I’ve been hearing this question for years now — sometimes directly, sometimes implied.

“Do travel agents still matter?”

It usually comes up whenever there’s a new platform, a new app, or a new promise that travel can now be done entirely on your own. Faster. Cheaper. One click and done.

Most people today can book a flight or a hotel in a few minutes. Globally, more than 70% of travellers now book online, especially for short, straightforward trips.

But booking is not travel. And travel has not become simpler. In fact, it has become more fragile.

What digital platforms have really done is move complexity behind the screen.

The traveller sees options. Prices. Availability. What they don’t see are the layers underneath — airspace permissions, regulatory shifts, visa nuances, transit rules that change quietly and without warning. When everything aligns, it feels seamless. When it doesn’t, things unravel very quickly.

In the Middle East, we see this every day. This is one of the fastest-growing travel regions in the world. A missed connection can mean a missed visa window, an invalid transit, or a traveller stuck between jurisdictions. These are not fringe cases, nor are they outliers. No platform warns you about that in real time. People need experience that understands their requirements and responds accordingly.

One thing we’ve learned over time is this: travellers don’t wake up wanting a travel agent. They want certainty - hence they prefer to speak to a human even after using AI tools to get an idea of their itinerary.

They want to know that someone has thought through what happens if something goes wrong and has the experience & the wherewithal to navigate any issues that may arise. Not theoretically — practically.

This is why, even in highly digital markets, complex travel still moves through human hands. When flights are cancelled or borders shift overnight, travellers don’t want more options. They want answers. They want accountability. They want someone to take responsibility. That’s not something technology is built for yet.

This region is diverse, regulated, and constantly evolving.

A single itinerary here might involve multiple nationalities, multiple carriers, and multiple rulebooks. Add to that changing diplomatic realities and weather disruptions, and suddenly “self-service” becomes guesswork.

Sachin Gadoya, CEO & Co-Founder musafir.com & musafirbiz

Travel agents don’t just book. They interpret. They apply experience from historical data. They understand what usually works, what often doesn’t, and what needs a second look.

That value doesn’t show up when everything goes according to plan. It shows up when you need it the most, with an experienced agent to help you out. 

The global online travel market is expected to cross $1 trillion by 2030. That tells us something important: digital is here to stay. It will only get bigger. But scale doesn’t equal understanding.

Digital systems are very good at answering “what’s available.” They are far less adept at answering “what’s advisable.” That distinction matters more now than it did before. As travel becomes more automated, the consequences of small errors become larger. A wrong assumption. A missed detail. A rule that changed last week. This is where human judgement matters.

Let me be clear — this is not a defence of old ways. The future of travel is digital — but it is not digital alone.

The role of the travel agent has changed, yes. It’s less about transactions and more about judgement. Less about access and more about assurance. Less about selling and more about standing between the traveller and uncertainty. That role is not shrinking. It’s becoming sharper.

The question isn’t whether travel agents still matter. It’s why people keep assuming they don’t. Travel is still emotional. Still unpredictable. Still deeply human.

Until technology can take responsibility, there will always be room for people who understand the system beyond what the screen shows.

In a digital-first world, that human layer isn’t a fallback. It’s the difference between travel that looks good on paper and travel that works well – both functionally & aesthetically.

The writer is CEO & Co-Founder musafir.com & musafirbiz.