What Virgin Holidays does

Virgin Holidays, trading as Virgin Atlantic Holidays and legally registered as Virgin Holidays Limited (company number 01873815), is the largest UK transatlantic tour operator and a wholly-owned component of the Virgin Group, headquartered in Crawley, West Sussex. Founded in 1985, the company assembles and distributes flight-inclusive package holidays primarily to the USA and Caribbean, with extended coverage across the Indian Ocean, UAE, Far East, South Africa, and Canada. The core product combines Virgin Atlantic Airways flights (supplemented by partner airlines such as Emirates, Air Mauritius, and Delta) with hotel accommodation, sold as ATOL- and ABTA-protected packages, and complemented by ancillary products including cruises (Virgin Voyages, Royal Caribbean, Disney Cruise Line), FlyDrive holidays, Disney packages, luxury and all-inclusive options, and travel extras such as insurance, car hire, and airport lounges.

The business operates an omnichannel distribution model spanning a 24/7 responsive website, a network of physical retail stores with appointment-based travel specialists, a telephone contact centre (0344 472 9646), a mobile app, and trade travel-agent partnerships, with departures from multiple UK airports including London Heathrow, Manchester, Birmingham, Edinburgh, and Glasgow. The technology stack consists of an online booking platform integrated with Virgin Atlantic flight systems, a self-service Manage My Booking portal, a digital brochure platform, and a WhatsApp-based in-resort concierge tool, all underpinned by the Flying Club loyalty programme for Virgin Points earning and redemption. Pricing is dynamic by destination, season, and cabin class, with deposits starting from £175 per person, Direct Debit monthly instalments from £25, and balance due 12 weeks before departure; current lead-price examples include Las Vegas from £666pp, New York from £803pp, Dubai from £827pp, Jamaica from £1,332pp, and Maldives from £1,811pp.

Commercially the company targets UK leisure consumers in seven primary segments: families (Disney/Universal Orlando focus), couples, luxury travellers, city breakers, beach holiday seekers, flydrive enthusiasts, and cruise customers. Revenue is generated predominantly from one-time package and ancillary bookings rather than subscriptions, with consumer-side pricing scaled per booking rather than per enterprise contract. The marketing mix combines seasonal email campaigns, SEO, organic social, travel-agent trade programmes, and experiential activations such as the June 2026 California Games partnership with Visit California tied to FIFA World Cup 2026.

Name

Virgin Holidays

Legal name

Virgin Holidays Limited

Website

https://virginholidays.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1985

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

Virgin Holidays is the largest UK transatlantic tour operator, selling ATOL-protected flight-inclusive package holidays to the USA, Caribbean, and other long-haul destinations via website, retail stores, call centre, and travel-agent partners under the Virgin Group umbrella.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Package Holiday Services

NAICS

Tour Operators (561520), Tour Operators (56152), Travel Agencies (561510)

akta.pro primary industry

Cruise Air/Hotel Add-On Packagers (Fly-Cruise Specialists) (THAKAKAK)

Keywords

• Package holiday booking
• Transatlantic tour operator
• Flight-inclusive holidays
• Cruise holiday packages
• Long-haul travel services

Headquarters

HQ city

Crawley

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Marketing or Sales, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Package Holidays: Flight-inclusive package holidays combining Virgin Atlantic flights with hotel accommodation, the core revenue driver. Packages include ATOL/ABTA financial protection and various holiday types (all-inclusive, luxury, family, couples).
2. Flight-Only Sales: Standalone flight bookings via Virgin Atlantic Airways, though these are not ATOL protected.
3. Ancillary Products: Car hire, airport parking, airport lounges, travel insurance, and attraction tickets sold as add-ons to package holidays or standalone.
4. Cruise Holidays: Cruise-only and cruise-inclusive holiday packages booked through partner cruise operators including Virgin Voyages, Royal Caribbean, Disney Cruise Line, Celebrity Cruises, and others.
5. Hotel-Only Bookings: Standalone accommodation bookings without flights, non-package arrangements not covered by Package Travel Regulations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Virgin Holidays, trading as Virgin Atlantic Holidays, sells ATOL-protected flight-inclusive package holidays combining Virgin Atlantic and partner airline flights with hotel accommodation across long-haul destinations including the USA, Caribbean, UAE, Indian Ocean, Far East, South Africa, and Canada. The company also arranges cruise holidays through partner operators, fly-drive packages, hotel-only bookings, and ancillary travel extras such as insurance, car hire, airport parking, and lounge access, delivered through an omnichannel mix of website, retail stores, call centre, and mobile app.

Product overview

Virgin Atlantic Holidays operates as a package holiday provider and travel retailer offering integrated travel services. The core offering consists of package holidays combining flights (primarily Virgin Atlantic and partner airlines) with accommodations across global destinations. Supporting products include cruise bookings through partner operators, flydrive packages, Disney holidays, and various specialist holiday types (luxury, family, couples, honeymoons, city breaks, beach holidays). The service is delivered through multiple channels including online booking, retail stores, and call centre, with supplementary services such as travel insurance, airport parking, car hire, and concierge support. The company also offers a loyalty program (Flying Club) and flexible payment options including direct debit installment plans. The product portfolio spans USA (including Florida/Orlando), Caribbean, Middle East, Indian Ocean, Far East/Asia, South Africa, and Canada markets.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Virgin Atlantic Holidays: Holiday packages and all-inclusive travel packages offered in partnership with Virgin Atlantic Airways

Products and services

• Package Holidays

Quantifiable outcome

• ATOL and ABTA protection ensures financial security for customers
• +1 more outcomes

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles7 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core, minor and major.

• Visit CaliforniacoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 26 May 2026Co-marketing partnership for the California Games activation at Outernet London, June 12-13, 2026. Part of wider integrated marketing campaign tied to FIFA World Cup 2026 fixtures. Includes sports activations, live entertainment, and California-inspired content experiences.
• Los Angeles TourismminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 26 May 2026Tourism marketing partner for the California Games activation promoting Los Angeles as a destination for FIFA World Cup 2026 and beyond.
• Universal Studios HollywoodminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 26 May 2026Entertainment partner included in the California Games activation partnership for experiential marketing.
• The London StandardminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 26 May 2026Media partner for the California Games activation providing editorial coverage and audience reach for the Outernet London event.
• Virgin Atlantic AirwayscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerParent airline providing flight capacity for all package holidays. Integration with Flying Club loyalty programme allows points earning and redemption on holidays. ATOL holder for flight-inclusive packages.
• Virgin VoyagescoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorVirgin Group cruise line partner for cruise holidays sold through Virgin Atlantic Holidays. Cruise-only and fly-cruise packages available.
• Royal Caribbean InternationalmajorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMajor cruise operator available through Virgin Atlantic Holidays cruise bookings, subject to cruise operator's own booking terms.
• Disney Cruise LinemajorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorFamily-focused cruise operator available through Virgin Atlantic Holidays. Packages include Disney-themed experiences.
• EmiratesmajorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartner airline for Dubai routes, operating daily services from London Heathrow. Allows Virgin Atlantic Holidays to offer Dubai packages beyond Virgin Atlantic's own network.
• Air MauritiusminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartner airline for Mauritius routes, operating direct flights from London Gatwick for Virgin Atlantic Holidays Mauritius packages.
• Delta Air LinesminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorSkyTeam partner airline for New York routes, operating daily services from London Gatwick May-October 2025.
• AWP Assistance UK Ltd / Allianz AssistancemajorOthersTravel insurance underwritten by AWP P&C SA and administered by Allianz Assistance. Virgin Atlantic Holidays acts as Appointed Representative of AWP Assistance UK Ltd for travel insurance products.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Trailfinders: High-end UK travel company selling tailor-made long-haul holidays, flights, cruises and expeditions. Overlaps with Virgin Holidays on premium long-haul and family travel segments, particularly USA, Africa, and Indian Ocean.
• Loveholidays: Large UK online travel agency selling package holidays with flights and hotels to long-haul destinations including the USA, Caribbean, and Indian Ocean. Direct online competitor to Virgin Holidays on price-led flight+hotel packages.
• TUI Group: Largest UK tour operator offering package holidays, flights, cruises and hotels across long-haul and short-haul destinations. Directly competes with Virgin Holidays on flight-inclusive packages to the USA, Caribbean, and Indian Ocean, with overlapping UK customer base and similar ATOL-protected package model.
• British Airways Holidays: Package holiday arm of British Airways, the principal UK flag-carrier rival to Virgin Atlantic. Sells flight+hotel packages, car hire and experiences worldwide and is the closest direct competitor to Virgin Atlantic Holidays on transatlantic and long-haul routes, with an analogous airline-integrated loyalty programme (Avios).
• Kuoni (dnata Travel): Long-established premium UK tour operator under dnata, specialising in long-haul luxury and tailor-made holidays plus cruises. Directly comparable to Virgin Holidays on premium and long-haul segments (Indian Ocean, Asia, USA) and on the high-service in-resort concierge proposition.
• On the Beach: UK-focused online package holiday retailer selling flight+hotel combinations, primarily beach destinations. Competes with Virgin Holidays on the digital package holiday funnel and price-led consumer acquisition in beach and city break segments.
• Jet2holidays: UK package holiday specialist combining Jet2.com flights with hotel accommodation, primarily to Mediterranean and Canary Islands but expanding into long-haul. Competes head-to-head with Virgin Holidays on the UK package holiday model with similar deposit and balance payment mechanics.
• easyJet holidays: Package holiday extension of easyJet, combining easyJet flights with hotel accommodation. While currently more short-haul-focused, it competes with Virgin Holidays on the UK flight-inclusive package model, payment plans, and ATOL-protected bookings.

Broad incumbents

• Booking.com: Global OTA dominating hotel and accommodation bookings, increasingly packaging flights and experiences. Competes with Virgin Holidays for the same UK consumer travel wallet, particularly on hotel-only and ancillary spend, and is the principal digital channel many customers price-compare against.
• Expedia Group: Global OTA and package holiday platform operating brands including Expedia, Hotels.com and Vrbo. Competes with Virgin Holidays across flights, hotels, and packages worldwide, with significantly larger scale and digital marketing reach in the UK.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/virginholidays
• Facebookfacebook.com/virginholidays

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Virgin Holidays