Overview
Junior travel consultant roles require a combination of destination knowledge, sales ability, and genuine customer service instincts. Travel companies want to see that you can manage bookings, handle enquiries confidently, and upsell without being pushy. Saying you "love to travel" is not enough. You need to show that you understand how the travel industry actually works.
This resume belongs to Callum Edwards, a recent Tourism Management graduate from Bournemouth University. He completed a placement year at Kuoni Travel and worked part time at a Marriott hotel during his studies. His resume works because it shows he has already sold real holidays to real customers and knows how to use industry booking systems.
What Makes This Resume Work
The placement year demonstrates genuine sales ability. Callum booked over £92,000 in holiday packages during his year at Kuoni and maintained a customer satisfaction rating of 4.7 out of 5 across 130+ bookings. He also upsold insurance, lounge passes, and room upgrades on 42% of bookings, generating £8,600 in additional revenue. These are the kind of numbers that travel companies care about, because they prove he can actually sell.
Technical skills set him apart from other graduates. Most tourism graduates list "Microsoft Office" and leave it at that. Callum names Amadeus GDS, Opera PMS, and specific booking and reservation systems he has used in real work settings. Having GDS experience, even at a basic level, is a significant advantage when applying to tour operators and travel management companies.
The hotel receptionist role adds depth. Processing 35 check ins per shift and resolving 20+ guest complaints with a 95% first contact resolution rate shows that he can handle face to face customer service under pressure. Travel consulting involves dealing with stressed, sometimes unhappy customers, and this experience proves he can do that.
Personal travel experience is presented professionally. Rather than just mentioning he has visited 14 countries, Callum channels that into a travel blog with 2,100 followers and 25+ published destination guides. This turns a hobby into evidence of destination knowledge, content creation skills, and self motivation.
Key Takeaways
For junior travel consultant roles, your resume needs to balance sales numbers with customer service evidence. State the total value of bookings you have handled, your satisfaction scores, and any upselling results. List industry specific tools like Amadeus, Galileo, or Sabre if you have used them, and mention your ABTA or similar certifications. Personal travel experience is worth including, but only if you can present it as more than "I went on holiday." Turn it into evidence of destination expertise or content creation, and it becomes a genuine asset on your resume.
