Luxury travel agency network Virtuoso has confirmed that they have parted ways with Cox & Kings in the US and Dubai due to “continuing financial problems with the operator’s affiliate in India”.
It comes following the news that the India-based Cox & Kings shut down its Australian operations Bentours and Tempo Holidays last week.
Virtuoso explained in a statement that as part of their “contract-compliance process” they asked both Cox & Kings affiliates to provide them with financial assurances.
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“However, with continued negative financial reports from their India operations, our members began to lose confidence. which resulted in their termination.”
Virtuoso statement
“We have shared the news with our membership and recommend that members reconfirm reservations if they have bookings with either company and contact the individual hotels being used in the tours to confirm details,” Virtuoso explained.
Cox & Kings in India, which is one of the world’s oldest travel companies with a history spanning back over 250 years, has reportedly fallen behind on $100 million in debt payments.
Last month IATA suspended India-based Cox & Kings’ ability to sell airline tickets on a credit basis.
IATA commented that they were “working capital situation at Cox & Kings stretched in the last few months and was further impacted due to its inability to replace the short-term loans with long-term loans and regular working capital line.”
Australian travel agents selling Bentours and Tempo Holidays have been suffering in the aftermath of their collapse last week.
You can read more about AFTA’s response to the situation here.