Great Rail sale ‘no prelude to glut’ Ian Taylor


The purchase of Great Rail Journeys by private equity firm Vitruvian Partners last week is unlikely to signal a flurry of travel company acquisitions despite the continuing strength of the sector and pressure to find buyers. That is according to Christopher


Jones, managing partner at corporate finance advisory firm Clearwater, which advised Vitruvian on the deal. Speaking at the Barclays Travel


Forum in London on Tuesday, Jones said: “There is a big pool of 40 to 50 travel assets owned by private equity in the UK, so these assets will come up for sale at some stage. [But] buyers are thinner


on the ground. There is an excess of supply, so it’s a buyers’ market and buyers are being selective.” He said: “Travel has had a great


run – Great Rail Journeys is our ninth travel deal in two years.” But he noted there are “very few” trade buyers and said: “There is a queue of [private equity-owned] assets that needs to be released.” Jones described the “queue” of


private equity (PE) firms seeking buyers for companies as “a case of ingestion”, but he added: “The great thing is these assets are still trading really well.” He said Great Rail Journeys was


“well known” in PE circles, noting Vitruvian was the company’s third PE owner and previous owner Duke


Trade changes social media tactics on US to reduce negativity


Ella Sagar and Samantha Mayling


Agents and operators are changing their social media strategies for US offers to minimise the risk of readers posting negative comments about President Trump. A perception of unfriendly US


border officials and high costs had also deterred bookings, some said. Ellie Fowler, co-owner of The


Travel Business, said one of the agency’s social media posts for a Florida deal went “semi-viral for all the wrong reasons”. She added: “The comments were really nasty. The post got 45,000 interactions and there


4 8 MAY 2025


was not one positive one.” Fowler has now paused US promotions. Emma Collis, executive director


at Protected Trust Services, said some agents had stopped advertising US holidays on social media “due to some negative comments” and “not wanting to attract politics”, although Yvonne Spencer, North America Travel Service director, said negative social media comments had “tailed off” over the past week. Natalie Sexton, head of brand


marketing at Ocean Holidays, reported growth in US revenue but added: “While we’ve faced some negative comments from paid Meta advertising, we’ve found a more


It’s one of the most-


attractive consumer sub-sectors because intent to spend on travel just doesn’t stop


Street had “invested strongly in the customer proposition”, making it “an attractive high-margin business”. Jones added: “Vitruvian sees


what we see in travel. It’s hugely attractive. It’s one of the, if not the, most-attractive consumer sub-sectors because consumer intent to spend on travel just doesn’t stop.” However, he said: “A lot of investors have disappeared to


technology. The population of assets is large and the population of private equity [firms] that want a deal in travel is pretty narrow, and once a PE firm has done one deal it might do a second, but it’s not going to do a third.” Martin Alcock, director of the


Travel Trade Consultancy, noted “one or two big deal processes had started” this year but “lots of deals have been postponed” amid the economic uncertainty triggered by the US imposition of trade tariffs. A senior finance director


told the forum that more private equity capital “than ever before” is currently being returned to investors “to keep them happy”.


Donald Trump has prompted negative comments on social media posts on US holiday deals


targeted approach – avoiding broad terms, for example the US, and instead focusing on destinations such as Orlando or Nashville – significantly reduced negative feedback.” Cath Pusey, product director at


America As You Like It, reported seeing “a handful of negative comments” but said these were not from customers. She is hopeful bookings will rise again. Guy Novik, USAirtours founder,


said “a small number of agents” had reported negative feedback from US promotions, but that enquiries in March and April remained steady. “The dollar has weakened and is forecast to get weaker, which will


provide a welcome boost,” he added. Peter Healey, group chief


executive at The Vertical Travel Group, said Trump and issues about US border security were deterring some clients, with some looking to other destinations such as Canada. The latest trade survey by


the Visit USA Association (UK) suggested US bookings remained steady. Chief executive Kate Kenward said: “Rising costs were listed as the biggest barrier.” She suggested social media posts should focus on themes such as “supporting local tourism providers in challenging times”; “stronger pound in our favour”; and “good lates availability”.


travelweekly.co.uk


PICTURE: Shutterstock/Joshua Sukoff


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