Package holidays and flight compensation: two sets of rights, one payment
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Quick answer
EU261 applies to the flight of a package holiday exactly as to any other flight: the operating airline owes fixed compensation for a 3-hour delay, a short-notice cancellation or denied boarding. The tour operator is separately responsible for the holiday under the Package Travel Directive — price reductions, alternative arrangements, repatriation. The two rights coexist, but the same loss is not paid twice.
How much flight compensation could I receive?
€250–€600 per passenger, depending on the distance of the flight, for an arrival delay of 3 hours or more, a cancellation announced under 14 days ahead, or denied boarding on a flight covered by Regulation 261.
Does this apply to your flight?
Does this apply to your flight?
A few short questions — no flight number needed yet. You get a preliminary result on the facts you give; the full check confirms it from the itinerary.
What happened to your flight?
The airline: EU261 as usual
Article 3 excludes only free or non-public fares and package trips cancelled for reasons other than the flight. A flight sold within a package remains a flight: if it is delayed 3 hours or more, cancelled at short notice or overbooked, claim compensation from the operating airline, not from the tour operator. The airline’s page on this site gives the claim channel.
The tour operator: the Package Travel Directive
The organiser is liable for the performance of the whole package. A flight problem that costs you a night of the holiday, a missed excursion or an early return entitles you to a price reduction and, where appropriate, damages; the organiser must also arrange suitable alternatives or your return. Claims go to the organiser, and in the UK to the operator under the Package Travel Regulations 2018.
No double recovery
Article 12 lets the airline deduct EU261 compensation from any further damages for the same loss, and the Package Travel Directive contains the mirror rule. In practice: the fixed EU261 amount comes from the airline; the holiday-specific losses come from the organiser; neither pays the same euro twice.
Who to write to first
Both, at once. The airline claim is standardised and often quicker; the organiser claim needs a description of what the disruption cost you within the holiday. Keep the booking, the itinerary, the airline’s disruption messages and receipts.
Charter flights
Charter flights sold within packages are covered by EU261 in the same way; the operating charter airline is the debtor for compensation.
Sources
- European CommissionInterpretative Guidelines on Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 (2016/C 214/04)
- European Parliament and CouncilRegulation (EC) No 261/2004 establishing common rules on compensation and assistance to passengers in the event of denied boarding and of cancellation or long delay of flights
- European Union — Your EuropeAir passenger rights
- UK Civil Aviation AuthorityDelays and cancellations — your rights
Last legally reviewed: 12 September 2026 · Content updated: 12 September 2026
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