Only 1 in 5 holidaymakers use travel agents?

"Booking a holiday over the internet has become so popular that only one in five people use a travel agent, according to a new survey"

...says the Telegraph

That can't be right!

At least I really hope it isn't, because I have been vigorously arguing for years that the Internet is excellent for buying simple travel products (short breaks for 2, city pair flights) but for anything more complex you should use the Internet for research then pick up the phone and book with a real person at a travel agency or tour operator.

Aaaah! Wait a minute...

Who is Ciao Surveys?

An online shopping community. It turns out they operate a paid survey system. People signed up with them get paid (£1-£5) to fill out online surveys. So hardly a well-balanced random survey sample of the British public. These are people who are almost certainly wedded to their computers and probably buy everything online.

Phew!