AITO agent’s baptism of fire
Charlotte Stringer of AITO Agent, RB Collection (Robert Broad Travel), describes her first few months working in the travel industry.
A university degree can take a lot out of you, and the fact that you are expected to jump into a career upon receipt of your shiny new qualification is something that I found frankly mind-boggling. Having, up until that point, not given much thought to a future career, I left university feeling a little bit lost.
It was purely by chance that I became acquainted with a couple of the agents at RB Collection and could not quite believe my ears as we began to discuss what their job entailed. Planning bespoke holidays to the most exotic and luxurious parts of the globe, plus the prospect of trips to discover said places first-hand – I felt like I had discovered a hidden secret: can you really get paid to do all of that?
As I spoke to the agents further, and they no doubt saw the glint of excitement in my eyes, they proposed that I should come in for a few days a week as an intern. I had never interned before and, after hearing horror stories of 12-hour days with no pay or job at the end of it, I was not sure that it would be something that I would ever do.
To my relief and delight, this internship was no exploitation of graduate labour – as soon as I began to work for RB Collection, I felt like a valued member of the team. Despite the working environment being extremely busy at times, I was given responsibility straight away, writing pieces for the company’s online blog and putting together quotations to some of these amazing far-off places – vastly improving my geography, too, since I had been an English student.
As someone who knew nothing about the travel industry prior to my internship, I can say that the last few months have been truly eye-opening. Receiving an introduction to the industry through researching the work of bodies such as AITO has also helped me to understand the work that RB Collection undertakes and why independent agents are so important in a market dominated by package holiday colossi.
Working for an independent travel agent has meant that I am able to learn about new destinations every day, from people who are experts in their field and who, I feel, really want to help me. Having never previously considered a career in travel, my appetite is now most certainly whetted and I cannot wait for the next few months: I have been bitten by the travel bug – no vaccinations required.
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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