Holidaymakers are building their own breaks on the internet, leading to a 45% rise in closures of travel agents and tour operators in the past year, according to accountancy firm Wilkins Kennedy.
The company claims the economic downturn has prompted people to take shorter DIY holidays in the UK or mainland Europe rather than long-haul packages.
The trend caused 77 travel agencies and tour operators to go bust in the year to March 31, up from 53 in the previous 12 months.
Despite a pick-up in the UK economy, Wilkins Kennedy partner Anthony Cork said the recession accelerated the decline as consumers learnt to book holidays without the help of a travel agent.
“Travel agents on the high street were once the first and only port of call for booking holidays, but the tide has turned and we are now seeing online booking services and price comparison sites taking over,” Cork said.
An ABTA spokeswoman said: “The total number of both ABTA and ATOL failures over this period was 17, which is low compared with previous years.
“Since ABTA and ATOL represent the vast majority of travel businesses in the UK, the figure quoted by this firm of accountants relating to travel agent and operator failures looks to be way off the mark.
“The majority of travel businesses have successfully adapted their businesses to accommodate changing consumer booking habits, while research shows that a majority of consumers consider the ABTA and ATOL badges as important or essential when booking their holiday.
“There is also a very serious issue to consider here in terms of holiday booking fraud – the Police and Get Safe Online have advised consumers not to pay directly by bank transfer into an individual’s bank account, a message that ABTA supports.”
Steve Wilson, chief marketing officer at Icelolly.com, said: “Icelolly.com has seen a big increase in the number of people visiting the site to compare deals on holidays in the past year.
“Consumers are much savvier about how much can be saved by shopping around, and price comparison sites can give them access to thousands of deals that are often far cheaper than prices quoted by high street agents.
“Customers have become far more confident about shopping around online and as they use comparison sites to shop around for insurance, utilities and personal finance, it’s only natural that they’d use them to get a good deal on holidays as well.”