STA Travel


STA Travel is a travel agency specializing in youth travel. It is owned by DKSH, with headquarters in Zurich and London.
It has almost 2,000 employees working in over 200 stores worldwide.
Under the BUNAC brand, the company arranges working holidays and volunteering.
Originally an acronym for "Student Travel Australia", the company was later branded as "Student Travel Association" and now brands itself as an acronym for "Start The Adventure".

History

STA Travel dates back to 1971.
In 1979, two students in Australia organized the company after returning from their travels. STA Travel was an acronym for Student Travel Australia.
In August 2010, the company acquired Bridge the World, targeting an older and more affluent demographic.
In November 2012, John Constable became chief executive officer of the company.
In June 2013, the company signed a marketing deal worth NZ$1.2 million annually with Tourism New Zealand to promote travel to New Zealand.
In September 2013, the company signed a similar marketing deal with Tourism Australia worth £6 million over 3 years.
In May 2014, the company stopped offering escorted tours that offer elephant rides.
In November 2018, the company produced a video featuring Skinny Living that showcased travel destinations in the United States.

Controversies

In May 2019, the company initially refused to assist a couple who missed their long haul flight home due to a delayed domestic flight on Air India, costing their customers an extra £2,900. Their initial refusal to assist their customers was despite the United Kingdom's Package Travel Regulations 1992 and STA Travel having issued to their customers a certificate under the ATOL regime when they purchased their holiday. After negative publicity in The Independent newspaper, the next day the company admitted their error, apologised and reimbursed their aggrieved customers.
In April 2020, the company was forced to pay AU$14 million as a result of a complaint brought by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission that the company misled consumers that purchased the MultiFLEX Pass by advertising that they would not have to pay anything further for date changes to their flights.