Despite a clear rebound since the pandemic, the travel operators sector has not yet returned to the recruitment volumes seen in 2019.
Valérie Dufour, Head of TravelJobs, the Employment section of TourMaG, notes that the number of job offers remains significantly below the pre-COVID years.
“This is explained by a deep restructuring of the agencies’ business models, the integration of digital technology, and a structural decline of certain traditional roles that took longer to regain their pre-crisis weight,” she explains.
The international and political context in France has also influenced recruitment.
Valérie Dufour, Head of TravelJobs, the Employment section of TourMaG, notes that the number of job offers remains significantly below the pre-COVID years.
“This is explained by a deep restructuring of the agencies’ business models, the integration of digital technology, and a structural decline of certain traditional roles that took longer to regain their pre-crisis weight,” she explains.
The international and political context in France has also influenced recruitment.
“The difficulty of recruiting for operational roles has never been as high as today”
Even though the overall volume of offers has declined, the challenge of filling operational roles has never been greater, notes Valérie Dufour. The market faces an imbalance between numerous positions to fill—travel advisors, ticketing clerks, agency managers—and a small pool of qualified CVs.
“Recruiters highlight a lack of specific technical skills, notably proficiency with reservation tools (GDS/Amadeus), as well as a need for general culture and advisory ability.” emphasizes the head of TourMaG’s Employment section.
The recruitment bottleneck is also cultural. Current candidates prioritize quality of life and flexibility. Teleworking, which has fully integrated into organizations with the COVID-19 pandemic, has become an almost systematic demand for support and ticketing roles. Finally, work-life balance is a consideration for many applicants.
“To attract talent, companies must now offer upskilling plans and a hybrid organization. However, this evolution complicates recruitment for large traditional agencies, which sometimes struggle to adapt their roles and hours” summarizes Valérie Dufour.
She adds that firms are seeking increasingly specific skills: “The personalization of travel and tailor-made experiences are skyrocketing, as is the management of ever more complex situations (visas, multi-segment itineraries), becoming growth drivers for tour operators, which requires more precise competencies from staff.”
Other sectors are buoyant. Group travel operators, for example, are seeing strong activity and hiring. In this context, technicians and group travel sales professionals are in demand.
Another significant impact on job profiles is the rise of travel recommendations and content on social networks such as Instagram or TikTok, which is shifting customer expectations. “Some influencers are even becoming advocates—this forces agencies/tour operators to rethink their marketing approach to stay attractive. They are seeking employees who also possess these skills.” adds the employment expert.
“Recruiters highlight a lack of specific technical skills, notably proficiency with reservation tools (GDS/Amadeus), as well as a need for general culture and advisory ability.” emphasizes the head of TourMaG’s Employment section.
The recruitment bottleneck is also cultural. Current candidates prioritize quality of life and flexibility. Teleworking, which has fully integrated into organizations with the COVID-19 pandemic, has become an almost systematic demand for support and ticketing roles. Finally, work-life balance is a consideration for many applicants.
“To attract talent, companies must now offer upskilling plans and a hybrid organization. However, this evolution complicates recruitment for large traditional agencies, which sometimes struggle to adapt their roles and hours” summarizes Valérie Dufour.
She adds that firms are seeking increasingly specific skills: “The personalization of travel and tailor-made experiences are skyrocketing, as is the management of ever more complex situations (visas, multi-segment itineraries), becoming growth drivers for tour operators, which requires more precise competencies from staff.”
Other sectors are buoyant. Group travel operators, for example, are seeing strong activity and hiring. In this context, technicians and group travel sales professionals are in demand.
Another significant impact on job profiles is the rise of travel recommendations and content on social networks such as Instagram or TikTok, which is shifting customer expectations. “Some influencers are even becoming advocates—this forces agencies/tour operators to rethink their marketing approach to stay attractive. They are seeking employees who also possess these skills.” adds the employment expert.
Top 6 in-demand roles in 2025-2026
In this context of transformation, certain profiles remain highly sought after:
Travel Advisor: The pivot of distribution, indispensable for creating tailor-made trips.
Travel Product Manager: A profile sought by tour operators to design differentiated offers (ecotourism, adventure, niche).
Luxury / Premium Specialist: A growing segment that requires highly specialized client expertise.
Digital & Marketing Expert: To respond to the increasing influence of social networks (TikTok, Instagram) in the purchasing process.
Ticketing Clerk, Transport Manager and Back-office: Technical roles essential to the operational reliability of agencies.
Sales and Group Travel Technician: The salesperson is responsible for developing and selling tailor-made trips for groups (associations, companies, local authorities…). The group travel technician designs, organizes, and coordinates trips for groups (associations, schools, businesses…).
Travel Advisor: The pivot of distribution, indispensable for creating tailor-made trips.
Travel Product Manager: A profile sought by tour operators to design differentiated offers (ecotourism, adventure, niche).
Luxury / Premium Specialist: A growing segment that requires highly specialized client expertise.
Digital & Marketing Expert: To respond to the increasing influence of social networks (TikTok, Instagram) in the purchasing process.
Ticketing Clerk, Transport Manager and Back-office: Technical roles essential to the operational reliability of agencies.
Sales and Group Travel Technician: The salesperson is responsible for developing and selling tailor-made trips for groups (associations, companies, local authorities…). The group travel technician designs, organizes, and coordinates trips for groups (associations, schools, businesses…).
TravelJobs 2026: new tools to smooth the market
Facing these recruitment challenges, matchmaking services are evolving on TourMaG. TravelJobs will roll out in 2026 customized sourcing services for recruiters, going beyond simple job postings diffusion.
This approach includes targeted headhunting by geographic area and activation of alumni networks and professional associations. The objective is clear: provide visibility to candidates on sometimes unpublished opportunities while ensuring employers access to qualified and immediately operational profiles.
Learn more :
Email : [email protected]
Phone : +33 6 99 07 16 66
This approach includes targeted headhunting by geographic area and activation of alumni networks and professional associations. The objective is clear: provide visibility to candidates on sometimes unpublished opportunities while ensuring employers access to qualified and immediately operational profiles.
Learn more :
Email : [email protected]
Phone : +33 6 99 07 16 66
For many professionals, AI represents a disruption on a scale comparable to the web’s emergence in the 2000s or the smartphone revolution of the 2010s.
