Importance of travel agency in the tourism industry?

Answer 1

As a former travel assistant, I see that unfortunately travel agents are dwindling. As more and more people book their vacations and flights online, agents become obsolete. That being said, should you book your travels through...say.....Orbitz, Travelocity, SideStep, etc........you do NOT have a "live body" to assist you, should you run into any issues with your travel plans. Also, if your flights change, or you become stranded (trust me....been there, done that, got the T-shirt...), you do not have a contact to assist you, and you must deal directly with the counter, which can be rather unnerving. Most travel agents are hungry enough that they are searching even the online sites to get you the best deal possible. That has changed with the times. The most difficult thing to book through a travel agent present day, is air travel only. If all you are looking for are plane tickets, it's almost always easier and better just to go online to the airline and book them yourself. You will find, also, that many airlines offer "online discounts". The reason that travel agents are not really dealing with airline travel only, is that the airlines aren't compensating the agents for air travel. If anything, they make a mere $5 off of each ticket. It's not worth their time or effort....ESPECIALLY if something goes wrong during your flight. However, if you are booking a "package" with the agent (whether it be land or sea), airfare is not an issue for the agent. I always advise researching deals online before contacting your agent. Also, I always advise purchasing insurance on your trip. I have had two BIG vacations where a loved one has died while we were on vacation, and insurance covered our trip back and compensated us for the portion of the trip we lost. You just never know....