I'm not surprised Thomas Cook have gone under

[Burningcheeks]

Their service was shambolic. I actually got up & walked out mid-booking because they gave me no confidence at all. The staff didn't know their arse from their elbow. I was trying to book one of their packages to the Monaco Grand Prix & it was costing thousands. They were making a complete balls of it. If that was happening on the shop floor I wonder what else was happening higher up? I feel very sorry for all those let down & the enormous number of ensuing job losses.

It's not the staff in the branches that have caused the collapse, it's the management.

I have a Travel Agent friend who's company stopped using Thomas Cook in January this year as they lost faith in them. They were undercutting costs so much that they were not turning a profit.

Every issue lies with the management of the company, plain and simple.

I truly feel more everyone affected by this. However sadly I think the high street travel agents are a thing of the past.

Sorry but you only have to look at the rates of internet usage to know that most older people do not book everything online.

I should think 'older people' who want to travel would generally tend to be computer literate nowadays.

Sorry but you only have to look at the rates of internet usage to know that most older people do not book everything online.

Older people that travel a lot are often the more educated and more able to use the internet. The ones that can't are getting to the age where they don't travel much anyway. Younger people whether or not educated are more likely to use the internet. Times have changed.

Brexit and the fact that everyone books online nowadays combined with poor exchange rates for the UK all contributed to their demise. Business models that are so msssive and rely on huge numbers of customers are very sensitive to changes in behaviour by the masses.

Tragic for the staff, tragic for the high street as that’s another shop in every town now empty, tragic for the elderly who use their services. The sad reality is that this is the world we live in, Thomson and TUI will benefit from this. If it wasn’t now it would have been soon after Brexit and the coming economic savagery.

Debenhams, You’re next!

Why should the government bail them out?

Isn't that what ABTA is for?

Always sad when a old established business goes under . Sorry for those who have to find new employment .
BTW this ‘ older person ‘ books all holidays online either with small specialist company as a package or individual components .

Sorry but you only have to look at the rates of internet usage to know that most older people do not book everything online.
OK, let's see your working out please?

I always book my holidays online, I tailor make them just for me.

Im 62.

I was terribly sad to hear the news.
An absolutely horrible time for the employees.
We have always had great service from TC - certainly better than BA and Virgin (who at times have been appalling).
I agree with pp, it’s a shame that the airline business couldn’t be saved.
And in the short term I pity the holidaymakers stranded overseas and long term the general public who now have fewer and, no doubt, more expensive options.

FWIW, I don’t think the OP was saying that the trip costing thousands was unusual or a case of TC ripping them off, more that they were paying a lot for the trip and expected a decent level of customer service.

I’m sorry for all of the people experiencing job losses and those experiencing travel problems today. Especially those like MarthasGinYard where both partners work for the company .

My retired parents are planning a holiday to New Zealand and the only way they considered booking this was by going into a specialist travel agent. They have a healthy budget and want to visit multiple places so need guidance on how to get the best out of their time there. I'm sure travellers of any age would need that kind of help in a similar situation. That said, I think the market for people needing help for the kinds of destinations TC served must surely be quite limited now. Spain, Portugal, Turkey etc are countries where booking online is clearly cheaper and easier.

I don't like package holidays but with 2 small DC I've been resigned to taking such breaks. We recently went to Portugal with Jet2holidays and their service was impeccable.

I think an unfortunate consequence of TC's demise is that their competitors will become a bit more expensive as there are now fewer options.

I remember going in to TC a few years ago to get a quote for a holiday. I had already looked online on Expedia and had a price. TC were much more expensive for same hotel but they offered a one bed rather than the two bed on Expedia and also flights from Manchester rather than London (where we lived). The price discrepancy was so large and for a much less convenient trip that I never bothered even getting a quote from them again.

It’s very sad for those who have lost jobs but it’s no surprise when its so easy and cheaper to just book hotels/flights/arrange transfers yourself online.

What a vile OP. Senior management who are to blame won't be reading this. Short haul crew with families who now have no idea if they have payday will.

My retired parents are planning a holiday to New Zealand and the only way they considered booking this was by going into a specialist travel agent. They have a healthy budget and want to visit multiple places so need guidance on how to get the best out of their time there. I'm sure travellers of any age would need that kind of help in a similar situation.

Yes, but if they have the time, there are plenty of places online to offer you that kind of help. If you Google "2 week itinerary in X", you will get countless blog posts and TripAdvisor forum posts with people offering very detailed itineraries including public transport between each place. This is how I usually plan my long-haul holidays. Package deals have always been for when I want to book something at short-notice or just CBA with all the planning and organising.

My SIL used to work for them years ago in an HQ department doing bespoke and specialist (ie sports, event etc) travel. She was very knowledgeable, spoke three languages fluently enough to deal with suppliers on the phone, and was well trained.. It was a very well respected company to work for and to deal with. She left at the point where it became just inflexible, mass market packages, to go to a specialist agency.

The internet has completely turned travel booking on its head. People can put together their own simple or complicated trips or buy simple travel plus transfer plus hotel and rep packages from providers who don't have expensive physical shopfronts. There is still a thriving market for specialist travel or bespoke planning and I know people who have used them when they need the reassurance when booking more unusual itineraries. Sometimes using an agent here can be beneficial when they have access to inbound agents in other countries , for things that are trickier as a consumer acting alone.

There is still a place for a tour operator like TC in the market. Whilst independent travel is gaining popularity not every traveller is confident or has the time or ability to book independently.

Tour operators will still exist for places in which people want some support on their holiday, we've used an operator for places like Morocco, Tunisia, India, China etc., Jules Verne, Kuoni etc cover this market. Trailfinders are very good for tours, they will take your requirements and tailor a trip for you, in some cases saving hundreds of pounds by a minor change of airport, date etc. For more straightforward trips, we're doing a 4 week roadtrip in the US, we never use travel agents, book flights, car, hotels separately, it also gives us the chance to change things if we wish.
The situation in North Africa and the Middle |east has hit companies hard, they've had to find alternatives, the Norwegian fjords must be like the M25 at times.

Sorry but you only have to look at the rates of internet usage to know that most older people do not book everything online.

My dear child, can you even spell patronising?

We older people, I'm 70+, can not only use th'internet thingy but also have the flexibility, being retired, to get the best deals! I have managed to organise, and pay for, family trips to Florida twice, flights, villa, park tickets etc, even though within the party of nine we have 4 different flight itineraries.

Remember, you're getting older each day, guard your brain cell carefully.

I feel very sorry for the employees but surely the days of the package holiday are over? I don't know anyone who books a package any more.
It's so much cheaper to book online that we do it for our elderly family members ourselves. The TC management carried on regardless without changing their business model knowing this was going to happen. Why does the UK tax payer always end up bailing these companies out? We can't carry on doing this any more. I understand for the sake of decency we can't abandon individuals overseas . But we're really not a wealthy country anymore, albeit a country with a very possibly dodgy future.

My mother is 74 and books her flights and hotels online. A lot of older people are computer literate, or should I say, internet literate. Those who are not, usually know someone who knows. I've done booking for an elderly neighbour of mine. Visiting an old fashioned travel agent is a bit old fashioned.

Trailfinders are very good for tours, they will take your requirements and tailor a trip for you,

Just for balance - Trailfinders royally ballsed up a part of our trip to New Zealand by scheduling us to stay in two places an 8+ hour drive apart when we had activities planned (and booked) for that day when in reality we'd have had to spend most of it driving. They did sort it out for us when we were there though.

For people saying they don't understand why anyone books a package tour anymore - I've just come back from a week in a 5 star hotel in Spain. I booked a package because there was no way I could have bought flights, hotel and transfers more cheaply. It was a bargain, and meant that I had ATOL cover. I often book independent travel but sometimes packages offer great deals as they have good agreed rates with hotels.

I'm also older and use the internet.....

Just for balance - Trailfinders royally ballsed up a part of our trip to New Zealand by scheduling us to stay in two places an 8+ hour drive apart when we had activities planned (and booked) for that day when in reality we'd have had to spend most of it driving. They did sort it out for us when we were there though.

That's why I specified the hotels we wanted plus it always pays to do your own research on the accommodation/location before you go. They originally had us booked into a hotel in Cambodia which had great reviews etc and seemed fine until I checked a bit deeper, it was lacking something we really wanted. They changed it to one of our choice with no issue.

I’m not surprised at all. The world has moved on and people just don’t need expensive package holidays anymore. The internet has ruined many businesses, TC is just the most recent to go.

I'm on a package holiday right now (with TUI luckily) - after dithering about the best destination / hotel / flights looking at all the different websites I just couldn't be arsed with all the choices so went and had a look at packages. It was super easy and actually much cheaper than if we had booked it all separately (the hotel on its own was more expensive than the whole package).

I think packages do have a place where convinience is important - I suppose I qualify as time poor, so not having to worry about all the little bits or the transfer was attractive. I suspect as a PP mentioned, they will likely become more specialised to cater to specific needs.

I did so work with TC a number of years ago, the were really good to work with and I'm very sad that it has come to this for all their staff.