Ireland's leading tour operator Budget Travel is to be put up for sale after the European Commission gave the go-ahead for the merger between Germany's TUI and First Choice of the UK on the provision that TUI disposed of its Irish travel unit.
The commission yesterday awarded TUI and First Choice conditional approval for the merger and said it accepted TUI's offer to sell Budget Travel to alleviate concerns about dominance in the Irish market. TUI proposed the sale of Budget Travel in May after the commission expressed concern that together it and First Choice would control more than half of the market for tour packages in Ireland.
According to Budget Travel's website, the group is Ireland's leading tour operator, with a 35 per cent share of the travel market. It has annual turnover of more than €200 million.
First Choice also operates in Ireland through its ownership of Falcon/JWT Holidays.
A spokesman for TUI yesterday confirmed that Budget Travel would be sold, but said it was too early to release any details. No one at Budget Travel could be reached for comment.
Budget Travel, which was founded in 1975, has been part of the TUI group since October 2000 when the German company took over Thompson Holidays.
TUI and First Choice both serve as travel agents, while TUI also runs a charter airline and rents hotel rooms. They both also sell package holidays.
Changes in the travel market sparked by the internet and low-cost airlines have led to a slowdown in demand at traditional travel agents and tour operators.
This merger, which will boost TUI's position as Europe's largest travel firm, follows on from a similar link-up between Thomas Cook and MyTravel.