Holiday extras
Encyclopedia
HolidayExtras.com, part of Holiday Extras ltd, is a UK
-based online company providing pre-booked UK airport hotels and parking. The company is based in Newingreen, Hythe, Kent
, operating from a purpose built building.
The company shared its offices in Ashford, Kent
with another business with the Apple prefix. The two telephone operators worked for both companies, so all callers were greeted with the response 'Apple'. A manual booking system was used at first, with a software and database later being developed by Anthony Williams, who ran the other business.
The company began by offering a small number of three-star airport hotels at Gatwick, Heathrow and Luton. ABC was able to offer customers discounted rates by only revealing the name of the hotel once they had made the booking.
In 1986, the company began selling travel insurance
, and in 1988 it branched out into UK airport parking. As the company grew, it was renamed ABC Holiday Extras and moved to a converted barn in the nearby village of Smeeth.
In the 1990s ABC Holiday Extras brought its first car parking company, an off-airport car park near Birmingham Airport. ABC Holiday Extras branded the parking site 'Airparks'
and now has sites at Birmingham, Cardiff, East Midlands, Gatwick, Glasgow, Luton, Manchester and Newcastle airports, with a total of 28,000 spaces.
The business was renamed once again in 2003 and became known as Holiday Extras. In 2005, the company went through a management buy-out.
The company's head office won Kent County Council's Building Design Award for 2003-4, and it has been given planning permission to build a 1,415 square metre extension.
since 2007.
The UK Based call centre have been winners of the Top 100 Call Centres since 2008 and the company was shortlisted for the Badenoch and Clarke business of the year award in 2008.
As well as B2C awards, HolidayExtras.com have also received numerous awards for their B2B
work. At the Travel Weekly
Globe Travel Awards 2010, the company won the 'Best Insurance Provider' and 'Best Add-ons Provider' categories. The company had previously won the 'Best Insurance Provider', 'Best Add-ons Provider' and 'Best Travel Trade Provider' categories.
ln 2010, HolidayExtras.com expanded on the previous years success by adding the 'Travel personality of the year' award.
In 2011, HolidayExtras.com expanded on their success in 2010 by adding the 'Most Inspirational Travel Film' award.
In November 2008, as part of the HolidayExtras.com re-brand, the company's website was re-launched, incorporating over 100 user-friendly changes to improve the customer experience
as well as adding in dynamic pricing and interactive number plate
recognition.
In 2009, the HolidayExtras.com website was responsible for around 80% of direct bookings.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
-based online company providing pre-booked UK airport hotels and parking. The company is based in Newingreen, Hythe, Kent
Hythe, Kent
Hythe , is a small coastal market town on the edge of Romney Marsh, in the District of Shepway on the south coast of Kent. The word Hythe or Hithe is an Old English word meaning Haven or Landing Place....
, operating from a purpose built building.
History
The company was founded in 1983 as the 'Apple Booking Company' by Gerry Pack, an ex-employee of Saga. Pack wanted to provide an easy way for leisure travellers to book an overnight stay in an airport hotel and take advantage of discounted rates.The company shared its offices in Ashford, Kent
Ashford, Kent
Ashford is a town in the borough of Ashford in Kent, England. In 2005 it was voted the fourth best place to live in the United Kingdom. It lies on the Great Stour river, the M20 motorway, and the South Eastern Main Line and High Speed 1 railways. Its agricultural market is one of the most...
with another business with the Apple prefix. The two telephone operators worked for both companies, so all callers were greeted with the response 'Apple'. A manual booking system was used at first, with a software and database later being developed by Anthony Williams, who ran the other business.
The company began by offering a small number of three-star airport hotels at Gatwick, Heathrow and Luton. ABC was able to offer customers discounted rates by only revealing the name of the hotel once they had made the booking.
In 1986, the company began selling travel insurance
Travel insurance
Travel insurance is insurance that is intended to cover medical expenses, financial default of travel suppliers, and other losses incurred while traveling, either within one's own country, or internationally...
, and in 1988 it branched out into UK airport parking. As the company grew, it was renamed ABC Holiday Extras and moved to a converted barn in the nearby village of Smeeth.
In the 1990s ABC Holiday Extras brought its first car parking company, an off-airport car park near Birmingham Airport. ABC Holiday Extras branded the parking site 'Airparks'
Airparks
Airparks, based in the UK, is an operator of off-site airport parking facilities and other services. Airparks own car park based at Birmingham, Cardiff, East Midlands, Gatwick, Glasgow, Luton, Manchester and Newcastle airports.-History:...
and now has sites at Birmingham, Cardiff, East Midlands, Gatwick, Glasgow, Luton, Manchester and Newcastle airports, with a total of 28,000 spaces.
The business was renamed once again in 2003 and became known as Holiday Extras. In 2005, the company went through a management buy-out.
The company's head office won Kent County Council's Building Design Award for 2003-4, and it has been given planning permission to build a 1,415 square metre extension.
Awards
HolidayExtras.com have won numerous awards over the last couple of decades. Most notably the company has been listed on the Sunday Times '100 Best Companies to Work For'The Sunday Times 100 Best Companies to Work For
Since 2001, the Sunday Times newspaper has published annual lists of the best companies to work for in the UK. The award is highly valued by its winners.The list ranks Britain's best companies to work for based a number of criteria...
since 2007.
The UK Based call centre have been winners of the Top 100 Call Centres since 2008 and the company was shortlisted for the Badenoch and Clarke business of the year award in 2008.
As well as B2C awards, HolidayExtras.com have also received numerous awards for their B2B
Business-to-business
Business-to-business describes commerce transactions between businesses, such as between a manufacturer and a wholesaler, or between a wholesaler and a retailer...
work. At the Travel Weekly
Travel Weekly
Travel Weekly , is a United States national newspaper for the travel industry geared toward travel agents. The company prints 51 regular issues per year in print and digital formats, and one Preview issue, which features opinion and predictions for the year ahead...
Globe Travel Awards 2010, the company won the 'Best Insurance Provider' and 'Best Add-ons Provider' categories. The company had previously won the 'Best Insurance Provider', 'Best Add-ons Provider' and 'Best Travel Trade Provider' categories.
Customers' Awards
In 2009, HolidayExtras.com launched their 'Customers' Awards'. These awards were developed to offer customers their opinion on who they felt were the leaders in the travel industry. The inaugural awards saw nearly 18,000 votes cast by HolidayExtras.com customers in categories including 'Best Airline', 'Best Airport' and 'Most Recommended airline for travelling with babies'.ln 2010, HolidayExtras.com expanded on the previous years success by adding the 'Travel personality of the year' award.
In 2011, HolidayExtras.com expanded on their success in 2010 by adding the 'Most Inspirational Travel Film' award.
Website
In April 2000, Holiday Extras launched their website, which enabled them to compete in the B2C market as well as the B2B. The website allowed travel agents to realise the potential of working online and allowed them to set up their own online business.In November 2008, as part of the HolidayExtras.com re-brand, the company's website was re-launched, incorporating over 100 user-friendly changes to improve the customer experience
Customer experience
Customer experience is the sum of all experiences a customer has with a supplier of goods or services, over the duration of their relationship with that supplier. From awareness, discovery, attraction, interaction, purchase, use, cultivation and advocacy...
as well as adding in dynamic pricing and interactive number plate
Number plate
A number plate may be:* a vehicle registration plate* a plate attached to a locomotive indicating their number, particularly in the UK and Australia, which are often collected as memorabilia....
recognition.
In 2009, the HolidayExtras.com website was responsible for around 80% of direct bookings.