Gold Medal has launched ‘out of date’ range flights on its website, allowing travel agents to book some packages online until 2027 for the first time.
The functionality has been rolled out initially for Orlando and New York. It means agents can search and book packages to Florida up until March 2027 and New York until March 2026.
Up to now agents have only been able to book departures 11 months in advance online, although they could phone the call centre with out of date range requests.
Webcast recorded Friday January 10
Now, when agents search for out of date range flights to Orlando, they will be offered options from Virgin Atlantic, British Airways and Aer Lingus out of Manchester, London and Edinburgh, with guaranteed pricing. Gold Medal’s full Florida programme has more than 100 hotels, including Disney, Universal and villas, with car hire and park tickets also available.
Prices for New York packages have also been guaranteed, with 70 hotels available until March 2026.
Speaking on a Travel Weekly webcast, Gold Medal managing director Simon Applebaum said: “I think we are the first to do this.”
He cited clear demand but stressed it involved an element of risk on the operator’s part, in terms of having to put price estimates in place.
He said: “We see loads of agents trying to book beyond that [11 months]. You have to manually estimate the pricing [so] you have to make sure from a risk point of view that we have the right information.
“The truth is that it’s a risk game. You are guessing a lot of factors well in advance. A lot of things drive the cost of airline seats, like global oil prices. You are looking at historic trends over a number of years.”
He admitted the move could occasionally “come back to bite you” but said the move would prove “really important for consumers and agents” from a budgeting standpoint.
“People want to budget; it’s still economically difficult for people. If you want that Florida holiday, the ability to know what you are going to spend two years’ away and budget accordingly is helpful,” he added.
The new functionality is likely to go live for other destinations in future, but Applebaum stressed: “We are probably not going to do out of date range for the more common package beach destinations. It’s those destinations we foresee having the demand.”
Gold Medal trade partnerships director Karen Fletcher said: “We knew the demand for out of date range package holidays online has been strong for a long time, following feedback from our agents.
“Agents can phone our contact centre for out of date range quotes but having it available on the web now is a unique feature that we hope agents will utilise for those clients planning further ahead.”