Is online comparative shopping for vacations and other travel all that it is “cr

Question

Is online comparative shopping for vacations and other travel all that it is “cracked up to be” or have consumers “lost out” using online shopping for travel when it comes to receiving the benefits of tips and suggestions that were once provided by travel agents with years of experience? The traditional role of the travel agent has changed drastically since the development of the internet. A travel agent was once the only way the modern nomad could visit the outside world, providing destination insight while developing the client’s unique all-inclusive packages. The benefit to this style of travel arrangements was the personal relationship that was developed between the client and agent along with lower commission fees. Examples of industries still using the traditional travel agent are corporate travel, luxury travel, cruises and emerging markets. Some of the issues with the traditional travel agent are bias opinions and lack of knowledge. Travel agents are people like everyone else, they have preferences. Those preferences will affect their opinions. What if the agent has not traveled to the certain destination their client may be interested in? How would the client get the benefit of the insider’s scoop? This is where the online travel agent (OTA) take over. Today’s online travel agent (OTA) dominated world brings its own benefits and shortcomings. North American accounted for $186 billion in OTA sales back in 2015 and continue to grow (Jaaskelainen, n.d.). The reason for this continued growth is ease of use. Travelers can search destinations, read reviews, find the best prices and book the tickets at their convenience. No longer do travelers need to head down to the traditional brick and mortar store or spend hours attached to the phone just to take an overnight trip. The reviews other travelers write can provide first account insights to destinations all over the world both popular and quaint. Of course, nowadays, I’ve noticed everyone is an expert but only give general opinions instead of detailed accounts, nevertheless, there are still some very good reviews. Thankfully, travelers have the option to choose which experience they want, I believe that having options is key. Do you agree? Please discuss

Explanation / Answer

In the age of internet and readily available opinions and reviews from a variety of travellers, both through organized and unorganized forums, an opinion seeker is spoilt for choices. One can plan his /her trip after devoting few hours on internet and filtering the vast information available through his / her own wisdom. This aproach, however has its own benefit sand limitations.

One of the foremost benefits is that the opinion giver has no monetary interest in advocating a property or a service, like the travel agent who would be interested in selling high commission, high returns products rather than beautiful, tranquil place that is unexplored by most travellers but not yielding much for him. Another benefit is that you find much more unexplored places and experiences related to them, than the usual must do places recommended by the forefathers of travel industry.

The downside is that personal experiences are also heavily biased according to individual perceptions. Other issue is that the ameteur travellers are not much conversant with many facts related to the place, and may sometimes quote a wrong place or name of event, creating confusion. Secondly, you get to know what the traveller knows, unlike a professional destination expert.

All in all, one must use his personal wit in selecting the most appropriate, real and helpful reviews, separating them from a heap of opinions, some of them might bear the weight of fatigue, biases, malice, stereotyping,not meeting the expectations they brought with them, stray incidents of bad experiences or finally, the burden of their personal lives. Having options is good, but the skill of selecting the most genuine, helpful and straight from the heart opinions is the key to a great travel experience.

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