At the Advantage conference in Valencia this weekend, the agent consortia revealed recent research that shows consumers are increasingly opting for ‘non-packaged’ holidays.
Research carried out among 1,000 adults in March, showed that 41% said they preferred to take a ‘non-packaged’ holiday – choosing elements of a holiday to meet their specific needs.
Colin O’Neil, sales and marketing director at Advantage Travel Centres said: “This is particularly good news for independent travel agents as this is just the type of travel for which they are renowned.”
“The internet has undoubtedly become a useful tool for holidaymakers in their search for travel and destination information but our research shows that they still want to speak to an expert to make the actual booking. It will be agents, such as Advantage members, who combine a comprehensive, informative website with a high street presence and impartial advice to offer just what consumers are looking for.”
However, in the conference panel discussion, “Unchartered Territory: Is this the end of the package holiday?”, Simon Calder, Travel Editor, The Independent, said the industry should do more to emphasise the benefits of booking a holiday through the trade, in particular the degree of consumer protection given when booking a package holiday. He said: “this sort of value is tangible”, and that the trade should promote it, especially as with the rise of the internet and low-cost airlines “millions believe they can do a better job than travel agents”.
David Holland, Sales Director, Travel 2/Travel 4, said the perception of the package holiday must change to take into account increasing consumer demand for independent packages. He said: “The trade must build in flexibility to deliver independent packages that combine quality touring products with the no-frills scheduled airlines”, delivering what he called “Package with a small ‘p'”.
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