I am a sales manager of a health foods company. I am looking for a career change. I am thinking of becoming a travel agent. I enjoy travelling but I have no experience as a travel agent. What kind of personality is best suited for people who are travel agents? Is there a rule of thumb to this? Also, what kind of salary do travel agents make? Do ta's work on commission or salary? What are the pros and cons of the job. I would appreciate any help, especially from fodorites who are travel agents. Thanks in advance.

I hate to be a "wet blanket" but here in California travel agents are "dime a dozen" In fact several of my friends in the industry in SF area have been laid off or hours cut....One has switched over to the "hospitality" field, looking for large corporations or winery jobs..
the other specializes in the Cruise industry--
My comments are mainly concerning western US..
Hope this helps some...

The above post is right on target.
Unless you can get into a niche high end travel business, you'll likely work hard to make $30,000 per year.
Commissions have been cut back drastically in the past 10 years.
Even more importantly, the internet has undercut the middle men of the travel business--travel agents. People can now educate themselves and book for themselves, and everyone saves money that way, including the airlines, car rental companies and hotels.

Corporate travel agents/meeting planning positions are very difficult to break into.

It takes years of starving to death to build up enough clientele to get into these positions.

I have an associates degree in travel and tourism, but didn't take the required exam to be a travel agent. I'm sort of glad I didn't, because being a travel agent is a low-pay, high-stress job.

Unless you work for an agency that books cruises exclusively you're not going to make much money at all, because airlines and hotels (airlines especially though) have devoted every ounce of their being to screwing agents out of their commission, apparently out of sheer hatred for the travel profession. Meaning, you'll have to kiss an obscene amount of butt and deal with relentless negative stereotyping, all for pennies, and in the end some of the people I went to college with tell me they'd probably feel more self-respect if their job consisted of wearing a hot dog costume, handing out coupons than they do as a travel agent.

If you decide to earn a travel degree, put it to use at a resort, a winery, on a cruise ship, or anything else besides travel agency work. It's a dying profession, because the industries it serves are killing it.

You might enjoy working as a Sales Manager for a cruise line, hotel, or attraction.

Sales Managers handle group bookings. It is a lot of fun and not near as stressful as other sales positions.

Well, I certainly have a different perspective here...
Good "senior" corporate agents in Texas working for a "mega" agency can expect to earn a salary of about 35-40k plus all standard corporate benefits.
You do not need a "certification" to be an agent. I know quite a few women who make a nice living arranging and accompanying tours to various destinations. One friend arranges 12 groups of 30 a year.
She's like a interior designer type. Very creative. There will always be a need for specialized travel agents and there will always be people who do not care to do the work/research.
But with the internet and online booking tools for corporations there is very little need for mediocre agents.
I love this industry and see many people make as much as a teacher makes... which is not a lot. But, most people who love this job love it because it is a passion.
It helps if you are a "Glass half full" type, that's for sure.

I had an acquaintance who was a travel agent and had to give it up becasue she and her husband broke up and she needed to be self-supporting. (She said after working 10+ years for a major travel company the salary was minimal - didn't specify exactly - but said she would have been better off as a senior administrative assistant - so I assume she was making no more than about $35 or so.) I think unless you make some sort of specialty career the income is really in the "hobby job" range.

partyon: I have a suggestion- you could do what we all do (us travel loving fools)- hold down a day job and be a travel agent by proxy for people in need on fodors.com? If the pay is good on the day job, it can be quite satisfying. Actually, I came very close to being a travel agent in the 70s when things were differnet in the travel industry. But if you end up not doing it, it does help to be altruistic about it and help poeple out like this, and you'll reap the benefits when you need help on this forum and someone helps you out. Just a thought, just in case it doesn't work out for you....