The third largest tour operator in Europe, FTI Touristik, has declared bankruptcy, with this development having direct consequences for many. travelers: From tomorrow itself, flights will be canceled or only partially, reports the German press.
Regarding the effects in our country, ot.gr information from hotel sources in Crete says that FTI has paid almost all the hotels until last week and the remaining amount is “not much”. Other market players estimate that the balance due to hotels in Greece from the previous period is close to 2 million euros.
Some information also says that DER Touristik will replace customers in the German market, while Tui will contribute to the repatriation of Germans from Greece.
Once again proved how sensitive our industry is to external factors, the president of the Panhellenic Federation of Hoteliers, Mr. Yiannis Hatzis, said in ot.gr, commented on the development.
FTI Touristik GmbH, the parent company of the FTI Group, has now filed for bankruptcy proceedings at the Munich Court of First Instance. This is what the company announced. The trips that have not yet started, starting tomorrow Tuesday (June 4) will probably not happen or only partially happen. “At this time every effort is being made to complete the already started journeys as planned”, announced the group. The bankruptcy petition is directly related to the corporate brand FTI Touristik. However, thereafter, corresponding applications will be submitted for other group companies.
The announcement also said that after a long and complicated process of discussions with investors, the entry of a consortium was announced in April 2024. Since then, however, the booking numbers have fallen very low. of expectations despite the positive news. In addition, many suppliers insist on prepayment. As a result, there is an increased demand for liquidity, which cannot be met until the investment process is complete. So filing for bankruptcy is necessary for legal reasons.
It is noted that a consortium led by Certares, an investment company specialized in travel and tourism, participated in the negotiations