Top 12 Travel Agent Skills to Put on Your Resume

The travel market squeezes hard. Hiring managers skim fast. The right skills, stacked clearly on a resume, tip the balance. Blend booking tech with service savvy and real-world travel know-how, and your profile stops scrolling and starts getting calls.

Travel Agent Skills

1. Amadeus
2. Sabre
3. Galileo
4. Worldspan
5. Apollo
6. Customer Service
7. Multilingual
8. CRM Software
9. Microsoft Office
10. Itinerary Planning
11. Negotiation
12. Time Management

1. Amadeus

Amadeus is a global distribution system (GDS) that lets travel agents shop and book flights, hotels, cars, and ancillary services with live availability and pricing.

Why It's Important

It’s a central pipe into real-time travel content, helping agents build accurate itineraries, handle changes quickly, and manage end-to-end bookings without juggling multiple vendor sites.

How to Improve Amadeus Skills

Level up by stacking formal training with hands-on repetition and timely updates.

1. Official training: Work through Amadeus e‑Learning from fundamentals to advanced workflows.
2. Certification: Earn Amadeus certifications to validate proficiency and expand job options.
3. Daily practice: Spend time in the Amadeus Selling Platform; test complex itineraries and exchanges.
4. Live updates: Join webinars and product briefings to stay current on new features and content.
5. Peer communities: Participate in professional groups to trade formats, scripts, and fixes.
6. Release notes: Review Amadeus updates and industry bulletins so your commands stay sharp.

How to Display Amadeus Skills on Your Resume

2. Sabre

Sabre provides booking technology and data that connect airlines, hotels, and other suppliers with agencies and travelers, streamlining search, sell, and service.

Why It's Important

It pulls a wide span of content into one workspace, so you can compare, book, ticket, and service trips faster—and keep accuracy tight.

How to Improve Sabre Skills

1. Training and certification: Complete Sabre courses appropriate to your role and earn credentials that stick on a resume.
2. Sabre Red 360: Get fluent with the Red Workspace tools, shortcuts, and graphical search to speed up everyday tasks.
3. Product news: Track release notes and industry updates; new content sources and policy changes arrive often.
4. Community support: Use Sabre user groups and internal portals to troubleshoot and learn real-world tips.
5. Scenario drills: Practice exchanges, involuntary changes, EMD handling, and multi‑city builds until they’re muscle memory.
6. Quick references: Keep command cheat sheets and fare rule checklists near your desk for fast lookups.

How to Display Sabre Skills on Your Resume

3. Galileo

Galileo is a GDS (part of Travelport) used to search, price, and book air, hotel, car, and rail content, often accessed today through Travelport’s Smartpoint/Travelport+ environment.

Why It's Important

It gives broad supplier coverage, reliable schedules and fares, and efficient PNR management—key for building accurate itineraries and servicing changes without delay.

How to Improve Galileo Skills

1. Travelport training: Work through current Travelport Academy courses covering Galileo formats and Smartpoint tools.
2. Modern workflows: Learn Travelport+ features (graphical search, branded fares, NDC) alongside classic commands.
3. Integration: Use available APIs or mid‑office connectors to cut rekeying and reduce error rates.
4. Automation: Adopt scripts and utilities (e.g., terminal wrappers) to speed repetitive tasks.
5. Community exchange: Share formats and troubleshooting notes with other Galileo users.
6. Feedback loop: Report glitches and feature requests so fixes and enhancements land where you need them.

How to Display Galileo Skills on Your Resume

4. Worldspan

Worldspan is a Travelport GDS used to book flights, hotels, cars, and more with live availability and fare data.

Why It's Important

It enables quick comparisons, competitive pricing, and smooth servicing, helping agents deliver precise options at speed.

How to Improve Worldspan Skills

1. Hands-on repetition: Book daily in Worldspan to cement formats, pricing checks, and ticketing flows.
2. Structured learning: Complete official Travelport training paths from core commands to advanced servicing.
3. In-tool help: Use built‑in help and command guides for instant syntax reminders.
4. Peer groups: Join professional forums and agency communities to swap tips and fixes.
5. Version awareness: Track new features, policy shifts, and distribution changes so your process stays current.
6. Shortcuts: Memorize hotkeys and templates for common PNR tasks to shave minutes off every file.

How to Display Worldspan Skills on Your Resume

5. Apollo

Apollo is a legacy Travelport GDS historically used for booking air, hotel, car, and more; many agencies now access Apollo content through Travelport+ (Smartpoint) while maintaining legacy command knowledge.

Why It's Important

Legacy mastery still matters. Plenty of agencies run hybrid stacks, and Apollo know‑how speeds servicing and reduces errors during migrations or in mixed environments.

How to Improve Apollo Skills

1. Travelport Academy: Take updated courses that map Apollo commands to Smartpoint workflows.
2. Guides and manuals: Keep current user guides handy for fare rules, exchanges, and EMD processes.
3. User groups: Participate in Apollo and Smartpoint communities to learn field‑tested solutions.
4. Sandbox practice: Use training modes for complex scenarios without touching live records.
5. Cross-training: Compare Apollo formats with Galileo/Worldspan equivalents to stay flexible.

How to Display Apollo Skills on Your Resume

6. Customer Service

Customer service means advising, booking, and supporting clients throughout the journey—before departure, en route, and after they’re home—so the experience feels effortless.

Why It's Important

Trust builds repeat business. Fast, empathetic help turns disruptions into loyalty and generates referrals that lower acquisition costs.

How to Improve Customer Service Skills

1. Personalize: Capture preferences and reflect them in every trip—seats, schedules, brands, special needs.
2. Right tools: Use a CRM and simple automations for updates, reminders, and post‑trip check‑ins.
3. Omnichannel access: Offer phone, email, and messaging support; set clear expectations for response times.
4. Continuous training: Refresh knowledge on destinations, policies, and cultural norms; role‑play tough cases.
5. Feedback that loops: Ask, analyze, act. Close the loop so clients see their input become improvements.

How to Display Customer Service Skills on Your Resume

7. Multilingual

Being multilingual means serving travelers in several languages—clearer communication, fewer misunderstandings, warmer service.

Why It's Important

It opens doors to new markets, improves accuracy during trip changes, and makes global partners easier to work with.

How to Improve Multilingual Skills

1. Language study: Use structured courses or apps to build vocabulary tied to travel scenarios.
2. Hire or partner: Add staff or contractors fluent in your core markets.
3. Smart tools: Keep translation utilities for quick phrases, then verify with a native speaker when stakes are high.
4. Cultural fluency: Train on etiquette and expectations, not just words.
5. Localized content: Provide marketing, itineraries, and confirmations in clients’ preferred languages.
6. Local guides: Build a bench of multilingual on‑the‑ground partners.
7. Iterate: Collect feedback in multiple languages and refine your approach.

How to Display Multilingual Skills on Your Resume

8. CRM Software

CRM software centralizes client profiles, preferences, history, and communications—so every interaction feels informed and deliberate.

Why It's Important

It drives personalized offers, timely follow‑ups, cleaner data, and stronger retention—while revealing who’s ready to book again.

How to Improve CRM Software Skills

1. Tight integrations: Connect email, messaging, forms, and booking systems so data flows without copy‑paste.
2. Dashboards that matter: Build views for pipeline, active trips, service SLAs, and campaign response.
3. Automation: Schedule reminders, payment nudges, document requests, and post‑trip surveys.
4. Mobile access: Ensure agents can update notes and tasks on the go.
5. Personalization: Use analytics to segment by behavior and push relevant offers clients actually want.
6. Client portal: Provide a secure space for quotes, confirmations, and document uploads.

How to Display CRM Software Skills on Your Resume

9. Microsoft Office

Microsoft Office—Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote, and related tools—anchors documents, data, presentations, email, and shared notes for daily agency work.

Why It's Important

Itineraries, proposals, client trackers, budgets, vendor lists, and communications all live smoother with a strong Office toolkit.

How to Improve Microsoft Office Skills

1. Templates: Standardize itineraries, invoices, and trip briefs in Word and Excel for speed and consistency.
2. Modern collaboration: Use Microsoft Teams for client calls and internal coordination; lean on Viva Insights to improve work habits.
3. Excel mastery: Pivot tables, lookups, dynamic arrays, and conditional formatting—get fluent for fast analysis.
4. Outlook control: Rules, categories, shared mailboxes, and calendaring keep communications tight.
5. PowerPoint polish: Visual trip proposals with clean layouts and media that sells the experience.
6. OneNote hubs: Centralize trip notes, supplier contacts, and checklists for shared visibility.
7. Power Automate: Trigger confirmations, reminders, and file moves to cut repetitive clicks.
8. Keep learning: Take updated courses and practice with real agency scenarios.

How to Display Microsoft Office Skills on Your Resume

10. Itinerary Planning

Itinerary planning builds a client‑ready schedule—transportation, lodging, activities, buffers, and special touches tailored to preferences and budget.

Why It's Important

Good planning saves time, prevents snags, and turns a trip into an experience the traveler raves about.

How to Improve Itinerary Planning Skills

1. Discovery: Use a short questionnaire to capture interests, constraints, and non‑negotiables.
2. Right tools: Organize with itinerary platforms like Travefy or Tourwriter to keep details synced and shareable.
3. Stay current: Track advisories, entry rules, seasonal shifts, and new openings via trusted industry sources.
4. Personal touches: Layer in unique, interest‑aligned experiences—not just the top‑10 list.
5. Post‑trip review: Gather feedback and fold the lessons into future plans.

How to Display Itinerary Planning Skills on Your Resume

11. Negotiation

Negotiation is the back‑and‑forth with airlines, hotels, and tour operators to secure better rates, terms, and perks for your clients.

Why It's Important

Sharper deals mean happier travelers and stronger margins. Perks and flexible terms save the day when plans wobble.

How to Improve Negotiation Skills

1. Prep deeply: Know your client’s bottom line, supplier constraints, and market benchmarks.
2. Relationship first: Build trust with suppliers; repeat business unlocks concessions.
3. Active listening: Surface the other side’s priorities and find trades that matter.
4. Crisp communication: Be clear, polite, and firm; confidence invites better outcomes.
5. Flex options: Offer alternatives—dates, room types, fare families—to land a win‑win.
6. Walk‑away line: Define your no‑go point before you start.
7. Practice and debrief: Rehearse, negotiate, review, and refine.

How to Display Negotiation Skills on Your Resume

12. Time Management

Time management means prioritizing, planning, and executing so every PNR, quote, and follow‑up lands on time.

Why It's Important

It raises productivity, reduces errors, and keeps clients calm when travel gets choppy.

How to Improve Time Management Skills

1. Prioritize ruthlessly: Use the Eisenhower Matrix to separate urgent from important.
2. Plan your day: Block time in digital calendars like Google Calendar or Outlook and set reminders that stick.
3. Leverage tools: Use agency platforms for itinerary building and a CRM for task tracking and follow‑ups.
4. Boundaries: Define hours and service levels; protect focus blocks.
5. Delegate: Hand off admin tasks or outsource when it makes financial sense.
6. Keep learning: Improve workflow habits with courses and micro‑trainings (think LinkedIn Learning).

How to Display Time Management Skills on Your Resume