Online? Agents? A bit of both? According to a new study it’s the latter, with more travellers using both the internet and consultants for their getaways.
Roy Morgan research revealed that while booking holidays and accommodation online is now mainstream among Australians of all ages, traditional travel agents retain an important place in the nation’s tourism industry.
Some agencies are even being used by holidaymakers more than their online counterparts, such as Flight Centre, which was the top travel agent/tour operator used to book a holiday by an Aussie over the 12 months to June 2015.
The study found, Flight Centre was used by 9.4 percent of the population for a holiday at least once between July 2014 and June 2015.
This was followed by a stream of online websites such as Booking.com; Wotif.com; Webjet; Expedia; Hotels.com; Stayz; Lastminute.com.au; and Agoda.
Qantas Holidays was named the 10th most used by Australian holidaymakers during the period, with 1.6 percent of bookings.
Helloworld was used by 1.3 percent of the population, a figure the company says was prompted by increased brand awareness, which grew amongst travelling Australians to 34 percent up from 26 percent in November last year.
Michele Levine, CEO, Roy Morgan Research, said data indicated that it’s not all ‘doom and gloom’ for bricks-and-mortar chains, although there is room for them to evolve and remain more relevant in the digital age.
“Not only do Australians still use them (albeit to a much lesser extent than ten years ago), but many are open to the idea of using them for their next trip.”
Michele Levine, Roy Morgan Research CEO
“Particularly for overseas travel, when specialist knowledge and personal service are often required, bricks-and-mortar agents have the edge over their strictly online rivals.”
