This archive contains ETOA press releases from 2005 and years prior to
that. For 2006 press releases, please visit our
Press Room.
October 05
ETOA Congratulates Dresden on wining the IRU City Trophy
The City of Dresden has been awarded the IRU 2005 City Trophy for
its comprehensive and long term Coach Parking and Guidance System.
More info
August 05
ETOA reports demand remains solid for London and Europe
ETOA surveyed its members in order to assess the impact of the London
bombings on the industry.
More info
July 05
London Incidents: Industry predicts defiant tourism recovery
The inbound industry was deeply saddened by the four bombings which
occurred on Thursday morning. ETOA has been canvassing its members to establish
the level of concern.
More info
July 05
London Incidents: We Must not Overreact
We should not assist the terrorists in their cause by overreacting.
In the light of today’s events in the UK, any visitors thinking
of coming to London will be wondering what the right thing to do is.
They should come.
More info
July 05
Pre-Authentication of .travel Domain Names Starts Today
The European Tour Operators Association (ETOA) today announced that
it is now pre-authenticating its members for .travel domain names.
More info
July 05
Visa Price Hike Could Blow Britain’s Olympic Bid
Giving less than a month’s notice, the UK Government recently
announced that the cost of a visa to visit the UK is to rise sharply.
From today, the cost of a typical tourist visa (which would be
required by thousands of Olympic athletes and their supporters)
will rise nearly 40% from £36 to £50.
More info
June 05
ETOA/European Commission seminar on the China ADS agreement
This meeting, which was jointly chaired the Commission and ETOA,
was held on Monday, 20th June 2005 in Brussels. It was attended
by National Tourism Administrators, Commission Officials, European
Travel Commission and representatives from NET. The ETOA members
present were China Holidays, GTA, JTB, Kuoni, Miki and Travco.
More info
June 05
Canal Company at the helm of Holland International Rondvaart
It is today announced that Holland International Rondvaart,
the TUI subsidiary active in canal cruises in Amsterdam, is to be
taken over by Canal Company.More info
June 05
Dramatic Price Increase in UK Visas Will Deter Visitors
Giving less than a month’s notice, the UK Government has announced
that the cost of a visa to visit the UK is to rise sharply. The cost of
the typical tourist visa, allowing multiple entries to the UK, will rise
nearly 40% from £36 to £50.
More info
May 05
Tour Operators and Hoteliers Get Together to Plan Ahead
The European Tour Operators Association (ETOA) and the Hotel Electronic
Distribution Network Association (HEDNA) are collaborating to discuss how
hoteliers and tour operators can work together more effectively in the field
of automation and distribution.
More info
February 05
Travel Industry Optimistic about Inbound Tourism
A recent survey of leading tour operators and hoteliers reveals
optimism about inbound tourism to Europe in 2005.
More info
January 05
Tourism and the European Union
A briefing for the British Tourism Development Committee on the
current issues under discussion at the European Commission
More info
January 05
China will Grant UK Approved Destination Status
In response to the announcement on the Visit Britain website
that China is about to grant the UK Approved Destination Status,
the European Tour Operators Association, ETOA has cautioned that,
talk of substantial benefits to the UK's Tourism Industry are over
optomistic in the near or medium term.
More info
January 05
Briefing Paper
China - UK Approved Destination Status Briefing Note
More info
September 04
European Commission Accepts Two out of Three Demands from
the Travel Industry on VAT Reform
The Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA), the European Tour
Operators Association (ETOA) and Federation of Tour Operators (FTO)
today presented three recommendations to Stephen Bill and Ludwig
De Winter, the top officials from the Unit in charge of VAT at the
European Commission.
More info
July 04
ETOA Welcomes the Qualified Inclusion of Tourism in the EU Constitution
Tom Jenkins, Executive Director of ETOA said: That Tourism is now on the agenda
of the EU is of great interest to the industry. It is to be
welcomed that the EU sees Tourism in terms of enterprise and competitiveness.
It is also extremely encouraging that they implicitly understand
that Europes greatest asset as a destination is its diversity.
More info
April 04
EU VAT Laws Will Make Accession Countries a More Expensive
Destination and Will Force Their Inbound Tour Operators Offshore
When the European Union accession countries of Cyprus, Czech Republic,
Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and
Slovenia join the EU on 1 May 2004, they will be signing up for
a new taxation regime that will make their destinations less competitive.
More info
March 04
ETOA Hoteliers Marketplace Heralds Return of Incoming Tourism
Europe will show a strong return to growth after three extremely
lean years. The most spectacular growth will be enjoyed by those
companies who specialise in operating group tours from America.
More info
March 04
Will Europe Arrest its Dramatic Decline in Visitors and
If So By How Much?
The questions: “Will Europe Arrest its Dramatic Decline in
Visitors and If So By How Much?” will receive a definitive
answer on March 8th at ETOA's annual pre-season Hoteliers Marketplace.
More info
Feb 04
ETOA Membership Certificate is a Genuine Work of Art
The European Tour Operators Association (ETOA) has decided that
rather than issuing its members with a membership certificate to
hang on their walls, it will instead sponsor and send them a work
of art.
More info
>Nov 03
European Tour Operators Predict a Recovery in Tourism to
Europe and Specify Action to Secure it
New research presented at the European Tour Operators Association’s
(ETOA’s) annual conference on Saturday November 8th suggests
that 2004 will show a recovery in inbound tourism to Europe.
More info
Oct 03
Can Europe arrest its dramatic decline in visitors?
The main question in everyone’s minds at the annual conference
of the European Tour Operators Association (ETOA), taking place
at the Café Royal in London on November 8th will be whether
Europe can address the dramatic decline in its inbound tourist market.More info
Sept 03
New European Legislation, Described as “Harmonisation”
Will Destroy 5,000 Jobs in the UK, Cost £5bn in Export Revenue
and Cause the Price of European Holidays to Rise
The European Tour Operators Association (ETOA) has recently learnt
that on Tuesday October 7th, legislation will be tabled at the meeting
of the European Council of Finance Ministers (ECOFIN) that will
have the effect of destroying 5,000 UK jobs, cost £5bn in
lost export revenue and cause the price of European holidays to rise.
More info