THE JOURNAL – croissants & CARRY-ONS
The History of Travel Advisors
The history of travel advisors is a remarkable story of how a desire to travel evolved into a profession. Some of the milestones and developments that have led to today’s industry are well-known and documented. Others have been debated among travel historians for decades.
By: Gabby Lopez | Travel Advisor, charlie brown’s goodtime travel
Updated: September 2026
The following is not a definitive history of travel agents. Rather, it’s a journey through some of the most important events, ideas and decisions that contributed to making the industry we know today. It is also a tour of titles – professionals today haven’t always been called “travel agents.”
As you’ll soon see, it is not just titles that have changed over the years. The services offered have changed as well. Some in small ways, and some very big ways. We’ll begin our adventure through time, almost 175 years ago.
1931: Commission and Travel Agents Arrive
With air travel becoming more affordable and commercial transatlantic flights on the horizon, steamship companies were getting nervous. Still seen primarily as a mode of transportation rather than a vacation itself, creating a more inviting and relaxing onboard experience required heavy investment.
At the same time, a small group of tourist agents had banded together to pressure the steamship companies into paying them for recommending their ships to clients. As a result, the idea of commission in exchange for reservations was born. However, when it was announced to the industry, it was not well-received.
Most tourist agents objected to commission. They argued: “We are now paid by our clients to provide honest, unbiased advice. Getting paid from a supplier would cast doubt on that advice!” They also said: “Part of our job is to find the best price, but commission is a reward for doing the opposite – it’s a conflict of interest and we’ll lose their trust.” Some even claimed: “This will be the death of the industry!”
Perhaps the most interesting objection was this: “Accepting commission from suppliers will transform us from consultants representing clients, into sales agents representing travel suppliers.”
Regardless of the objections, getting paid for making reservations was too appealing to resist. In 1931, commission for steamship bookings became the norm. In no time at all, the model spread to almost every sector of the industry.
Fee-based tourist agents still existed, but the newer commission-based travel agents slowly became the majority.
1950: Travel Agent Hobbyist
At this time in our history, it was easy to make a profit just by booking reservations. Airline tickets were expensive with fares controlled by the government in both the United States and Canada. Commission for air was between seven and 10 per cent. A higher rate applied for tickets connected to a foreign independent tour” (aka FIT).
Commission from hotels, rail, cruises and tours were stable, and provided ample revenue. Basically, prices were high and the cost of operating an agency was relatively low. Almost anyone could make money in the business. That was good news and bad news.
Hobbyists flocked to the industry. Many of the regulations and controls which we have today had not yet been established. Travel agencies were opening everywhere, in big cities and small towns across North America. Combo-businesses appeared including travel agency/hair salons and travel agency/luggage and handbag shops.
1960-1970: Reservationist
An executive from a typewriter and office machine company called IBM had a conversation with another executive from American Airlines. IBM had been working on ways to commercialize their new computer system yet no one knew how it could be used. It was a solution looking for a problem.
Airline reservations were an expensive, paper-based, error-prone mess. The airline executive saw the potential in IBM’s creation and in 1963 Sabre was launched. In the years that followed, it moved beyond the confines of reservation departments and into travel agencies around the world.
Computers were a new and mysterious device to the average consumer. To capitalize on the progressive image they offered, it became fashionable for travel agents to take on the title of reservationist, or even computer reservationist. With airline tickets representing the largest source of revenue for most agencies at the time, the title made perfect sense.
1980-1990: Corporate Travel Agent
Although signed in 1978 by U.S. President Jimmy Carter, the Airline Deregulation Act took a few years to fully develop. Canadian airlines were deregulated in 1987. Both promised increased competition, more choices, better service, and lower fares.
Ticket prices indeed fell making it feasible for more business people to travel than in the past. Corporate travel exploded and captured the attention of agencies hoping to ride the wave of success. Becoming a corporate travel agent was the hot trend among travel pros of this decade.
During the same decade, in 1985 America Online became the world’s largest provider of a new (to most people) service called the internet! Its impact on travel would not be fully appreciated for several more years.
1992-2007: Leisure Travel Agent
Following years of declining airfares, increased costs, and multiple bankruptcies, most airlines started on the slow path of commission reductions. By 2002, almost all eliminated commission payments entirely.
On September 11, 2001, the horrific attacks on the World Trade Center in New York grounded all flights in the United States. Beyond the obvious tragedy, there was a near instant collapse of the corporate travel market.
There was also a massive shift back to leisure with the title leisure travel agent becoming the most common title in use. Also, most agencies began charging fees (initially just for air) for the first time since the 1930s.
2017: Travel Consultant
These days, most travel pros use the term travel agent in a generic sense, with most preferring travel consultant, travel advisor or something similar. You might say we have returned to our roots.
Many travel agencies today charge at least some type of fee. There’s more to the story, however, than fees alone. With the Internet and mobile travel apps, getting a reservation is simple for even the most tech-challenged traveller. Bookings are the easy part. Getting the right booking in the right resort, in the right destination for a client’s individual desires, is something only a human consultant can provide.
Perhaps this is one reason so many have adopted a title that more accurately reflects the real value they offer. Much like our travel ancestors from the 1920s, they have discovered that advice, guidance, service, support and peace of mind are things that almost everyone wants. Where there is a need or desire, there is a market to be fulfilled.
2019-2022: The COVID-19 Pandemic – An Unprecedented Challenge
In 2020, the travel industry worldwide was about to be hit by a tsunami. As COVID-19 spread around the world, airlines were effectively shut down. People were told by their governments to stay home. Hotels and resorts were largely empty and cruise ships were forbidden to operate.
The US government shut down all travel in March 2020, days before March break holidays were to begin. Travel agents in the United States (and around the world) worked around the clock for weeks to bring customers home and to cancel future trips. It was chaos.
Travel agencies soon went to zero revenue. Or worse – negative.
Travel advisors then spent months trying to get refunds for their customers. Airlines negotiated financial support from the federal government and tour companies went dormant. Thousands were laid off or let go in the travel industry.
Present Time: Back in Business
After five extremely difficult years, and after losing more than 10,000 travel agents during the pandemic, the industry is now back on its feet and flourishing.
We are lucky to have an agency that was prepared for the pandemic and able to stay operational without going out of business. Our travel advisors are busy again and it’s great to see people exploring the world.