Why Travel and Tourism as a Career?

“The most beautiful thing in the world is, of course, the world itself.” Quite a powerful statement that describes the importance of exploring the world in one’s life. Everyone loves to travel, regardless of age, gender, nationality; This even includes other living beings such as birds and animals. Travel and tourism have been a part of this world since the beginning of time, although in different names, types and purposes. And has been evolving ever since. With the tourism industry now being the world’s largest civilian industry, a career in travel and tourism can be a life-changing experience.

 

The Travel and Tourism Industry

The travel & tourism industry is basically a group of various industries that work together to yield one specific function: cater to the needs of travellers and tourists. Travel deals with the journey, usually a one-way trip, and tourism usually includes overnight accommodation along with the travel. Since both of these are equally important in serving the purpose, the term ‘travel and tourism’ is often used to describe the industry. 

There are several sectors within the tourism industry that provide unique services. Most commonly, these can be classified as the following - 

• Transportation- Often described as the basic necessity for travel, various means of transportation enables tourism to exist. Without travel, there would be no tourism. These include road travel, air travel, water travel, and even the latest space travel. The road, air and water are usually rental services, railways, aviation, etc. Space travel is a new technological advancement that will make space tourism possible. SpaceX and Virgin Galactic are currently working on this sector.
• Accommodation - This sector is a requirement to complete tourism. Without this, a trip is just a journey. There are several forms of accommodation these days such as hotels, hostels, camps, motels, and even cruises that perform these services. Fairly often, these come with food services as well.
• Food - Food and beverages are the basic necessity for a human being, and as a result, play a pivotal role in the travel and tourism industry. These include restaurants, cafes, bars, clubs, lounges, catering services etc.
• Entertainment - It is important to ensure that a tourist has a wonderful time when they visit a place. As a result, entertainment services are required to do this. These involve tours and tour guides, casinos, shopping, tourism activities, etc. 
• Other industries - These include several other relevant services that are vital for the functioning of the travel & tourism industry. They include the travel agencies, tour organizers, tour operators and planners, financial services, and so on.

Benefits of working in the Travel and Tourism Industry

It is extremely fair and obvious that you know the advantages of something before choosing it. Unlike other industries with a few benefits, the travel and tourism sector has plenty of reasons why you should pursue a career in travel and tourism. Out of the many, a selected few are mentioned as follows - 

 

• Endless Opportunities

Being one of the broadest industries, the travel & tourism sector has its roots in several fields. Be it aviation, food, hotels, sports, adventure, whatever the field you are obsessed with, there is a travel or tourism industry relating to it. With a wide range, you can choose from a plethora of options. Even if you choose a particular sector, there are plenty of positions within itself. For example, if you choose to work for the field of aviation, there are roles like ground staff, ticketing staff, cabin crew, stewards, and so on that, you can choose to pursue depending upon your interests. If you plan to enter this industry, one thing to keep in mind is that the number of employment opportunities in tourism and travel is aplenty. Now you might think that in the era of artificial intelligence, there should actually be a decrease in humans needed in the industry. However, the tourism and travel field do not follow this. Human beings are made of emotions, and well, to make their day and give them the best experience on their vacation, a human touch is absolutely crucial. Robots and machines do an awful job at this.

• Fastest growing Industry

Due to the dynamic nature of the sectors, the travel & tourism industry is developing every day. The spread of tourism into almost every other domain has increased the significance of tourism and travel. As a result, more and more countries have started implementing initiatives and plans to enhance tourism. Apart from this, new ideas and innovations are quite common in this sector. The industry is also greatly affected by technological advancements. These factors again just keep on feeding into this already growing massive industry. A great example would be the online booking apps like uber, Oyo, Airbnb etc. About 10 years back, this didn’t exist, and just in a span of less than a few years, thanks to various innovations, almost every aspect of your trip can be taken care of at your fingertips. 

• Travel the World

Whether it is one’s dream or not, travel and tourism jobs often require you to travel around the world. This means not just while working at a particular job, but also for better opportunities. With the industry being a major one in almost every country, you can find jobs anywhere. Apart from this, a lot of travel or tourism jobs gives you the opportunity to visit several places locally, nationally, or even internationally as a part of the job. This allows you to meet different people, enjoy different cultures, explore different cuisines, and many more. So basically, you are getting paid to travel. Isn’t that something we all desire after all?. Even though not every job position has this benefit, for those who are not required to travel, there are still great discounts to travel. 

• Great Pay Scale and Perks

Jobs in travel and tourism pay handsomely. The exact salary in travel and tourism industry depends on the sector you work at, the job position, experience, the country you work at, as well as a few other factors. Since a lot of countries have a significant part of their economy coming from tourism, the demand for skilled individuals is high, thereby increasing the pay scale. In the US, jobs in this industry easily pay over 20,000 USD a year. Some higher positions can even get over 50,000 USD.

You might ask, “what could be better than a good pay?”. Well, the perks attached with the job definitely make the pay scale seem like a minor factor. Apart from the salary, a career in travel and tourism provide several advantages such as commissions, bonuses, free travel, etc. You even get travel packages and tickets at hugely discounted prices for you and your family members. Sometimes, you may even get free accommodation and food with your trip. Along with these, promotions are extremely common in this domain. As a result, depending on your skills and hard work, you can expect to climb up the ladder fairly fast.

 

• Exciting Work Environment

Unlike regular 9-5 jobs, careers in this industry are often flexible. Since this is a people-oriented field, the profile requires you to be creative. As a result, the work environment is fun and exciting. Quite often, the job will require you to interact with customers. A good example are air hostesses and stewards. They do not have specific working days or holidays. They can choose to take up flight hours as per their convenience. Along with these, due to the large travel and tourism scope, you will not have to be stuck in one job and can choose to pursue and try a career in other domains of the industry as well.

• Transferable Skills

Also known as portable skills, most of the skills you learn through a career in travel and tourism involve key development skills that are necessary for a human being in all aspects of life including other jobs within the industry or even outside. These include soft skills, problem-solving skills, communication skills, and several others. These are priceless life lessons that can help you wherever you go, at any stage of your life. You will also have an in-depth knowledge of the workings of a particular sector that will assist you in the future. As a result, there is a large learning potential involved in this. For example, if you are taking a break from work, and are taking a vacation, you will know the best destinations to visit, the best accommodations to stay at, etc. 

•  Ethical Benefits

The main task of a job in this sector is to make the customers happy. People work hard all their life, saving up money to travel on vacations. As a result, working in this industry, no matter how small the position, lets you feel good about helping them feel the joy and experience of visiting their dream destination and having the best time of their lives. For example, while working as a front desk manager at a hotel, a simple smile and a polite conversation can brighten up the day of a weary traveller. Apart from this, you get a certain sensation of job satisfaction through a career in this industry.

Potential Career Options

Currently, one out of every 10 people in the world is employed in the travel & tourism industry. Be it public sectors such as the department of tourism, or several private sectors, that is how big the amount of travel and tourism career opportunities existing as of now. With a wide array of industries being involved in this particular business and the ever-growing factor, there is no dearth of career options. However, the most common positions of work you can expect are as follows as per the different industries.

 

• Travel agencies:  

• Travel agent
• Travel consultants
• Travel insurance consultant
• Sales reservation agents,
• Visa executives etc. 

• Tourism Department: 

• Tour guides
• Public relations manager
• Immigration consultant
• Front office executive, etc

• Hotels: 

• Front office manager
• Chef
• Lobby Manager, etc

• Road transport: 

• Driver
• Car rental etc 

• Aviation industry: 

• Air hostess/steward
• Ground staff
• Operation manager
• Ticketing staff, etc

• Tour operators: 

• Itinerary Planner
• International travel consultant
• Travel product designer
• Tour manager, etc
  • Entrepreneur
• Freelance Writer or Travel Blogger

 

• Financial services:
• Travel insurance officer
• Travel insurance consultant
• Foreign exchange officer, etc

How to Pursue a Career in Travel and Tourism

The first and foremost step in starting to pursue a career in this field is learning travel and tourism by taking up a course. There are a number of things you can choose from. As a result, you will have to pursue something that could kick start your career in your field of interest. Based on your educational qualifications, you could take up a course right after 12th standard, or even take up a travel and tourism course after graduation. Again, these courses are offered in the form of short term courses such as a diploma, certifications, etc, or long term courses such as a graduate degree and postgraduate degree. Each form and type of courses has its own scope and benefits. Once you obtain a qualification from a reputed travel institute, you will most likely be offered with a job via placement services. They also come with internships with on the job training. As a result, you can earn and study at the same time. 

With more and more countries investing heavily to improve tourism, it has become the biggest focus of the respective governments, starting several initiatives to boost this sector. The travel and tourism industry is a gold mine both for the businesses, as well as for people looking to pursue a career. With the latest advancements in transportation and other technology, travel and tourism are an easily accessible service for anyone in any corner of the world. A career in this booming industry might just be the best decision you ever make.