Travel agent
Travel and tourism are perhaps the world's largest industry, with some $2 trillion in annual travel related sales around the world. The travel industry plays a major role in the spheres of business, recreation, and family life. During the last decade, a number of irreversible changes have modified the travel industry, primarily making travel, especially air travel cheaper thus promoting mass travel. Even the changes is the hotel industry, lessened restriction on international visas in predominantly tourist destinations have also facilitated the growth of international business and business travel agent and will continue to fuel greater travel.
Discount airfares are order of the day and budget airlines have been at the forefront of a remarkable transformation of the travel industry. Perhaps more importantly, they have also led the way in changing our attitudes to the way we travel and the way we book our holidays.
The impact can be seen on an almost daily basis. Many of the Airways announced a major restructure of its direct sales operations as a result of changing customer behavior and increased website sales and competition among themselves.
With prices falling, and the number of air routes expanding it is bringing the travelers a different choices and low prices.
Travel agent
Till yesterday, travel agent was an integral part of the tourism industry. Agents linked all the spheres of travel activity, whether it is airline services, train services, road travel services, and hotel industry, and held a pivotal responsible position in the growth of travel business. Today his position is threatened with the advent of the technology driven online services.
Even the emergence of the budget airlines is having a huge negative impact on the tour operators industry, spelling disaster for many operators. Either they have to respond to the changes in the marketplace or perish.
There are significant changes in the relationship between travel agent and the rest of the industry due to the radical
changes. Traditionally travel agents receive their commission basing on the number of travel bookings, but as people are booking directly, the airliners are deciding to either cut the commission to travel agents, or get rid of them completely. Many smaller agents are unable to survive this change and are vanishing from the scene. Where as the bigger agents have to adjust and alter the way to operate.
Now, travel agent have started to charge the customers to make up for the loss of commission. They also got into offering services, like travel insurance, and other specialty services to cover up the revenues.
If people are booking for example a simple A to B destination booking then they are accessing the on-line and making the booking by surfing and finding the cheapest price. However, for a complicated travel arrangement where they need connecting flights or to stay at different hotels, more likely they book through a travel agent or specific tour operator.
This situation has resulted in the growth of 'dynamic packaging', where tour operators are offering more than just flight bookings and provide you with car hire, to a hotel accommodation to guided tour of destinations.
Other Articles
