The European Parliament has greenlighted updated rules on package travel, strengthening consumer protections on refunds, vouchers and cancellations, with legislators drawing on lessons from the Covid-19 pandemic and high-profile tour operator bankruptcies.
The directive, already provisionally agreed with EU member states, was adopted on Thursday by 537 votes in favour and two against, with 24 abstentions.
The updated rules clarify which combinations of travel services constitute a package, introduce new conditions governing the use of vouchers and expand the circumstances under which travellers may cancel without incurring fees.
Under the revised framework, online bookings where linked processes enable combinations of services from separate traders will be considered a package if the first trader shares the traveller’s personal data with others and all contracts are concluded within 24 hours.
On vouchers — which became widespread during the pandemic — consumers will have the right to refuse one and request a cash refund within 14 days. Vouchers may be valid for a maximum of 12 months, and clients must be refunded for any unused or expired vouchers. Companies may not restrict the choice of travel services available to voucher holders.
The rules also extend free cancellation rights. Currently, travellers can cancel without penalty only if unavoidable and extraordinary circumstances arise at the destination. The updated directive extends this to events occurring at the point of departure or those with the potential to significantly affect the journey, assessed on a case-by-case basis.
On complaints and insolvency, tour organisers will be required to acknowledge complaints within seven days and provide a reasoned reply within 60 days. In the event of bankruptcy, clients must be refunded within six months — or nine months in complex cases — from the insolvency guarantee. The standard 14-day refund deadline for cancellations remains unchanged.
Parliament’s rapporteur for the file, Alex Agius Saliba (S&D, Malta), said the updated rules would ensure travellers could cancel with a full refund when extraordinary circumstances affected any part of their trip, that voucher acceptance would remain voluntary, and that robust insolvency protections would prevent financial losses being passed on to families.
The legislation must now be formally adopted by the Council before publication in the Official Journal. EU member states will have 28 months from the date of entry into force to transpose the new rules into national law, with a further six months to begin applying the new provisions.