The number of people searching for new travel jobs has seen a year-on-year increase for the ninth month in a row.
The latest Travel Salary Index from C&M Travel Recruitment and C&M Executive Recruitment shows July’s figure was the second-highest monthly total of new candidates since the index began in 2012.
Last month saw a 62% rise in candidate registrations from July 2016 and was also up 25% from June 2017.
July also showed a 13% increase in number of travel jobs available compared to July 2016.
The average salary for a new travel job grew last month by 2.88% to £26,060.
This is also up by 2.6% from July 2016 and is just £93 below the yearly high set in April 2017.
The month’s unusually large volume of executive roles (those paying more than £40,000) helped to push up the overall average figure, even though wages for standard travel jobs (those paying up to £40,000) fell back by 1.64% in the month to reach £22,620.
Meanwhile, there were contrasting fortunes for salaries in the north and south of the UK, with July seeing a 4.82% increase in wages for new jobs in the north and a 4.07% fall for roles in the south.
C&M director Barbara Kolosinska said: "Candidate activity levels have been through the roof for nearly the whole of 2017 and we’ve now seen nine months of continual year-on-year increases, with July’s total number of new applicants coming very close to reaching an all-time high.
"We expect to see a dip in August due to the usual summer holiday distractions, but there can be no doubt that there are a significant number of candidates currently looking for great new roles in the travel industry."
She added: "July was a particularly busy month for the executive travel jobs market with more new roles than can typically be expected, and this helped average salaries to edge up to one of their highest points of the year.
"With the average new job in travel now paying £26,060, great opportunities remain for quality candidates to secure a new role with an attractive salary."
