BA in Travel and Tourism Studies
Course Overview
The BA in Travel and Tourism Studies is a three-year LSTITM full honours degree in the Tourism and Destination Management department, with 36 months of full delivery or a top-up route for Higher Diploma holders. It builds a broad academic and applied foundation across destinations, business, systems and strategy, and is aligned with references from the Tourism Society, ITT, ABTA and CIM.
By graduation you will hold a full honours degree, a real London placement on your CV, an applied dissertation on a live industry question and a graduate-ready understanding of how the sector trades. The programme layers case studies, structured tutorials and applied assessments across destination branding, visitor economies, community-focused tourism and inbound market development, giving undergraduates targeting a graduate career a route into destination management, tour operations and inbound tourism that recruiters can quickly read on a CV. You will exit the course able to demonstrate front-line judgement in interview scenarios and to answer probing questions about how DMOs, tourism boards, inbound operators and heritage sites operate in the current UK market.
Key Features
- Full three-year BA honours degree with a Level 6 dissertation
- Reference to Tourism Society, ITT, ABTA and CIM standards
- Formal London placement year integrated into the programme
- Applied research project of 8,000 to 12,000 words
- Personalised graduate careers coaching
- Online, on-campus and distance-learning delivery routes
- Case-based assessment covering inbound arrivals, cultural heritage sites, seasonality, DMO governance, community engagement, sustainable visitor economies
- Applied a peer-reviewed workshop format with rolling written feedback
What You Will Learn
- How the global tourism industry is structured across supply and distribution
- How to analyse UK inbound and outbound markets at graduate level
- How to build a full marketing plan for a UK operator or DMO
- How to interpret management accounts for a tourism business
- How to run a small applied research project ethically and honestly
- How ABTA and consumer-protection rules affect trading conditions
- How to present board-ready analysis in written and verbal form
- How to run a London placement while carrying a full academic load
- How London and regional DMOs, national tourism boards, heritage organisations and inbound tour operators apply destination briefing, visitor-economy mapping and cross-partner coordination to real UK trading decisions
- How to structure a written recommendation for a senior UK tourism manager
Who This Course Is For
- School leavers seeking a full undergraduate tourism degree in London
- Higher Diploma holders looking at a shorter top-up route
- International applicants targeting UK graduate tourism careers
- Career changers ready to commit to a full undergraduate qualification
Career Pathways
- Destination Manager (graduate track)
- Tourism Product Manager
- Tourism Marketing Manager
- Tourism Development Officer
- Tourism Consultant
- Tourism Research Analyst
LSTITM's careers service supports BA students through placement, graduate applications and long-run career planning, with strong ties to London-based tour operators, DMOs, OTAs and destination boards.
Entry Requirements
- A-Levels (BBC or above) or IB (26+ points) or overseas equivalents
- A completed Higher Diploma or Advanced Diploma for top-up routes
- IELTS 6.0 overall (no band under 5.5) or equivalent English proficiency
- Personal statement outlining career objectives in travel and tourism
- Two academic or professional references
Why Study at LSTITM
LSTITM is the London School of Tourism and International Travel Management, a specialist division of Harold International College of London focused on destination, business, systems and strategic disciplines. Programmes are aligned with recognised UK bodies including the Tourism Society, ITT, ABTA, CIM and UKHospitality.
Our curriculum is written by former destination directors, tourism consultants and travel-industry technologists and delivered on-campus, online and by distance learning to fit both school leavers and career changers.
Beyond the taught curriculum, BA in Travel and Tourism Studies learners join the wider LSTITM community across London and online, with rolling guest sessions from working professionals in DMOs, tourism boards, inbound operators and heritage sites. These sessions bring the academic depth, research literacy and applied strategic thinking focus of the programme to life through concrete examples, and demystify how modern destination management, tour operations and inbound tourism teams recruit, promote and develop their people. Every learner also receives structured feedback on written assessments so that stakeholder confidence becomes visible in the finished portfolio, ready for interview or promotion review.
The LSTITM approach is deliberate: pair recognised UK professional-body reference points with hands-on tutor guidance, structured tutorials and real case material from London tour operators, OTAs, airlines and destination boards. That combination is what turns the BA in Travel and Tourism Studies into more than a certificate on the wall, and into a piece of evidence that recruiters, promotion panels and consultancy partners can actually use.
Apply for BA in Travel and Tourism Studies
The BA in Travel and Tourism Studies opens for annual intakes at LSTITM's London campus, with online and top-up routes available. Apply for your full LSTITM undergraduate tourism degree and start your London placement journey now. The BA in Travel and Tourism Studies sits inside a wider LSTITM portfolio, so learners on this full BA honours route can move confidently into the next articulation step. Admissions typically responds within three working days, and applicants receive documented feedback on any application query before the next intake window closes. Enrol Now
