Haven had already announced the closure of all its parks until 17 April, but this has now been extended until 14 May. All Warner Leisure breaks up to 14 May have also now been postponed, as have Butlin’s trips.
Bourne is contacting guests regarding their options, including cancellation and re-booking.
The company said the decisions came as the Covid-19 crisis continues to escalate, and following further guidance from the government.
“We want to reassure you were are closely monitoring the situation and following government guidance,” said Bourne.
Addressing Haven guests, Bourne said it understood its decision would come as a disappointment, but stressed safety and security of guests, owners and staff was its foremost priority.
Affected guests are being contacted in date order with the options available to them, starting with those due to travel between 17-30 April.
“We would like to thank our guests for their patience whilst we work through this as quickly as we can,” said Bourne. “The situation is being closely monitored, and we ask guests to follow our social media channels and our website for latest updates.”
“We would like to apologise to everyone for this disruption and thank our guests, owners and teams for their continued support. We do not intend to make any further statements as our priority now is to look after the guests affected by this decision.”
Meanwhile, Warner guests due to travel on a Warner break up to 14 May have been told not to travel.
Those guests who did not cancel prior to 19 March have had their full balances moved to a holding account, and now have two options: rebook and receive a £100 per room voucher to spend at their hotel, which can be used during a rescheduled break or on any other Warner Leisure Hotels break in the next 12 months; or claim a full refund.
“We are working hard to reschedule your entertainment to later in the year, and we will be in touch with a new rescheduled break, which you can choose to book if you wish,” said Bourne.
“We will contact you as soon as we can to ask which option you prefer. This may take us a number of weeks due to the volume of guests impacted by this situation. There is no need to contact us today.”
Anyone with third party bookings, such as via a travel agent, OTA or coach operator, should contact them directly.
Warner will pay the difference on any replacement holidays of a lesser value. Guests will be responsible for paying any difference on a replacement holiday of a greater value.
Butlin’s
Butlin’s will also close until 14 May. Bourne said in a statement its contact centre team was on hand to help guests replan breaks, adding it had brought in more people to assist.
“The scale of what we are dealing with is significant and it will mean it may take a little longer than usual,” said Bourne, adding: “They are all committed to and focused on helping everyone as quickly as they can.”
Butlin’s guests are being asked to fill out a form at butlins.com to set out how they would like to manage their breaks.
Guests will then be contacted in arrival order.
“Please don’t worry if we are delayed or your break is coming up very soon, we will get to everyone and your break will be protected,” Bourne added.
