Outside Magazine Recommends Consumers Use Travel Agents for Adventure Trips

The adventure magazine Outside is vouching for the benefits of using travel advisors.

In a travel advice column published this week, titled “Should I Use a Travel Agent? Our Travel Expert Says It Makes All the Difference,” Outside writer Jen Murphy hammers home the value of working with a travel agent.

“Their firsthand knowledge, vast network, and on-the-ground connections all combine to provide a unique perspective for crafting the perfect itinerary for you,” Murphy wrote.

The article cites a recent survey revealing that 38% of millennials and Gen Z-ers are choosing to book through travel agents rather than on their own.

It then shares positive traveler experiences, including the writer’s own, of working with travel advisors. It also cites industry leaders such as Cory Hagopian, senior vice president of sales and partnerships for Virtuoso, and Erika Richter, a spokesperson for the American Society of Travel Advisors (ASTA), as well as several agency owners.

“Knowledge is priceless, and advisors act as your insiders,” Murphy wrote. “They know what you don’t and fill in the blanks of things you might not even have considered.”

At the end, Murphy lists out more than a dozen additional travel agencies that she recommends, including Journey Costa Rica, Southern Visions Travel, and Fora Travel.