Sign up to access the complete lesson and track your progress!
Unlock This Course
Travel agents play a crucial role in the tourism industry by connecting customers with travel products and services. They act as intermediaries between tourists and service providers like hotels, airlines and tour operators. This session explores the different types of travel agents, how they operate and their importance in the tourism sector.
Key Definitions:
Travel agents can be categorised in several ways based on their business model, size and how they interact with customers. Understanding these different types helps us see how the travel agency sector works.
These are brick-and-mortar shops on the high street where customers can walk in and speak face-to-face with travel consultants. They offer personalised service and expert advice, which many customers still value highly.
Advantages: Personal service, trusted face-to-face advice, help with complex bookings
Examples: Independent local travel agencies, Trailfinders, Kuoni
These operate exclusively online, allowing customers to research, compare and book travel products through websites or apps. They typically offer a wider range of options and often at competitive prices.
Advantages: 24/7 availability, easy price comparison, convenience
Examples: Expedia, Booking.com, Lastminute.com
These are large chains of travel agencies with many branches, often found on high streets across the country. They benefit from brand recognition and economies of scale.
Examples: TUI, Hays Travel
Smaller businesses, often family-owned, that operate one or a few branches. They typically offer more personalised service and may specialise in certain types of holidays or destinations.
Examples: Local travel agencies in your town
Groups of independent travel agents who join together to increase their buying power with suppliers and share marketing costs. They remain independently owned but gain some benefits of larger organisations.
Examples: Advantage Travel Partnership, The Travel Network Group
Another important way to categorise travel agents is by their market focus:
These sell a wide range of travel products to appeal to many different types of customers. They offer everything from package holidays to cruises, city breaks and long-haul adventures.
Advantages: One-stop shop for all travel needs, wide choice of products
Examples: TUI, Thomas Cook (before its collapse)
These focus on specific types of holidays, destinations, or customer groups. Their specialisation allows them to offer expert knowledge and tailored products.
Types of specialisation:
Examples: Ski Solutions (skiing), Dive Worldwide (diving), Saga (over-50s)
Understanding how travel agents earn revenue helps explain their business models and how they operate:
TUI is Europe's largest travel company and operates as both a tour operator and a travel agent. This vertically integrated model means they can create their own holiday packages and sell them through their high street shops and website.
TUI owns hotels, cruise ships and even airlines (like TUI Airways), allowing them to control the entire holiday experience. By owning these assets, they can keep more profit within the company rather than paying commission to other suppliers.
This approach differs from independent travel agents who primarily sell other companies' products. TUI's model has helped them remain profitable even as traditional commission-based travel agency models have struggled.
Travel agents can also be categorised based on the direction of travel they facilitate:
These sell holidays and travel services to residents of their country who want to travel abroad. Most high street travel agents in the UK are primarily outbound agents.
Examples: Most UK high street agencies
Also known as incoming tour operators, these specialise in arranging travel services for visitors coming to their country. They often work with overseas travel agents rather than directly with tourists.
Examples: British Tours, ECT Travel
These focus on arranging travel within their own country for domestic tourists. They specialise in local attractions, accommodation and transport options.
Examples: Agencies specialising in UK breaks like cottages or city stays
The needs of business travellers differ significantly from holiday travellers, leading to specialised travel agents:
These specialise in managing travel for corporate clients. They focus on efficiency, policy compliance and providing detailed reporting on travel spending.
Key services:
Examples: American Express Global Business Travel, Corporate Traveller
These focus on holiday travel for individuals, couples and families. They emphasise destination knowledge, accommodation quality and creating memorable experiences.
Key services:
Examples: Most high street travel agencies
The travel agency landscape has changed dramatically in recent years:
While not a traditional travel agent, Airbnb has disrupted the travel industry by connecting travellers directly with accommodation providers. Founded in 2008, it now offers millions of places to stay in over 220 countries.
Airbnb has expanded beyond just accommodation to offer "Experiences" - activities hosted by locals - creating a more complete travel platform. This demonstrates how the lines between different types of travel intermediaries are blurring.
Traditional travel agents have had to adapt to this competition by emphasising their expertise, customer service and ability to create complete holiday packages that platforms like Airbnb don't offer.
Travel agents come in many forms, from traditional high street shops to online giants and from general agents selling everything to specialists focusing on niche markets. Despite challenges from direct booking and online platforms, travel agents continue to play an important role in the tourism industry by providing expertise, convenience and reassurance to travellers.
The most successful travel agents today are those who have adapted to changing consumer preferences by offering unique value through specialisation, exceptional service, or technological innovation. Understanding the different types of travel agents and their business models helps us appreciate the complex ecosystem of intermediaries that connect tourists with travel experiences.