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Yugotours
IndustryTourism, Travel
Founded1959
Defunct2007
SuccessorMed-Choice
Headquarters
Chesham house, 150 Regent Street, London[1]
,
United Kingdom
Key people
Alison Gray (marketing manager)
ProductsPackage Holidays
OwnerYugoslavian Government
DivisionsYugotour Holiday Club
Websitewww.yugotours.co.rs/eng/

Yugotours was a Yugoslavian state-owned tour operator[2] and travel agency. It was the largest tour operator for the Adriatic Sea, and at its peak the United Kingdom's fourth-biggest.

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 breakup of Yugoslavia, the country was the United Kingdom's second most popular overseas holiday destination behind Spain.[3] During its heyday,[when?] the tour operator sent close to 500,000[1] holidaymakers a year to the countries of former Yugoslavia, namely Croatia, Slovenia and Montenegro.

By the early 1990s as Yugoslavia's political framework came under strain, Yugotours faced fierce competition from then market leaders Thomson.[2] 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.[2]

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]

Other

Yugotours was famous for its 1986 catchphrase "Sun-sational Yugoslavia!"[4]

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.[1] The four-day event[5] included a cocktail party, a boat trip to Rovinj via the Lim Fjord, and a Grand Yugotours Reunion gala dinner in Villa Polesini.[1]

Logos

For this travel agency, there was two different logos. The first logo of travel agency has been in use from 1959 to 1982, and the second and final logo has been in use from 1982 to closure in 2007.

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d Ltd, Jacobs Media Group. "Yugotours staff reunion more than 20 years after operator closed". www.travelweekly.co.uk.
  2. ^ a b c d e "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 8 May 2016. Retrieved 24 April 2016.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  3. ^ "Yugoslavia state tourism and how it affects your holidays today". High50. 18 August 2014.
  4. ^ Yugotours 1986 TV Advert. 18 March 2015 – via YouTube.
  5. ^ "Yugotours Grand Reunion – yugotoursgrandreunion.com". yugotoursgrandreunion.com.


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