WHAT DOES A DESTINATION MANAGER DO EXACTLY?

Okay, lots of people might think that working and being well paid to travel all over the world is the best work ever…maybe it isn’t as easy as it sounds. Destination Managers kind of have to be a jack of all travel trades and services. Employed by a corporate travel agency, the duties of this job can run the gamut of pointing out the room in which a conference will be held to purchasing a personal aircraft to get your group out of a dangerous area.

Destination Managers also accompanies his or her assigned group for the duration of a business or vacation trip. That includes tours, meals, meetings and more to make sure things run as smooth as butter. The lucky person in this position is responsible for all of the detail stuff on the trip, such as itinerary, seat assignments, hotel preferences, gift requests and handouts, travel programs, entertainment and being able to solve all the last minute requests, times, dates and flights, check ins, check outs, transfers, all those services which need reservations … no matter how difficult they are.

Destination Managers are typically on-call unless on vacation. That means you can’t have much of a life. I’m actually okay with that, as I don’t have much of a life anyway. But for those of you who have families or are really serious about your weekly rock-paper-scissors tournament, it probably isn’t such a good deal.

To get this sort of job you’ll need a college degree. No particular degree, but you must have paid your dues at some university. In addition, strong people skills and basic computer proficiency are required. Once you have started working as a Destination Manager, a new world plenty of opportunities will be unveiled to your eyes. There will be also several opportunities for you to show off your talent in solving problems tourists under your guidance might have and you also have to make sure they will be totally satisfied.