Yugotours

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Yugotours Иуготоурс
IndustryTourism, Travel
Founded1959 Edit this on Wikidata
Founder1959
Defunct2007
Fatedefunct
SuccessorMed-Choice
Headquarters
Chesham house, 150 Regent Street, London[1]
,
United Kingdom
Key people
Marketing Manager Alison Gray
ProductsPackage Holidays
OwnerYugoslavian Government
DivisionsYugotour Holiday Club
Websitewww.yugotours.co.rs/eng/

Yugotours was, at one time, the UK's fourth-biggest tour operator[2] and travel agent.

History[]

Early history[]

The Yugoslavian carrier Aviogenex operated regular charters from the Manston (later Kent International Airport) to the then-popular beach resorts of Dalmatia in Yugoslavia on behalf of Yugotours from its formation in 1957, gaining ground in the 1970s as foreign holidays became increasingly popular, and even more so in the 1980s.

End[]

Main article: Breakup of Yugoslavia

By the end of the 1980s, before the Yugoslavia’s break up, the country was the UK’s second most popular overseas holiday destination behind Spain.[3] During this hay day, the tour operator sent close to 500,000[4] holidaymakers a year to Yugoslavia.

By the early 1990s as Yugoslavia’s political framework came under strain, Yugotours faced fierce competition from then market leaders Thomson.[5] By 1992, with Yugoslavia embroiled in inter-ethnic warfare, there were fears over the future of the brand, with fears of it being relegated to sub-brand status or dropped altogether.[2] These fears were reaffirmed by Alison Gray, Yugotours marketing manager, who remarked that "It's a delicate balance. For those who link Yugotours to Yugoslavia negatively, it could be a turn-off." Into this vacuum Thomson, Lunn Poly and Owners Abroad stepped in left by the collapse of the International Leisure Group with it brands like Club 18-30, Global, Intasun.[6]

However, the brand survived until 2007, providing holidays to the newly independent former Yugoslav republics, mostly Croatia. From 2007, it was finally absorbed into the Med-Choice brand, covering the whole Mediterranean area. [2]

Yugotour Holiday Club[]

Other[]

Yugotours was famous for its 1986 catchphrase "Sun-sational Yugoslavia!"[7]

Yugotours staff reunion[]

In May 2019, more than a decade after its final collapse, around 120 former employees met at a resort in Porec, present-day Croatia for a reunion.[8]The four-day event[9] included a cocktail party, a boat trip to Rovinj via the Lim Fjord, and a Grand Yugotours Reunion gala dinner in Villa Polesini.[10]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Ltd, Jacobs Media Group. "Yugotours staff reunion more than 20 years after operator closed". www.travelweekly.co.uk.
  2. ^ a b c ""Yugotours' Disarray over Civil War Forces Mediterranean Brand Launch" by Johnson, Mike - Marketing, August 15, 1991 - Online Research Library: Questia". Archived from the original on 8 May 2016. Retrieved 24 April 2016.
  3. ^ "Yugoslavia state tourism and how it affects your holidays today". High50.
  4. ^ Ltd, Jacobs Media Group. "Yugotours staff reunion more than 20 years after operator closed". www.travelweekly.co.uk.
  5. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 8 May 2016. Retrieved 24 April 2016.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  6. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 8 May 2016. Retrieved 24 April 2016.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  7. ^ Yugotours 1986 TV Advert. 18 March 2015 – via YouTube.
  8. ^ Ltd, Jacobs Media Group. "Yugotours staff reunion more than 20 years after operator closed". www.travelweekly.co.uk.
  9. ^ "Yugotours Grand Reunion – yugotoursgrandreunion.com". yugotoursgrandreunion.com.
  10. ^ Ltd, Jacobs Media Group. "Yugotours staff reunion more than 20 years after operator closed". www.travelweekly.co.uk.

External links[]

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