Medhotels will cease trading on December 31 and will continue to accept and honour bookings departing up to this date.

The announcement follows agreements with Expedia and Webjet to take over contracting of Cook’s complementary hotels, reducing its reliance on Medhotels to supply the Group’s accommodation requirements.

Cook said the strategic consolidation of its bed bank partners would allow it to focus on its core offering of holidays for its own-brand and selected partner hotels "where it can make the biggest difference to customers".

Thomas Hohn, chief of complementary at Thomas Cook, said: “The closure of the Medhotels business is a natural evolution of our strategy. The transformation of our complementary hotel partnerships will simplify our processes and give customers a better online experience with more choice.

“With our new partnership with Webjet showing strong promise and our alliance with Expedia on track, we are well placed to grow this part of the business in an efficient, sustainable way.”