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Travel agent vs agent

The differences between travel agents and agents can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, an agent has an average salary of $37,864, which is higher than the $33,128 average annual salary of a travel agent.

The top three skills for a travel agent include reservations, booking and AAA. The most important skills for an agent are insurance products, customer service, and life insurance.

Travel agent vs agent overview

Travel AgentAgent
Yearly salary$33,128$37,864
Hourly rate$15.93$18.20
Growth rate20%6%
Number of jobs34,166184,325
Job satisfaction-2
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 39%Bachelor's Degree, 44%
Average age5146
Years of experience2-

What does a travel agent do?

Travel agents help plan, choose, and organize travel schedules. Generally, they ensure that clients can efficiently process their travel plans and get the best travel experience possible. Primarily, they assist individuals, groups, and business travelers in booking their flights and hotel accommodations, buying tickets to events, and arranging their transport from one place to the other. They also provide recommendations for itineraries and offer travel packages from different airlines, hotels, or cruise lines. Travel agents can work as freelancers or mostly be employed by travel agencies.

What does an agent do?

Agents are individuals who are employed by their clients to represent them in various dealings. Agents are usually employed by people in the show business industry, such as actors, writers, or directors. They meet people who are interested in dealing with their clients. They listen to the plans and vision for the project and assess if the project fits their clients' interests or public image. In the case of agents whose clients are actors, they send their clients to auditions upon review of the project details. Agents are also responsible for negotiating terms on behalf of their clients, such as salary, royalties, and set benefits, among others. They also inform the project leaders of their clients' demands on set. Agents are expected to be business-savvy and good negotiators.

Travel agent vs agent salary

Travel agents and agents have different pay scales, as shown below.

Travel AgentAgent
Average salary$33,128$37,864
Salary rangeBetween $26,000 And $41,000Between $19,000 And $72,000
Highest paying CityMadison, WINew York, NY
Highest paying stateWisconsinNew York
Best paying companyPerkins CoieLatham & Watkins
Best paying industryTechnology-

Differences between travel agent and agent education

There are a few differences between a travel agent and an agent in terms of educational background:

Travel AgentAgent
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 39%Bachelor's Degree, 44%
Most common majorBusinessBusiness
Most common college-University of Pennsylvania

Travel agent vs agent demographics

Here are the differences between travel agents' and agents' demographics:

Travel AgentAgent
Average age5146
Gender ratioMale, 21.9% Female, 78.1%Male, 50.5% Female, 49.5%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 7.2% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 13.1% Asian, 8.7% White, 66.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 3.6% Hispanic or Latino, 15.8% Asian, 4.9% White, 66.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%
LGBT Percentage17%7%

Differences between travel agent and agent duties and responsibilities

Travel agent example responsibilities.

  • Manage corporate travel arrangements for business accounts, including passport and visa documents.
  • Book hotel reservations; recommend and cross sell hotel rooms for availability within the Marriott brand of hotels and resorts.
  • Service inbound calls using Sabre system by setting itineraries and booking new reservations, also including billing reversals or accommodations.
  • Create PDFs prior to being send to print vendors and edit sell sheets for product introduction mailings.
  • Assist all travelers with acquiring passport, passport renewals, and visa requirements on any international travel itineraries.
  • Create scripts to help agents process long driven formats in Worldspan, Sabre, and Amadeus for quickness and accuracy.
  • Show more

Agent example responsibilities.

  • Schedule and meet individuals\groups for assign or self-generate leads, assist and enroll eligible individuals in suitable Medicare product.
  • Verify documentation and coding using CPT and ICD-9 correct coding standards.
  • Assist TANF customers with obtaining employment.
  • Direct compliance with all CPT and Medicare guidelines.
  • Train BDC representatives on phone skills and CRM use.
  • Bill appropriate ICD-9 codes to the correct insurance companies.
  • Show more

Travel agent vs agent skills

Common travel agent skills
  • Reservations, 30%
  • Booking, 12%
  • AAA, 8%
  • Credit Card, 7%
  • Travel Itineraries, 4%
  • Reservation System, 3%
Common agent skills
  • Insurance Products, 11%
  • Customer Service, 10%
  • Life Insurance, 8%
  • HR, 6%
  • Inbound Calls, 6%
  • Financial Services, 6%