Jessica Schmid Rescue fund demands German travel trade protests in more than 50 cities For almost four weeks now, German travel agents have been taking to the streets demanding state support in a desperate situation. Small firms in ...more by Holger Jacobs – Tuesday, May 19, 2020
Lufthansa Schedule and rebooking extended Lufthansa preparing for restart and state aid The Lufthansa Group is extending its free rebooking period until the end of 2021. Starting in June, Lufthansa, Eurowings and Swiss will expand their flight schedule. Moreover, the German carrier has disclosed its subsidiaries in "tax havens" in order to obtain state aid. ...more by Holger Jacobs – Monday, May 18, 2020
Getty Images Bankruptcy due to corona More specialist tour operators insolvent The German travel trade is suffering heavily from the corona crisis. Booking cancellations and disappearing hopes for a voucher scheme to prevent large-scale customer repayments force tour operators to file for bankruptcy. But a lot of travel agencies are affected, too. ...more by Holger Jacobs – Thursday, May 14, 2020
Gettyimages Destinations reloaded Travel trade welcomes careful comeback plans Tourism managers in Germany are welcoming plans by Mediterranean and other European destinations to start carefully resuming business as coronavirus lockdown restrictions are eased and borders are re-opened. ...more by Paul Needham – Thursday, May 14, 2020
TUI Corona crisis TUI Group plans to cut up to 8,000 jobs Leaner than before, more efficient, faster and more digital: These are the goals TUI Group CEO Fritz Joussen announced when presenting the company's half-year results. This would mean cuts in investments, costs, size and presence around the world. ...more by Holger Jacobs – Wednesday, May 13, 2020
TUI Group Re-opening plans TUI and DER Touristik present hygiene concepts Europe’s two biggest tour operator groups, TUI and DER Touristik, want hotels to introduce social distancing measures and improve hygiene standards, including by scrapping buffet catering, in order to operate safely once anti-coronavirus travel restrictions are lifted. ...more by Paul Needham – Tuesday, May 12, 2020
Tobago Videos in Corona times Encouraging messages from all over the world "Together strong for the future": This is the slogan of a new initiative of fvw and TravelTalk, the two travel trade magazines published by FVW Medien. In the series of videos powered by the Tobago Tourism Agency, tourism professionals from all over the world are sending encouraging messages to the travel trade. ...more by Holger Jacobs – Tuesday, May 12, 2020
TUI / Christian Wyrwa Financial impact Tourism industry calls for state support The hard-hit German tourism industry is seeking state support to cope with a near-€11 billion Covid-19 financial hit amid continued booking cancellations and disappearing hopes for a voucher scheme to prevent large-scale customer repayments. ...more by Paul Needham – Thursday, May 07, 2020
Cunard Cancellations extended Most cruise vessels stay in harbour until July Most cruise companies have extended their cancellations from May until July because of long-lasting worldwide travel restrictions due to the coronavirus pandemic. Meanwhile, there were bad tidings for TUI Cruises. ...more by Holger Jacobs – Wednesday, May 06, 2020
Getty Images/ Lena Serditova Holiday sales German tour operators start cancelling June bookings Germany has extended its global travel warning until June 14, prompting tour operators to start cancelling bookings throughout May and early June while hoping for a return to holiday sales soon afterwards. ...more by Paul Needham – Thursday, April 30, 2020
Condor After PGL withdrawal Condor gets new state loans of €550 million Condor takes off again: The German leisure charter airline has received clearance from the European Commission for a €550 million state-guaranteed public loan it had applied for in order to avoid liquidity bottlenecks. ...more by Holger Jacobs – Wednesday, April 29, 2020
FVW Medien/RIM Holiday vouchers German tourism industry demands Berlin action The German government should copy a dozen other EU states by introducing a national scheme promoting vouchers for cancelled holiday bookings after Brussels rejected the plan, tourism leaders are demanding. ...more by Paul Needham – Tuesday, April 28, 2020
DER Touristik Reorganisation DER Touristik merges Sentido and LTI hotel brands Game over for LTI: DER Touristik is integrating its traditional hotel brand under the roof of Sentido, a brand it has recently acquired from Thomas Cook. The rebranding is scheduled to be completed by the first quarter of 2022. ...more by Holger Jacobs – Thursday, April 23, 2020
Getty Images Holiday bookings German tour operators already cancel May bookings German tour operators have started cancelling bookings for May as hopes for a resumption of holidays this summer fade away amid the continuing worldwide coronavirus pandemic. ...more by Paul Needham – Thursday, April 23, 2020
CRD Bankruptcy due to corona North America specialist CRD International has to give up Another victim of the corona crisis: CRD International has filed for insolvency. The Hamburg-based tour operator, founded in 1975, has been specialized in selling long-haul trips to North America. ...more by Holger Jacobs – Wednesday, April 22, 2020
FTI fvw interview Sawiris and Gunz see positive future for FTI Group Europe’s third-largest travel group FTI can look forward to a financially solid future and sees new opportunities once holiday sales resume fully, new majority owner Samih Sawiris and CEO Dietmar Gunz told fvw in a joint interview. ...more by Paul Needham – Wednesday, April 22, 2020
Jan Greune Cancelled bookings Tour operators offer incentives for vouchers German tour operators are offering cash and other incentives to persuade customers to accept holiday vouchers for new bookings rather than repayments for cancelled bookings. ...more by Paul Needham – Thursday, April 16, 2020
Tourism Authority of Thailand Corona crisis Tour operators already make 2021 holidays available Due to the corona crisis, all leisure travel by Germans has come to a standstill. While it is uncertain when people can go on holidays again this year, leading tour operators in Germany are already taking bookings for summer 2021. ...more by Holger Jacobs – Thursday, April 16, 2020
Condor Failed deal Condor seeks state aid after LOT pullout German leisure airline Condor is again seeking state support after Polish carrier LOT pulled out of an ambitious takeover deal for the former Thomas Cook Group airline. ...more by Paul Needham – Tuesday, April 14, 2020
FVW Medien/KH Egyptian investor Sawiris plans to take over majority stake in FTI Group Samih Sawiris intends to take over a majority interest in FTI Group. The Egyptian investor is already a shareholder of the Munich-based tourism group and is involved in the financing package which was finalized last week. ...more by Holger Jacobs – Thursday, April 09, 2020
