Thomas Cook purchases Medhotels from Lastminute

Thomas Cook had significantly strengthened its bed bank position by acquiring Medhotels from Lastminute.com, for an undisclosed amount.

This acquisition will see Thomas Cook as the UK’s leader in the accommodation-only sector, with Medhotels added to its Hotels4u.com purchase nearly a year ago.

The Medhotels sale by Lastminute comes in the wake of industry predictions that there would be further bed bank sector consolidation.

Scheduled to be completed in February, the deal includes Holiday Hotels, Hoteltransfers and the MedhotelsGerman business.

In 2003, Lastminute purchased Medhotels in a deal that was worth £16.1 million.

Paul Riches, who is the sales and marketing director at rival operator Youtravel.com, noted: “The long-awaited completion of the Medhotels acquisition by Thomas Cook represents a step-change in the accommodation-only sector as another player is taken over by one of the big conglomerates.”

Riches added: “There is now a very clear divide in the industry between those bed banks which are owned by a large corporate parent and those who retain their independence. For us, as the UK’s largest independent accommodation supplier, Cook’s acquisition of Medhotels represents a great opportunity to work even more closely with independent agents.”

Thanks to www.travelmole.com for the above quotes, for more information on this article please visit their website.

www.thomascook.com