TUI on track to reach 2010 target

UK-based travel operator TUI said that the demand for vacation holidays is continuing to advance strongly and that it is well positioned to reach the company’s expectations for the current year.

Europe’s largest travel agency said that tour bookings were improving. Collective sales have risen 40 per cent in the Nordics and were up six per cent in the UK, its largest market. TUI, whose brands include First Choice, Thomson and Airtours, told that it is expecting positive results in each of the quarters of 2010.

Last year was such a hard time for TUI. In 2009, the travel operator had posted an operational loss of £107 million for the fourth quarter, much higher compared to the £35 million loss earlier in 2008. Moreover, the company’s revenue fell 8 per cent to £2.53 billion, as capacity dropped by 14 per cent. Meanwhile, TUI had far greater pre-tax loss during 2009’s last quarter, with £89 million in 2008 to £166 million last year.

Peter Long, CEO of TUI, was confident that the company had successfully dealt the recent global economic crisis well. TUI is the leading leisure travel group in the world, with operations in about 180 countries worldwide. Currently, it serves over 30 million travellers in more than 27 markets.

Headquartered in Crawley, close to Gatwick Airport, the group employs about 50,000 workers and owns the pan-European TUI Airlines, consisting of 146 aircrafts. The members of TUI Airlines – Arkefly, Corsairfly, Jetairfly, Thomson Airways, TUIfly, TUIfly Nordic and Jet4you – fly to more than 150 destinations worldwide.