Sabre has agreed to sell Lastminute.com to the Bravofly
Rumbo Group. The deal, subject to certain conditions, is expected to close in
the first quarter of 2015.
Bravofly Rumbo Group is an online travel agency with a
strong presence in Europe, as is Lastminute.com.
The sale is yet another move by Sabre to shed companies and focus
on its core businesses: the GDS and its airline and hospitality solutions.
Sabre said last summer that it was exploring the sale of Lastminute.com,
which subsidiary Travelocity bought in 2005. Last year, Sabre sold Travelocity Business to BCD Travel and outsourced most
of Travelocity’s operations to Expedia.
Under the terms of the offer, Bravofly Rumbo Group would
acquire all of Lastminute.com’s principal operations located in the U.K.,
France, Germany, Spain and Italy.
Sabre said that value of the sale to Bravofly is
approximately $120 million, resulting primarily from the transfer of commercial
liabilities and as well as the value of an expanded long-term commercial
agreement, in which Bravofly Rumbo Group’s brands and Lastminute.com would
continue to use the Sabre GDS.