While we all look forward to a holiday, it comes with some stress too.
Have you got the right insurance? Will your flight be delayed? And have you packed enough pairs of pants?
But what few of us rarely consider is that your entire trip could be cancelled if your travel company goes bust.
It might seem a little dramatic, but there’s been a spate of closures over the past year or so.
In April 2025, Balkan Holidays, which had been trading for nearly 60 years, shut down, meaning those who had booked to visit countries such as Croatia, Montenegro, and Malta saw their trips cancelled.
Great Little Escapes followed just two months later, which offered package holidays to ‘the most iconic cities in the world’, including tours to Italy and the Balearics.
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And then in December, another long-standing firm, Ickenham Travel Group, which was founded in 1970, also fell into administration.
It’s a trend that’s continued into 2026, with yet more holiday firms going bust.
We’ve got the full run down of the UK-based travel companies that have folded in 2026 — and what to do if your operator is on this list.
We’ll keep the list updated, so be sure to check back before before you start packing…
Gold Crest Holidays
ABTA protected? Yes.
UK-based coach-operator Gold Crest Holidays ceased trading on January 23, completely shutting down the business with immediate affect.
All future trips and package holidays booked with the business were cancelled and customers were advised to make alternative arrangements.
ABTA also issued advice on their website, which can be viewed here.
The family-run West Yorkshire company, which had been organising coach trips around the UK and Europe for 30 years, explained some of the challenges facing the industry.
A statement said: ‘This difficult decision follows the severe impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, strategic changes in key partner arrangements that adversely affected our business, and a challenging trading environment with significantly rising costs.
‘We are immensely grateful to our loyal customers, travel agents, suppliers, and dedicated staff for your support over the years. We are truly sorry we can no longer continue.’
What are ATOL and ABTA and what protection do they offer if your holiday gets cancelled?
Both ATOL (Air Travel Organisers Licensing) and ABTA (Association of British Travel Agents) provide financial protection for UK travellers if a the company they booked their holiday through goes bust.
ATOL covers flight-based holidays, and helps customers with refunds, and getting home if they’re stranded abroad.
ABTA covers holidays that don’t involve flights (trains, cruises, road) and helps with complaints and refunds.
Regardless if your trip is ATOL or ABTA protected, you must always still get travel insurance.
According to Citizens Advice, you’re entitled to a full refund if the company cancels your holiday.
Through ATOL protection, you’ll get a refund for the package itself, but it won’t cover any other elements booked separately, such as car hire. And while it may also be able to find another operator to take over your trip, Money Saving Expert says this is ‘rare and not guaranteed.’
‘If you are due to travel on an ATOL protected trip and your travel company has ceased as an ATOL holder, we will offer advice on what steps to take,’ the UK Civil Aviation Authority website explains.
‘We’ll let you know how to claim an ATOL refund. Our advice will often be either not to travel or, if you are in possession of flight tickets issued by the airline and they have confirmed they are valid, you can travel but you may need to pay for the cost of replacement services and then claim for these.’
Asiara UK
ATOL protected? Yes.
Originally known as Haivenu Tours before its rebrand as Asiara UK, the travel company launched in 2022, offering packages and tours across Asian destinations including Thailand, China, India, Japan and Singapore.
As of January 21, the Ipswich-based business ceased trading as an ATOL holder, again completely shutting down.
Unlike other businesses that have folded, the closure of Asiara UK was unlikely to cause too much inconvenience to travellers, as Protected Trust Services (an independent, UK based financial protection service, similar to ATOL) said the company had no forward bookings at the time it closed.
This suggests there was a managed wind down of the business, before it ceased trading altogether.
Simply Florida
ATOL protected? Yes.
Simply Florida, was a Glasgow-based travel agency which organised holidays to destinations including Disneyland, Disney World, Universal Studios, New York, Toronto and Niagara Falls, as well as cruises.
But, after filing to be taken off the Companies House register in October last year, it officially ceased trading on January 20.
It means that holidaymakers who were looking forward to trips to Disney World and Universal Studios had their breaks cancelled.
As Simply Florida holidays were ATOL protected, customers should recieve full refunds.
Regen Central Ltd
ATOL protected? Previously yes, but no outstanding protected bookings.
London-based Regen Central Ltd went into liquidation on January 13, and ceased trading.
The company, which was founded in Hertfordshire in 2007, before relocating to the capital, sold flight and hotel packages for Europe and Southeast Asia.
At the time, ATOL confirmed that the company had ‘no outstanding ATOL-protected bookings,’ meaning no refunds would be offered via ATOL.
The announcement on the ATOL failures page said: ‘We understand the company had no outstanding ATOL-protected bookings.’
This means that, as there are no outstanding ATOL-protected bookings, no refunds will be issued.
The ATOL failures page added: ‘Bookings sold as accommodation only, non-flight packages, and flight only bookings for which tickets were issued are not protected by the ATOL scheme.’
Major European hotel chain declares insolvency
You may not have heard of Revo Hospitality Group, but you’ve likely stayed in one of their hotels.
While not UK based, Revo, formerly known as HR Group, was Europe’s biggest hotel operator, with a portfolio of over 260 hotels that operate across 12 European countries and 146 cities — including in the UK.
The group, which launched in 2008, went on to become Europe’s largest white-label (third-party) operator, with a mix of hotels under major franchise brands including Hilton, Marriott, Accor, Wyndham, and IHG.
It also runs it own labels, including Vagabond Club, Hyperio and Aedenlife.
However, on January 16, the company declared insolvency, citing the ‘economic crisis’ as the main catalyst.
The hotel group said: ‘Around 140 companies belonging to the REVO Hospitality Group have filed for insolvency under their own management at Charlottenburg District Court.
‘The approximately 125 hotels in Germany and Austria will continue to operate with all 5,500 employees. The proceedings will be supervised by court-appointed administrators.’
They also cited ‘increased wage costs’ and the ‘sharp rise in minimum wages.’ Plus, that ‘higher costs for rent, energy and food’ were ‘weighing on the business.’
The statement ended: ‘Above all, the strong expansion of the Revo Hospitality Group in recent years led to duplicate structures and integration problems.’
This doesn’t mean that Revo is shutting down completely though, but rather the goal is to rescue the business by reorganising it.
Currently, many properties across Europe are still open, with bookings being honoured. The company also applied for support from the German authorities, to ensure workers will still being paid.
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