TOUR operators and retailers are pointing the finger
of blame at each other for forcing late holiday prices as low as £29.
The crazy Teletext deals – mainly for seven nights’
self-catering in the Balearics and Turkey – have prompted fears of massive
overcapacity in the market for the difficult months of May and June.
A quick search of the Teletext Holidays website by
Travel Weekly last week threw up hundreds of bargain-basement breaks of less
than £59 for clients willing to depart within the next 48 hours. Departures
from all UK airports are available, making a mockery of claims that much of the
stock is for unpopular regional flights. Meanwhile, prices as low as £69 are
available for Florida.
Retailers claim the prices are a result of rampant
discounting by mass-market operators, with Airtours Holidays being blamed as
the worst culprit.
“I’ve never seen prices this low,” said Steve
Charlesworth, general manager of Teletext retailer Dunstan Brearley.
“The discounting has been driven by operators, not us.
Holidays are shifting, but there is plenty of stock left.”
Cosmosair managing director Terry Williamson has
refused to join in the discount frenzy and claimed he would not cut prices
below £99. He criticised rivals for undoing the industry’s efforts to encourage
early summer 2003 sales.
“Where on earth is the incentive for people to book
for next year?” he fumed. “We’ve all rushed out our brochures and yet people
will see these prices and think they can wait to get a deal.
“It drags everything down. The so-called capacity cuts
of some operators in January were just talk – my fear now is there will be
loads of holidays in the market for June.”
Holidays by Phone managing director Steve Endacott
said Teletext retailers had to restore reality to the market. “Some are selling
holidays for no profit in the hope of selling insurance. They are the ones
trashing the industry,” he said.
JMC sales director Ian Derbyshire blamed Airtours for
the collapse in prices. “We’ve managed capacity cuts quite well, but Airtours
looks like it has loads to shift and is panicking. It sends the wrong message
to customers. Low prices like this are just crazy and ultimately undervalue the
product.”
However, Airtours Holidays sales director Steve
Barrass dismissed the claims of rivals. “You always get good lead-in prices in
May. We are not doing anything different this year,” he said.
Thomson national sales
manager retail Jeanne Lally added: “We are at the mercy of the competitor who
goes to the lowest price. There is plenty to sell.”