Miguel Praga

🏨 Celebrando cinco years since its transformation, Thomas Cook, once a historic European tour operator, now thrives as an online travel agency. With a portfolio of over 17,000 hotels and partnerships with 190 airlines, it caters to global destinations. Alan French, the vacation travel executive, emphasizes the focus on personalized travel experiences, offering flexibility and options. The successful reintroduction highlights significant support and excellent market reception.

✈ Ryanair will close its base at Santiago Airport on October 26, 2025, impacting about 100 workers. Negotiations with unions have started, providing them with documentation justifying workforce transfers. Unions have 15 days to analyze and negotiate to minimize the closure's impact. Many employees are considering resignation rather than relocation within Spain or Europe.

✈ Un Airbus A350 de Iberojet, con capacidad para 432 pasajeros, tuvo que regresar al aeropuerto de Barajas (Madrid) debido a un problema técnico mientras volaba hacia San José, Costa Rica. El avión sobrevoló el Atlántico cerca de tres horas antes de aterrizar en la pista 32L, que fue reabierta para la emergencia. Otro avión, un A330-300 con capacidad para 299 pasajeros, está programado para partir hacia San José hoy a las 17:15.

🛩 El Gobierno de las Islas Mauricio planea vender el 49% de Air Mauritius debido a pérdidas financieras. La aerolínea opera solo 6 de sus 12 aviones. Qatar Airways muestra interés en comprar, pero hay resistencia. Air France también podría estar interesada. El año pasado, Air Mauritius distribuyó 18,000 billetes gratuitos, a pesar de ser una aerolínea no rentable. Se espera que la convocatoria de venta se lance en semanas, similar a TAP de Portugal.

✈ Córdoba, September 2025: The newly reactivated Córdoba Airport, 133 km from Seville, resumes commercial flights. Vueling begins operations with flights from Barcelona, arriving Thursdays and Sundays at 14:50 and returning at 15:25. This service will run until March 2026. The Platform for Córdoba Airport, a local advocacy group, championed this cause. Despite interest, Ryanair is unlikely to operate here due to its current strategy of exiting low-demand airports. Córdoba is also near other major airports and has high-speed rail to Madrid.

💸 In Spain, 2025 sees economic slowdown, yet major travel groups predict strong growth for late 2025, surpassing 2024 results. Despite recent demand fluctuations, they report strong bookings and positive fall contracts. Contrastingly, mid-sized tour operators face anxiety after a lackluster summer and bleak forecasts for the year's final months. The industry is split: large networks anticipate another record year, while independent operators worry about year-end challenges.