The Thomas Cook Affair

What a sad and strange week it has been so far in the Travel Industry world. I’m sure by now you will all of seen the sad demise of the Thomas Cook group when it went into liquidation early on Monday. It left over 100,000 people stranded whilst on holiday countless people having to make alternative future travel plans and saddest of all is that around 20,000 people worldwide currently without a job!

I like many of the other people in the travel industry started my travel journey through Thomas Cook on what was supposed to be a 6-week tempory role as a Foreign Exchange cashier at the age of 19 and here I am still in travel a great 26 years on. Lots of the other specialist cruise consultants and the management team here have also worked for Cooks and the number of people we all know that are affected is heartbreaking.

I know a lots of people have holidays booked and it is not nice at all to have to make alternative arrangements. I myself am booked with Cooks to go away in March 2020 to Tenerife and now have to make alternative arrangements. I like everybody else are very lucky that we have Atol protection so I can claim my money back and put it towards my new booking.

For any customers that we have with cruises booked with the likes of P&O who use Thomas Cook flights to the Caribbean and Malta don’t worry the cruise lines are sourcing alternative flights for you so no need to worry. Likewise, anyone who is booked with Marella cruises and asked about flights Marella are part of the Tui group so the flights are Thomson and not Thomas Cook so again no need at all to worry.

What I have seen so far is the very best and very worst of travel in my opinion. The Best is the way everybody is trying to help customers that have been affected and the way the whole industry has pulled together to help get Thomas Cook customers and staff home. On the travel sites for agents that I am a member of everybody and I mean everybody is trying to offer support in the best way that they can. The amount of companies including ourselves trying to help get staff back into work as soon as possible is just awesome. I’m seeing people on a daily basis posting about how they have got new jobs already. I know I am biased when I say this but travel really does pull together like no other industry.

What is the very worst thing I am seeing at the minute is the profiteering I am seeing from the Low-Cost and Major Airlines, and Tour Operators. The price hike in the last few days is shocking. I know the old saying of supply and demand but some of the increases I am seeing and hearing about make me sick. My own holiday for example when I heard Cooks were in trouble I checked it with Jet2 and when I went to book it a few days later it was nearly £300 more for two of us for a 7-night self-catering holiday in none school holiday dates.

I hope this is not a sign of things to come for the package holiday market now that one of the big 3 is no longer around to compete and more importantly I hope everyone who has been affected by Cooks collapse gets sorted soon and that all the great people who worked there that they find new roles so that they can help with your future travel plans.

I was very proud to be one of many who did not just book it, but Thomas Cooked it!