C&M Travel Recruitment and C&M Executive Recruitment surveyed all new vacancies registered with travel companies last year as part of its 2021 Travel Salary Index.
With a figure of £27,451, last year’s average fell by 2.96% from 2020 and 2.64% from 2019, although it was up by 2.22% from 2018.
There was a sharper fall in pay for standard new travel jobs (those with salaries up to £40,000) which averaged £24,280 in 2021 – a fall of 6.12% from 2020 and 2.65% from 2019.
Salaries for executive travel roles (those paying above £40,000) also fell, but at a slower rate. Last year’s average figure of £55,474 was down by 2.79% from 2020 and by 5.32% from 2019.
However, according to the recruitment firms, the number of new travel job vacancies increased by 127% last year from 2020, but remained down by 42% compared to 2019.
Last year also saw an increase in the number of people looking for travel jobs, with a 46% jump from 2020.
Barbara Kolosinska, managing director at C&M Travel Recruitment and C&M Executive Recruitment, said 2021 "really did feel like a year of two halves", with activity picking up "swiftly and dramatically" from early summer onwards.
"The health of the travel recruitment sector has improved immeasurably since the beginning of last year, and January 2022 is shaping up to be one of the best months for new vacancies that our industry has seen in a long time," she added.
"Given that we are currently experiencing a candidate shortage in the travel industry, it is slightly concerning to also see that salaries have fallen annually for the first time in a number of years."
