Going on holiday is something that many people look forward to every year, the excitement of choosing a destination, then the anticipation of waiting for your departure day to arrive and then the holiday itself. People see their holidays as a reward for all their hard work throughout the year, and that is why they need the help of a travel agent to get them the very best holiday that they will talk about the years to come. Many people think that being a travel agent is quite an easy process, you just apply for a job in a travel agents and away you go.Today as the demand to work in a travel agent’s is rising more people are realising that they can become a travel agent and build their own business working from home. To do this there are many different travel agent courses that people can go on, many of which are online. Taking one of these courses is an excellent way to become a travel agent as you will learn all the necessary information relating to the holiday industry, in your own time. Once you have gone through this you will then be able to start your own website and take bookings on behalf of the larger travel companies. When a home based travel agent works this way they usually receive a commission on each holiday that they sell, and the amount they receive is based on each holiday. Some of the home-based travel agents earn around 20 to 40% commission on each holiday that they sell, not bad if you are selling around 10 holidays per day.One of the advantages of being a home based travel agent is that you get to establish your own working hours, and many people with young children see this is a valid alternative to having to work set hours in a 9-to-5 job. Using websites and your e-mail address so that potential customers can contact you means that you are, in effect contactable 24 hours a day seven days a week. This means that you will never miss a sale as a travel agent working from home, something that many of the big high street travel agents are unable to do as they close for weekends and during the evening.To be able to set yourself up as a travel agent who works from home you will need a PC, a broadband Internet connection and a telephone. These will form the basis of your home business and these will enable you to keep in contact with clients and with holiday companies. Some people then go on to have headed paper made and even business cards, but this is entirely up to you and you do not have to spend any of the money initially. Anyone who has an interest in travel and would like to have the freedom that working from home provides should certainly look into becoming a home based travel agent as it can open many different doors.