Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tours.
Tourism can be domestic (within the traveller's own country) or international, and international tourism has both incoming and outgoing implications on a country's balance of payments. The travel and tourism industry in India is currently experiencing unprecedented growth. The industry is one of the largest and most profitable industries in India and contributes significantly to the foreign exchange earned. As per various studies, the industry is expected to create over 45 million jobs in India by 2025.
Students have endless career opportunities in this fast growing industry of travel and tourism. Candidates looking to pursue their career in the industry can choose to work for travel agencies, government tourism departments, tour operations, immigration and customs services, airlines, hotels, and the list continues. Candidates can pursue a degree, diploma, or certificate course in travel and tourism at graduation or post-graduation level. Candidates can also pursue PhD in their chosen subject of travel and tourism to build their career in the field of research. Vacations are one of the best things in the world. You visit new, exotic and beautiful places; you make memories with your vacation companions; you experience different cultures and best of all, you get a break from reality.
While you're experiencing bliss in your temporary home away from home, you can't forget about the people working while you play. After all, your vacation experience depends on someone else's -- rather, a lot of peoples' -- job. Leisure and hospitality contributed to 13.1 million jobs in 2006 and is projected to hold 15 million jobs in 2016, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Jobs in travel and tourism provide workers with an enjoyable atmosphere, flexible hours and opportunities to meet new people.
Plus, most jobs in the industry keep workers on their toes and no day is like the last. Here are 5 great jobs to explore in travel and tourism:
Duties: Remember Tim Curry in "Home Alone 2: Lost in New York"? His character is a perfect example of a hotel concierge who helps deal with any request or problem a guest may have, no matter how strange or impossible it may seem.
Duties: Travel the open waters year round as a cruise ship director, responsible for planning all onboard entertainment and ship and shore activities, acting as master of ceremonies and planning tour itineraries.
Duties: Manage activities in operating such institutions as museums, botanical gardens, arboretums, art galleries, herbariums or zoos. Acquire items for exhibition, authorize the sale or loan of items and authenticate items that come into the institutions.
Duties: What better excuse to live in Las Vegas or Atlantic City than your job is playing with money all day? In resorts and casinos, gaming dealers play various games like blackjack, craps or roulette with patrons. They take bets, determine winners and pay out the winners.
Duties: Think Gary Growbowski in "The Break-Up." Tour and travel guides show individuals and/or groups all the best sights in your city (on foot, bus or boat) from famous buildings to the best museums.
There are many colleges and universities in Abroad and in India, that offer degree, diploma, certificate in various sectors of travel and tourism. Some such sectors include tourism management, tour operation, airline management, airline ticketing, travel administration, etc.
Given below is generic travel and tourism eligibility criteria for Diploma and Certificate courses. It may be noted that the eligibility criteria might vary depending on the policies of the college/ university in which a candidate is applying.
Eligibility Criteria for Diploma Courses: Candidates should clear Class XII from a recognised board with minimum 50% - 60% aggregate marks.
Eligibility Criteria for Certificate Courses: Candidates should clear Class XII from a recognised board with at least 50% - 55% marks
Curriculum of a travel and tourism programme depends on the course a candidate is pursuing – degree, diploma, or certificate
Popular Travel and Tourism Courses | |
| Certificate course in Travel & Tourism | Cruise Line Operations and Management |
| Airfares & Ticketing | Computer Reservation System |
| Bachelor of Tourism Administration | BA (H) Hotel Management, Travel and Tourism |
| BBA (Tourism and Travel Management) | BCom Tourism and Travel Management |
| Executive MBA in Tourism, Hospitality and Aviation Programme | Master of Tourism Administration |
| MBA Tourism and Travel | MBA Tourism and Leisure |
| MBA International Business (Tourism) | MBA Tourism and Cargo Management |
| PG Diploma in Travel and Tourism | MA in Travel and Tourism |
| Master of Philosophy (MPhil) in Tourism | PhD in Travel and Tourism |
While experience is a significant factor to grow in the field of travel and tourism, there are endless job opportunities that candidates can avail in both private and public sectors after pursuing a course in the same. Some of the popular job profiles in travel and tourism are:
• Holiday/ Travel Agent: A travel agent evaluates the requirements of tourists and help them make the best possible travel arrangements. Many hotels and travel groups hire travel agents to sell their tour packages to clients.
• Travel Executive: A travel executive is responsible for managing different aspects of a travel including transportation, flight booking, hotel accommodation, destination information, etc.
• Tourism Manager: A tourism manager promotes tourism in his/her region through different advertising strategies and campaigns. The manager also offers assistance to tourists of different cultures and traditions.
• Travel Officer/ Coordinator: A travel coordinator finds best prices on hotels, flights and rental cars; processes employee travel expenses, sets up corporate discounts with travel vendors, creates itineraries, etc.
• Airlines/ Ground Staff: The ground staff plays a crucial role in areas such as commercial activities, running of airports, airline operations, etc. The job of ground staff is vast and include responsibilities such as inspecting, storing and transporting luggage; and stocking the aircraft with food and beverage items.
• Tourist Guide: A tourist guide helps tourists visiting different tourist places and provides them information on cultural, historical and contemporary heritage of religious and historical sites, museums and other places of interest.
• Transport Officer: A transport officer is typically appointed by a state government or local transport body to carry out activities like maintenance of the vehicle fleet, overseeing vehicle establishment programmes, certifying ground transportation budget etc.
• Travel Counselor/ Consultant: A travel counselor has the responsibility of providing complete guidance on travel to clients. A counselor ensures best travel deals for the clients.
• Tour Operator: A tour operator is a professional who organises tours and manages the travel and stay of tourists. There are many companies which operate tours for domestic as well as international clients and thus require tour operators.
• Travel Writer: A travel writer is responsible for writing an array of stories related to travel such as historical places, vacations, adventure, hotel industry, culture, etc.
