Apple Leisure Group
| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Travel and hospitality |
| Predecessor | Apple Vacations, AMResorts |
| Founded | 2001 |
| Founder | Alejandro Zozaya (founder of AMResorts) |
| Headquarters | Newtown Square, Pennsylvania , United States |
Area served | Mexico, the Caribbean, Hispanic America, Europe, Middle East |
Key people | Alejandro Reynal (CEO), Alejandro Zozoya (Chairman) |
| Products | All-inclusive travel packages, resort brand management |
| Parent | Hyatt Hotels Corporation |
Apple Leisure Group (ALG) is a prominent American travel and hospitality corporation focused on all-inclusive travel packages and resort brand management throughout Mexico, the Caribbean, Hispanic America, Europe, and the Middle East. The company owns AMResorts along with fourteen affiliated businesses, including tour operators Apple Vacations and Travel Impressions, the online travel platform CheapCaribbean.com, and destination management company AMStar DMC. Based in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania, ALG functions as a subsidiary under Hyatt Hotels Corporation. By October 2019, ALG had become the leading provider of charter flights from the United States to destinations such as Mexico, the Dominican Republic, Jamaica, and the Caribbean, serving approximately 3.2 million travelers annually.
History
Apple Vacations was established in 1969 by John Mullen alongside his brother-in-law Al Atkinson under the name Atkinson & Mullen Travel. Eventually, Mullen assumed full ownership and rebranded the enterprise as Apple Vacations.
In 2001, Alejandro Zozaya—John Mullen’s son-in-law and future CEO of ALG—founded AMResorts, a company dedicated to resort sales, marketing, and brand management. Over the following decade, Zozaya orchestrated the creation of Apple Leisure Group by merging Apple Vacations with AMResorts. In late 2012, ALG obtained a major equity investment from Bain Capital, a private equity firm based in Boston. The subsequent year saw ALG broaden its portfolio through acquisitions such as Travel Impressions (a B2B tour operator formerly part of American Express), CheapCaribbean.com (an online leisure wholesaler), Amstar DMC (a destination management organization), and AMResorts’ Unlimited Vacation Club loyalty program.
In early 2017, Bain Capital divested its interest in ALG to private equity firms KSL Capital Partners and KKR. By May 2018, ALG had integrated The Mark Travel Corporation along with its brands Funjet Vacations and Trisept Solutions into its operations.
ALG entered the European market in November 2018 by partnering with Grupo Inversor Hesperia (GIHSA), assuming management of four resorts in Spain. The following month, ALG acquired a controlling stake in Alua Hotels and Resorts, thereby adding twelve resorts to its European holdings. This expansion led to Javier Aguilla—Alua’s founder and former COO—being appointed President of ALG’s Europe Division in March 2019.
Continuing its growth trajectory in 2019, ALG added 9,000 rooms across twenty-three properties, including the five-star adults-only Secrets Mallorca resort located in Paguera, which generated over one hundred new local jobs. Additional openings slated for 2020 included a Secrets resort in St. Martin and a Dreams property in Punta Cana.
Also during 2019, Alejandro Reynal was appointed CEO of ALG, succeeding Alejandro Zozaya who retained his role as Chairman of the Board. Reynal brought extensive leadership experience from his previous position as CEO of CRM giant Atento.
In August 2021, Hyatt Hotels Corporation announced it would acquire Apple Leisure Group for $2.7 billion in cash; this transaction was finalized on November 2, 2021. This acquisition strategically positioned Hyatt as the largest global operator of luxury all-inclusive resorts.
Subsidiaries
The companies operating under Apple Leisure Group Vacations include various well-known brands such as Apple Vacations, Travel Impressions, Cheap Caribbean, Funjet Vacations, Southwest Vacations, Blue Sky Tours, BeachBound, and United Vacations.
Travel Impressions
Originating in 1967 through Arnold Tolkin's acquisition of ATS, Travel Impressions developed into a company specializing in group incentive and convention travel. The Tolkin family, along with partner Ira Theodore, sold the business to American Express in 1998. In April 2013, ALG purchased Travel Impressions together with American Express Vacations International (AEVI). This agreement designated Travel Impressions as the sole marketer and operator of American Express Vacations, licensed to use the brand for a period of three years. By 2017, the licensing agreement concluded, leading to the rebranding of the program as The Vacation Collection for American Express clients across Europe.
CheapCaribbean.com
Founded in 2000 by Jim and Marta Hobbs, CheapCaribbean.com operates as an e-commerce travel company focusing on beach vacations in the Caribbean and Mexico. Acquired by Apple Leisure Group in August 2013, it functions as a fully owned subsidiary with offices located in Dallas, Phoenix, and Philadelphia. In 2013, the company earned a spot on Inc. magazine's list of the "Top 5000 Fastest Growing Private Companies in America."
Amstar DMC and Worldstar DMC
Amstar DMC has been offering tours in Mexico, Jamaica, and the Dominican Republic since 1989, maintaining headquarters in Cancún and Punta Cana. In 2008, it became the first destination management company from Mexico to establish a representative office in Shanghai. Its affiliate, Worldstar DMC, expanded its reach to Hawaii in 2013, while Amstar launched operations in Costa Rica in 2014.