Latest news with #GreatLittleEscapes
The Independent
4 hours ago
- Business
- The Independent
Hundreds face summer holiday chaos as travel provider loses license
Great Little Escapes, a UK travel provider, ceased trading as an Air Travel Organiser's Licence (Atol) holder on Friday, potentially affecting hundreds of British travelers' summer holidays. The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) confirmed that Great Little Escapes, based in Sandhurst, Berkshire, is no longer protected by the Atol scheme as of June 13, 2024. Great Little Escapes operated under various names The CAA advises customers of Great Little Escapes to wait until the agency has gathered more information before submitting claims. This closure follows similar recent events, including Balkan holidays shutting down in the UK and Jetline holidays ceasing trading as an Atol holder, impacting cruise bookings.
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Brits face cancelled holidays as holiday company loses license
Hundreds of British travellers may have their summer holidays cancelled after a UK travel provider lost a key license on Friday. As of 13 June, operations by Great Little Escapes are no longer protected by an Air Travel Organiser's Licence (Atol). The company's Facebook page says the brand formerly offered 'holidays to the most iconic cities in the world'. A notice from the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) confirmed that the company based in Sandhurst, Berkshire, ceased trading as an Atol holder on 13 June 2025. The Air Travel Organisers' Licence is a financial protection scheme run by the CAA for package holidays sold by tour operators in the UK. Under the scheme, if a firm goes out of business, your booking will be refunded. According to Companies House, the travel provider has been operational since September 2002. Great Little Escapes also traded under the names Your Holidays, Great Little Escapes, Tunisia First and websites and said the CAA. It added: 'We are currently collating information from the company and will update this page as soon as possible.' Customers of Great Little Escapes are advised not to submit a claim before the CAA has finished gathering information. The closure comes just two months after operations by Balkan Holidays shut in the UK, with 'all forward holiday bookings' cancelled after almost 60 years of trading. The travel provider started operations in 1966 with summer holidays to Bulgaria, Croatia, Montenegro, Slovenia, Malta and northern Cyprus, as well as winter ski trips, on offer to travellers. In March, Jetline Holidays ceased trading as an Atol holder, raising doubts on whether trip bookings – specifically cruises –would still be valid. Princess, Cunard and Holland America were among the affected cruise holidays, most of which were cancelled due to a 'breach of contract' with the former travel operator. The Carnival brand cruise lines said in a statement: 'We recognise how disappointing this news will be for affected guests and express our sincere apologies for the disruption caused. This decision was not made lightly.'
The Independent
4 hours ago
- Business
- The Independent
Brits face cancelled holidays as holiday company loses license
Hundreds of British travellers may have their summer holidays cancelled after a UK travel provider lost a key license on Friday. As of 13 June, operations by Great Little Escapes are no longer protected by an Air Travel Organiser's Licence (Atol). The company's Facebook page says the brand formerly offered 'holidays to the most iconic cities in the world'. A notice from the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) confirmed that the company based in Sandhurst, Berkshire, ceased trading as an Atol holder on 13 June 2025. The Air Travel Organisers' Licence is a financial protection scheme run by the CAA for package holidays sold by tour operators in the UK. Under the scheme, if a firm goes out of business, your booking will be refunded. According to Companies House, the travel provider has been operational since September 2002. Great Little Escapes also traded under the names Your Holidays, Great Little Escapes, Tunisia First and websites and said the CAA. It added: 'We are currently collating information from the company and will update this page as soon as possible.' Customers of Great Little Escapes are advised not to submit a claim before the CAA has finished gathering information. The closure comes just two months after operations by Balkan Holidays shut in the UK, with 'all forward holiday bookings' cancelled after almost 60 years of trading. The travel provider started operations in 1966 with summer holidays to Bulgaria, Croatia, Montenegro, Slovenia, Malta and northern Cyprus, as well as winter ski trips, on offer to travellers. In March, Jetline Holidays ceased trading as an Atol holder, raising doubts on whether trip bookings – specifically cruises –would still be valid. Princess, Cunard and Holland America were among the affected cruise holidays, most of which were cancelled due to a 'breach of contract' with the former travel operator. The Carnival brand cruise lines said in a statement: 'We recognise how disappointing this news will be for affected guests and express our sincere apologies for the disruption caused. This decision was not made lightly.'
BBC News
10 hours ago
- Business
- BBC News
Sandhurst's Great Little Escapes travel agent out of business
A Berkshire-based travel agent has gone out of Little Escapes LLP, based in Sandhurst, traded under the names Your Holidays, Great Little Escapes, Tunisia First and used four associated (Air Travel Licensing Scheme) said it was "currently collating information from the company" and will give advice as soon as told people who might have been affected to not yet submit claims because they will be rejected. You can follow BBC Berkshire on Facebook, X, or Instagram.
North Wales Live
11 hours ago
- Business
- North Wales Live
Brits face holiday turmoil as travel company loses licence
A travel firm has lost a key licence, which could leave large numbers of customers facing cancelled summer holidays. Great Little Escapes has lost its ATOL licence, leaving holidaymakers in limbo. The Sandhurst-based firm was known for offering a diverse range of holidays from adventure trips to spa retreats and family resorts but is no longer an ATOL holder. The company is different from and not connected in any way to Great Little Breaks, reports the Mirror. The Civil Aviation Authority said in a statement: "The company based in Sandhurst, Berkshire traded under the names Your Holidays, Great Little Escapes, Tunisia First and websites and "We are currently collating information from the company and will update this page as soon as possible. While waiting for further information, please do not submit a claim as these will be rejected. "If you are a travel agent of Great Little Escapes LLP and you are currently holding consumer payments which you have not yet paid to Great Little Escapes LLP, you must not use these funds to refund consumers until you have received instructions from the Air Travel Trust. "Travel agents will be individually contacted by the CAA with specific instructions for these bookings." The news came in the month after a separate British travel firm went bust. Sign up for the North Wales Live newsletter sent twice daily to your inbox Jetline Travel, a London-based firm established in 2000 and the parent company of Jetline Cruise, ceased trading as an ATOL holder in March. It has now entered administration, as reported by TTG. Alan Clark from financial recovery specialist Carter Clark, and Neil Bennett from restructuring and insolvency firm Leonard Curtis, were appointed on 28 March. Administration is a process that occurs when a business can no longer meet its debt obligations, leading to a licensed insolvency practitioner being appointed to either restructure the business and negotiate with creditors, or to sell off assets, pay off creditors and liquidate the business. Over its 25 years of operation, Jetline Travel took hundreds of thousands of people on holidays. During this quarter of a century, the firm also traded under several other names including Bargain Late Holidays, Best Priced Holidays, Cruise and More, Elegant Getaways, Our Best Holidays and Save on Sun.
