The travel calendar and when leave works
Map the year first. Summer holidays from April to June bring family tours and hill station trips. The Diwali and Puja break in October and November and the Christmas to New Year stretch bring international departures and domestic peaks. Pilgrimage seasons add their own dates. For many domestic tour operators, the monsoon months are the quietest window. Encourage long earned leave in the quiet months, and share the list of peak weeks, when planned leave is approved only by prior arrangement.
Rest between tours
Tour managers need recovery time after a long departure. A common practice is two or three days off after a tour of ten days or more, taken from comp-off earned for the weekly offs worked on tour. Plan the next departure after that rest, not the day after the group lands. Operations should check the team leave calendar before assigning a tour manager to the next departure, so rest days are not quietly cancelled in peak season.
Comp-off for weekly offs spent on tour
On a 12-day tour, a tour manager works through at least one scheduled weekly off, often two. HR checks the tour's on duty records and grants a comp-off for each weekly off and holiday worked. Give these credits a reasonable expiry, such as 90 days, because tour managers may go straight into another departure in peak season. If the company pays a tour allowance meant to cover every tour day, state clearly in the policy whether comp-off is given as well.
Cover for airports and branches
Airport desks and branches cannot close because someone is on leave. Set a notice rule on earned leave so managers can arrange cover, allow half days for short needs, and apply the sandwich rule consistently for leave around weekends. In small branches with two or three consultants, managers should approve leave only after checking the team leave calendar, so the branch never falls below its minimum on a weekend.
How to set it up in ZeniaHR
- Keep casual, earned and sick leave as the core types, with a notice period on earned leave long enough for managers to plan departures and desk cover.
- Grant comp-off for weekly offs and holidays worked on tour after checking the on duty records, with an expiry such as 90 days.
- Choose a sandwich rule mode for leave around weekends and holidays, and apply it the same way at branches and airport desks.
- Post the peak-week list for sales, operations and tour manager departments on the Company Wall, with acknowledgement required from each reader.
- Allow half days for branch and airport staff who need only a few hours off.
- Branch managers and the operations head should look at the team leave calendar first whenever a peak-week request comes in.
Read more about leave management in ZeniaHR.
Roles this applies to
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When can travel company staff take leave?
Mostly outside the peaks of the summer holidays, the Diwali and Puja break, and Christmas to New Year. For many domestic tour operators, the monsoon months are the quietest window for long leave. Publish the peak weeks at the start of the year so staff can plan.
Do tour managers get comp-off for weekends on tour?
They should, unless the policy clearly pays a tour allowance in its place. HR grants a comp-off for each scheduled weekly off or holiday worked on tour, based on the on duty records, with an expiry long enough to be used between departures.
How much rest should a tour manager get between tours?
Two or three days after a tour of ten days or more is a common practice, often taken from comp-off earned on the tour. Rest before the next departure protects both the tour manager and the next group, who deserve someone alert on day one.
Can travel companies restrict leave in peak season?
Yes, within reason. The policy can make planned leave in published peak weeks subject to the manager's prior approval, as long as the dates are shared early. Sick leave and real emergencies still need a yes, and cover should be planned so a single absence does not close an airport desk or branch.