How to check the reliability of the tour operator? Large tour operators in Russia: reviews. Unified Federal Register of Tour Operators Reliability is on the move

In the summer of 2014, many travel agencies closed without fulfilling their obligations to their customers. The prospect of being stuck abroad without help from your tour operator is daunting, to say the least.

But if you found money for a vacation abroad, then no fears will force you to choose a summer cottage in a neighboring village instead of the sea coast, right? So, you need to choose the right tour operator, and take into account different parameters.

What makes a tour operator reliable?

In fact, there are many parameters by which you need to evaluate a company before buying tickets from it. Here is some of them.

The number of tourist destinations with which the tour operator works

A crisis can happen in any tourist destination - an unstable political situation, a military conflict, natural disasters. The more destinations the tour operator can offer instead of the inaccessible one, the less he risks.

Where to find out? This information can be found on the tour operator's website or ask his consultants by phone.

Availability of host companies in different areas

The host party is a travel company in the country where you are going on a tour. It is this company that books and pays for the hotel, provides transfer from the airport to the place of settlement and arranges excursions.

If the tour operator has its own host company in the country of destination, the chances of getting quality services on site are greatly increased. In addition, such a company is less likely to go bankrupt, since it can also earn on tourists from other countries.

Where to find out? On the official website of the tour operator or by contacting him by phone.

Arrangements with airlines

Airfare often makes up the bulk of the cost of a tour. If the tour operator cooperates with several airlines, has blocks of seats in different directions or has its own charter flight, it will be able to offer more flight options.

Where to find out? As a rule, tour operators post information about cooperation with airlines on their website. Check the sections of the site related to the partners of the company.

Reliability rating of an insurance company

If the tour operator cooperates with a reliable insurance company, in case of bankruptcy, it will not revoke the license and you will receive compensation for the damage.

Where to find out? You can find the company on the RIA Rating website.

These are not all the parameters by which you can evaluate the tour operator, but you are unlikely to be able to find them all on your own. In addition, you will agree that this is a rather long and dreary business. You can make it easier - use ready-made reliability ratings of tour operators.

For example, a similar rating is provided by the travel hypermarket Travelata.ru. Everyone can use it, regardless of the desire to buy a tour or authorization on the site.

Let's see what this tour operator reliability rating is based on, what criteria are used to evaluate tour operators and what degree of objectivity one can hope for.

What makes up the Travelata.ru rating

So, each tour operator, whose offers are posted on the site, is evaluated by 10 indicators. The list of indicators includes the tourist destinations already mentioned above, their host companies, partner airlines and reliable Insurance companies. And here is a list of additional indicators (and screenshots of the current rating of tour operators):

Availability of hotels under warranty

A travel agency can conclude a contract with a hotel by purchasing rooms in advance. In this case, the booking on the tour operator's website is confirmed instantly, and the hotel prices are somewhat reduced.

Dealer or not

If there is one more link in the scheme between the service provider and the client, services become more expensive, and reliability, on the contrary, decreases.

Amount of financial guarantees

This point concerns bankruptcy protection: the higher the financial guarantees of the tour operator, the better things are in the company.

Number of travel agencies under the tour operator brand

The more travel agencies, the larger and more reliable the tour operator.

Belonging to a large international holding

If the tour operator is part of a large holding, he is less likely to be left without customers, and tourist destinations he usually has more.

Dissatisfied customers

This is one of the easiest points by which to evaluate a tour operator. If bad reviews are just there, that's fine: after all, you can't please everyone. But if there are more of them, then confidence in the tour operator is gradually lost.

For each category, a score is given from 0 to 10 and a rating is made from the largest tour operators. But where does the information about the number of host companies, the purchased hotel rooms and the reliability of the insurance company come from?

Sources of information for the rating

But it would not be very correct to use only this information, so the data for the rating is also taken from other sources.

Information from airline websites, where you can learn about cooperation with tour operators, the Unified Federal Register of Tour Operators, where any user can find a company and find out its size financial support.

In addition, data from the RIA Rating agency are used, which allow assessing the reliability of insurance companies, and information from the professional travel portal Tourdom.ru.

The result is a very diverse set of sources by which a tour operator can be fairly judged.

The choice is up to the client

If the reliability rating of a tour operator really drops sharply, many destinations are removed, the number of partners among airlines decreases, the number of negative reviews, - it becomes clear that the work of the tour operator is coming to an end. In such cases, the unsuccessful company disappears from the hypermarket tours.

But, if things are not going so badly yet, the company remains on the site, and then each user decides for himself: to trust a not very reliable tour operator and buy a ticket for a lower cost or spend a little more, but ensure reliability above 90 points.

For example, in 2014 Coral Travel received the highest score: the tour operator scored 98 points out of 100 possible. Slightly lower are TUI Russia - 96 points, and third place went to TezTour with 94 points.

You can remember reliable tour operators, look at their official websites and add them to your browser bookmarks for the future. But if you're not going on tour anytime soon, it's best to just remember where you can see this rating.

This decision is due to the fact that on June 16, the Bank of Russia revoked the license from IC Univers-Garant.

"Companies excluded from the register do not have the right to sell tourism products as tour operators, however, they are obliged to fulfill all their obligations under agreements previously concluded with customers. Tourists will not suffer as a result of the exclusion of tour operators from the register. As soon as the companies formalize the proper financial security of the tour operator's liability and in the prescribed manner send supporting documents to Rostourism, they will be restored in the register," the Rostourism explains.

However, experts believe that the actions of Rostourism are not entirely legitimate.

	Registered tour operator number		Name of the legal entity-tour operator
1	VNT	010311	LLC "Tour operator "Intravel Stoleshniki"
2	VNT	010820	OOO "Tour operator UNEX"
3	VNT	012405	LLC "SKO "Mir"
4	VNT	013000	Soyuzkurort LLC
5	VNT	014374	OOO "Time of Success"
6	VNT	016004	LLC "ALLIANCE"
7	VNT	016145	LLC "Solnechnaya strana"
8	VNT	016265	LLC "Orbita"
9	MW	001114	LLC "TK" RVS "
10	MW	001445	LLC "LINK-TA"
11	MW	002724	LLC "CITY-SERVISTUR"
12	MW	005821	OOO "Voyage"
13	MW	007338	CJSC "Individual Tourist Service"
14	MW	008547	LLC "Aturis-tour"
15	MW	014761	LLC "Inalcons Tour"
16	MW	015102	OOO "MAKO"
17	MW	015364	OOO " Child Center tourism"
18	MT3	000176	LLC Travel agency "Gala-Tour"
19	MT3	000339	LLC "West-line travel"
20	MT3	000348	CJSC "Chaika-Tour"
21	MT3	000350	LLC "Give You Peace"
22	MT3	000453	OOO "ITEK"
23	MT3	000751	OOO Firm "VITALI"
24	MT3	000824	LLC "Pegas-Tour"
25	MT3	000836	LLC "Ivista Tour"
26	MT3	001009	LLC "EXCELENCE"
27	MT3	001081	OOO "Service Voyage"
28	MT3	001089	LLC "NIKA"
29	MT3	001129	Everane LLC
30	MT3	001149	LLC "Art-Travel"
31	MT3	001166	Izumi LLC
32	MT3	001211	OOO TK "Adamas Tour"
33	MT3	001471	LLC "Peks"
34	MT3	001612	LLC "Touroperator IT EM - Sever"
35	MT3	001828	LLC "Tavrida"
36	MT3	001912	LLC "Gagra-touroperator"
37	MT3	001961	CJSC "Interconnect Management Corporation"
38	MT3	001998	LLC "Destination"
39	MT3	002111	LLC "Universal Tours"
40	MT3	002417	PC "Kovcheg" LLC
41	MT3	004625	OOO SIOT "Own people"
42	MT3	004626	LLC "Classic Travel Center"
43	MT3	005574	LLC "River Lines"
44	MT3	005619	LLC "LATINATREVEL"
45	MT3	006229	LLC "Sard Travel"
46	MT3	007021	LLC "Travel Service Norther"
47	MT3	007373	LLC "PRIMAVERA"
48	MT3	008543	LLC MC "Siberia"
49	MT3	008677	LLC "Queen-Express"
50	MT3	009033	"Huamin Solux International Travel" LLC
51	MT3	009109	LLC "Zelensky Corporate Travel Solutions"
52	MT3	009425	LLC "Imperial Travel"
53	MT3	009598	LLC "Bon Voyage LTD"
54	MT3	010993	LLC "TOURINFO group RFR"
55	MT3	011515	LLC "CMT"
56	MT3	011582	LLC "Muslim-Tour"
57	MT3	012244	LLC "Elite Travel Club"
58	MT3	012943	LLC "Old City"
59	MT3	012988	LLC "Diamond Tours"
60	MT3	013061	LLC "American Express Travel Services Vostok"
61	MT3	013070	OOO "Premiera Tour"
62	MT3	013285	CJSC "MiM"
63	MT3	013349	"Petrotur Auto" LLC
64	MT3	013481	LLC "RTI"
65	MT3	013532	LLC "Adventus tour"
66	MT3	013668	OOO " Blue bird a plus"
67	MT3	013959	OOO "Tutti Story"
68	MT3	014257	LLC "ADONIS"
69	MT3	014307	Federal State Unitary Enterprise GT Arktikugol
70	MT3	014308	LLC "Tour operator Otkrytiye"
71	MT3	014493	LLC "CORPORATION TRAVEL"
72	MT3	014628	LLC "TERRA-MINORA"
73	MT3	015069	OOO "Clouds"
74	MT3	015073	LLC "Ilva"
75	MT3	015110	LLC "ROYALMEDGROUP"
76	MT3	015140	OOO "PROGRESS-TOUR"
77	MT3	015144	LLC "TALARII"
78	MT3	015222	LLC "VK Sokol"
79	MT3	015268	OOO "TERRA"
80	MT3	015365	LLC "ZIMA TOUR"
81	MT3	015566	LLC "REST VOYAGE"
82	MT3	015578	LLC "BOOKING CENTER"
83	MT3	015579	LLC "SINGLE TOURIST CENTER"
84	MT3	015581	LLC "China Line"
85	MT3	015613	OOO "Alfa-Odyssey"
86	MT3	015661	LLC "Buddha Tour"
87	MT3	015662	OOO WTC-Moscow
88	MT3	015698	LLC "Via Maris"
89	MT3	015700	LLC "FEST"
90	MT3	015701	LLC "Premium Travel Group"
91	MT3	015703	LLC "DMC Rus"
92	MT3	015705	LLC "CDK"
93	MT3	015759	LLC "Polar Tour Group"
94	MT3	015761	LLC "TAIKI"
95	MT3	015825	LLC "Creol Travel"
96	MT3	015929	LLC "TK "Cleo-Tour"
97	MT3	015983	LLC "OM TRAVEL"
98	MT3	016084	LLC "Travel agency "Tourism Council"
99	MT3	016139	LLC TOUR OPERATOR "RADUGA TRAVEL"
100	MT3	016142	LLC "Agency Intertour"
101	MT3	016143	LLC "Arizona Tour"
102	MT3	016158	LLC "TC" Intravel Stoleshniki "
103	MT3	016186	LLC "Brave Tourist Avia"
104	MT3	016188	LLC "Asgard"
105	MT3	016253	OOO "Fantasy"
106	MT3	016303	LLC "INTURAERO"
107	MT3	016304	LLC "Zaya Travel"
108	MT3	016306	LLC "Jet Voyage"
109	MT3	016375	Mays Group TM LLC
110	MT3	016428	LLC "Gavanatur International"
111	MT3	016482	Mays Line LLC
112	MT3	016835	LLC "Polar VIP Tour"
113	MT3	016968	LLC ", which from the information contained in the Unified Federal Register of Tour Operators excluded the scope of tour operator activities" international outbound tourism " № Registration number of the tour operator Abbreviated name of the tour operator 1. MT3 011961 LLC "Multitour.ru" 2. MT3 015773 LLC "I-Touroperator" 3. MT3 015978 LLC "CMK-tour" 4. MT3 014772 OOO "KIPLING" 5. MT3 000806 LLC "Petropolitana Tour" 6. MT3 008685 OOO "NMK" 7. MT3 001593 LLC "Laguna" LLC "Calypso M-Tour" 18. MT3 016481 LLC "CALABRIA TOUR" 19. MT3 013775 Lusitana Sol LLC 20. MT3 000805 OOO "TK" BURO-3-VISA " 21. MT3 005709 LLC "HOLIDAY-OPERATOR" 22. MT3 016140 ANO "Pilgrimage Center" 23. MT3 016426 LLC "Kaprikon Travel" 24. MT3 010384 OOO "Pluton" 25. MT3 009389 LLC "Russian Express - West" 26. MT3 015699 LLC "SENTRO M"

1) Check if it is listed in register of tour operators.

All tour operators are required to complete the registration procedure. When registering, the tour operator is assigned a tour operator registration number, consisting of letters and numbers.

For tour operators of international tourism, the abbreviation MTZ and MT1 is used. For tour operators of domestic tourism - VNT and MVT.

The official name and registration number of the tour operator is usually located in the "About Us" section.

All actual information about each registered Russian tour operator is freely available in Unified Federal Register of Tour Operators .

In the window next to the "Search" button, write the name / part of the name of the tour operator or its registry number. As an example, I write "Pegasus".

Pegas Touristik registers its own legal entity for each region, which is why the search returns several pages of results. After we click on the name, detailed information about the tour operator, its insurance coverage is opened - terms, amount, insurance company.

2) You can check the reliability of the tour operator, comparing its prices with the prices of other tour operators for the same tours. For example, in 2014, shortly before the bankruptcy of the Labyrinth and Southern Cross t / o, a trend towards impressive dumping began to be traced: while all tour operators had a tour that cost 50 thousand rubles, the above mentioned tours were sold for 30 thousand rubles Here is an obvious example for you when you should think about the reliability of a tour operator.

3) Ask advice from a specialist travel agencies.

Employees of the tourism industry daily follow the news of tourism, and also see the behavior of a number of tour operators. The peculiarities of behavior include a change in the quality of the attitude of the tour operator towards its tourists and travel agencies working with it.

Therefore, if you contact a qualified specialist, he will definitely give you his recommendations on choosing a tour operator.
From my point of view, at the moment, the list of the most reliable tour operators includes Pegas Touristik, Coral Travel, Sunmar, and, possibly, Anex Tour. As for tours to Europe, Vedi Tour Group has been showing itself very positively for many years.

The mass bankruptcy of tour operators in 2014 showed that the choice of a tour operator must be approached responsibly. After all, your vacation depends on how it works. Therefore, be vigilant! :)

Instruction

Some replacement for licensing was the creation of the All-Russian General

register of travel agencies, created by the Russian Union of Travel Industry. Entry into the register is not mandatory for travel agencies, at the same time, the presence of a company in the list does not give a 100% guarantee of its reliability. But the agency with which you are going to work for the first time is still worth it.

Indeed, when registering in the register, companies provide not only their official data, but also copies of the contract with the tour operator. And this already means that the company you have chosen has not only its own sign on the facade, but also a history of partnership in the tourism world. The registry data is open to everyone at the address http://reestr-ta.ru/. Find out in advance in the travel agency its number in the register.

Before starting cooperation with a travel agency, ask for a Company Registration Certificate and a Certificate of Compliance. The contract for the provision of tourist services must contain the same company as in these documents. Make sure the contract with you signs directly CEO companies. If this is another person, ask for a power of attorney to delegate such authority from the head of the company.

In the contract, pay attention to the clause on financial guarantees. They can be of two types: reserving funds in the bank for the payment of compensation or civil liability insurance of the tour operator. The document must contain the number, date, expiration date and address of the bank or insurance company, as well as the amount of financial security.

It will not be superfluous to look for a job travel agency in the Internet. True, objective data will only give you negative feedback. If tourists have already encountered problems in cooperation with this travel agency, then you should not choose it as your guide to distant countries.

Positive reviews, of course, cheer up, but they do not give a complete guarantee of your peace of mind. Not only one-day firms are closing, but also reputable companies with extensive experience. At the same time, a newly opened travel agency is not always a trap for the traveler. Sometimes experienced managers leave more large firm to organize your small business. Their “luggage” has many years of experience and knowledge of all the specifics, and a young company is more likely to provide you profitable terms.

A very striking criterion for the reliability of a travel agency will be the competence of its employees. Do not be afraid to ask managers meticulously about the hotels you are going to visit, find out the features of the country and ask for advice. Friendly detailed responses are an indicator of the seriousness of the intentions of this company. A narrow specialization of the travel agency will also be an excellent recommendation. For example, some agencies work only for Asian destinations, some offer exclusively Mediterranean cruises or extreme tours to Africa. As a rule, such companies have their own niche and stand firmly on their feet in it.

And yet, do not be too lazy to contact the airline after purchasing the tour and send a request to the hotel. Request a booking confirmation for you tickets and payment for rooms. Thus, you will save yourself from unpleasant surprises at the airport or already at the resort.

Tell us how to check the tour operator before buying a tour. If it is in the register of tour operators in the Federal Tourism Agency, this does not guarantee the absence of problems: Natalie Tours was there too. How to understand if he is in a situation where he will not be able to fulfill his obligations?

Sasha, unfortunately, in tourism it is impossible to know something for sure. Even the most famous companies unexpectedly declared themselves bankrupt and left the market.

Nadezhda Dvoynikova

worked in a travel agency

What is bankruptcy

Over the past 9 years, many well-known and large tour operators have gone bankrupt in Russia, for example, Lanta Tour, Capital Tour or Neva. They had dozens regional offices, prestigious awards, 10-20 years of experience - and nothing foreshadowed trouble.

According to the bankruptcy law, any organization that has a lot of debt and little money can declare itself insolvent. So every year on the list bankrupt tour operators new companies emerge.

In my practice, there were cases when the operator suspended activities instantly: yesterday he was selling tours with might and main, and today he is already bankrupt. So it was with the tour operator "Versa". Once I booked two tours with him. The client had only managed to pay for the first one, when a call came from colleagues with bad news: the tour operator went bankrupt. We found out about this before the media and, of course, did not pay for the second application. But for the first one they could not return the money.

Who to trust

I often travel by myself and try to choose popular tour operators. She advised her tourists to do the same. This will not insure against problems: Natalie Tours was also one of the largest players in the market and went bankrupt anyway. But still, when buying a tour from the leader, there is less chance of being left without a vacation. In the news about bankruptcies on the Rossiyskaya Gazeta website, more small companies than the big tour operators.

Here is a list of companies from which I would not be afraid to buy a tour for myself or my mother in April 2019:

1. Traveling around the world: Anex, Pegasus, Tui, Biblio-Globus, Coral, Tez-tour, Intourist.
2. Travels in Russia: Alean, Dolphin, Multitour, Bontour, West, Petrotour.
3. Well-known tour operators with a narrow profile: "Mouzenidis" sell tours to Greece, "Zlata Prague" - to the Czech Republic, "Pak" - to Italy.

The advantage of large tour operators over companies with a narrow specialization is in a large number of tourist destinations. This can protect the tourist from sudden events like border closures. For example, after a plane crash in Egypt, the authorities closed entry into the country after a couple of hours. Tourists who were waiting for a flight to Egypt at the airport were offered to relax in other resorts, such as Turkey. If the tour operator has one direction, he will not be able to offer a replacement.

How to check the operator

Check official sources. If the operator is not in the Unified Federal Register of Tour Operators, he does not have the right to carry out tour operator activities. You can also check the legal entity in the federal bankruptcy registry and study cases in the bailiff database. If the tour operator does not pay the bills, this is a reason to choose another company.

Check with the tour operator about the amount of possible compensation. By law, tour operators must create They work as additional insurance: if the operator goes bankrupt, tourists will receive compensation from this fund. Specify the size of the fund in the register of tour operators.

Unfortunately, the presence of the fund does not guarantee the absence of problems by 100%. Some tourists still remain without compensation.

Compare prices. In August 2014, my friends and relatives and I were invited to a wedding on the Greek island of Santorini. There were no direct flights, but no one wanted to fly with transfers. Suddenly, the tour operator "Labyrinth" put up for sale a charter to Santorini in both directions for 15 thousand rubles per person. It was the peak of the season, when the maximum number of tourists flies to the islands.

At that time, I had already worked in tourism for several years and suspected something was wrong: in my experience, it was very low price for this direction. Such prices for a charter have never been even in the off-season.

I tried to dissuade my friends from buying these tickets, but I failed. As a result, 15 out of 16 people paid for the flight, the company went bankrupt, and people were left without tickets and money. The guys had to take out a loan for flights with transfers, but no one returned the money for the charter.

Find out about the company from travel agents. Sometimes dubious companies can be found in groups on social networks where representatives of tour operators and travel agents sit: "Profi-travel" , "Subtleties of tourism" , "Typical Tourist" , "Tricky Travel Agent" The first news about bankruptcies also appears there.

What else could go wrong

Even if the tour operator is not going to go bankrupt, he can ruin the vacation for the tourist. In my practice, most problems arise after buying tours from sub-operators, that is, resellers. They take tours in bulk and resell them at a reduced price, for example, cheaper by 5 thousand rubles. Sometimes such savings deprive tourists of a relaxing holiday: for resellers, the main thing is to sell a tour, and not provide a quality service.

One of the well-known resellers is the tour operator "Pearl River". He sold tours to China for 30-40 thousand rubles, when they cost 50-60 thousand rubles from other companies. As a result, some tourists flew instead of China to Vietnam, while others did not fly at all: the operator did not pay the airline. Airlines, Rostourism, the Turpomoshch Association with the support of the Russian Foreign Ministry and other operators came to the aid of tourists, and the Pearl River was excluded from the register of operators.

Usually resellers are little-known companies that tourists have not heard of. They can also be calculated from the discussions of travel agents in professional groups. If travel agents are in doubt whether to sell a tour or not, I advise you not to take risks and buy a tour from a major tour operator. It’s not a fact that you will avoid problems, but the likelihood of getting into an unpleasant situation is many times less.

During my practice, I bought tours from resellers only three times. Before booking, I warned tourists what difficulties it could turn into, but they insisted. Unfortunately, every time the tour was really problematic. For example, one reseller canceled a paid tour, citing lack of hotel space and partial renovations. The money was returned, but the vacation was ruined.

What to do if your vacation is ruined

Not always a problem in the tour operator. Vacation can spoil the rudeness of the guide or disgusting Buffet. Sometimes the room differs from the photo in the beautiful booklet of the tour operator or tourists are brought to another hotel altogether. If something does not suit you, I advise you not to wait for the end of the trip and immediately express your complaints.

Sometimes it is not possible to solve the problem on the spot. In this case, I recommend not to waste energy on a dispute and immediately call the hotel guide, travel agent or tour operator. Well, if there is some proof of your words on hand. This can be a photo or a paper describing the situation, which is assured by the guide, administrator or airline representative.

Most problems can be solved by negotiation. One day, my tourists faced overbooking: the room they had paid for was suddenly taken. For a couple of days, tourists were settled in a nearby hotel, but the vacation was ruined: instead of celebrating a birthday, tourists had to carry suitcases from hotel to hotel. They contacted me and I contacted the operator. We agreed that as compensation, the tourists would be given a superior room and paid for drinks at dinner: this was not included in the cost of their tour. We never found out the reasons for overbooking - probably the hotel manager made a mistake and accepted two applications for one room.

Unfortunately, at the height of the season, I often encountered overbooking. A reliable and well-known operator in most cases will try to smooth out the negative: pay for additional meals, excursions, upgrade the room or give a discount on the car.

What to do if the operator still goes bankrupt

If the tour operator goes bankrupt, use This is an association that is designed to protect tourists.