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How to hire a travel coordinator

Travel coordinator hiring summary. Here are some key points about hiring travel coordinators in the United States:

  • HR departments typically spend 15% of their expenses on recruitment.
  • It usually takes about 12 weeks for a new employee to reach full productivity levels.
  • It typically takes 36-42 days to fill a job opening.
  • The median cost to hire a travel coordinator is $1,633.
  • Small businesses spend an average of $1,105 per travel coordinator on training each year, while large companies spend $658.
  • There are currently 10,042 travel coordinators in the US and 22,775 job openings.
  • Washington, DC, has the highest demand for travel coordinators, with 4 job openings.
  • New York, NY has the highest concentration of travel coordinators.

How to hire a travel coordinator, step by step

To hire a travel coordinator, you should create an ideal candidate profile, determine a budget, and post and promote your job. Here's a step-by-step guide on how to hire a travel coordinator:

Here's a step-by-step travel coordinator hiring guide:

  • Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
  • Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
  • Step 3: Make a budget
  • Step 4: Write a travel coordinator job description
  • Step 5: Post your job
  • Step 6: Interview candidates
  • Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new travel coordinator
  • Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a travel coordinator do?

Travel Coordinators are administrative employees who specifically work on the travel-related needs of the company and its employees. They arrange travel based on the request of the involved department. They manage flight and hotel bookings, shuttle services, and car rentals. They coordinate with accredited travel agencies or providers to meet the requirements. Travel Coordinators should be familiar with the travel-related policies of the company to ensure that they follow the guidelines. They should also be mindful of the company budget. Travel Coordinators manage the list of accredited travel providers and maintain a good working relationship with these vendors.

Learn more about the specifics of what a travel coordinator does
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  1. Identify your hiring needs

    First, determine the employments status of the travel coordinator you need to hire. Certain travel coordinator roles might require a full-time employee, whereas others can be done by part-time workers or contractors.

    Determine employee vs contractor status
    Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

    A travel coordinator's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, travel coordinators from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

    This list shows salaries for various types of travel coordinators.

    Type of Travel CoordinatorDescriptionHourly rate
    Travel CoordinatorTravel agents sell transportation, lodging, and entertainment activities to individuals and groups planning trips. They offer advice on destinations, plan trip itineraries, and make travel arrangements for clients... Show more$13-32
    Corporate Travel AgentA corporate travel agent assists people in planning, choosing, and arranging holidays. Corporate travel agents will work to the budget set out by those planning the holiday... Show more$12-21
    Corporate Travel CounselorA Corporate Travel Counselor prepares ground travel, hotel, rail travel, and air transport arrangements for customers. They keep accessible online materials to ensure conformity with the client's travel policy... Show more$18-41
  2. Create an ideal candidate profile

    Common skills:
    • Customer Service
    • Reservations
    • Booking
    • Credit Card
    • Ground Transportation
    • PowerPoint
    • Corporate Travel
    • Hotel Reservations
    • Car Rentals
    • Travel Itineraries
    • Book Travel
    • Airline Tickets
    • Inbound Calls
    • Defense Travel System
    Check all skills
    Responsibilities:
    • Manage corporate travel arrangements for business accounts, including passport and visa documents.
    • Assist with rail, hotel and rental car reservation utilizing the Sabre GDS system.
    • Create and store written documentation of all communications and transactions in the Amadeus system.
    • Ensure above optimum customer service through effective use of the worldwide web & multi GDS system.
    • Resolve customer escalations including complex booking challenges and provide service guidance to team members.
    • Analyze and book employee reservations for possible corporate jet travel resulting in significant annual savings.
    More travel coordinator duties
  3. Make a budget

    Including a salary range in your travel coordinator job description is a great way to entice the best and brightest candidates. A travel coordinator salary can vary based on several factors:
    • Location. For example, travel coordinators' average salary in nebraska is 57% less than in california.
    • Seniority. Entry-level travel coordinators earn 58% less than senior-level travel coordinators.
    • Certifications. A travel coordinator with a few certifications under their belt will likely demand a higher salary.
    • Company. Working for a prestigious company or an exciting start-up can make a huge difference in a travel coordinator's salary.

    Average travel coordinator salary

    $43,628yearly

    $20.98 hourly rate

    Entry-level travel coordinator salary
    $28,000 yearly salary
    Updated December 15, 2025

    Average travel coordinator salary by state

    RankStateAvg. salaryHourly rate
    1California$72,295$35
    2Virginia$65,131$31
    3District of Columbia$55,375$27
    4Hawaii$54,433$26
    5New Jersey$53,210$26
    6Texas$48,285$23
    7New York$45,705$22
    8Colorado$44,509$21
    9Maryland$44,209$21
    10Massachusetts$43,073$21
    11Louisiana$42,009$20
    12Utah$41,933$20
    13Georgia$41,903$20
    14Oregon$41,734$20
    15Florida$41,235$20
    16Ohio$40,320$19
    17South Carolina$38,773$19
    18North Carolina$38,519$19
    19Minnesota$32,330$16
    20Alaska$31,639$15

    Average travel coordinator salary by company

    RankCompanyAverage salaryHourly rateJob openings
    1Aramco Services Company$81,468$39.17
    2Oxford Global Resources$78,122$37.56
    3Serco$68,200$32.79
    4HRL Laboratories$64,095$30.81
    5Hartwick College$61,383$29.511
    6Uline$58,897$28.32
    7E3 Federal Solutions, Llc$57,042$27.42
    8NBCUniversal$55,874$26.864
    9Gaia$55,201$26.54
    10Xator$53,802$25.87
    11University of California-Berkeley$53,225$25.59
    12General Dynamics$50,855$24.454
    13Leidos$49,379$23.741
    14RemX$49,142$23.63
    15Fox News$47,881$23.02
    16American Cruise Lines$47,501$22.84
    17Minnesota State Fair$47,149$22.67
    18Kimball Midwest$46,502$22.36
    19Clinical Resources$45,340$21.80
    20United Wholesale Mortgage$45,068$21.672
  4. Writing a travel coordinator job description

    A good travel coordinator job description should include a few things:

    • Summary of the role
    • List of responsibilities
    • Required skills and experience

    Including a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager is also appreciated by candidates. Here's an example of a travel coordinator job description:

    Travel coordinator job description example

    The Travel Coordinator will be responsible for sourcing, booking, and handling travel requests for Buckle Teammates via an online travel booking system. Travel agent experience is not required.
    Essential Duties and Responsibilities

    This description intends to describe the general nature and level of work performed by Teammates assigned to this job. It is not intended to include all duties, responsibilities and qualifications. To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

    * Book flight, hotel and car reservations.
    * Negotiate rates for accommodations for small groups.
    * Review vendor discount and rate agreements regularly.
    * Assist in planning company meetings and events as needed.
    * Fulfill mission statement by performing job duties with a high level of Guest service while contributing to a positive team spirit.
    * Special projects and other duties as assigned.

    Supervisory Responsibilities

    This job has no supervisory responsibilities.

    Education and/or Experience

    Associate's degree from two-year College or university; preferred.

    Physical Demands

    The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by a Teammate to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

    While performing the duties of this Job, the Teammate is regularly required to sit; use hands to finger, handle, or feel and talk or hear. The Teammate is occasionally required to stand; walk; reach with hands and arms and stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl. The Teammate must frequently lift and/or move up to 25 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception and ability to adjust focus.

    Work Environment

    While performing the duties of this job, the Teammate regularly works in an office setting. The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate.

    Equal Employment Opportunity

    Buckle is committed to hiring and developing the most qualified Teammates from the available workforce in the communities we serve.

    Equal employment opportunity has been, and will continue to be, a fundamental principle at Buckle, where employment is based upon personal capabilities and qualifications without discrimination and retaliation because of veteran status, uniformed service member status, race, color, national origin or ancestry, creed, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, pregnancy (including childbirth, lactation, and related medical conditions), national origin or ancestry, physical or mental disability, genetic information (including characteristics and testing), or any other protected characteristic as established by applicable local, state, or federal law. For state specific information, refer to the State Law Supplements found on the Teammate Center, under Human Resources.
  5. Post your job

    There are a few common ways to find travel coordinators for your business:

    • Promoting internally or recruiting from your existing workforce.
    • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
    • Attend job fairs at local colleges to meet candidates with the right educational background.
    • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to recruit passive job-seekers.
    To find travel coordinator candidates, you can consider the following options:
    • Post your job opening on Zippia or other job search websites.
    • Use niche websites that focus on engineering and technology jobs, such as salesjobs, salesheads, allretailjobs.com, sales trax.
    • Post your job on free job posting websites.
  6. Interview candidates

    Recruiting travel coordinators requires you to bring your A-game to the interview process. The first interview should introduce the company and the role to the candidate as much as they present their background experience and reasons for applying for the job. During later interviews, you can go into more detail about the technical details of the job and ask behavioral questions to gauge how they'd fit into your current company culture.

    It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match your ideal candidate profile. If you think a candidate is good enough for the next step, you can move on to the technical interview.

    The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

  7. Send a job offer and onboard your new travel coordinator

    Once you've found the travel coordinator candidate you'd like to hire, it's time to write an offer letter. This should include an explicit job offer that includes the salary and the details of any other perks. Qualified candidates might be looking at multiple positions, so your offer must be competitive if you like the candidate. Also, be prepared for a negotiation stage, as candidates may way want to tweak the details of your initial offer. Once you've settled on these details, you can draft a contract to formalize your agreement.

    It's also important to follow up with applicants who do not get the job with an email letting them know that the position is filled.

    After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new travel coordinator. Human Resources and the hiring manager should complete Employee Action Forms. Human Resources should also ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc., and that new employee files are created.

  8. Go through the hiring process checklist

    • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
    • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
    • Define job responsibilities and requirements
    • Establish budget and timeline
    • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
    • Write job description
    • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
    • Promote the job internally
    • Process applications through applicant tracking system
    • Review resumes and cover letters
    • Shortlist candidates for screening
    • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
    • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
    • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
    • Conduct background checks on top candidates
    • Check references of top candidates
    • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
    • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
    • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
    • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
    • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
    • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)
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How much does it cost to hire a travel coordinator?

Before you start to hire travel coordinators, it pays to consider both the one-off costs like recruitment, job promotion, and onboarding, as well as the ongoing costs of an employee's salary and benefits. While most companies that hire travel coordinators pay close attention to the initial cost of hiring, ongoing costs are much more significant in the long run.

Travel coordinators earn a median yearly salary is $43,628 a year in the US. However, if you're looking to find travel coordinators for hire on a contract or per-project basis, hourly rates typically range between $13 and $32.

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