They also come up with content ideas that will help a company or destination stand out and need good people and writing skills.
Purchasing
Research and negotiate with travel suppliers such as transport and accommodation providers to help companies get the best deals.
Rep
Based in holiday resorts and destinations, reps help customers on the ground with queries, transfers and organising day trips. This can be a great entry-level role to learn about the industry.
Reservations
Promote brands through regular posts, keeping on top of the latest trends and fulfilling the company’s marketing and communications plan, while connecting with customers online.
Social media manager
Reservations teams recommend products direct to customers or liaise with travel agents to check availability and make bookings on behalf of their clients, usually within an in-house department of a tour operator, cruise line, hotel or airline.
Spa and wellbeing manager
Many hotels, resorts and cruise ships feature spas, gyms and other health-conscious activities. Spa and wellbeing managers decide on the treatments offered, manage rotas for therapists and personal trainers, plus devise fitness class schedules.
Selling Travel
Those who sell travel can range from travel agents working in a shop or based from their homes to those fulfilling bookings on the phone or digitally for online travel firms.
Some travel agents prefer the terms ‘travel advisor’ or ‘consultant’ to reflect their valuable knowledge and expertise. They are an essential link between the traveller, UK-based tour operators or wholesalers, and the wealth of suppliers around the world. They can recommend the best flights, hotels, tours, packages and destinations for a client’s needs and budget.
They manage the booking from start to finish, problem-solve if issues arise and must combine customer service skills, business acumen and industry expertise. Travel agents might earn a salary or they can set themselves up as a small business,
earning their income through commission paid by the supplier – such as a hotel or
tour operator – when a booking is made.
Some specialise in certain types of travel, such as cruise, luxury travel or honeymoons, while others might be experts in a particular destination. To increase their knowledge of the destinations and hotels they sell, travel advisors regularly take part in training, network with key suppliers and occasionally go on familiarisation trips to key destinations.
There are also plenty of in-house roles working for a tour operator or cruise line, selling holidays direct to consumers and hitting the company’s sales targets, while also making sure travellers get to have the holiday they’ve been dreaming of.
Summer camps
Targeted at kids and teenagers, these camps in the US and elsewhere are a chance to lead outdoor activities and show teamworking skills.
Sustainability
This expanding sector works towards reducing the environmental impact of global travel, assessing the effects of tourism on both people and the planet. That includes finding practical ways to cut carbon emissions and ensuring companies are transparent about their sustainability strategies.
SEO
This expanding sector works towards reducing the environmental impact of global travel, assessing the effects of tourism on both people and the planet. That includes finding practical ways to cut carbon emissions and ensuring companies are transparent about their sustainability strategies.
SEO
Standing for ‘search engine optimisation’, having a good SEO strategy means a brand will appear at the top of the list of search results when customers look for a holiday.
Software developer
Software developers are required to build bespoke IT systems and apps so businesses can seamlessly make sales – and to ensure each and every customer purchase can be processed and managed efficiently behind the scenes.
Ticket provider
Either third-party or in-house, ticket providers sell tickets for everything from attractions and historic houses to trains and air travel, offering roles in sales, logistics and technology.
Tour Operators
A tour operator puts together package holidays for customers, linking the flights, hotel and in-destination activities together in one booking. They might specialise in a certain destination or region, such as the US, Australia or Caribbean; or a type of travel, such as family holidays, ski trips or travel by rail.
The main difference between a tour operator and a travel agent is that a tour operator will sell only holidays they have created themselves, whereas a travel agent can sell packages from a range of different travel suppliers.
Tour operators are involved from the initial enquiry through to post-trip support, organising flights, transfers, accommodation and excursions. Whether they’re selling pre-packaged or bespoke trips, tour operators usually have contracts with a selection of suppliers on the ground, so their product team can design a getaway using their preferred partners in the destination.
These are complex businesses with both customer-facing and back-office roles, for example, producing brochures, researching destinations or new tours or hotels, making sales direct to customers or via travel agents, working with suppliers on the ground to check availability at different times of year and collecting and evaluating travellers’ feedback.
Tour guide
Experts based in a certain destination who lead groups of travellers, sharing their knowledge and bringing the area to life.
Tourist boards
These organisations represent and promote all a destination has to offer, from towns or regions to entire countries, combining roles in governmental affairs, management, communications and trade representation.
Training and development
Help employees to attain professional qualifications, as well as ensuring staff are compliant with ever changing regulations in the industry.
Transfers
Arrange transport between airports, cruise ports, train stations and more to a customer’s accommodation or cruise ship.
Web developer
This crucial position within the technology team covers everything from designing websites that lead customers all the way from an initial enquiry to the final stages of booking and checking in.
Yield and revenue management
Monitor costs, prices and expenses – often working across different currencies and with multiple companies – while ensuring suppliers and workers in tourism-dependent countries are fairly paid.
Tourism in the UK
The travel industry in the UK isn’t just about far-flung destinations: it also means attracting overseas travellers to come here and spend their money supporting British businesses and destinations, known as inbound tourism. VisitBritain forecasts 38.7 million visits for 2024, bringing in £32.5 billion in revenue from foreign tourists, so it’s big business.
The inbound tourism industry leans heavily on marketing to showcase all that’s unique about the UK to an international audience. There are plenty of roles, including positions at inbound tour operators – who might be planning tours for foreign audiences, booking tour guides who can speak other languages, or negotiating contracts with British hotels and attractions – as well as destination management organisations, event coordinators and attractions.
Other organisations to consider include VisitBritain, VisitEngland, VisitScotland, Visit Wales and Discover Northern Ireland, plus there are many tourist boards in cities, counties and regions across the UK.