Booking a holiday years ago vs now

[Bananamilkshakewirthcream]

I hope no one minds me posting this here.

I was thinking about the way we book holidays these days. I do a lot of research, Google the area/resort, lots of photos of the hotel, read reviews, I even watch YouTube videos of the hotel and area to get a better feel for the place.

Years ago it was a case of just choosing from a brochure or in a travel agent. My first abroad holiday with dh was only a few hundred pounds we simply booked last minute in the travel agent , only looked at a couple of photos.

Can't imagine doing that now.

Funnily enough my dissertation back in 2004 was on Customer buying behaviour and the use of technology. I did a whole section of the history tech in package holidays and flight booking systems dating back to the 50's and then moved up to the current day, which was still minimal b ack then. And it was extremely hard as only about 2 people had been writing about it back then.
It ended with my prediction that traditional methods would gradually fade away as more people got used to technology in their everyday life.lHow right i was.

I remember travelling round India in the late 80s. We’d read about this ‘secret, off the beaten track hostel’ to find if full of our contemporaries also clutching The Rough Guide.

Oh the nostalgia! I love doing holiday research, but really miss the travel brochures, the tickets in the post and the journey planning.
Everything seemed more relaxed then, even though things like Google maps makes journeys easier. If you turned up at a hotel and it wasn't what you expected, at least it wasn't because you'd not read trip advisor properly.
I think I should have had a career as a travel agent as it's my favourite thing to do.