The Dutch tour operator Vacansoleil is in serious financial difficulties. The camping holiday provider has requested a deferment of payment, which is often a harbinger of bankruptcy.
The company says it has built up a large debt burden in the past. After the outbreak of the corona pandemic, sales of camping holidays collapsed and the company had to raise additional financing. Now that interest rates have risen sharply, that mountain of debt has become unsustainable. High inflation also caused Vacansoleil problems, reports the company, which employs three hundred employees.
Every year, around half a million people go on holiday via Vacansoleil, founded in 1969. In the event of bankruptcy, customers who have made a down payment probably have a chance of compensation. The company is affiliated with the Dutch Travel Guarantee Fund Foundation (SGR), which reimburses customers of travel organizations in the event of bankruptcy.
According to a company spokesperson, many debts date from the period before the corona crisis. Then Vacansoleil suffered losses for several years in a row. A reorganization was supposed to improve things, but the pandemic again led to financial problems.
“We made a profit this year and last year, on an operational level. But that’s for interest payments. You have to pay the interest costs from the past from that profit,” the spokesperson explains.
An uncertain period is beginning for the three hundred employees of Vacansoleil. The intention is for an administrator to work with the company’s management to determine what future options still exist.