Disney Travel Agent
Disney travel agents are responsible for planning the best possible vacation experience for their clients. They work with a variety of clients, including families, groups of friends, and couples. If you’re interested in becoming a Disney travel agent, here’s what you need to know:
The Requirements
To become a Disney travel agent, you’ll need to have at least two years of experience working in the tourism industry. You’ll also need to be able to speak English fluently, since this is the language used by most international travelers.
The Education
While there are no formal educational requirements for becoming a Disney travel agent, you will need to take an exam from the American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA). This exam covers everything from airline booking procedures to hotel reservations and pricing policies for different destinations around the world. It also includes questions about how to make sure that your clients have a great time while they’re away from home.
The Job Duties
As a Disney travel agent, your main job is helping people plan their vacations so they have fun while they’re away from home—and making sure it doesn’t cost too much money either! You’ll probably spend most of your time on.
How To Become Disney Travel Agent
For Disney fanatics, becoming a Travel Agent is a DREAM job. We get to use our immense knowledge of Disney theme parks to plan magical vacations and get paid for it! Forget the Prince, this JOB is a dream come true.
A few years ago, I had no idea that people still used Travel Agents. Like most people, I thought the industry died once websites like Expedia became popular. Turns out, there is still a high demand for Travel Agents!
The reason being is that Expedia or disneyworld.com can’t answer specific questions like “Is the dining plan worth it?” or “Is Be Our Guest any good?”
Disney Travel Planners give their unbiased opinions to clients and are much more reliable than using the general Disney reservation hotline. Due to the complexity of planning a theme park vacation, many people opt for hiring an expert to do the work for them.
That said, you’re here because you want to learn how to become a Disney Travel Planner. To get you started, I’ll briefly describe the process of starting your career as a Travel Agent that specializes in theme park vacations.
Now, if you’re serious about changing careers, I encourage you to sign up for my free 5-day email course. Each day, I expand on the steps below and help you jumpstart your new career as a Travel Agent!
Learn more about the free course in the video below! You can sign up by clicking here or fill out the form below the video!
SIGN UP HERE!
We respect your privacy. Unsubscribe at any time.
ADDITIONAL HELPFUL RESOURCES
- FREE 5-Day Course: Jumpstart Your Career as a Disney Travel Planner in 5 Days
- A Day in the Life of a Disney Travel Agent
- Host Agency 101 for Future Disney Travel Planners
STEP 1: CHOOSE WHAT KIND OF AGENCY YOU WANT TO WORK FOR
The first step is to decide whether you want to work at a Travel Agency, start your own business, or join a Host Agency. In my short course, I define the three options and go over the pros and cons of each.
For now, let’s focus on joining a Host Agency because that’s what most Disney Specialists end up working with. For new Travel Agents, I highly recommend you join a Host Agency before starting your own. This will give you the opportunity to learn about the industry and reduce the initial investment of starting a business.
WHAT’S A HOST AGENCY?
A Host Agency is a Travel Agency that employs Travel Agents as Independent Contractors. You won’t be a full-time or part-time employee and you won’t receive any employee benefits like medical or a 401K.
When you file for taxes, you’ll fill out a 1099 form rather than a W-4. Agents are also required to provide their own office supplies like a laptop or cellphone.
The awesome part is that most (if not all) Travel Agents who work for Host Agencies work from home. You have the freedom to work in your sweatpants (or the freedom to work in no pants at all!)
The main benefit is that you have access to book travel without your own IATA or CLIA number. Without going into too much detail, these are booking numbers given to Agents or Agencies who have sold a certain amount of travel. Typically, you’re given your own IATA/CLIA number after selling about $5000 worth of commission in one calendar year. To learn more about IATA/CLIA numbers head to this article by Host Agency Reviews.
The secondary benefit is that most Host Agencies offer some marketing tools, booking tools, and sometimes even training. You’ll have the support of a larger Agency at all times.
WHAT’S THE CATCH OF USING A HOST AGENCY?
You’ll have to find your own clients by using your own marketing techniques. More on marketing for yourself in a bit! Host Agencies also take a small cut from your commission. This pays for any of the resources and fees that they are paying for.
Want to learn more about Host Agencies? I created an entire guide defining Host Agencies, how to research them, and how to successfully apply.
LEARN MORE ABOUT HOST AGENCIES FOR DISNEY TRAVEL PLANNERS HERE!
STEP 2: SET UP A SIMPLE MARKETING PLAN
This sounds intimidating, but I assure you it’s not! This can actually be quite simple and will put you in a better position than the Travel Agents who don’t have a plan.
I don’t have a business degree and I was able to set up a plan for myself that helped me attract plenty of clients in my first year.
You should create a marketing plan before you start applying to Agencies. This will put you a cut above most of the applicants that Host Agencies receive. A lot of hopeful Travel Agents think the only requirement to become a Disney Travel Planner is to have a love for Disney.
This will assure the Agency that you are passionate about the job, but not that you can do it well! Having a plan will assure them you have an idea as to how to get clients.
