Founded 1974 | ||
Mark Warner is an independent British tour operator with 40 years' experience, having been founded in 1974 by entrepreneurs Mark Chitty and Andrew Searle. Based in London, it originally specialised in singles' and couples' ski holidays in just one chalet in Switzerland but has since expanded into family and beach resort holidays and now carries more than 50,000 passengers a year.
Mark Warner's summer destinations currently comprise seven beach resorts in Corsica, Greece, Sardinia and Turkey, with extensive facilities including tennis and watersports centres. Its winter ski programme embraces 11 chalet hotels, one chalet and apartments in the French Alps, Austria and Italy.
Mark Warner is famed for its childcare program but certain ski properties are reserved for adults, in keeping with the original idea. The most recent addition to its portfolio, the Levante Beach Resort on Rhodes, is a 5-star resort built to Mark Warner's own specifications.
In 2010 ex-Savills director Giles Gale launched a new associated business - Mark Warner Property - to specialise in the sales and marketing of ski property developments in Austria. In 2012 the business was expanded into Switzerland with a particular focus on Grimentz and the Valais region.
In 2014, Mark Warner Holidays was a three-time winner in the British Travel Awards (Best Family Tour Operator [Medium size], Best Activity & Adventure Operator [Medium size] and Best All Inclusive Operator [Medium Size]) and Best Ski Operator according to the Telegraph Travel Awards, the latter for the second year running.
The company hit the headlines in December 2016 when it wrote to all of its customers holding live bookings, adding a £50 per person surcharge citing the Pound to Euro exchange rate. The company insisted it was within its rights under booking conditions to make such a charge. When asked to provide detail justifing the charge the company refused and just threatened to deny boarding if it was not paid.