NEWS
EPIC IMAGES: Universal Orlando Resort has released the first official photographs from Universal Epic Universe, its fourth theme park which is due to open on May 22. The park will feature more than 50 experiences across five themed “worlds”: Celestial Park, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Ministry of Magic, Super Nintendo World, How to Train Your Dragon – Isle of Berk, and Dark Universe. Epic Universe will also be home to the 500-room Universal Helios Grand Hotel, which will overlook the park and boast a dedicated entrance. Pictured, from left, are The Chronos, the gateway to Celestial Park, which will feature a shooting comet rollercoaster, and Dark Universe, where guests can explore the village of Darkmoor, home to characters including Dracula.
Resorthoppa administrators sell assets to new firm Hoppa Group
Ian Taylor
The Resorthoppa business was sold and its staff transferred to a company marketed as “the new face of Resorthoppa” after the parent company and its subsidiary went into administration in early March. Transfer provider Resorthoppa
(UK) had been loss-making for years and only emerged from a corporate voluntary arrangement (CVA) last November. A CVA allows a company to continue trading while administrators oversee debt repayments. However, the failure can be traced back to the collapse of Lowcost Travel Group in 2016, which left Resorthoppa to write off a debt of £1.3 million. Administrators acting for KR8
and assets” to Hoppa Group, incorporated in February, and “equity investment from new investors”. The administrators confirmed:
STORY TOP
“All staff, customers, brands and websites will continue, and services are continuing as normal. HoppaGo customers can book going forward and all existing bookings have been protected.” The new investors
have yet to be formally identified as part of the sale or administration process, but Hoppa Group’s company registration identifies US-based
transport technology platform Elife Tech as the sole shareholder. In a “message to travel agent
Advisory confirmed Resorthoppa (UK) and parent Resorthoppa entered administration on March 4, with the sale “of the business
travelweekly.co.uk
partners”, Hoppa Group said: “We have restructured to form Hoppa Group, incorporating our trading brands hoppa (B2C) and hoppaGo (B2B). “You will receive a novation
agreement for your approval to transfer the existing hoppaGo
agreement from Resorthoppa (UK) to Hoppa Group Ltd.” A novation agreement involves replacement of one party to an agreement by another with the consent of all parties. Resorthoppa (UK) made
repayments totalling £3.5 million under the CVA between March 2021 and November 2024, including £3.28 million to settle 298 creditors’ claims. The company’s most recently
available accounts, for the year to December 2023, show an accumulated loss of almost £5.4 million, with the company since making CVA payments of £155,877 and £1.15 million. Parent Resorthoppa was listed as ‘a dormant company’ with nominal income but investments in Resorthoppa (UK) valued at £2.1 million. Creditors have been told they must
file claims with the administrators. Lowcost Travel Group ceased
trading in July 2016 having relocated from the UK to Palma in 2013 to place it outside the Atol regime.
It had a financial guarantee in the Balearics of just €1.2 million when it failed. The group remains in liquidation,
with the latest liquidators’ report noting agreed claims of £62.7 million with Lowcost’s former credit card acquirer and £96 million in intercompany claims, but “no further dividends” likely. Lowcost group chief executive Paul
Evans was at one time a director of Resorthoppa. The transfer firm, set up in 2003 as The Super Shuttle Company, was rebranded as Resorthoppa (UK) in 2006 and acquired by online transfer provider WWTE Group in 2012, when Evans stood down. After writing off the £1.3 million
owed to it by Lowcost, Resorthoppa reported annual losses of £444,000 (2017), £1.9 million (2018), £299,000 (2019), £869,000 (2020), £437,000 (2021) and £1 million (2022). Hoppa Group and Resorthoppa were approached for comment.
20 MARCH 2025 5
PICTURES: Universal Orlando Resort/Kilby Photo
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