Why pre-screen travel planners before the interview
Anybody can assemble a beautiful itinerary. The job is decided at 1am when a connection is cancelled, the hotel has no record of the booking, and the client is somewhere they do not speak the language. Planners worth hiring have handled that and can describe exactly what they did. A short screen asks about a trip that went wrong while the client was away.
What actually matters when screening Personalised Travel Planner candidates
- 01
Craft of the service
Probe how they build itineraries: GDS or Sabre use, Travefy or TravelJoy tooling, multi-leg routing, visa timing, DMC and hotel contacts they book directly.
- 02
Client care
Assess how they read a client brief: budget honesty, pace preferences, dietary or mobility needs, and how they handled a trip disrupted mid-journey at 2am.
- 03
Standards and hygiene
Check booking accuracy discipline: passport and visa validity checks, ATOL or IATA obligations, insurance disclosure, deposit deadlines, and how they avoid name-mismatch ticketing errors.
- 04
Commercial awareness
Test grasp of margins: commission versus planning fee models, supplier override deals, preferred consortium benefits like Virtuoso, and average trip value they carry.
Pre-screening questions to ask Personalised Travel Planner candidates
12 questions grouped by what they test. Ask the same set in every screen and score answers on a consistent scale, or send them as an async video screen and compare answers side by side.
Trips they planned
3 questions01What experience do you have planning bespoke trips for paying clients?
Listen forClient numbers and trip types described, with typical budgets and how long they have done it.
Experience limited to planning personal travel, or no paying clients they can reference.
02Which destinations do you know well enough to plan without research?
Listen forA few regions known in real depth, with an honest boundary around where they would need help.
Every destination claimed, or knowledge that turns out to come entirely from search results.
03What kinds of trips have you planned, and which suit you best?
Listen forA clear specialism such as family, adventure or cultural travel, with examples that back it up.
No specialism at all, or claimed expertise across every trip type and budget level.
Suppliers they know
3 questions04How do you choose accommodation for a client rather than for your own taste?
Listen forSelection driven by the client's stated priorities, with properties they have seen or verified personally.
Choices based on listing photographs, or the same properties recommended regardless of the client.
05How do you plan transport and connections across a multi-stop itinerary?
Listen forRealistic connection times with buffer built in, and transfer arrangements confirmed rather than assumed.
Tight connections booked on separate tickets, or transfers left for the client to work out.
06How do you source activities and access that clients cannot book themselves?
Listen forDirect supplier relationships in their destinations, with access they can actually demonstrate.
Everything booked through public platforms, or exclusive access claimed with no supplier named.
Handles disruption
3 questions07How do you decide how structured or flexible an itinerary should be?
Listen forPace matched to the client rather than filled, with recovery time and margin deliberately built in.
Itineraries packed to demonstrate value, or no slack anywhere in a multi-country trip.
08How do you plan for clients with health, mobility or dietary requirements?
Listen forRequirements confirmed directly with suppliers in writing, not assumed from a property description.
Accessibility taken from a listing, or dietary needs passed on only at check-in.
09How do you handle a booking that fails while the client is already travelling?
Listen forContactable out of hours with a specific case described, including what it cost to put right.
Clients told to contact the supplier, or no availability outside working hours during a trip.
Discloses commission
3 questions10How do you handle travel insurance and the limits of what you can advise on?
Listen forInsurance strongly recommended with cover gaps flagged, and clients referred on for the actual advice.
Insurance advised on directly, or cover implied to include things the policy excludes.
11How do you set and manage a client's budget expectations?
Listen forTotal cost including taxes, tips and transfers presented upfront, with trade-offs explained honestly.
Headline prices quoted with extras added later, or budgets exceeded without prior agreement.
12How do you handle supplier commissions and disclose them to clients?
Listen forCommissions disclosed clearly, with recommendations they can defend if the client knew the rate.
Commissions treated as confidential, or higher-paying suppliers recommended over better fits.
How to score responses
Score every candidate on the same four criteria immediately after the screen. At this stage you are shortlisting for panel interviews, not making the final call.
Craft of the service
35%5Walks through a real 14 day multi-country itinerary, naming carriers, ground handlers, fare rules and the supplier they called personally.
Client care
30%5Describes specific clients by travel style, cites repeat and referral rates, and recounts rebooking a stranded family within hours.
Standards and hygiene
20%5Names their pre-departure checklist, error rate, and a near miss caught before ticketing, plus the compliance rules they work under.
Commercial awareness
15%5Quotes average booking value, fee structure they defend to clients, and consortium or supplier commissions they actively negotiated upward.
The job is decided at 1am when a connection is cancelled. A one-way video screen asks what they did that night.
Try it on HirevireScreening FAQ
Process basics
How long should a pre-screening round for this role take?
Ten to fifteen minutes across eight to ten questions, answered async. Enough to establish trips they planned, test their supplier knowledge, and hear how they handle disruption.
What should I check beyond the screen?
Client references and any licensing or bonding your market requires for selling travel. This role handles other people's money and travel documents, so both are worth verifying.
Evaluating answers
What is the strongest signal when screening this role?
A trip that went wrong while the client was abroad. Planners with real client history describe what they did at the time. Anyone whose trips all ran smoothly has planned very few of them.
What should worry me in an answer?
Commissions treated as private. Supplier commissions change which hotel gets recommended, and a planner who will not disclose them to clients creates a conflict your business inherits.
Go deeper on this role
Sanat has been hiring since 2012 and watching the recruitment industry change up close ever since, and turned that screening process into Hirevire's video screening platform. LinkedIn
