Donna Lamberth from Injune, Queensland, is among at least 75 Australians left devastated after the sudden collapse of travel agency Traveldream, which has left customers thousands of dollars out of pocket and dream holidays in ruins.
Lamberth, who had been saving for over two years, fully paid for her bucket-list cruise through Alaska, Vancouver, and Las Vegas by December. But as she eagerly counted down the months, her plans fell apart when Traveldream went into administration.
Upon digging into her booking, Lamberth discovered that while flights had been paid, the agency had not kept up with payments on the cruise itself. She was told she would need to come up with an additional $7,000—a sum she couldn’t afford after already investing $15,500.
Unable to salvage the holiday, she also had to cancel her two months of approved leave, turning what was meant to be a once-in-a-lifetime trip into a financial and emotional nightmare.
Sadly, Lamberth’s experience is not unique. Reports indicate that dozens of Traveldream customers are facing similar losses, with that number likely to grow as more come forward.
