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From shock results for both the Brexit vote and Donald Trump’s victory across the pond, to widespread terrorist attacks and company failures, this year will go down as one of the most tumultuous in history.
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Perhaps foreshadowing the challenging year which would transpire, 2016 began with agents and operators reporting a mixed peak booking period.
Consumers remained concerned about terrorism, with November’s Paris atrocities still fresh in the minds of many.
And while some companies were still taking down festive decorations, new names were going up on office doors at The Travel Network Group HQ, as Gary Lewis completed a management buyout of the consortium.
In further top-job shake-ups, Giles Hawke cast off from MSC Cruises (later joining Cosmos Tours and Cruises).
Meanwhile lobbyists urged prime minister David Cameron to make a much-needed decision on airport expansion by the summer.
The industry waved a Long goodbye (quite literally), as Tui boss and industry stalwart Peter Long called it a day after more than three decades in travel.
Turkey suffered a string of bomb attacks and political unrest, prompting Mark Warner to pull out of the country, and leading to the collapse of specialist operator Elixir Holidays, while a number of large travel firms slashed their capacity in the destination.
Elsewhere in Westminster, the mother of all political footballs was booted into play, as the date for Britain’s EU referendum was set. “Brexit” became THE buzz word of the year, but David Cameron promised whatever the outcome, he would remain at No.10…
Former XL Leisure boss Phil Wyatt and his band of “Black Pearl” defendants began their appeal against a court order to pay £1.4 million to the liquidators of the failed operator Goldtrail.
Shy, retiring fellows Nigel Farage and Ryanair chief Michael O’Leary both stuck their oars into the Brexit mire, as skirmishes on what the UK’s exit from the EU could mean for the travel industry intensified.
Brussels suffered the deadliest terror attack in its history, during which 32 people were killed when bomb attacks targeted the city’s airport and metro system.
Agents spoke of their sadness as Jewel in the Crown became the latest Turkish specialist casualty, ceasing trading with 2,700 passengers affected.
Fast-growing online travel agent loveholidays.com gatecrashed the top 10 list of largest Atol holders, jumping from 25th to 9th place in the CAA rankings, while 50 agents across the UK and Ireland celebrated as they were named in the TTG Top 50 Travel Agencies.
Southampton welcomed the latest addition to Royal Caribbean’s fleet, the 4,180-passenger Ovation of the Seas, before it set sail for its homeport in China.
Succeeding where a long line of US presidents had failed: Carnival Corp sailed into Havana with flags flying, as P&O’s Adonia vessel (sailing under the Fathom voluntourism brand) became the first to journey from the US mainland to Cuba in more than 50 years. With political tensions thawing, 2016 saw a wave of US
lines securing licences to add the Caribbean island to their itineraries.
Meanwhile, tragedy struck the aviation industry after EgyptAir flight MS804 crashed into the Mediterranean sea, while en route from Paris to Cairo, killing all 66 people onboard.
And Royal Caribbean proved that if size doesn’t necessarily matter, it certainly does help, as it unveiled (another) new ship – the world’s largest passenger vessel – Harmony of the Seas, to the trade in Southampton.
Things well and truly kicked off this month, as thousands of football fans flocked to France for Euro 2016 to witness England get the cold shoulder courtesy of Iceland.
In the political arena, Britain defied the pollsters and voted to leave the European Union. And while Nigel Farage raised a toast, a red-faced David Cameron packed his bags at Number 10, and, as many demanded a second referendum, the travel industry mulled over what it all could mean for Atol regulation, PTD changes and aviation agreements.
The predicted fall in airlines’ financial results as sterling plummeted came to fruition, but the real impact will likely remain unknown until (or if) Article 50 is triggered next year.
The trade lamented the latest victim of Turkey’s ongoing turmoil, as Anatolian Sky closed its doors after 26 years of business. The country’s President Erdogan fought off an attempted coup just weeks later.
In the UK, from the post-referendum infighting and position-jostling, emerged Theresa May as the UK’s new prime minister. Just three days after taking office, she was called upon to handle yet another appalling terror attack in Europe, when 87 Bastille Day revellers were mowed down by a truck on a promenade in Nice.
Meanwhile, in a month which saw operating giant Thomas Cook celebrate its 175th birthday, the industry was rocked by the collapse of the Lowcosttravel group. The affected 270,000 holidaymakers wondered what would happen to their holiday and cash, as they realised the Palma-based company had operated outside the Atol scheme.
All eyes were on Rio de Janeiro, which hosted the 2016 Olympics, but the city, Brazil and South American tourism as a whole battled against global media coverage and travellers’ concerns surrounding the Zika virus.
The severity of the mosquito-borne disease was downgraded later in the year by the World Health Organization, but not before it had spread to other countries in the region, including Florida and the Caribbean.
Elsewhere, Kuoni rolled out LGBT training to all its staff and Attraction World founder Tony Seaman departed the company after 10 years.
The month was marked by the sound of popping champagne bottles for ITC Luxury Travel Group, after it secured a multimillion-pound investment deal.
Merriment was also had at Premier Travel as the agency marked its 80th anniversary, and glasses were clinked at the TTG Travel Awards, where Celebrity Cruises, Wendy Wu Tours and If Only were among travel’s best and brightest scooping gongs.
There was a passing of the torch at Travel Counsellors as Kirsten Hughes took over from Steve Byrne as managing director.
And the industry – and many customers – held their breath as the CAA granted Monarch a 12-day extension to its Atol agreement. The airline later secured a £165 million investment deal from its majority shareholder Greybull Capital, and renewed its Atol.
With sighs of relief louder than the engines of a Boeing 747, the trade finally heard the government’s decision on airport expansion as ministers voted in favour of a third runway at Heathrow.
Elsewhere, Hurricane Matthew swept through the Caribbean leaving devastation in Haiti and killing more than 900 people. Abta met with the Ministry of Justice to discuss a rise in bogus holiday illness claims made against agents and operators, and Alpharooms was snapped up by Teletext Holidays parent Truly Group.
The global media was focused on one name this month – Donald Trump – the property tycoon who also happened to be the Republican presidential candidate.
Despite the best attempts by Holidaysplease to sway people in their political video (later banned by Facebook), “the Donald” left US pollsters scratching their heads as he defied predictions to become president-elect of the US.
The news left many questioning what his victory would mean for travel to the US, as agents reported a fall in demand in the immediate aftermath.
Elsewhere, industry leaders raised concerns over Airbnb announcing a move into the tour operating arena with the launch of its “Trips” offering, while Carnival Corp revealed its “Fathom” experiment would cease operations, moving to become a shore-only offering.
Ryanair provided an early Christmas present for consumers with the launch of its package holiday product Ryanair Holidays, while Qantas announced it would begin operating a 17-hour non-stop London to Australia service, and Royal Caribbean boss Stuart Leven was named the new chair of Clia.
The festival period also brought its traditional knack of ending relationships, as Thomas Cook and The Co-operative Group called time on their joint retail venture after five years.
Reports of Last Christmas by Wham! playing in the background as the split was decided remain unconfirmed…
