Leading travel agencies worldwide

Though brick-and-mortar travel agencies have been a cornerstone of the industry since its inception, in recent years the rise of the online travel market has transformed this sector, with many travel agencies emerging solely as online entities which are referred to as online travel agencies (OTAs). In this respect, the leading travel companies by sales revenue worldwide in 2019, Expedia Group and Bookings Holdings, were such OTAs and operated fully online. While consumers can now book vacations with travel agencies and other travel companies completely online, they also have access to many travel websites that offer reviews of potential destinations. One such website is Tripadvisor, which was the most visited travel and tourism website worldwide as of 2021. Whereas the travel agency sector is currently largely web-based, other companies also rely on physical stores. This is the case of TUI AG, whose worldwide revenues reached almost 19 billion euros in 2019 before sharply declining in 2020 due to the health crisis.

How did COVID-19 affect the travel agency industry?

During the COVID-19 pandemic, worldwide travel was severely limited as countries made efforts to reduce the spread of the virus by enacting travel restrictions. This had a significant impact on all aspects of the worldwide travel industry, including travel agencies. The market size of the U.S. travel agency sector alone dropped by roughly 16 billion U.S. dollars in 2020 following a period of steady growth. Overall, many of the leading travel agencies were hit hard by the impact of COVID-19 in 2020. The worldwide revenue of Booking Holdings dropped to under seven billion U.S. dollars after a steady period of growth lasting over ten years. Expedia Group also experienced similar losses that year, as Expedia’s worldwide revenue across all categories dropped.

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