Managing director Dan Gathercole said with bookings being made “even further in advance this year”, First Class had decided already to guarantee its pricing – even though airline, hotel and ground handling rates have not yet been fixed.

“My personal view is you can’t give a consumer a quote and then say, ‘by the way, that may change’. We see it as an opportunity for agents to capitalise on,” he said.

The operator’s 11-day Take a Walk on the Wild Side package with Monty Halls, meanwhile, is priced at £9,999pp departing October 8 next year. “It’s at the high end in terms of price,” said Gathercole. “But it’s a once-in-a-lifetime trip; we’ve combined grizzlies, polar bears and orcas in one trip.

“It’s for people who are absolute wildlife nuts and want to go with someone who is an expert.”

The package, which has a maximum group size of 18, includes two nights in a tundra buggy plus charter flights between Winnipeg and Churchill, where the polar bear viewing takes place. Also included is a seaplane flight to Glendale Cove, home to a large grizzly bear colony.

“We put this out last week and we have already seen some interest,” Gathercole said.

The package is the first the operator has designed with Halls, who is most recently known for his BBC2 series Monty Halls’ Great Escape. Halls will accompany the trip throughout.