XL Leisure Group’s investment in Medlife Hotels will see the online accommodation-only provider move into the long-haul market.
Argo Holidays marketing and sales director Kathryn Beadle said within the next year Medlife would initially offer accommodation in Portugal and North Africa, then Dubai and Asia and finally the Caribbean and Florida.
She expected the planned growth to run smoothly, thanks to the contacts the two companies’ InterArgo Group already has through its other subsidiary Jetlife.
She said: “The thing that made XL such an ideal partner for us is their many mainstream destinations. They fly to the Caribbean and that will open up many destinations for us.”
Beadle added this is just one area of growth for Medlife, which currently features Greece, Cyprus, Egypt, the Canaries and Spain, with transfers due to be added to the site before the end of the year.
The new year will also see the introduction of excursions on the Medlife site while all the properties will be featured on a customer website but without the prices, allowing agents to add their mark-ups.
Agents will be told about the changes through training and educationals while advertising and sponsorship will be taken as and when the opportunities present themselves.
However, as XL’s part of the bargain Beadle expects the airline to look further afield, adding: “It might be fairly big but there’s lots of areas they’re not looking at.”
XL Leisure Group chief executive Phil Wyatt said expansion plans are under way with both the Caribbean and India currently being considered.
Beadle revealed the plans at the Argo Holidays Achievement Awards Dinner on Monday night where she also told Travel Weekly.co.uk that Argo has closed this summer’s sales 10% up while Jetlife closed 85% up.
She added Argo’s summer 2007 bookings are already 25% up year on year with an average selling price of £800 per person. She said: “The top end of the market is much more resilient than the low end which books later and is much more susceptible to other factors.”