Murray’s appeal comes ahead of International Women’s day (8 March) and in light of new United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) guidance on how businesses can better support women working in travel and tourism.

Director of the Highlands agency Murray said gender equality had to be "at the heart" of the travel industry’s recovery from the Covid crisis.

According to the UNWTO, despite women making up 54% of the global tourism workforce, they are largely employed in lower skilled jobs and take on a greater proportion of informal work.

Murray said her agency was “leading the charge” to address the imbalance with only two men in its team of 14.

During the pandemic, the business – run by Murray and husband Scott – helped secure the jobs of many local women who worked in the travel industry through the acquisition of two local travel agencies.

Murray stressed women had been disproportionately affected by the pandemic downturn, but said the new guidelines could help reduce such inequalities in future.

"These plans also aim to improve job prospects for women in the travel industry, allowing more female staff to make the step up to management and leadership roles,” she said.

Murray also highlighted some of the “unique issues” facing women in travel, such as childcare, a lack of jobs offering flexible working and the gender pay gap.

These issues, she said, had led to “talented people leaving the industry”.