Holidaybreak completes refinancing deal with banking syndicate

Cheshire-based Holidaybreak, has completed a refinancing deal with a syndicate of banks.

The £200m turnover education-activity and leisure travel group has amended and extended its debt facilities with a group of lenders including Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds, M&G, RBS, Santander and State Bank of India.

Holidaybreak serves more than 13,000 schools and 500,000 students across Europe through its education division and accommodates thousands of independent travellers in its Meininger hotels.

The company said the extended facilities will provide a “platform for capital investment and the fulfilment of Holidaybreak’s medium term strategy”.

The company was acquired by Indian-listed luxury travel firm Cox & King for £312m in 2011.

In 2014, it completed a £245m refinancing to remove legacy acquisition finance debt, reduce finance costs, simplify borrowing arrangements, and diversify sources of lending.

Inthe same year Holidaybreak sold its Eurocamp business, which runs campsites across Europe, to French company Homair Vacances Group for nearly £90m. Peter Kerkar, chief executive of Holidaybreak said the sale, first mooted in autumn 2013, was a “logical and favourable step forward”.

Holidaybreak was advised on the refinancing deal by Jason Wurzal and Mariche Chambers at Eversheds Sutherland in Manchester, and Chris Heesom and Jane Chadwick at Rothschild in Manchester.

Allen & Overy provided legal advice to the lender group.