# New EU directive forces OTAs to overhaul operations and boost traceability

Canonical-URL: https://notitur.com/en/digest/eu-package-travel-directive-otas-operations
Text-Version: https://notitur.com/en/digest/eu-package-travel-directive-otas-operations.txt
Markdown-Version: https://notitur.com/en/digest/eu-package-travel-directive-otas-operations.md
Language: en
Published: 2026-07-21T17:32:02.515Z
Modified: 2026-07-21T19:34:36.780Z
Author: Joan Sanz
Topics: OTAs
Summary: The EU updates the package travel directive, and online travel agencies must upgrade payment, cancellation and claims systems. Christian Lucas from Central de Vacaciones warns of rising compliance costs particularly for SMEs.

## Article

The new European package travel directive is already on OTAs' radar, and for good reason. According to [Hosteltur](https://www.hosteltur.com/177598_la-nueva-directiva-de-viajes-combinados-aprieta-la-operativa-de-las-ota.html?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=la-nueva-directiva-de-viajes-combinados-aprieta-la-operativa-de-las-ota), online travel agencies will have to update their technology to handle payments, cancellations, vouchers and claims with much greater accuracy than before.

Christian Lucas from Central de Vacaciones makes it clear: the direct impact will be on **liquidity**, especially for SMEs. They will need to provide better information on package holidays and manage timing mismatches between advances and refunds. The result? Compliance costs go up.

- OTAs must **increase traceability** for every transaction.
- Payment and cancellation systems will need to be more agile.
- Smaller agencies will feel it most in their bottom line.

My take: this is an opportunity for those who get their tech act together. Agencies that automate processes properly will come out stronger, while those still patching things up will struggle. **Traceability isn't a regulatory whim, it's a competitive advantage** if you turn it into customer trust.

## Sources

- Hosteltur: https://www.hosteltur.com/177598_la-nueva-directiva-de-viajes-combinados-aprieta-la-operativa-de-las-ota.html?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=la-nueva-directiva-de-viajes-combinados-aprieta-la-operativa-de-las-ota

## Citation

New EU directive forces OTAs to overhaul operations and boost traceability. Notitur. 2026-07-21. https://notitur.com/en/digest/eu-package-travel-directive-otas-operations