The Impact of the Internet on Saudi Arabia Travel Agencies

This study investigates the impact of the Internet revolution on travel agencies on Saudi Arabia¡¯s travel agency market. A reliable and valid three-part questionnaire was developed: the first part collects the basic information on the travel agencies; the second part examines the extent to which travel agencies use the benefits of the Internet for their operations; the last part measures the real impact of the internet on travel agencies with four dimensions. A sample of 50 travel agencies fully participated in this study. The descriptive data of the sample indicates that the travel-agency industry in Saudi Arabia is still very small; more than 50% of the agencies operate with less than five employees in one or two branches only. More than 55% of the agencies have less than four years of experience and relatively small capital. In addition, the descriptive data reveals that 72% of the agencies in the sample do not have their own websites, and only 4% of the agencies have websites with features that complete customers¡¯ transactions without human involvement. The main results assure the importance and the benefit of using the Internet for Saudi Arabia travel agencies; however, they have not yet used most of its advantages. Moreover, they do not see any threat or negative impact to their business from the Internet. A number of recommendations have been provided to this industry, such as using the power of the Internet as a global competition tool, and the opportunity of a major emergence among travel agencies in this market.