Travellers Frustrated as Travel Agency Cancels Trips at Last Minute
Australian travellers have reported being left in the lurch by a travel agency just days or weeks before their overseas holidays, with trips suddenly being cancelled. Melbourne-based AVG Travels, which offers heavily discounted package holidays to destinations around the world, sent emails to more than 200 customers last week stating that their itineraries were “under review” due to “operational scheduling adjustments”.
The ABC has learned that over a dozen tour packages have been affected, many of which are heading to China. This situation has led to the Council of Australian Tour Operators (CATO) suspending AVG Travels’ membership following the cancellations. Travellers have also raised concerns with the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC).
“On becoming aware of complaints against AVG Travels this week, we moved quickly to review their accreditation status. That review has resulted in the immediate suspension of AVG Travels’ CATO accreditation,” said Mira Yates, general manager of CATO.
AVG Travels had previously lost its membership with the Australian Travel Industry Association (ATIA) in August 2022 for failing to meet required “financial and ethical standards”. In a statement, the company said it was “engaging with all affected travellers to provide fair and appropriate resolutions”, adding that it remained “fully operational” and that “some customers may receive their final travel documents … later than usual”.
Elizabeth Jennings from Melbourne shared her frustration after booking an 11-day China tour set to depart on the same day. She and her husband spent weeks trying to get tickets and a final itinerary but were met with unhelpful responses. They were eventually told the trip had been cancelled and given options to reschedule or take a credit voucher. “I said no three times. I just want my money back,” she said.
Ms Jennings described the experience as a “real balls up” and expressed concern about how such situations could affect people with anxiety. Perth resident Sam Chisolm faced similar issues when her daughter’s holiday to China was disrupted. The pair paid $2,736 for an 11-day tour, expecting to receive flight tickets and hotel details 30 days before departure. However, they never received any documents and only got a mass email from the CEO offering to reschedule or refund their payment.
“They have offered and promised it, although nothing yet has been received,” Ms Chisolm said. As a result, the pair booked another holiday to China, spending an additional $3,500 while waiting for their refund from AVG Travels. “This experience has crushed our faith in handing over money to others up-front for this kind of thing,” she added.
Email Exposes Traveller Details
An email sent to hundreds of travellers revealed the company’s internal struggles. In the message, CEO David Dao acknowledged the uncertainty caused by the cancellations and apologised for the inconvenience. However, the email accidentally exposed the email addresses of hundreds of recipients, leading to a second apology for an “administrative error”.
A Facebook support group has been formed with over 230 members sharing stories of their cancelled departures, missing flight tickets, and unanswered calls and emails. Despite the negative experiences, there is also some support for the company, with reports of positive experiences from past customers.
Gill Shipley shared her positive experience of travelling to China with AVG Travels in March. “It was wonderful, jam packed with history, UNESCO site and bullet trains,” she wrote. “Communication with them was never a problem.”
AVG Travels describes itself as “proudly Australian-owned” and claims to have taken over 200,000 travellers around the world. The company started as an online travel agency in Vietnam in 2012, opened an office in Melbourne in 2015, and established offices in Japan and the United Kingdom last year.
In a statement, AVG Travels said it took “customer concern seriously”. “While current industry-wide and operational pressures have necessitated some itinerary adjustments, our team is proactively engaging with all affected travellers to provide fair and appropriate resolutions,” it stated. “We are maintaining close collaboration with our global network of partners to ensure the continuity of our services. Our focus is on resolving all pending matters swiftly and restoring the high standard of service our customers expect.”
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