Hotel porters are often the first people to greet guests at a hotel. Their work includes:

• helping guests by carrying luggage and showing them to their room
• advising on hotel facilities
• arranging taxis and parking cars
• looking after keys
• running errands, such as taking and picking up dry cleaning
• taking messages
• giving directions
• answering queries and making reservations.

If the hotel has a conference suite, the porter may be responsible for moving and setting up equipment. In a large hotel, duties may be more specialised.

Hours and Environment

Full-time hotel porters usually work around 40 hours a week on a shift system, depending on the hotel. Part-time or seasonal work may be possible. Split shifts and overtime are common.

Hotel porters spend most of their time on their feet, both indoors and outside. They carry heavy or awkward loads such as luggage, laundry, furniture and conference equipment.

Skills and Interests

To be a hotel porter, you should:

• enjoy working with people
• be friendly and welcoming
• have good communication skills
• have a smart appearance
• have stamina and a reasonable degree of physical fitness
• be able to cope with bending, lifting and carrying.

Entry

You do not need formal academic qualifications for this job although some employers ask for a good general education.  It is likely to be an advantage if you have experience of working with the public.

If you are applying for a job where you are expected to serve alcohol you will need to be 18 or over.

You will need a full driving licence if your job involves parking guests' cars. 

If you are aged between 16 and 24 you might be able to enter the hotel industry through an apprenticeship scheme. Please see the Training section for more information.

Training

You will usually be trained on the job by experienced staff. 

You may be able to work towards:

• NVQ/SVQ Level 1 in Hospitality (Multi-skilled)
• NVQ/SVQ Level 2 in Multi-Skilled Hospitality Services. 

Apprenticeships may be available for those under the age of 24. In England these are currently Apprenticeships (level 2) and Advanced Apprenticeships (level 3). To find out more about these, visit www.apprenticeships.org.uk

Apprenticeships may be different in other areas. For further information see Scotland , Wales and Northern Ireland

Opportunities

There are plenty of vacancies for porters throughout the UK, although this varies depending on the region.

Prospects depend on the size of the organisation. There is no career structure in small hotels and you may need to change employers in order to progress. Larger and well-known hotels are more likely to have a career structure that will allow you to progress to the position of head porter or concierge. There may also be the opportunity to move to a front-of-house job.

Annual Income

Figures are intended as a guideline only.

To start, a hotel porter may earn around £10,000 a year.
With experience, salaries may rise to between £12,000 and £15,000 a year.
A head porter at a large hotel can earn up to £22,000 a year.

Additional income may be generated through shift allowance, overtime and tips.

If accommodation and food are provided they will be deducted from salary.

Further information

2nd Floor
Armstrong House
38 Market Square
Uxbridge
Middlesex
UB8 1LH
Tel: 0870 060 2550