Travel Advisors Resist Rivals’ Direct-Booking Efforts

Lawmakers in U.S. states are once again eyeing travel agencies and other service providers as a likely source of new tax revenue. Tax proposals in Connecticut, Utah, and Nebraska would require travel agencies, along with others who provide professional services, to be subject to state sales tax. For many agencies, it could be a final nail in the coffin.

A vigorous grassroots campaign led by the American Society of Travel Advisors, which has been successful in helping squash similar proposals in the past, is under way in all three states. These proposals may also come to naught, but a general trend among states to target service industries for revenue means that complacency is not an option.

The trade group is also rankled by other perceived threats to advisors, including a Today Show segment touting the savings provided by Costco Travel and Four Seasons’ ads on Facebook offering perks for direct bookings. While annoyed, advisors told Skift that big companies should realize that “the little guys can fight back.”

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Any suggestions for the coverage you would like to see are welcome. Feel free to contact me at mbl@skift.com.

— Maria Lenhart, Travel Advisor Editor

Featured Stories

Four Seasons and Costco Direct-Booking Efforts Irk Travel Advisors: A recent Today Show segment touting Costco Travel is riling ASTA, as are Four Seasons ads on Facebook promising perks for direct bookings. Travel advisors are irked as well, but are finding ways to hold their own.

Would Tax Law Proposals Kill Travel Agencies in Some States? As states look for new sources of tax revenue in the service-driven economy, businesses like travel agencies are viewed as likely targets. Part of the problem is ignorance among legislators of how agencies operate and why added taxes would be devastating for many.

Airlines

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Tourism

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Wyndham’s Former Vacation Rentals Business Gets Rebranded Under Private Equity Owners: The name itself is kind of irrelevant. What matters is that Awaze is now a proper company rather than a division.

Skift Travel Advisor Editor Maria Lenhart [mbl@skift.com] curates the Skift Travel Advisor Innovation Report. Skift emails the newsletter every Tuesday. Have a story idea? Or a juicy news tip? Want to share a memo? Send her an email.