Starting back in the new year is always an exciting time; how do you go, what to expect from the year to come. Whilst it is always dangerous playing Nostradamus, here's some of the things I expect from 2013 for the Australian travel industry.

1.            Trending back towards travel agents

The global trend of 2012 was a shift away from online booking sites back to the travel agent. The shift was less significant in Australia; typical as we tend to be slightly behind the rest of the world when it comes to the adaptation curve on technologies and business processes.

Combined with events like hurricane Sandy (where people realised a person was better to deal with than a website) and the fact agents often have better prices should see this trend continue in Australia through 2013.

2.         A focus on service

With a return back to travel agents will be higher expectations of service as it was probably this factor in online sites that is driving traffic back.

In turn, there will be a greater expectation of service across the industry. With recent news that some wholesalers have not been able to "financially justify" the existence of some of their service centres, they may be deciding their own future.

3.            Changing of the guard

With confirmation that TCF as we know it is to be wound down, there will be a shift in the power base on the Guardian's of the Australian travel industry, across companies and individuals.

This shift in power will see new alliances formed and the rise of the next level of managers , creating an upward pull throughout the different organisations potentially creating new job opportunities in line with a more dynamic industry. There will always be some sideways migration in an effort to hold onto industry wisdom.

Some of the more traditional industry practices will also be challenged as minds open.

4.             The rise of independent groups

Unless my eyes deceive me there seems to have been a large number of franchise closes through 2012; not all of these people are going to disappear from the travel industry.

As these agents consider moving into independent operations,  the wise  will seek the membership benefits of groups like ATAC and Magellan.

5.             A year of growth

The general perception is that Australia weathered GFC significantly better than most countries; we see our glass half empty whilst most global economies see our glass closer to full. In general, this means the average punter has more disposable income.  Roy Morgan research showed more people plan to travel in 2013.

Whilst housing values dropped again throughout 2012, it was a smaller drop than 2011; low interest rates combined, we should see improvement in 2013. People are happier spending when they feel more comfortable on their key assets.

The strong Aussie dollar means that there will continue to be increases in outgoing traffic and expect strong growth from the incoming Chinese market as the growth rates continue to stabilise.