Collective Commentary about the New Package Travel Directive

644 COLLECTIVE COMMENTARY ABOUT THE NEW PACKAGE TRAVEL DIRECTIVE 1970 20 . Jürgen Basedow argues that the CCV Convention comes from the emergence, in the 20 th century, of the international mass tourism and the consequent creation of specific demand for an ‘advisor’ or ‘organiser’ of international travels: “ This latent demand was satisfied by a new profession, the travel agent (...) The success of package tours is partly due to the opportunity for operators to offer the package for an inclusive price below the aggregate of the prices that would be charged for the single components of the package if purchased separately (…) Especially risk-averse tourists who anticipate something going wrong during their trip to the foreign country are pleased to know that a travel guide will be present during the journey and that afterwards a travel agent will exist with whom complaints can be lodged ” 21 . From a mere ‘intermediary’ to foreign travel service providers to a multi-task organiser of package tours, the travel agent has risen as an important ‘promoter of the tourist industry’ 22 . Therefore, it was interesting to regulate their liability vis-à-vis the tourists 23 . I.1. Origins and Shape of the CCV Convention The UNIDROIT 1970 “ Convention Internationale relative au Contrat de Voyage ” (International Convention on Travel Contracts) has its origins in this attempt to increase legal certainty by elaborating “ uniform rules of private law concernant the legal relationship between travel agents and their clients . Following the recommendations of the United Nations Conference on Tourism and International Travel (1963) and a resolution adopted by the General Assembly of the International 20 LIMA, João André. A Harmonização do Direito Privado , Brasília: Fundação Alexandre de Gusmão, 2008, p. 81. It is to note the participation of Prof. Haroldo Valladão from Brazil: “The Draft Convention was then submitted to the 47th Session of the Governing Council of UNIDROIT in April, 1968. After a report by Messrs, Riese and Vanderperren on this subject, the Draft Convention was submitted to a sub-Committee of the Council, under the Chairmanship of Mr. Riese, composed of Mr. Vanderperren as Rapporteur, Mr. Hennebicq Secretary, and of Messrs. Loewe, Popescu, Réczei and Valladão, members. The Sub-Committee recommended that the Council approve the Draft with some amendments of minor importance. The Governing Council, by Resolution no. 4 (1968), finally approved the Draft International Convention on the travel agency contract (C.C.V.), and recognised that it was now ready for submission to and adoption by the Governments at a future Diplomatic Conference.” (Excerpt from the Acts of the Diplomatic Conference on the Travel Contract (CCV), Brussels, April 1970, published by J. Goemaere, Brussels, 1971, for the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade). 21 BASEDOW, Jürgen. The Law of Open Society , The Hague Academy of Private International Law, Leiden: Brill, 2015, p. 107. 22 Explanatory Report of the Draft International Convention on the Travel Agency Contract (CCV), Unification of Law- Yearbook 1967-1968 , Vol. I, pp.75. 23 See the first definition of tourist, in 1937, in FEUZ, Paulo Sergio. Direito do Consumidor nos Contratos de Turismo. Cdigo de Defesa do Consumidor aplicado ao Turismo. Bauru: Edipro, 2003, pp. 40 & ff.