If only we had some combination of software and people with expertise in destinations. Maybe we'd call it a travel agent or something like that.
That was snarky. But it points to the historical problem here. Most travel agents didn't/don't have a lot of expertise outside of fairly narrow domains. And they mostly depended on commissions from pretty routine stuff to subsidize labor-intensive planning for oddball itineraries--which I'm guessing can't be easily codified in software.
In fact, I'm sure there are plenty of competent travel planners but they cost money--i.e. are luxury goods--and most people don't want to pay the money.
Do people still use travel agents? The only time I used one (trip was a gift) we had a bad experience. I think pretty much all the younger generation/tech savy people plan their own trips online manually.
A good travel agent makes things so much smoother. Large chains get economies of scale so you don't pay much more than online/manually, but having all the bits and bobs sorted (courtesy calls if anything changes, transfers, etc.)
Some do. (My dad does for one.) For certain types of trips a lot of things aren't online and, even if you do a lot of your own research, it can be easier to have someone else do all the email and even faxing associated with making the actual reservations.
I also sometimes use one myself in specialized circumstances such as when I'm doing a pre-arranged adventure trip of some sort and the company is familiar with logistics and other activities to add-on.
That was snarky. But it points to the historical problem here. Most travel agents didn't/don't have a lot of expertise outside of fairly narrow domains. And they mostly depended on commissions from pretty routine stuff to subsidize labor-intensive planning for oddball itineraries--which I'm guessing can't be easily codified in software.
In fact, I'm sure there are plenty of competent travel planners but they cost money--i.e. are luxury goods--and most people don't want to pay the money.