Why travel apps could never compete with real agents
Why trust an app over a professional? It’s time we gave travel agents the credit they deserve.
Once, on a trip to Japan, a few hiccups resulted in us resorting to the suggestions of a travel app. We ended up in a spot that was supposedly off the beaten track above the clouds shrouding Shikoku’s Iya Valley. We were enjoying the view when we were struck by déjà vu. Weren’t those Austrians, still wearing sweaters with dashimaki tamago stains down the front, the ones from last night’s izakaya? We were in the belly of the booking.com beast.
Luckily, this kind of thing could be on its way out because human travel agents are having a resurgence. According to a recent UK survey, 55 per cent of families now use a bricks-and-mortar travel agent – up from 36 per cent in 2019. It’s good to be in the hands of someone who knows what they’re talking about: the realities of Sri Lanka’s rainy season, for example, or the lodging options in Norway’s deep north. People who might even answer the phone – remember them?
Of the many professions that shouldn’t be lost to technology, travel agents are among the most important, for the same reasons that algorithms can never be maître d’s. Professionals know how to react to the whims of their client. Why would you risk leaving something as vital as a well-earned break to the tastes of a soulless bank of air-conditioned servers in Arizona?
I have been on some wonderful adventures for Monocle but, thanks to our nimble and open-minded travel agent, I have also been able to navigate less-than-desirable trips. One stormy night in Rotterdam, when there were a dozen flight cancellations, I avoided having to stay at a sad airport hotel thanks to our agent’s help in securing a coveted seat. I also appreciate her for her tolerant approach to my (exceedingly rare) absences from flights for understandable reasons – New York parties that settled in for the long haul, say, or meeting my future wife one night. Is there an app for that? Thank you to the real travel agents out there. And thank you, Jill.
