Aito suffers first 'Covid casualty' operator failure

The Cheltenham-based company’s board of directors confirmed it had collapsed on 7 September in a statement on the firm’s website.

"The business started in September 2000, and we have had an incredible 20 years developing and growing Cities Direct in an ever-evolving industry," it read.

"We have very much enjoyed the experience, and would like to thank our staff, travel industry partners and many loyal customers for all their support over the years.

"We had so many exciting plans for the future of the business, but the impact of Covid-19 travel restrictions has been devastating."

Cities Direct said the majority of its bookings were Atol-protected flight-based packages, with "a small number" of rail and ferry packages, as well as single-element bookings, financially insured by International Passenger Protection.

The operator had been a member of Aito for nearly nine years at the time of its failure.

Reacting to its collapse, Aito executive director Martyn Sumners said after speaking with the company’s management they felt a lack of consumer demand would have meant "throwing good money after bad if they battled on and borrowed money".