Online booking addressed at Tourism Roadshow

An online booking system for tourism operators on P.E.I. was a hot topic at Wednesday night's Tourism Roadshow meeting in Charlottetown.
According to many operators, the system, which allows tourists to book rooms at roughly 200 motels, hotels and bed and breakfasts across the Island on the Department of Tourism homepage, is putting the personal touch many operators pride themselves on at risk.
"Our big fear is that I'm used to dealing with customers on a personal basis," said George Lund, owner of the Tourist Motel in Winsloe.
"I worry about losing that personal touch."
He added that booking rooms over the phone gave him a chance to talk with the people planning to stay at his motel and get a feel for who they are before he even meets them in person. With the new system, that allowance is lost.
"It's a changing world," he said.
But according to Sebastian Manago, director of consumer sales and customer relationship management with the Department of Tourism, operators like Lund aren't losing anything.
Manago said while booking online means people no longer have to make a phone call to the motel or hotel they are planning on staying at, it doesn't take away from the personal touch operators have when the visitor arrives.
If anything, he feels the online system is a benefit to smaller tourism operators.
"We have to remind people of the benefits," he said. "Small bed and breakfasts now have the same booking capabilities as the Delta."
He added the department understands the fears some operators have, but stressed that these issues have come up before during meetings and he wants operators to understand that nothing is being lost.
"It takes nothing away," Manago said of the online booking system.
"(Tourism) is a very personal industry and we understand that. But we want them to know that they have the option. You will still see that person, you will still be able to talk to them."