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User-generated travel websites more trusted than agents’, says survey
Travellers trust user-generated reviews more than they trust travel agents’ content, according to new online research by Nielsen//NetRatings.
A survey found that by 20% of respondents said websites like TripAdvisor were the most reliable source of information.
But only 12% said travel agents’ own websites were the most reliable, followed by 11% who chose search engines.
Over half of travellers who take more than five weeks’ holiday each year believe user-generated reviews are the most reliable.
In comparison, no-one taking more than three holidays a year considered travel agents sites to be the most reliable source of information. Only people who take just one holiday a year are likely to prefer taking advice from an agents’ website.
Despite this, 62% UK users turn to search engines when booking holidays, and 36% use travel agent sites.
The research also found user-generated sites are more likely to be considered trustworthy by men than women and by 25 to 34-year-olds.
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
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