Quote:
Originally Posted by Dream Academy
Skichi even UK based Tour Operators have to go through a local agent based in Italy.
The big ones such as Thomson, My Travel etc are no exception.
They need to pass their bookings to another TO or travel agent who is based in Italy and who acts on their behalf.
So more costs as a third party is involved.
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I can also confirm that that is how a lot of tour operators work. I used to work for what's called a "ground handling agency" or "wholesale travel agency" in Scotland that handled most of the big tour operators accounts across Europe. Basically your Alpitours and Falcon (huge Italian and Swiss operators) used to book most of their Scottish holidays through the company that I worked for. So I wouldn't be surprised if it works the same way for UK tour operators booking in Italy. In fact I think that Thomson are now owned by TUI, a German tour operator (although I stand corrected if anyone knows different) and TUI were one of the big clients that we used to work with.