A job in this industry can be highly exciting and pays well too

In India, the travel industry hopes to create 46 million job opportunities by 2025 therefore India offers a bright future and unlimited career opportunities for those who want to make a career in in the Travel & Toursim sector. We are one of the very few countries that has all geographical features viz: Sea, Forests, Desert, Mountains and Snow available.

In India, the travel industry generated USD 240 billions or 9.2% of India’s GDP and supported 4.5 crore jobs. The travel and tourism industry, along with the related sectors contributing to it, is expected to grow in leaps and bounds in the coming years

The World Travel and Tourism Council calculated that tourism generated ₹16.91 lakh crore (US$240 billion) or 9.2% of India‘s GDP in 2018 and supported 42.673 million jobs, 8.1% of its total employment. 

The sector is predicted to grow at an annual rate of 6.9% to ₹32.05 lakh crore (US$460 billion) by 2028 (9.9% of GDP). In October 2015, India’s medical tourism sector was estimated to be worth US$3 billion, and it is projected to grow to US$7–8 billion by 2020

What are the career options in travel and tourism ?

There are endless career opportunities in the fast growing industry of travel. The opportunities can be broadly found across 5 major areas.

1) Travel Agency / Tour Operator

2) Airlines

3) Hotels

4) Cruise Lines

5) Event Management

The key job function areas with travel agents and tour operators include

• Operations / Reservations
• Product / Contracting
• Sales / Business Development
• Marketing / PR
• Ticketing
• Tours / Holidays
• Domestic / Inbound / Outbound
• Events & MICE
• Admin / HR
• Visa
• Forex
• Accounts

Mumbai, Delhi, Gurgaon, NOIDA (NCR region), Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Kolkata, Pune, Chandigarh and Hyderabad offer the maximum scope for job opportunities, however there are opportunities also available in cities like Guwahati, Kochi, Ludhiana, Surat, etc.

With airports coming across many tier 2 and tier 3 cities and domestic tourism becoming more accessible, travel vacancies are available in these cities.

Travel and tourism is the largest earner of foreign exchange world-wide and employs millions of people directly or indirectly through associated service industries

This industry includes everything from the government tourism departments and major multinational companies to the small scale private travel agents

While working in this industry, one provides services to people who are traveling for business or holiday or both, thus catering to tour packages, pilgrim travel, adventure travel or casual sightseeing

Important features of the travel and tourism industry:

At almost every point of work in this field, employees need to interact personally with the customers and understand their needs while making them comfortable, so as to be able to provide the best service in terms of travel options and arrangements

Perks and payment:

Salary is pretty good in the travel and tourism industry. Moreover, you get added perks such as free travel or reduced rates for you and your family. Salaries are higher in foreign based airlines or travel agencies. Peak seasons might bring added bonuses and commission.

Courses in travel and tourism:

Experience is the most important factor in this field. However, there are many colleges, universities and private institutes that offer Bachelor’s or Master’s degrees, diplomas, certificates or distance learning courses in various sectors of travel and tourism such as management in tourism, travel or hotels, tour operation or airline management, destination management, airline ticketing, travel administration etc.

• You can join an undergraduate course right after completing class 12
• The Ministry of Tourism, Govt. of India approved post-graduation degree in this field is a two-year full time programme which gets you an MTA degree, a Master of Tourism Administration. Certain universities such as the Indian Institution of Tourism and Travel offer this degree
• A post graduate degree can be helpful in getting into Positions as managers or in administration need a post graduate degree
• Short term training programs or internships are offered by many travel agencies. Most candidates get the chance to be absorbed with their training company
• You can also opt for vocational courses

Required Skill sets

Keeping in view the expected boom, the travel and tourism industry needs to focus on developing an efficient infrastructure and increase the intake of skilled personnel.

“Skills required could include knowledge of Computer reservation systems (CRS- Amadeus, Galileo, Sabre & Abacus) , Air fares and ticketing skills, Language skills, Selling skills, experience of handling money & foreign currencies, Customer service, Travel agency management and  travel & tourism geography knowledge.

• Anyone working in the travel and tourism industry needs to ideally be armed with knowledge of the global culture and all aspects of travel business
• He/she also needs to be completely aware of how to ensure customer satisfaction, while managing a large volume of business
• A strong knowledge in history, geography, art and architecture of India are preferred
• Employees in this industry need to be skilled, confident, well-groomed, should be able to handle people very well, and possess good interpersonal skills
• It is preferable that employees know at least one foreign language apart from English
• A diploma in public relations or advertising would prove to be helpful in building a career
• Employees must be ready to work long or odd hours
• Employees must be completely aware and up-to-date on all the rules and regulations concerning ticket booking or reservation, passports, visas, cargo and even fines where applicable, so that they can assist in getting paperwork and documentation done

Login or register on www.indiatraveljobs.com for exciting opportunities in the Travel & Tourism industry

Promotion and employment aspects are bright in this field as of now because not many skilled employees are available. One can even plan to start their own business or start-up in travel and tourism by taking on additional employees and partners.