Perhaps you were planning to enter the travel trade and then travel for FREE and make a few bucks along the way. Well you could do that however most host agencies worth their salt are looking for new IC prospects intent on building a solid business.
passage around the world by working on cruise ships. I am well aware of how a young person can make it in this industry and even more so today making use of all things online, digital, mobile and more.
If you come into the trade as what I call a “dabbler” your career might be short lived. Your host agency and the preferred suppliers that support your host agency want sales. If you are not in it to win it – best to look elsewhere for your second career.
If your age is let’s say in the 18 to 25 age group then this is the career for you IF you have an adventurous mindset and a deep seated dream to see the world AND you want to make money. The same before- youstart warnings apply to you too. Best you go travelling first, build your world knowledge and then focus on gaining the additional knowledge you need to build a long term and profitable IC career. If you have already travelled and you travelled to places you know very well, then you are ahead of the game. Your favourite destination could represent your first niche market.
Not only that, a little knowledge is a dangerous thing as the saying goes. Selling travel without the right training and knowledge can cause the death of a client. They can be held in jails, they can be termed traitors for emigrating and their family history and political stance could actually have them incarcerated for years and even tortured. IF you are not aware of certain international travel requirements you are a danger to your clientele. Selling travel then is not something to treat lightly. It is a serious multi-trillion dollar industry and on track to being the #1 industry in the world. It already employs more people than any other global industry. It is in many cases the sole industry for some countries. There is a delicate balance going on in the world and if you participate in sending people around it, you had better be well informed, well trained and have a work ethic and attention to detail aptitude that is nothing short of 100%. Your host agency will demand this too.
Retirees and Travel Careers For those who have decided that selling travel would be an excellent thing to do in retirement, please think again. It is hard work. It is engaging work. It can put all your talents to work. You can call on all your old contacts. A travel trade career later in life can be extremely exciting and rewarding – however, it requires a business mindset not a retired mindset. You make one mistake and a client is injured along the way, or what you sold was not what they thought they were buying and you could, if they send a Boston lawyer your way, lose your house and all your retirement savings! The law is never say “trust me…” – or utter a “Sure!” when you really do not know.
A Great Career for Young People I personally entered the travel trade at age 16 but then I knew what I wanted to do and had already been hitchhiking my native country from age 13. In 1967 I worked my Page 8