Career change as a tour guide

Career change paths

• Travel consultant in a travel agency

  Also: Trip planning employee at a tour operator

  With on-the-job training

  In a travel agency or at a tour operator you advise customers, put trips together, and take care of bookings and changes.

  What you bring:

  You know destinations, programs and guests' wishes from your own experience.

  How to get there:

  Travel agencies and tour operators usually give people with travel guide experience a few weeks of on-the-job training (Einarbeitung) in booking systems and processes. If you want a qualification of your own, you can do vocational training (Ausbildung) as tourism clerk (Tourismuskaufmann), which can often be shortened with prior experience.*

  * No guarantee of accuracy.

  Fixed daytime hoursPhysically lightLots of contact with peopleIn an office

  €3,291gross per monthMedian salary

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• Event planner

  Also: Planner for group and incentive trips

  With on-the-job training

  At agencies, hotels or organizers you plan conferences, company trips and events, negotiate with service providers, and look after guests on site.

  What you bring:

  You organize processes for groups, keep schedules in view and quickly find solutions along the way.

  How to get there:

  Agencies and hotels usually train career changers with group experience through projects, often starting as an assistant. If you want a qualification of your own, you can do vocational training (Ausbildung) as event management clerk (Veranstaltungskaufmann), which usually takes about two years as retraining (Umschulung).*

  * No guarantee of accuracy.

  Physically lightLots of contact with people

  €3,438gross per monthMedian salary

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• Visitor information service employee

  Also: Information desk employee at a museum

  With on-the-job training

  At the information desk of museums, stations, trade fairs or cultural institutions you advise visitors, sell tickets and arrange tours, usually in permanent employment rather than on a fee basis.

  What you bring:

  You answer guests' questions in a friendly way and know routes, opening hours and offers on site.

  How to get there:

  Museums, cultural institutions and trade fair companies usually give tour guides on-the-job training (Einarbeitung) directly. Foreign languages are a big advantage. Jobs are also available part-time.*

  * No guarantee of accuracy.

  Often at weekendsPhysically lightLots of contact with people
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• Museum education employee

  Also: Visitor service employee at a museum

  With on-the-job training

  At a museum or memorial site you develop tours and programs for school classes and families, and look after visitor service.

  What you bring:

  You can tell stories about history, art and nature in a lively way and captivate groups of any age.

  How to get there:

  Museums and memorial sites often first take on experienced guides for on-the-job training (Einarbeitung) on a fee basis. Permanent jobs in education and outreach are partly advertised with a university degree requirement. Knowledge of pedagogy or foreign languages improves your chances.*

  * No guarantee of accuracy.

  Lots of contact with people
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• Train conductor

  Also: Customer service employee in local transport

  With on-the-job training

  As a train conductor you look after passengers, check tickets, give information, and ensure order and safety during disruptions.

  What you bring:

  You like being on the move, deal in a friendly way with many people, and stay calm when people are angry.

  How to get there:

  Railway companies train career changers in their own courses lasting a few weeks to a few months, with pay during the training. Work is in shifts (Schichtdienst), also on weekends and holidays.*

  * No guarantee of accuracy.

  Often at weekendsShift workPhysically demandingLots of contact with people

  €3,568gross per monthMedian salary

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• Receptionist

  Also: Guest host at a hotel

  With on-the-job training

  At the hotel reception you check guests in and out, take bookings, give tips for their stay and solve problems.

  What you bring:

  You speak foreign languages, know the sights of your city and like looking after guests.

  How to get there:

  Hotels usually give career changers with guest experience a few weeks of on-the-job training (Einarbeitung) in the booking system and processes. If you want a qualification of your own, you can do vocational training (Ausbildung) as hotel specialist (Hotelfachmann). Expect shift work (Schichtdienst) and weekend duty.*

  * No guarantee of accuracy.

  Often at weekendsShift workPhysically lightLots of contact with people

  €3,034gross per monthMedian salary

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• Cabin crew trainer

  Also: Flight attendant instructor

  With on-the-job trainingPromotion

  As a trainer you train new flight attendants in emergency procedures, firefighting, first aid and service, and lead the annual recurrent training.

  What you bring:

  You have mastered safety and emergency procedures, first aid on board and cabin service, and you can explain processes calmly.

  How to get there:

  This is an internal switch after several years of flying experience, often as a purser, with a trainer course lasting a few weeks at the airline or its training center. Jobs exist at airlines and training centers, and some trainers keep flying part-time.*

  * No guarantee of accuracy.

  €5,075gross per monthMedian salary

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• Crew scheduler

  Also: Crew planning employee

  With on-the-job training

  In the crew scheduling of an airline you assign crews, quickly find replacements in case of illness or disruptions, and keep track of flight duty and rest times.

  What you bring:

  You know duty rosters, rest times, rotations and the consequences of delays and cancellations for the crew from your own experience.

  How to get there:

  Airlines also fill crew control and operations planning with former cabin crew and give them on-the-job training (Einarbeitung) internally, usually lasting a few weeks to a few months, with training in planning systems and flight duty time rules. Confident computer skills and English are expected. Work is often around the clock in shifts (Schichtdienst), but on the ground.*

  * No guarantee of accuracy.

  Often at weekendsShift workPhysically lightLittle customer contactIn an office
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• Team leader in customer service

  Also: Customer service manager

  With on-the-job trainingPromotion

  As team leader in the customer service of an airline, tour operator or other company you lead a team, plan assignments, ensure service quality, and take over difficult cases.

  What you bring:

  You deliver service under time pressure, deal confidently with complaints and, as a purser, may already have led a crew.

  How to get there:

  With leadership experience as a purser, you can also apply directly for team leader jobs. More often, people start in customer service on the ground and move up internally to team leader, usually after one to two years. Good English helps, and courses in leadership and customer service at chambers and training providers support your promotion.*

  * No guarantee of accuracy.

  Often at weekendsShift workPhysically lightLots of contact with peopleIn an office

  €4,604gross per monthMedian salary

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• Manager of a tourist information office

  Also: Manager of a visitor center

  With further trainingPromotion

  As manager of a tourist information office or a visitor center you plan offers and tours, lead a team, and work with the municipality, hotels and tour guides.

  What you bring:

  You know your region, its sights and the guests' questions better than most people.

  How to get there:

  Alongside your job, you can take the further training course for certified senior tourism specialist (Tourismusfachwirt) at the Chamber of Industry and Commerce (IHK). It usually takes one to two years and can be funded through Aufstiegs-BAföG (state funding for advanced vocational qualifications). You are admitted with a commercial qualification and work experience, or with several years of work experience in tourism.*

  * No guarantee of accuracy.

  Often at weekendsPhysically lightLots of contact with people

  €3,740gross per monthMedian salary

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• Early childhood educator (Erzieher)

  Also: Early childhood educator with a focus on nature or forest education

  With further training

  As an early childhood educator (Erzieher) you work in a daycare center (Kita), forest kindergarten or after-school care center (Hort), look after children in everyday life, and design activities outdoors and indoors.

  What you bring:

  You can get children excited about nature, animals and their surroundings, and you lead groups confidently.

  How to get there:

  You do training (Ausbildung) as a state-recognized early childhood educator (staatlich anerkannter Erzieher) at a vocational college (Fachschule), which full-time normally takes three years including practice. Depending on the state, it is also offered in a paid, practice-integrated form. You usually need an intermediate school-leaving certificate (mittlerer Schulabschluss) and completed vocational training, or a higher education entrance qualification (Hochschulreife), plus practical experience in social education settings. Each state sets the details and whether work experience can be credited.*Regulated by law (State laws on the state recognition of early childhood educators).

  * No guarantee of accuracy.

  Mostly no weekendsPhysically demandingLots of contact with people

  €3,995gross per monthMedian salary

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• Registered nurse (Pflegefachfrau/Pflegefachmann)

  With vocational training

  In nursing you care for sick people and people in need of care, monitor their condition, carry out doctors' orders, and plan care in the team.

  What you bring:

  You are trained in first aid, stay calm in emergencies, and are used to shift work (Schichtdienst) and dealing with many people.

  How to get there:

  You do vocational training (Ausbildung) as a registered nurse (Pflegefachfrau/Pflegefachmann). It takes three years full-time or up to five years part-time, and you receive a training allowance. You need an intermediate school-leaving certificate (mittlerer Schulabschluss), or a lower secondary school certificate (Hauptschulabschluss) plus at least two years of vocational training, or at least one year of training in nursing assistance.*Regulated by law (Nursing Professions Act (PflBG) §§ 1, 11).

  * No guarantee of accuracy.

  Often at weekendsShift workPhysically demandingLots of contact with people

  €4,421gross per monthMedian salary

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• Paramedic (Notfallsanitäter)

  Also: Emergency medical technician (Rettungssanitäter)

  With further training

  In the emergency medical service you treat injured and acutely ill people at the scene, take them to the clinic, and document the missions.

  What you bring:

  You have regularly practiced emergency and first aid procedures, act in critical situations according to fixed procedures, and work closely in a team.

  How to get there:

  You do vocational training (Ausbildung) as a paramedic (Notfallsanitäter), which takes three years full-time, and you receive a training allowance. You need an intermediate school-leaving certificate (mittlerer Schulabschluss), or a lower secondary school certificate (Hauptschulabschluss) plus at least two years of vocational training. A faster way in is the course to become an emergency medical technician (Rettungssanitäter) under state law, which takes about 520 hours depending on the state and mainly prepares you for patient transport.*Regulated by law (Paramedic Act (NotSanG) §§ 5, 8; emergency medical service laws of the states).

  * No guarantee of accuracy.

  Often at weekendsShift workPhysically demandingLots of contact with people

  €4,175gross per monthMedian salary

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• Customs officer in the mid-level civil service

  With vocational training

  At customs you inspect travelers and goods, for example at the airport, process customs declarations, or check businesses for undeclared work.

  What you bring:

  You know entry and exit rules, inspections and security procedures at airports, and you stay polite but firm even in conflict situations.

  How to get there:

  After a selection procedure, you start the preparatory service as a customs officer candidate (Zollsekretäranwärter) in a revocable civil servant relationship (Beamtenverhältnis auf Widerruf), which as a rule takes two years. You need an intermediate school-leaving certificate (mittlerer Schulabschluss), or a lower secondary school certificate (Hauptschulabschluss) with completed vocational training (Berufsausbildung). You must also meet the general requirements for becoming a civil servant, such as health suitability. The customs administration decides where you are deployed.*Regulated by law (Ordinance on the Preparatory Service for the Federal Mid-Level Non-Technical Customs Service (MntZollDVDV), Federal Career Ordinance (BLV)).

  * No guarantee of accuracy.

  Often at weekendsShift workLots of contact with people

  €4,985gross per monthMedian salary

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Salary: median of all full-time employees in the job, gross per month excluding special payments, as of April 2025. Half earn more, half earn less. Source: Federal Statistical Office of Germany (Destatis), table 62361-0030, license dl-de/by-2-0. Assigned to the jobs by quereinsteiger.de. No guarantee of accuracy.