Collective Commentary about the New Package Travel Directive

PORTUGAL | CARLOS TORRES 1101 5. MAIN TRAVEL SERVICES: RENTAL OF CARS OR OTHER MOTOR VEHICLES APPEARING ON THE SAME LEVEL AS PASSENGER TRANSPORT OR ACCOMMODATION SERVICES – INCREASE THE CONCEPT OF SIGNIFICANT PROPORTION OF THE TRAVEL To the traditional travel, transport and accommodation services of the 1990 text, the NTPD added the rental of cars or any other motor vehicles or motorcycles requiring a category A driving licence. Article 3/1 of the NPTD, with the header “Definitions”, lists four travel services. In this part, the Portuguese legislator faithfully followed the European legislation when listing the travel services on Article 2: “m) Travel service: i) carriage of passengers; ii) accommodation which is not intrinsically part of carriage of passengers and is not for residential purposes; iii) rental of cars and other motor vehicles within the meaning of Article 3/(l) of Decree-Law No. 16/210, of 12 March, or motorcycles requiring a Category A driving licence in accordance with Article 21/1/(c) of DecreeLaw No. 138/2012, of 5 July; iv) any other tourist service not intrinsically part of a travel service within the meaning of i), ii) or iii)”. It would not have been possible in any other way, given that Article 4 of the NPTD provides the Member States with very little leeway. Thus, we have three different main travel services [points (a), (b) and (c)], which are eligible in the field of package travel, with only the “combination of different types of travel services, such as accommodation, carriage of passengers by bus, rail, water or air, as well as rental of motor vehicles or certain motorcycles, should be considered for the purposes of identifying a package or a linked travel arrangement” (recital 17). In addition to the three main travel services, other tourist services may be provided for in Article 3 (d), which will be designated as secondary or complementary hereinafter.