Holidaymakers in despair amid cancellation chaos with Aussie travel company under investigation

Hundreds of holidaymakers were thrown into limbo as their international travel was canned by a Melbourne-based travel company.

Cancellations of flights, accommodation and guided tours were made known on the day of departure, and refund requests were met with a relative radio silence from AVG Travels, despite the global company’s claim of “24/7 support”.

Sydney woman Hong Lam, 65, was organising a girls’ trip for her mother and 30 of her aunties, set to depart last Friday.

The group have cumulatively paid about $60,000 for their trip.

They, like the other affected travellers, were heading to China — Lam’s group had booked an 11-day tour to see the terracotta warriors. But, late on Wednesday night, some of Lam’s group started to receive cancellation alerts via email.

The rest of their group “received no communication at all regarding the cancellation,” Lam told 7NEWS.com.au.

“It was supposed to be the trip of a lifetime for our family yet instead of boarding our flight we were left at home with no communication, no answers, and no support.

“This experience has caused enormous stress, disappointment, and emotional distress to our family and friends.”

Lam, who had been desperately trying to confirm travel itineraries for weeks before the departure date, has also spent everyday since then on the phone to AVG Travels, but had received little clarity about the situation when she spoke to 7NEWS.com.au.

Because the itineraries were never delivered, Lam’s aunty, who was booked on the trip and needed the documents to apply for a Chinese visa, paid an additional $100 for an urgent visa appointment and also lost $500 worth of unpaid leave, she said.

During one unproductive phone call with AVG Travels, Lam refused to get off the phone because weeks had now passed “without proper responses” — Lam said she was called “selfish” by the supervisor she was speaking to, who had “many customers to attend to”.

“I was further threatened with, ‘if you keep asking, you won’t get your refund’,” Lam said.

The Council of Australian Tour Operators (CATO) cancelled its accreditation membership for AVG Travels following numerous ACCC complaints.

CATO told 7NEWS.com.au that AVG Travels had informed the council that it was “working through its operational issues”.

While the problem remained unclear for customers for weeks, AVG Travels told 7NEWS.com.au on Thursday that its China holiday package cancellations were “caused by operational disruptions and exceptionally high travel demand during the peak period”.

“AVG Travels has already provided refunds to over 100 customers,” it said.

Hundreds of travellers report chaos

A social media support group for affected customers amassed 563 members within a week, with many people posting about cancelled travel, and others with upcoming bookings desperately seeking answers about undelivered itineraries.

Many have called the company a scam, though several members in the group confirm that they have received refunds or partial refunds after chasing the company for their money back.

Mathew Phin, who created the support group, said that while “it is a great relief for those who managed to get their money back,” AVG Travels “can never fully compensate for the stress (customers) endured and the money spent on preparations”.

“AVG cancelled holidays at the last moment, leaving no time to organise an alternative trip and resulting in wasted annual leave, business days, and other commitments.”

Accreditation suspended

Complaints have reportedly been pouring into the consumer watchdog.

“On becoming aware of complaints against AVG Travels this week, we moved quickly to review their accreditation status. That review has resulted in the immediate suspension of AVG Travels’ CATO accreditation,” CATO general manager Mira Yates said. CATO said its membership is “designed to support professionalism, accountability and consumer confidence within the touring sector. Members are required to comply with the CATO Constitution, Code of Ethics and relevant industry standards and policies.”

It also said that AVG Travels “successfully completed the CATO Accreditation process in July 2025, including the required financial health assessment,” and that the annual CATO accreditation review is currently underway.

While the ACCC generally does not comment on whether specific matters are under investigation, a spokesperson told 7NEWS.com.au: “Consumers have rights under the Australian Consumer Law (ACL) if a travel service is delayed or cancelled.

"These rights are known as consumer guarantees, and include that services must be fit for a particular purpose and provided within a reasonable time.

“If a business sells a travel service that doesn’t meet one of the ACL consumer guarantees, a consumer is entitled to solution. This may include a replacement or refund.”

AVG Travels apologises

After weeks of customers complaints and being contacted by 7NEWS.com.au, AVG Travels released a customer support update on Friday.

The company told 7NEWS.com.au that it would like to “sincerely apologise”.

“A small number of AVG’s overall bookings to China in May were affected and we appreciate that these unexpected cancellations have caused disruption, distress and inconvenience to our customers and we’re very sorry for the impact it has had on them.

“No other AVG Travels bookings to other countries such as Japan and Vietnam are expected to be affected.

“AVG Travels can confirm that it will offer a full refund to customers whose China tours were cancelled. We will process requests for refunds as quickly as possible and aim to refund within 30 business days.”

The company is also offering customers the option to rebook their China tours for later in the year, during the off-peak season or in 2027, for no extra cost.

They can also head to Vietnam or Sri Lanka on select dates instead, with this offer coming with a $500 voucher for use during the tour package, valid until May 2028.

“AVG Travels has operated successfully in Australia since 2015 and each month provides over 1000 customers with memorable travel experiences,” the company said.

As desperate customers flock to the company’s Melbourne office to seek a refund, AVG Travels stressed in its statement that heading to HQ is not neccessary for a refund.

“In relation to customers who have travelled to Melbourne to claim a refund in person – we will consider any application for travel reimbursement on the circumstances of each case,” AVG Travels said.