2024 Best Way to Succeed With a Career in the Travel Industry
Conrad Hotel - Cartagena, Colombia
Intro
Whether you are looking to advance your career in the travel industry, about to graduate and looking for a career to break into, or are looking for a mid-career change, this post is for you.
The pandemic was a tough time for the travel industry and similar industries. While the travel industry is a 24/7 industry, there are tremendous benefits about working in tour and travel, that I highlight below.
This post primarily focuses on the travel industry as that is the industry I have spent most of my career in, with that said, a lot of the tips I provide are beneficial across most industries.
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I started my career in the hospitality industry in 2011 by accident. I had customer service jobs in high school, however; looking into career opportunities in this field never dawned on me. My first official position (past babysitting) was working at a Hollywood Video in North Jersey. Still to this day, many jobs later; it is still probably one of my favorite (and least paying) jobs. I got to hang out in a room for a few hours a week with some people my age, watching movies and helping people fall in love with cinema. This was my first real experience talking to the general public and not just the bubble of my family, friends, and teachers. This was also the first time I realized people can overreact to the silliest things and how to manage that. Most people were cool, but occasionally you would have someone yelling at you over a DVD and you could not help but think: ‘Is this really the worst thing’…even at the age of 16.
I graduated college with a degree in English and Theater. My presumption at the time was I would work in the entertainment industry in some capacity. I did not really have a trajectory at 22; I assumed I would start at an entry-level position and would figure it out from there. This was a tad before all of the post-grad resources that are commonly known today. As I did not have any family or close friends in that industry, at that age I was lost at where to begin.
Fortunately, and unfortunately, my sense of adventure kicked in and I spent the next year traveling around Europe and the US. By the time I came home from two months abroad, I knew going back to living in a tiny town in New Jersey was not going to cut it. I drove out west to California spending some time taking classes in Los Angeles and San Francisco. After about a year I figured that I needed to find my passion.
With my desire to travel and see something different, I took a job with AmeriCorp down in Miami. The furthest (culture and vibe wise) from my town in New Jersey as I could get. I was fortunate that I got placed with a local non-profit that focused on recognizing and rewarding kid’s exemplary behavior. The organization teamed up with the local police department and was based out of their downtown headquarters (an interesting place to work and enough stories for a whole other post). It was a great learning experience. I also got to meet some amazing people through AmeriCorp that became instant friends and provided amazing times in Miami.
When my contract was up with AmeriCorp, I was still none the wiser about what I wanted to do professionally. All I did know, was I was enjoying Miami and wanted to stay. Also, if I did not find another decent job soon my parents would probably hunt me down in Florida. I had a friend at the time working for the Ritz Carlton, Coconut Grove. She knew I was looking for work and mentioned they were hiring for some operations jobs. Said they offered employee hotel discounts and this would be an excellent way to get my foot in the door to work my way up. Which is exactly what I did.
My first job was as a banquet attendant and I was horrible at it. I was not strong enough to lift most trays, my hands were too small to carry multiple plates, I am uncoordinated and kept dropping breakable dishes, I am too short to be able to walk fast and I hated being on my feet for sometimes 17-hour shifts. I knew I had to be in the role for at least 6 months before internally transferring. By month 7 I was at a desk job.
I took an administrative role at the regional office in South Florida. I was honest, hard-working and and I had some great mentors in my corner. By month 11 I internally transferred again. Same office, different department. This time to my first management role in Events. About 7 months into this role, I asked my boss if they would be okay with me working remotely from Sarasota. I had some friends living in that area, I wanted to stay in Florida; just wanted something more low-key than Miami. To my surprise, they said yes. They advised me though that there was a chance Marriott was restructuring my department and may transition us out. At that point I did not care, I just wanted out of the city. I packed up all my stuff in a UHaul with my cat and dad, and was on my way up to Sarasota…for 6 months before our department was cut. Ironically the only time I have decorated an apartment.
It is funny how life twists and turns. Sometimes you are the driver of your life and sometimes you are the passenger. As my boss anticipated, my department was eliminated 6 months later. Fortunately, my apartment was cool with me breaking my lease early, and fortunately, I got the next role I stepped into. The job I took as an Event Management Trainer was my favorite job I have ever had (just slightly above Hollywood Video). Two other Marriott employees and I were hired to travel the US for 6 months, going to different Marriott’s to train their staff on event planning execution and Marriott systems. It was such a cool job, for me at least. I gave up my apartment and left my cat with my parents while I traveled to 30 states and over 200 hotels in less than a year. Most of the time I did not remember what city or state I was in. Had to take pictures of each rental car as I was in a new one every few days. It was thrilling. It was thrilling being in new places and meeting new people. Mostly it was thrilling to be able to see so much of the US. On weekends I could choose to stay where I was or fly somewhere domestically. Sometimes I would explore the city I was in more in-depth. Other times I would go to another city to see friends and family.
After my traveling contract was up, I obtained another job in Marriott regional office in midtown Manhattan. I thought working in the tourism capital of the US would look good on my resume and it would be nice to be closer to family and friends. I only made it one winter back in the area and working in the intense environment that is New York City. I knew the job and the area were not right for me and departed after a year of service. I made some awesome connections in this role that I am still in contact with. I learned a lot about business, how to work with others, and about myself. If it were not for this decision, I would not have taken some time off and enrolled in a few classes for my personal growth. I got to work on a skill that interested me, see some awesome shows, and meet some cool people.
By July 2015; I was headed on another road trip with my cat, dad, and belongings. This time to Los Angeles. Now the hard part. Finding a job. A few months after my relocation, just when I was about to give up, I got an email about a Director of Group Sales job at a Hilton in Los Angeles. I interviewed, landed it, and accepted immediately. I was so happy to be employed and that my risk to come out to Los Angeles had worked. I have spent the last 12-years in 8 different sales roles in the hospitality industry and have not looked back.
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The first thing I will say is I can and will say ‘no’ if it is not the right business decision for the hotel (or any company I am working for). So many times, people come to a hotel with the ‘do you know who I am’ mentality or ‘hotels cannot say no to me’. That is not the way it works. That is not the right attitude to go anywhere with, especially in a professional setting. You attract more bees with honey as they say. I have been the victim of a bad day on numerous occasions, I will not fault anyone for that. Hospitality isn’t about saying yes to everything, but rather finding an alternative solution that is mutually beneficial. Unfortunately, this may not be the solution initially sought by the customer.
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People come into shops, restaurants, hotels, and venues for an experience. It is up to the staff to welcome the guests into their venue and set a cadence. I cannot tell you how many times I have gone into a bar, restaurant, shop, or wherever and was the one leading the experience, and I was the customer. Most of us are working because we need a job, but it takes a special person to work in hospitality. Although I do think everyone should have at least one customer service job in their life.
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Career Advancement - With many huge organizations in the industry, there are a lot of opportunities to grow your career quickly.
Travel Discounts - If you work for many companies like hotels and airlines, you can get discounts with their company.
Benefits - Lots of companies come with robust benefits like health, life and disability insurance, 401k, holiday’s/time-off.
Training - Most organizations have live and on-demand training programs on a variety of topics.
Mentorship - Opportunities to connect with great, seasoned employees that are eager to mentor.
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No matter how many big chain hotels (airlines or other hospitality companies, for that matter) are out there, it is a very tiny community. I can’t tell you how many times I have talked to someone in hotels (even hotels across the country) and we have known a lot of the same people. So you want to get your foot in the door, and if don’t know where to start. Try all or some of these avenues:
Find a mentor.
Do the best job to your ability.
Keep your resume current and polished.
Help out where you can (but don’t be taken advantage of).
Make sure people know you wish to advance in your career.
Network, network, network (will provide different networking opportunities below).
Scour the job boards on a regular basis (will provide a list of popular job boards below).
Be confident, friendly, and informed in your interview (do not mistake cocky for confidence).
Make sure to have your resume on job boards (I have been reached out to multiple times this way).
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There are a million job boards out there but I usually stick to the few below for hospitality-focused jobs:
The companies career page on their website
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As I mentioned above, it’s all about networking. You never know who you’ll bump into that might know of an opportunity or at the very least that has a mutual connection and will keep you in mind, so network as much as you can. I know networking can seem daunting but not all networking events are going into a big open room with masses of people that you have to break into conversation with. Network to your strengths and comfort level. Here are some organizations I have attended their networking events (and not all have to be business networking groups, you can network anywhere):
BNI
Adult Sports Leagues
Facebook or LinkedIn groups
Local Chamber of Commerce
Reach out to individuals via LinkedIn
Go back to school for a class, certificate, or degree
Take a class for your or business need or that interest you
Conclusion
I will thank and curse the hospitality industry for my attention to detail. It is a redeeming business quality, however; I will not be able to stay in a hotel without overanalyzing. I will also thank hotels for providing me with my work ethic, extensive growth opportunities, and lasting connections.
Quote
“The travel and tourism industry, it’s just a huge part of our economy.” Karen Hughes
Next on the Blog…
If you are thinking about taking your expertise in the Travel Industry and starting your own business, check out my guest post by Zainab Adams on 5 Ways to Launch a Business Successfully. For those professional planners out there, check out my posts on Plan a Trip Like a Professional and the Travel Benefits of a AAA Membership. For more tips on landing that dream job, check out Ayah’s latest post.
