For awhile, the combination of online travel companies and mobile technology seemed to be the travel agent’s Achilles’ heel, with millions booking flights and hotels online instead of through an agent. Travelers all but forgot that there are people with years of experience in the field who could actually offer better deals and help them save a lot more.

Even Wotif executives has said “People have tended to go back to bricks-and-mortar agencies (when travelling overseas) and that’s been very much our view as to how the market will play out”.

Interestingly, Octopus, the B2C arm of GTA, has just announced they are no longer going direct to public. That’s a financial decision, not

Luckily for travel agents around the world, travelers are now aware  of the limitations of the online travel booking and have begun returning to travel agents.

These are the main reasons:

Knowledge:

Travel agents are experts that will tell you things a website cannot. Agent’s can recommend trips for specific individual needs.   When it comes to the crunch, they also know a way out

Local connections: 

Traveling via an agent can instantly improve the entire trip, from having access to cheaper tickets, better hotel room rates, special local tour discounts etc. The fee a travel agent will charge is eclipsed by the amounts people save because of their agent’s connections.

Convenience:

The point of a holiday is to be able to relax and enjoy the journey, and haggling for room prices, planning the next move, etc. will keep travelers busy on their holidays. Not only are they shooting in the dark by trying to manage things themselves, it is simply unnecessary when hiring an agent can streamline the entire travel experience.

Travel agents have also proved their worth the world over in the wake of crises like Sandy and the Icelandic ash cloud. With thousands of flights cancelled and online travel companies unable to cope with the situation, it was a large number of travel agents who stepped in to manage the excess demand.

With many travelers rediscovering the value of local knowledge and guidance, the travel agent is definitely making a strong comeback.