MyTravel Group plc was a British, global travel group headquartered in Rochdale, England. It was founded in 1972 as Airtours Group. The group included two in-house airlines, MyTravel Airways UK and MyTravel Airways Scandinavia, and various tour operators around the world. On 19 June 2007, the group merged with Thomas Cook AG to form the Thomas Cook Group plc.
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| Formerly | Airtours Group plc |
|---|---|
| Company type | Public |
| LSE: MT-S FTSE 250 Component | |
| Industry | Hospitality, tourism |
| Founded | 1972 (as Airtours Group) |
| Founder | David Crossland |
| Defunct | 19 June 2007 |
| Fate | Merged with Thomas Cook AG |
| Successor | Thomas Cook Group plc |
| Headquarters | Rochdale, England |
Key people | Michael Beckett (Chairman) Peter McHugh (CEO) |
| Products | Charter and scheduled passenger airlines, package holidays, cruise lines, hotels and resorts |
| Revenue |  £2,790 million (2006) |
Number of employees | 13,000 (2006)[1] |
| Parent | Thomas Cook Group (2007) |
| Subsidiaries | MyTravel Tour Operations MyTravel Airways (UK) MyTravel Airways Scandinavia BCT Travel Group Direct Holidays Tjæreborg Spies Ving ALBA Tours Sunquest Vacations |
The successor to MyTravel Group: Thomas Cook Group, entered Compulsory liquidation on 23 September 2019.
History
editThe group was founded under the Airtours brand in 1972, when David Crossland purchased a series of small travel agencies in Lancashire, United Kingdom.[2] The group began operating package holidays and launched its own in-house charter airline, in the early 1980s.[2] It offered their first charter flights to the Caribbean in 1987 for just £299.[3]
In 1994, Airtours purchased Scandinavian Leisure Group and in 1996 it bought Simon Spies Holding, a Danish rival.[4]
In 2002, Airtours Group plc, rebranded under the new company-wide banner of MyTravel Group plc. This included a name change for Airtours International and Premiair to MyTravel Airways.[5]
In November 2003, MyTravel sold off its North America Cruise Division to NLG (National Leisure Group) of Woburn, Massachusetts.[6]
On 12 February 2007, MyTravel Group plc announced that they had agreed terms on a merger with Thomas Cook AG to form Thomas Cook Group plc.[7]
Operations
editTour Operators
edit| Name | Country | Fate |
|---|---|---|
| MyTravel Tour Operations Limited | United Kingdom | Merged into Thomas Cook Tour Operations[7] |
| Panorama Holiday Group Limited | United Kingdom | Transferred to Thomas Cook Group (2007)[7]
Dissolution (2014)[8] |
| BCT Travel Group Limited | United Kingdom | Transferred to Thomas Cook Group (2007)[7]
Rebranded to Thomas Cook Scheduled Tour Operations Limited (2008)[9] Dissolution (2015)[9] |
| Direct Holidays plc | United Kingdom | Dissolution (2013)[10] |
| Tjæreborg | Denmark Finland |
Transferred to Thomas Cook Group (2007)[7] |
| Spies | Denmark | Transferred to Thomas Cook Group (2007)[7] |
| Ving | Denmark Norway Sweden |
Transferred to Thomas Cook Group (2007)[7] |
| ALBA Tours | Canada | Transferred to Thomas Cook Group (2007)[7] |
| Sunquest Vacations | Canada | Transferred to Thomas Cook Group (2007)[7]
Sold to Red Label Vacations (2013)[11] |
Airlines
edit| Airline | Country | Image | Description | Fate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MyTravel Airways Limited | United Kingdom | 
|
MyTravel Airways Limited was a British scheduled and charter airline, formerly known as Airtours International. | Transferred to Thomas Cook Group (2007)[7] Merged with Thomas Cook Airlines UK (2008)[7] |
| MyTravel Airways A/S | Denmark | .jpg)
|
MyTravel Airways was a Scandinavian scheduled and charter airline. | Transferred to Thomas Cook Group (2007)[7]
Rebranded to Thomas Cook Airlines Scandinavia (2008)[7] |
References
edit- ^ "Corporate Responsibility text from the 2006 Annual Report" (PDF). MyTravel Group plc (archived). 2006. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 March 2007. Retrieved 9 November 2019.
- ^ a b "Journey's end for the king of the costas?". The Guardian. 19 November 2000. Retrieved 21 September 2019.
- ^ "Profile: Rise of the holiday maker: David Crossland will be in his". Independent.co.uk. 7 March 1993. Archived from the original on 18 June 2022. Retrieved 27 November 2017.
- ^ "£10m Danish buy takes Airtours to Finland". The Independent. 16 February 1996. Archived from the original on 18 June 2022. Retrieved 21 September 2019.
- ^ "Airtours and Going Places pilot new My Travel brand". The Drum. 6 March 2002. Retrieved 21 September 2019.
- ^ "National Leisure Group Becomes Largest Cruise Seller with Acquisition of MyTravel's U.S. Cruise Brands". Businesswire. 21 November 2003. Retrieved 21 September 2019.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m "MyTravel and Thomas Cook merging". BBC News. 12 February 2007. Retrieved 6 October 2013.
- ^ "Panorama Holiday Group Limited". Companies House (HM Government). 9 November 2019. Retrieved 9 November 2019.
- ^ a b "BCT Travel Group Limited". Companies House (HM Government). 9 November 2019. Retrieved 9 November 2019.
- ^ "Direct Holidays PLC". Companies House (HM Government). 9 November 2019. Retrieved 9 November 2019.
- ^ "Thomas Cook North America Sold to Red Label Vacations". Travel Market Report. 21 March 2013. Retrieved 9 November 2019.