17 Best Seasonal Jobs That Pay Well

Looking for the best seasonal jobs?

Seasonal jobs are a great way to make extra money without having to work full-time all year. These jobs are perfect if you’re wanting to work part of the year, if you’re looking to make a part-time income, or if you want to try something a little more adventurous.

Depending on what you like and what you’re good at, there are many different jobs that can help you earn a good paycheck.

Plus, I know many, many people who work seasonal jobs and make a full-time income, so the money can be great as well.

17 Best Seasonal Jobs

Below are the best seasonal jobs.

1. Camp counselor

One of the most popular seasonal jobs is being a camp counselor. This can include working at a daytime summer camp or even a week- or months-long summer camp.

This seasonal job revolves around creating a safe and enjoyable environment for campers. This involves running different activities such as games, arts and crafts sessions, leading hikes, and sometimes sharing stories around the campfire.

Typically, camp counselor positions are seasonal and tend to be during the summer months and can be either full-time or part-time.

When it comes to qualifications, a love for the outdoors, being good with kids, and having a responsible and caring demeanor are important.

While the pay can vary, camp counselors many times make around $20 an hour.

This is one of the best seasonal jobs for college students because it typically happens when you are off from school, and it may come with housing!

Recommended reading: 29 Best Jobs In Nature To Make Money

2. UPS

If you want a dependable seasonal job, UPS is a popular option.

My husband actually used to work for UPS for many years (as did his brother and many of our friends), and it is a very popular job for many reasons, such as the great health benefits.

UPS has seasonal positions such as being a seasonal driver helper.

During the holiday season, UPS ramps up its workforce, hiring over 100,000 helpers to manage the gift-giving rush. Positions such as driver helper are always needed and you can expect to earn around $20 per hour.

In terms of the work schedule, expect to work 20 to 30 hours per week. Driver helpers are only hired in October, November, and December.

Recommended reading: 15 Part Time Jobs With Health Insurance

3. Tour guide

Becoming a seasonal tour guide could be a way for you to combine work with your love for travel and adventure. It’s a job where you can share your passion with others while exploring new places.

Tour guiding is a job for anyone who loves talking to people and telling stories. You could guide visitors through a busy city, lead nature adventures, show art and history at museums, or organize trips for groups. There’s a tour guide job to match your interests and skills. To do well, you need to know a lot about the place you’re guiding in and have good communication skills.

Regarding earnings, tour guide pay varies widely. On average, hourly wages range from about $15 to $25, with specialized roles potentially earning up to $30 per hour.

4. Gift wrapper

Gift wrapping is a good winter seasonal job, especially if you are good at wrapping gifts!

Working as a gift wrapper during the holiday season is a great way to make extra money. Many stores hire seasonal gift wrappers to help shoppers. Your job would be to wrap presents quickly and nicely.

Gift wrappers usually earn between $14 and $24 an hour, which can help with your holiday budget. One of the best parts is that you don’t need any experience. Many employers will train you on the job to improve your wrapping skills.

You can check out local malls or stores for seasonal jobs. These opportunities are often advertised at larger shopping centers.

5. Raft guide

If you love the outdoors and adventure, becoming a raft guide could be an exciting and rewarding seasonal job. As a raft guide, you’ll guide customers through the river.

This is an outdoors job that typically happens during the summer and fall, so it is a seasonal job that could be a lot of fun in places like Colorado, California, Utah, Oregon, and West Virginia.

You can find seasonal raft guide jobs by contacting raft companies in popular locations to check for job postings. You can also use social media to join groups and follow pages about outdoor jobs, and networking with current and former guides can give you valuable job leads.

6. Retail sales associate

If you want a job that fits around your life and only lasts for a short time, becoming a retail sales associate might be perfect for you. Many stores hire retail associates for seasonal work. This could also be for full-time or part-time jobs.

As a retail sales associate, your job would be to provide customer service and keep the store running smoothly, such as by checking out customers at the cash register.

There are many stores that hire for seasonal cashier jobs, such as Target, Best Buy, Walmart, Home Depot, Michaels, and more.

Plus, you can typically get a discount when working at a store too! I used to work as a retail sales associate and while customer service can be hard, I also made some great friends and had a good time.

7. Landscaping worker

If you enjoy being outdoors and want to make good money during the warmer months, you can become a landscaping worker. These jobs usually come up in the spring and summer when grass, trees, and flowers grow quickly.

Taking care of lawns is a big part of the job, such as mowing grass, trimming edges, and using fertilizers or pesticides to keep lawns looking nice.

Landscaping jobs usually pay between $15 and $25 per hour, and this can vary based on where you work and how much experience you have.

8. Fireworks stand worker

Running a fireworks stand can be a great way to make extra money, especially during busy times like the Fourth of July.

When I was younger, I had many friends who had summer jobs working at fireworks stands, and while the work was hard (long days in the heat!), they did seem to like it.

Your job at the fireworks stand is important but simple. You’ll sell fireworks to customers, keep the stand looking nice, and handle transactions while keeping track of sales.

9. Ski instructor

If you love snow and want to share that love with others, becoming a ski instructor could be a great winter job for you, as ski resorts are typically open from around November through April.

One thing that many people don’t realize is that you don’t need to be an Olympic skier to become a ski instructor – this is something that you can learn how to teach. I’m not saying that it isn’t hard, though, as this is still hard work!

Ski instructors teach people how to ski and they work outside on the slopes, spending their days teaching beginners and helping more experienced skiers get better.

Your pay as a ski instructor depends on where you work and how much experience you have. New instructors might start at around $18 to $25 an hour. Certified instructors can earn more, sometimes up to $50 an hour or more.

You can look for ski instructor jobs by checking the websites of ski resorts, where they often post job openings. You can also attend outdoor job fairs, especially those focused on winter sports, to meet ski resort representatives and learn about job openings. Plus, networking with current and former ski instructors through social media, forums, and industry events can also be helpful.

10. Tax preparer

If you’re good with numbers and like helping others, being a tax preparer could be a good seasonal job for you during tax season!

Tax preparers help people complete their tax forms. Many companies need extra help from January to April, during the tax filing season.

You don’t have to go to formal school to become a tax preparer, but having the right education and training can help. Many tax preparers start by taking courses or getting certifications in tax preparation from community colleges, trade schools, or online platforms.

Sometimes, this can be remote work too. I actually have my tax return filed remotely each year and have never met my accountant in person, so I personally know that this is real!

11. Bartender

If you want to earn some extra money, seasonal bartender jobs could be perfect for you. These jobs are really popular during the summer and holidays when there are lots of parties and events happening.

Becoming a bartender usually involves a mix of hands-on experience and knowledge. While formal training like bartending courses can help, many bartenders start by working entry-level jobs like barbacks or servers. This lets them learn important skills like making drinks, handling money, and talking to customers.

12. Lifeguard

A job as a lifeguard could be your perfect pick for a summer job. This is one of the top seasonal jobs for teenagers and young adults in the summer.

Lifeguards are really important for keeping swimmers safe at pools or beaches. They watch swimmers carefully to stop accidents and help quickly if someone’s in trouble. Lifeguards are trained to save lives, helping right away and doing rescue techniques if needed. They also know how to give first aid to people who get hurt while swimming.

Lifeguard jobs can pay well, with some jobs paying around $20 per hour as employees for pools and beaches.

13. 1-800-Flowers

If you want to earn extra cash, especially during the holidays, you might want to check out job opportunities with 1-800-Flowers. This well-known company sells flowers and gift baskets.

At 1-800-Flowers, there’s a big need for extra people during busy times like Christmas, Valentine’s Day, and Mother’s Day. You can find seasonal job roles such as:

• Gift assembly – Put together lovely gift baskets
• Distribution – Pack and send off products
• Production – Get the items ready to look nice

14. Fly-fishing guide

A fly-fishing guide can be a year-round job or seasonal, depending on how you approach it.

I know some fly-fishing guides who are guides year-round, where they live in one place (such as in Florida or the Bahamas), and some who travel for 6 months to one fly-fishing area and then spend 6 months in another area. I also know some fly-fishing guides who only guide during the summer months, such as up in Alaska (and they do a different line of work the rest of the year).

So, there are many ways to make this job work for you!

Fly-fishing guides teach people how to fly-fish, share tips on fishing tactics, help with fishing gear, and more.

15. Sports referee

A sports referee can be a seasonal job, and you can choose the sport you want to ref (typically, you’d pick the one you know best or know a lot about). This could be sports like soccer, baseball, and football.

You can find jobs by checking with local recreation centers or job listings in your area.

Referees typically make around $20 to $50 per hour.

16. Parking lot attendant

Some parking lots are open year-round, and others are open only during big events, such as for summer concerts or a sporting event.

Parking lot attendants help cars find spots, take payments, and handle issues.

17. WWOOFer (unpaid but free food and stay)

WWOOF stands for Worldwide Opportunities on Organic Farms. It connects people with organic farms all over the world.

With WWOOF, volunteers can pick a place and country to visit and work on a farm. You can stay for a few days or several months, based on what you and the farm agree on.

In exchange for food and a place to stay, you need to work 4 to 6 hours a day on the farm.

So, WWOOFers do not get paid actual cash, but I did still want to mention this in this article because I know that many people are looking for seasonal jobs with housing.

You might be asked to cut wood, pack items, feed animals, make food, plant seeds, make compost, help with the garden, and do other helpful tasks for the farmer.

Recommended reading: How To Get Paid To Travel The World

Frequently Asked Questions

Below are answers to common questions about how to find seasonal jobs.

What seasonal job pays the most?

The seasonal jobs that pay the most include working as a helper (at UPS), tour guide, raft guide, fly-fishing guide, ski instructor, and bartender. Also, any job where you can get paid in tips tends to pay high.

What are some seasonal jobs with housing?

Seasonal jobs that may include housing include working as a campground worker (such as at a national park or RV park), a camp counselor, and a WWOOFer. Also, certain seasonal gigs like fly-fishing or raft guiding may come with housing as well, such as in places where housing is hard to come by or is very expensive.

What are the best seasonal jobs for college students?

The best seasonal jobs for college students include retail sales associate, camp counselor, and parking lot attendant.

What are the best seasonal jobs in winter?

The best seasonal jobs in the winter include a driver helper for UPS, working on a Christmas tree farm, and becoming a gift wrapper.

Best Seasonal Jobs – Summary

I hope you enjoyed this article on the best seasonal jobs.

Many seasonal jobs not only pay you but also give you unique experiences. You could be a camp counselor and spend time outside with kids, or work as a ski instructor and ski every day. If you’d rather work inside, you could be a sales associate in a store or wrap gifts during the holidays. Other jobs, like tax preparer or fireworks stand operator, are available at certain times of the year and can pay well too.

As you can see, there are many different seasonal jobs that may fit what you’re looking for.

What do you think are the best seasonal jobs?

Recommended reading: