WHO'S NEXT

[Steve Cash]

After Kiss,  flights , Goldtrail and Sun4U who will benext , some papers sorry the NOTW today have stated 20 businesses going bust iby the end of the year , and here in the travel weekly magazine which is used a lot by the industry they name

Olympic Holidays ,Viking holidays and Low Cost holiday

http://www.travelweekly.co.uk/Articles/2010/08/19/34513/editors+letter+after+kiss+the+question+on+everyones+lips+is+whos+next.html


think i will look at booking my next flight which will be December with one of the big operators , but again they have issued profit warning all ready this year and when i worked for mytravel after the 9/11 it was touch and go for them but having spoke to a mate still in the industry was NOWHERE near as bad as it is at the moment

[Alan]

Not that I'm the kind of person who would ever use a tour operator.... I do feel for those that are!

A friends daughter turned up at Manchester last week only to be told whe was going nowhere.

[Steve Cash]

Unfortunately Alan it looks like its the safest way , i personally think there will not be many Budget holiday companies around in the next year or two , so using the big three or making a package with Alpharooms and maybe a well established Budget airline like Monarch will be the answer , problem is the big three's airlines suctions will start to hike prices for flight onlys and looking at some brochures recently the choice of accommodation has dropped a lot especially in PDC , Luckily people can use froums like this and will get reliable info for booking direct with accomodation but a lot of peole are using high street travel agencys at the moment , last week the 2 they have in Wilmslow , Thomsons and Thomas Cook were heaving at the weekend and i read that the one place in Prestbury that is doing anything like a profit in the village is the travel agents

Hopefully i t will pick up but as i said speaking to people still in the trade and reading it may take quite a few budget operators and airlines and maybe one of the big ones to go under before its sorted


and if a place like Goldtrail that dealt mainly with Turkey and the greek islands goes under that is very worrying for the canaries and the eurozone all in all


wont stop me just need to sort out a timeshare of the oldies and then sort out a flight, sod it even if its via madrid

[Steve Cash]

A friends daughter turned up at Manchester last week only to be told whe was going nowhere.

Yep that would have been Kiss Flights who i booked with for September , so i was lucky enough in a way not to turn up at the airport , but saying that its only 3 miles away now so would just have walked home

oh and something i did read it may be on the article i posted that Viking are 50%owned by the same person who owned Kiss Flights and theyhave cut their fleet down , they fly from Gatwick mainly but also Manchester and its the MCR that has been cut back , dont think i will bother with them

[ALIgator]

friend of mine booked with sun4u, when she contacted hotel to re-book direct they didn't even have a booking for her, yet sun4u had the money. she will eventually get money back as paid with credit card but was told can take 4mths plus.

[Steve Cash]

yeah thats the problem i am waiting for a refund but cant book anything else at the moment till i get it , and reading the articles experts are expecting the majority of companies going under to happen after the summer holidays , so will leave mine to a bit later

[Alan]

Only ever did a package holiday once. Virgin Holidays - what a bunch of w***ers.....

I made, to be fair, a minor conplaint, not about them, but the manager of the hotel. Didn't really expect anything. But the initial reply was so bloody arrogant "We're Virgin, how very dare you...."! I got into a whole protracted debate with them about their manner, which continued in the same tone. Had they just said sorry at the time I'd have been happy.

After being personally shunned by the devil in disguise (Branson - I loathe the man! At least O'Leary doesn't pretend to be something he is not), and me politely explaining to them I would never, ever, buy a virgin product again - they sent me a 10% discount on the my Virgin holiday (I had just promised them I was never going to book). Idiots, a prime example of not to deal with a complaint. Of course this ended when I told them exactly where to put it.

I have used Virgin twice since to be fair, but both times when there was NO alternative. And, I still relay the story to whoever I can, whenever I can. Don't be fooled Virgin sucks! Off topic I know....

[Tshaddy]

I didnt book with a tourist company, I find it cheaper and easier to book direct now, Just have to book flights, but I make sure the it is a well known company. I think alot of people will start to book direct. I am so greatful to this forum. If I was stuck for accomodation I no I can rely on this.
Every hotel we go to now we ask for an email or website. You save loads and cut out the middle man. We did that for Egypt and saved a few hundred pounds.
Budget holidays are getting as dear as the top tourist companies, thats why people arnt using them as much.
I dont think I will ever use a tourist company again. Cheaper to book direct, and if unsure check on forums like this one, you cant go wrong.  

[Steve Cash]

Used them once and had the total opposite , brilliant flight to Miami from Gatwick and due to younger sister working at Mcr at the time got upgraded to first class on the way over didnt have a ot to do with them at the resort but stayed in a wyndham hotel that was 99% Americans or Canadians and the food was out of this world

Kuoni or Hayes and Jarvis now thats another matter

[ALIgator]

friend of mine booked with sun4u, when she contacted hotel to re-book direct they didn't even have a booking for her, yet sun4u had the money. she will eventually get money back as paid with credit card but was told can take 4mths plus.

Luckily she had booked flights separately.

I have flight with flybe booked for next hols and accomodation with alpharooms.

[Steve Cash]

one thing i have done when especially in Lanza or even somwhere else i have liked like Cyprus is gone into a complex and asked for a card or leaflet which has the email addy on or a telephone number and when i get home file them , always get reasonable prices when i have enquired later , apart from one place where they were a bit funny but i was at the pc in the recepption and also asked them the day before at the desk LOL

[Steve Cash]

friend of mine booked with sun4u, when she contacted hotel to re-book direct they didn't even have a booking for her, yet sun4u had the money. she will eventually get money back as paid with credit card but was told can take 4mths plus.

Luckily she had booked separately.

I have flight with flybe booked for next hols and accomodation with alpharooms.

Problem i have is being next door to Manchester i dont wan to really fly from anywhere else unless its so good a deal , and there are not a great amount of bargains to be had from Manchester at the moment

i have found Espana Breaks coming up with good prices 

[Alan]

Used them once and had the total opposite , brilliant flight to Miami from Gatwick and due to younger sister working at Mcr at the time got upgraded to first class on the way over didnt have a ot to do with them at the resort but stayed in a wyndham hotel that was 99% Americans or Canadians and the food was out of this world

Kuoni or Hayes and Jarvis now thats another matter

Never had any problem with Virgin as an airline. Had it not been for the attitude of the holiday company they would have always been my choice for transatlantic. But, the above cost them - I had a period of about 4 years where I travelled to the US 3 or 4 times year. Always went AA or BA on principle....

[Alan]

Back to the subject. I think the days of the (at least the minor ones) tour operators are coming to an end... As with many other industries, in an Intenet savvy world the customers and the providers are realizing that both can benefit from cutting out the middleman. As a business model, it can't last indefinitely.

[Steve Cash]

Back to the subject. I think the days of the (at least the minor ones) tour operators are coming to an end...

too true mate , think its going to be the big 3 as i said , maybe a big 2 and they will start , well they have started to use more places outside the Eurozone like Bulgaria and more Turkey