Global Vacation Group Launches New Auction Web Site; Joins New Auction Network as Featured Vacation Provider.

WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--September 20, 1999--

Vacations4auction.com Designed for Use by Travel Agents and

Consumers

Global Vacation Group (NYSE: GVG), one of the largest U.S. providers of value-added vacation products and services, today announced that the company launched a new auction web site, vacations4auction.com. Concurrently, the company will become the featured provider of package vacations on a newly formed auction network, announced earlier today. Members of the new auction network, comprising nearly 100 companies and operated by FairMarket.com, include technology giants Microsoft Corp., Dell Computer Corp., Lycos Inc., Excite At Home Corp., and well-known brands, such as Ticketmaster Online-CitySearch Inc.

"This is part of our previously announced strategy to invest in new products and distribution channels," said Roger Ballou, GVG chairman and chief executive officer. "As the featured provider of package vacations, we will have the advantage of developing, testing and rolling out new products that appeal to the full spectrum of leisure travelers." Ballou said that GVG also will test a number of new products that can be sold by travel agents, the company's primary distribution channel. "Through the auction network, we can reach out to the 50 percent of travelers who do not use travel agents in order to capture their business and, where appropriate, introduce them to our travel agent associates."

How to Buy a Vacation on an Auction Site

To bid on a vacation package, individuals may log onto vacations4auction.com or one of the sites in the network, such as Excite.com, Lycos.com and MSN.com, and click on the auction link, then "Vacation packages". Customers can review a number of package vacation listings with initial bids starting as low as $1. Once bidders selects a vacation package, they are asked to register and enter a bid. Auctions, which typically remain open for a 10-day period, are open to both travel agents and consumers. All listings are updated every 10 minutes with current bid information, and winning bidders are notified by e-mail. Like any auction, bidders may visit the site at any time to raise their bid.

GVG will provide a variety of vacation packages, including airfare, hotel, rental cars and special amenities, to Hawaii, the Caribbean, Europe and select U.S. cities. Initially, the vacations will be available between October 1 and year-end 1999. Ballou estimated that buyers may save as much as 30 to 40 percent for these special, limited-time auction items, compared to booking individual components in a conventional vacation.

Typical of the quality of vacation packages being offered is a five-night, Millennium extravaganza to the Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe Resort and Casino, located on Lake Tahoe's beautiful North Shore. "Few locations will be able to rival the beauty and the excitement of a gaming mecca like the Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe at midnight on December 31, 1999," said Ballou. "The Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe is just one of a number of unique, one-of-a-kind packages that we believe will become a magnet for leisure travelers who not only seek value but something out of the ordinary." Bidding for this package will start at $1 and is expected to attract significant bidder interest.

The new auction network, which was organized by auctioneer FairMarket.com, will list goods for sale across other member sites. GVG vacation packages, for example, will be posted on the auction sites of MSN.com, Lycos.com and Excite.com.

"Vacations4auction.com will be a great place to shop for vacations," said Ray Lewis, chief operating officer. "The advantage that Global Vacation Group brings to the auction process is the power of its branded products, which have high consumer recognition and acceptance and will help build credibility and interest in the new network."

"This web site and alliance represent another investment in our future," Ballou noted. "We are constantly exploring new ways to use the Internet and other cutting-edge methods of distribution to gain the market knowledge and expertise to create and offer the products that our customers want. We view this as a strategic, long-term investment and expect to see positive returns beginning in 2000 and gaining momentum well into the years following. While we anticipate these and other start-up investments may negatively impact 1999 results, we are confident that they will have significant, long-term paybacks."

Ballou added that the auction concept is potentially a major new distribution channel for its travel agents. "Conventional distribution channels are changing, and we intend to do everything in our power to ensure that our travel agents are on the leading edge, which will enable both of us to continue to grow profitably."

Global Vacation Group, headquartered in Washington, D.C., is a value-added provider of vacation products and services. Global Vacation Group's family of brands includes Classic Custom Vacations, which creates customized vacation packages for upscale U.S. travelers, Globetrotters, which is targeted to the popularly priced-vacation buyer, and Allied Tours, which creates and coordinates packages and tours for international vacation travelers. Global Vacation Group recently announced the formation of a business arrangement with Meredith Publishing to launch Better Homes and Gardens Vacations, an affinity product targeted to consumers who relate to that publication's attributes, including value, service and trust.

The matters in this press release include "forward looking statements" within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and are qualified by cautionary statements contained herein and in Global Vacation Group's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.