Travel and Tourism at Sait

Program Highlights

With real-world experience working in SAIT’s student-run travel centre and courses focused on all aspects of the industry – from cruises and eco-tours to marketing and business management – prepare for a career in the growing world of tourism.

Program description

If you have a passion for the exciting world of travel and tourism, consider the diverse opportunities for employment in Canada and abroad. With a 5-star rating from the Association of Canadian Travel Agencies, the Travel and Tourism program at SAIT will give you a hands-on, practical education ensuring you're ready to jump into the market with real-world knowledge and skills.

Tourism is one of the world's hottest growth industries with new destinations opening up for visitors around the world. At SAIT, we prepare students for rewarding and in-demand careers through expert instruction from industry leaders, hands-on learning and state-of-the-art facilities. In fact, you'll find SAIT alumni working in top tourism organizations in Calgary, Canada and around the globe.

During this full-time two year program, you'll learn how to use reservation systems for airlines, assess airfare and gain insight on industry rules and regulations. Our blended learning environment includes classroom instruction, laptop delivery and a live working environment - all delivered through a personalized approach.

Beyond learning about airline reservation processes, you'll become familiar with global tourist areas and attractions, study technologies for selling cruises, vacation packages, adventure tours, eco tours, niche travel and more. Your training also covers important areas including sales, marketing, business management, events planning, accounting, law and entrepreneurship.

Now for the exciting part - you get to apply these skills on campus in Destinations, the only live student-run travel centre in North America! As part of SAIT's Destinations travel team, you'll really get a taste for what it's like to work in the tourism industry. Destinations is a licensed travel centre that is equipped with the latest industry booking and accounting software. Students have travel agent access to all major airline and tour companies. Here, you will work with the SAIT community to research, quote and make real reservations for flight, hotel, car, vacation packages and travel insurance bookings.

Travel industry software

As part of your training, you will have access to exclusive travel industry links and resources not available to the general public. Some examples of the latest industry software you'll learn to use include:

• Airline reservation systems such as Apollo by Travelport and Sabre,
• Online booking tools like Expedia, Travelocity and Travel Partners' agent areas, and
• Automated accounting software connected to the booking systems.

Professional internship and study tours

Between your first and second year of study, you will get to apply your skills in a professional internship. In addition to gaining experience in a real-world environment, internships provide valuable connections and opportunities to network with future employers.

As a student, you can also take advantage of exciting international study tours. Previous tour locations have included Peru, Turkey, China, Central America, Vietnam, Egypt, Morocco and Southern Europe. We also offer study exchanges through the global education network to Australia and Singapore.

Work toward your certified travel counsellor (CTC) designation

Graduates with a GPA of 3.0 or higher at the end of semester five are encouraged to apply to write the Association of Canadian Travel Agencies (ACTA) national certification exam to progress toward the Certified Travel Counsellor (CTC) designation.

Your career

Graduates can look forward to careers in retail and corporate travel, airline customer service and reservation call centres, resorts and cruise lines, destination attractions and government tourism offices.

• Graduates of the Travel and Tourism program have a 95% employment rate.