Middle-East facing bookings crisis
Destinations like Turkey, Egypt and Tunisia face a huge drop in bookings in the event of a war, operators have warned.
Although a US attack on Iraq is likely to hit tourism generally, the big companies fear sales to the Middle East will come to an abrupt halt, as they did during the Gulf War.
Operators are already planning to capacity cuts to certain holiday hot spots.
“A build-up of action can have a double impact on this winter and on the peak period for summer 2003 bookings,” said Thomas Cook tour operations managing director Manny Fontenla-Novoa.
“We have to start thinking about what would happen to destinations such as Turkey, Egypt and Tunisia.”
Other operators are following suit and Association of Independent Tour Operators deputy chairman Noel Josephides attacked the government’s stance over Iraq.
“All our jobs are at risk, all our businesses are at risk,” he said.
Vegas’s Billion-Dollar Secrets – What They Don’t Want Tourists to Know
Visit Florida’s New CEO Bryan Griffin Shares His Vision for State Tourism with Graham
Chicago’s Tourism Renaissance: Graham Interviews Kristin Reynolds of Choose Chicago
Graham Talks with Cassandra McCauley of MMGY NextFactor About the Latest Industry Research
Destination International’s Andreas Weissenborn: Research, Advocacy, and Destination Impact
Graham and Don Welsh Discuss the Success of Destinations International’s Annual Conference
Graham and CEO Andre Kiwitz on Ventura Travel’s UK Move and Recruitment for the Role
Brett Laiken and Graham Discuss Florida’s Tourism Momentum and Global Appeal
Graham and Elliot Ferguson on Positioning DC as a Cultural and Inclusive Global Destination
Graham Talks to Fraser Last About His England-to-Ireland Trek for Mental Health Awareness
Kathy Nelson Tells Graham About the Honour of Hosting the World Cup and Kansas City’s Future
Graham McKenzie on Sir Richie Richardson’s Dual Passion for Golf and His Homeland, Antigua
ADS PRO 
Phocuswright reveals the world's largest travel markets in volume in 2025
Cyclone in Sri Lanka had limited effect on tourism in contrary to media reports
Higher departure tax and visa cost, e-arrival card: Japan unleashes the fiscal weapon against tourists
In Italy, the Meloni government congratulates itself for its tourism achievements
Singapore to forbid entry to undesirable travelers with new no-boarding directive