• Bankruptcy: The bankruptcy of Thomas Cook leaves a breakdown of 200 million to the Spanish tourism sector

Spain will ask the United Kingdom to strengthen the contingency plan for Spain after the bankruptcy of British tour operator Thomas Cook. He will ask you to provide more flights "so that the 53,000 British tourists that are now in our country can return home," said the current Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism, Reyes Maroto, after a meeting with the most communities affected.

The minister of the branch, Reyes Maroto, had convened on Tuesday at the headquarters of the ministry the most affected communities (including the Canary Islands and the Balearic Islands) and representatives of the sector to address the problem and coordinate short-term actions. To the meeting, which has lasted for more than two hours, the tourism advisers of the Canary Islands, Balearic Islands, Catalonia, Valencian Community and Andalusia have attended. The idea "was to share the information, because yesterday there was a lot of uncertainty."

Maroto wanted to clarify the data offered yesterday about those affected. He explained that globally there are 600,000 customers, but only 150,000 are traveling at this time, while the rest had bought their package and have been unable to travel.

Attend to tourists

Maroto has announced that the Interministerial Tourism Commission has been convened as a matter of urgency, which will allow addressing the edges of this bankruptcy, beyond the current urgency, which is to attend to tourists who have been thrown away.

They are travelers who "are now in our hotels receiving the service". 46 flights were canceled yesterday after the announcement of bankruptcy, but they were made available for contingency plan 18, which has allowed 15,000 tourists to return to their countries. At airports there were "no incidents or claims," ​​Maroto has clarified. Aena reinforced the staff and rooms were provided to give information on a "critical day like yesterday", in which "there was normality."

Avoid bankruptcy of two subsidiaries

The minister has said that the Government is negotiating with the Swedish and German Executive to avoid bankruptcy of Thomas Cook's subsidiaries in these two countries (the one that has broken is that of the United Kingdom) so that "German and Scandinavian tourism can continue coming to Spain. "

The Canarian adviser has warned of the importance of "ensuring" air connectivity, because "it is the route of entry of tourists in the islands" and Thomas Cook, with his airline, represents 80% of the entries in the Canary Islands. His bankruptcy "is the biggest tourist crisis that the Canary Islands can have". In the case of the archipelago, the urgency to take action is greater given that the high season begins in a week, in October.

The Balearic counselor has insisted on strengthening that connectivity and has said that the affectation "is very important" in the Balearic Islands, where the high season is ending now. It is, he said, "an exceptional crisis in which exceptional measures must be taken".

In the same vein the Andalusian and Catalan counselor have expressed themselves. The first one has said that Nordic and German tourists "greatly influence the region." The head of Catalonia has assured that the impact in the region is somewhat smaller than in other communities, although the United Kingdom remains the second market.

The hoteliers have asked the Government to launch a campaign in the United Kingdom to thank these tourists for choosing Spain and to encourage them to continue doing so. "Although Thomas Cook has meant a lot in the development of our infrastructures, our hotel facilities and the tourist offer of our country, at the same time there are new actors with a similar business that enjoy excellent results in their balance sheets," he defended the Spanish Confederation of Hotels and Tourist Accommodations (Cehat).

UGT has indicated today that the British who come to Spain are not going to stop doing so because of the bankruptcy of Thomas Cook and that is why the union considers that it is necessary to "safeguard the infrastructure of tourist services" that already exists to meet the demand.

The United Kingdom is the main issuing market for Spain, more than 18 million travelers from that country arrive every year, although since 2018 there has been a drop in arrivals. In July, for example, they came 2.2% less.

The Exceltur tourist lobby calculates the impact of Thomas Cook's bankruptcy on the sector at 200 million euros. Only hoteliers in the Canary Islands could leave 50 million, according to a source close to the sector, and it can jeopardize 13,000 jobs in the Balearic and Canary Islands , the most affected areas.

According to the criteria of The Trust Project

Know more

  • Thomas Cook
  • Balearics
  • United Kingdom
  • Canary Islands
  • Spain
  • Reyes Maroto
  • Valencian Community
  • Catalonia
  • Andalusia
  • Germany

Q & RTras the bankruptcy of Thomas Cook, what happens now with those affected?

Economy Caae 5% for the first time tourism in Andalusia after years of growth

Bankruptcy: Thomas Cook's bankruptcy leaves seven million trips in Spain and the government warns of "negative impact" on tourism