Travel industry to blame for peak season price row

TravelMole Comment by Jeremy Skidmore

Everyone, it seems, from the government to the press and ill-informed consumers, are being blamed for inflaming the argument over school holiday prices. But they seemed to have forgotten the real culprit – the travel industry itself.

New life was breathed into the debate with a High Court ruling that parents could be prosecuted for taking their children out of school during term-time for cheap holidays.

The Sun responded with a campaign against rip-off peak season prices which were forcing parents to act in such a cavalier fashion. A trade paper, which has surely never indulged in underhand tactics itself, responded by quoting industry bigwigs as saying the campaign was ‘cheap journalism’ and then launching an anti-Sun campaign campaign (am I the only one who thinks this is funny?)

Since then, there has been a ‘massive response’ to the anti-Sun campaign campaign, which has surely left Wapping executives too petrified to sleep at night.

Meanwhile, various people have bemoaned the fact that holidaymakers don’t understand how the industry works (obviously that’s the fault of journalists, too).

We all know that travel companies make their money in peak season and often operate at a loss during the winter. They’re also beholden to hotels which jack up prices the moment they sniff demand. Airlines are playing the same game. You can get a Ryanair seat free during the off-peak and pay hundreds of pounds for it during busy periods.

So what? It doesn’t alter the fact that the difference between holiday prices in May/June and July/August can be obscene. It’s a good story and is always guaranteed to drive parents, who are the Sun’s readers, through the roof.

The travel industry is largely to blame because for years it has encouraged people to think they can get something for nothing. Tour operators scream out the message that there are bargains galore for those who look, so no wonder families feel they are being excluded if they have to pay top dollar.

Tour operators say they have no choice but to charge higher prices in the summer. But they’re not shy about blatantly profiteering by adding on an extra £50 or £100 a head in July or August if there happens to be a shortage of trips around. No wonder they get criticised.

Surprisingly, tour operators look as though they could be in for a fairly decent summer this year, so expect more flack to fly. Bleating about losing money in the off-peak period doesn’t carry much weight when, in the same breath, the major companies are reporting record profits.

If travel companies really care about the negative publicity surrounding peak season prices, they need to change the way they market holidays.

Otherwise, take it on the chin. There’s no chance of any regulation against tour operators. The government has dipped its toe in the water with the largely ineffective ‘Every Lesson Counts’ scheme and has slightly more pressing matters to consider, like the Iraq war and the cash for peerages scandal.

Tour operators will simply have to put up with a bit more bad publicity. As I look at those salaries the big guys earn, my heart bleeds.