IATA Consultant study guide
IATA Consultant · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
The IATA Travel and Tourism Consultant credential is an industry training qualification offered through IATA's Training division, which lists Courses & Diplomas, Subject Areas, Delivery Methods, Exams, Training Partners and Corporate Training among its services. Candidates typically encounter it as a course-and-exam package aimed at people working in, or moving into, retail travel and airline distribution roles: travel agency staff, reservations and ticketing agents, and consultants who advise clients on itineraries, fares and documentation. The exam is organised around four domains, each weighted at 25 percent: Travel and Tourism Industry; Airline and Airport Operations; Fares, Ticketing and Reservations; and Customer Service and Travel Counselling. That split rewards breadth - geography, codes and industry structure on one side, practical fare construction, reservation handling and client-facing judgement on the other - so a candidate who over-prepares on ticketing and neglects industry geography tends to lose marks evenly across the paper rather than in one block. The IATA Consultant study guide has 4 sections and about 1,498 words.
01Travel and Tourism Industry
This domain tests how the travel and tourism industry is structured, who performs which role, and how distribution and consumer rules affect a consultant’s advice. Expect questions on industry organisations, intermediaries, principal-versus-agent relationships, and the commercial flow from supplier to traveller.
414 words, about 2 min02Airline and Airport Operations
This domain tests the operational facts a consultant uses daily: airport and airline codes, time references, connections, baggage handling and special assistance. Questions often ask you to apply a rule to a passenger’s itinerary rather than simply define a term.
374 words, about 2 min03Fares, Ticketing and Reservations
This domain tests fare construction, reservation records and ticket documentation. You need to know how a published fare becomes a quoted price, what a PNR contains, and how tickets, EMDs and refunds/reissues differ.
359 words, about 2 min04Customer Service and Travel Counselling
This domain tests how a consultant identifies needs, communicates accurately, handles accessibility and complaints, and protects client information. The exam favours practical judgement: what you promise, what you confirm, and what you record.
351 words, about 2 min