Become a Tour Manager

What you'll do

In this vital role, you will be the face of Great Rail Journeys - ensuring our customers have a great holiday. You'll travel a lot! You could be on the Amalfi Coast one week or ascending the Matterhorn the next. You could visit Japan, Peru, Canada, South Africa, India, New Zealand and more!

Every one of our escorted tours is led by a Tour Manager and you'll manage the running of the tour from start to finish. A Tour Manager is not a tour guide. You don't need to be an expert on the destination. However, you do need to be capable of leading a group of between 25-35 customers across different destinations by rail, air and coach.

We support our Tour Managers by providing Tour Manager guides for the tours they're leading. These are full of useful information on logistics and things to do on free days. You will be supported with 24/7 access to our Head Office team while out on tour.

We also have dedicated Cruise Managers who fulfil the same role but on our cruises. All our Tour and Cruise Managers are self-employed.

What we're looking for

Someone organised and who enjoys meeting people is key. Being a Tour Manager requires you to be confident, friendly and tactful. You will be customer focused, have strong leadership skills, be able to think on your feet and calmly deal with the unexpected. You'll also need to be great at building up a rapport with customers and suppliers such as hoteliers.

You need to be a UK resident and able to work all year round, with particular focus on May to September. Speaking another language is advantageous but by no means essential. Enjoying admiring beautiful scenery, incredible destinations and travelling by rail also helps!

What we'll do for you

We'll provide you with full training on how to be a great Tour Manager. Don't worry if you've never done anything like this before - we'll support you every step of the way. Your Tour Manager guide contains everything you need to know to lead a tour effectively.

Our team in York is available round the clock to support you in case of any unexpected events that might happen on tour. We also host annual get-togethers where you meet other Tour Managers and members of the Executive team where you're updated on new itineraries and have the opportunity to offer feedback of your own. Plus, you get to see the world, get to know our wonderful customers and learn more about the fantastic destinations we visit.

Hear it from one of our Tour Managers

"For those who are outgoing and well-organised, have genuine leadership skills, are tactful and discreet, like and are interested in people, appreciate beautiful scenery and wonderful city sights and can impart enthusiasm to others, are unflappable, and enjoy travelling by train, there are few jobs more enjoyable and fulfilling than to be a Tour Manager for Great Rail Journeys.

"It's hard work too. It's crucial that you prepare carefully for each trip. As soon as you receive your allocation of tours, it's sensible to start reading up on where you're going and what you're likely to see. You don't need to be an expert on each place you visit, but it's useful to learn in advance a bit of the country's history, its system of government, familiarise yourself with local customs and laws. In most destinations, GRJ offers a superb local guide who knows more about the attractions of their city than you will ever learn from a guidebook - rely on them to provide the local colour and knowledge.

"You should aim to be the sort of dinner guest who can chat intelligently to strangers about interesting things without boring them rigid with too much detail and trivia. Be willing to listen as well. You'll find really interesting people on GRJ holidays - doctors, lawyers, police officers, teachers, priests. Sometimes they want to remain incognito -if they tell you their secrets, be sure you respect their confidences. You'll enjoy their company: do your best to get to know every one of them individually during the holiday.

"It's vital that you plan each day with great care. Make sure you know where and when you're supposed to be meeting your customers. Check out which platform your train is leaving from, and where your reserved seats are. Be willing to be firm but courteous if others are in your allocated seats. Think where and when your customers can get some refreshments, and plan loo stops!

"The service you get from the GRJ office in York is superb. Not only are they very, very nice people, they're efficient as well, and there to help you. Don't bother them with trivia, but don't be afraid to ask if there's something about your tour you don't understand. Above all, read the Tour Manager guide sent to you by the York office several times, and follow the instructions to the letter."

How to apply

If you'd like to join our Tour Manager team, please send your CV to tm@greatrail.com. We typically have one intake of new Tour Managers each year and applications will be kept on file for the next round of interviews.