How much money does a travel agency make

Usually the people asking are either those who are interested in becoming a travel agent or it’s coming from those who find out I work in the travel how much money does a travel agency make and they can’t believe travel agencies are even still around! Um, they are, and they’re the new darlings of the time-starved, information-overloaded travelers of today! I’ll go more in-depth in just a second, but here’s the basic step-by-step of how most travel tavel make money:. Now, if you’re looking for how travel agents make money that are employees of an agency, that falls agehcy into the territory of travel agent salaries. You’re at the right site, just the wrong article. To give you tavel answer on how travel agents make money, it’s important to know a little history. I promise to keep it short—it’s actually pretty fascinating how the industry has changed over the years. In the good ‘ol days, a large portion of travel agency income came from airline commissions. Since tickets were expensive, in demand, and could only be ticketed by trwvel or the airlines, they were the bread and butter of any agency. What about commissions from tours, hotels, cruise lines? Those wgency just icing on the cake. They were travel agents in every sense of the word because they were agents of travel vendors. Their revenue came from the commissions earned from selling travel products.

Commissions

Travel agencies provide customers with expertise and guidance when booking a trip of any kind. Agencies can be small, independent operations or large, nationwide chains responsible for packaging trips to millions of Americans. In return for their services, travel agencies receive commissions from suppliers who typically make payment after the trip has concluded successfully. Independent hotels and other accommodation suppliers each have individual deals or contracts with travel companies and agencies. These deals can depend on company policy or on the power of a given agency to deliver customers. In the case of hotel chains, the rate of commission is typically established for all agencies and travel companies who can then choose to sign on or not if the deal is sufficiently profitable for them. The going rate is in the 10 to 15 percent range. This amount is deducted from the supplier’s bottom line after payment is received.

Tours & Extras

Travel agencies provide customers with expertise and guidance when booking a trip of any kind. Agencies can be small, independent operations or large, nationwide chains responsible for packaging trips how much money does a travel agency make millions of Americans. In return for their services, travel agencies receive commissions from suppliers who typically make payment after the trip has concluded successfully.

Independent hotels and other accommodation suppliers each have individual deals or contracts with travel companies and agencies. These deals can depend on company policy or on the power of a given agency to deliver customers. In the case of hotel chains, the rate agencj commission is typically established for all agencies and travel companies who can then choose to sign on or not if the deal is sufficiently profitable for.

The going rate is in the 10 to 15 percent range. This amount is deducted from the supplier’s bottom line after payment is received. It is then sent to the mucch in a monthly statement after the traveler has returned from her trip. Local tours, rental cars and transfers are another profitable part of the travel agent’s portfolio.

Since the sgency of tour operators and transfer companies are small businesses located in a single region, they are more willing to deal with successful agencies who can send them big numbers of tourists. Rental-car companies, on the other hand, can be major players who set the commission how much money does a travel agency make for all agencies across the board. If a particular agency has a preferred rental-car company however, the rate may be more geared toward agency profit than the.

The standard rate is around 5 percent but may rise higher depending on the specialty of the agency and any partnerships which may develop. Airline tickets are the least profitable trabel of the trip for a travel agent. Agents are given a set rate of commission by the airline at the start aa each year.

This rate is typically low and without room for negotiation. Since the majority of travel requires some type of flight to be possible, the airlines are in a position of power and they use that power to keep as much of the profit as possible. Although the cost of the flight can fluctuate and may make up a large chunk of the overall trip cost, it does not bring in high profits for the travel agency.

Travel insurance is one of the most profitable items on the travel agent’s menu. It is relatively low-cost and low-risk but comes with a premium price tag for the traveler.

Since travel insurance has nothing to do with the trip itself, but is more of an add-on, agencies typically reward agents for selling clients up to insurance coverage, and the commission paid is higher than that for hotels or other travel necessities. Travel insurance is also the one item on the trip itinerary that can and will be bargained down should you do some haggling to bring the overall cost of a trip. Large agencies or chains may develop marketing deals with suppliers who wish to gain exposure to the United States market through brochures, TV and radio ads, trade shows and other advertising avenues.

In exchange for a preferred placement, the promotion of a product line such as a group of Caribbean resorts, or a joint ad, the agency or chain may receive a one-time payment as the result of a marketing plan.

While these funds are meant to cover the expense of the ads and peripherals, they also amount to a profit for the agency. Robert Morello has an extensive travel, marketing and business background.

Morello is a professional writer and adjunct professor of travel and tourism. Skip to main content. Hotels Independent hotels and noney accommodation suppliers each have individual deals or contracts with travel companies and agencies.

Flights Airline tickets are the least profitable part of the trip for a travel agent. Insurance Travel insurance is one of the most profitable items on the travel agent’s menu.

Partnership Marketing Large agencies or chains may develop marketing deals with suppliers who wish to gain exposure to the United States market through brochures, TV and radio ads, trade shows and other advertising avenues.

About the Author Robert Morello has an extensive travel, marketing and business background. Mucj 17 January Morello, Robert. Small Business — Chron. Note: Depending on which text editor you’re pasting into, you might have to add the italics to the site .

How do travel agents make money?

Tours & Extras

It was published 6 years ago, which is about 60 years in internet time. Thus, it was in need of an update! It’s now updated to reflect travel agent salaries. If you’re here, it’s probably not your first time around the Google block. So you know that there are many answers to what you possibly thought was going to be a simple question. There is a whoooole lot to consider when looking at how much travel agents make. There are also major factors such as type of agency or company, job title, niche, experience and whether or not an agent is an employee or independent. We’re also wary of those job salary websites offering travel agent salary data—the one thing travel industry outsiders don’t understand? Most leisure travel agents are now aligned with a host agency. Unsure about what a host agency is? We have how much money does a travel agency make great explanation of host agencies here! But even though they make up a majority of the industry, most external sites don’t include hosted agents in their numbers. So it gets even more complicated trying to look at a full picture of travel agent salaries that includes home based agents, leisure agents, storefront owners and employees, and home based agents. There’s not a single answer when someone asks ‘ How much do travel agents make? Once you open the door, you realize just how many possibilities there are. But don’t run away. We do have an answer for you! Well, answersreally. Here we’ll break down how much a travel agent makes into digestible categories:. Your patience will also be rewarded with a salary calculator tool.