Technology forum focuses on innovation with glimpses of the future for travel agencies

More than 200 participants from the travel sector got a first look at new research on the current state of affairs of Spanish travel agencies, commissioned by Amadeus Spain jointly with ACAVe (Spain’s Corporate Association of Specialized Travel Agencies).

According to the research, 56% of agencies confirmed that their turnover has increased in the last year. Additionally, two out of three agencies had a positive outlook for the next five years. This is a change after some difficult years in which the number of travel agencies and points of sale declined. Independent agencies were most affected by the crisis, coinciding with consolidation of big travel agency groups.

The research highlighted that only 8% of travel agencies sell through both offline and online channels. Why is that? They are aware that online competition is especially complex and are redefining the value of face-to-face sales. Most brick-and-mortar agencies have returned to direct contact with customers as their key differentiator. Catiana Tur, General Manager of ACAVe, elaborates on why travel agents are changing their strategy to remain competitive.

Travel agents need to keep ahead of the game and quickly adapt to a fast changing and increasingly demanding scenario. Fernando Cuesta, Managing Director for Amadeus Spain, explains his views on how the future of travel distribution will evolve.

The future of travel goes hand in hand with innovation. Fran Romero, Head of Open Innovation Programs at Amadeus, unveils future trends for the travel and tourism sector.