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Cancelled Travel Service (Smartwings) flight refund: your rights and how to claim

Travel Service, trading as Smartwings, is a Czech carrier specialising in charter flights and holiday connections to Mediterranean destinations and beyond. Many passengers assume that because these are charter flights, often sold as part of a package, European rights do not apply — that is a misconception. If a flight is cancelled, a refund and EU261 compensation are still owed, even though the channels to obtain them may run through the tour operator.

Refund vs EU261 compensation are two different things

  • Refund: the return of the price of the unused ticket. If Travel Service cancels your flight and you do not accept an alternative, you are entitled to a full refund. If the flight is part of a package, the refund usually goes through the tour operator.
  • EU261 compensation: a fixed sum for the disruption, independent of the fare paid. It is worth €250 (up to 1,500 km), €400 (1,500–3,500 km) or €600 (over 3,500 km), and is claimed from the operating carrier.

Compensation is due only if the cancellation was notified less than 14 days in advance, the cause is the airline’s fault and there are no extraordinary circumstances such as severe weather, air traffic control strikes or external emergencies.

When EU261 applies with Travel Service

Travel Service is based in the Czech Republic, an EU/EEA country, and is an EU carrier. EU261 does not distinguish between scheduled and charter flights, so it applies to:

  • all flights departing from an EU/EEA airport, whatever the holiday destination;
  • flights arriving in the EU/EEA operated by Travel Service / Smartwings, from any country.

How to get a refund from Travel Service

  1. Keep the cancellation notice, the flight booking and, if any, the package holiday contract.
  2. If you bought a package, contact the tour operator first for the package refund and rebooking.
  3. For the flight ticket alone, open the Travel Service / Smartwings support channel and request a cash refund, not a voucher.
  4. Submit a separate EU261 compensation claim to the operating carrier, giving the flight number, date and route.
  5. If the claim is ignored, escalate to the Czech civil aviation inspectorate or to the ECC-Net for cross-border disputes.

What FlightGuard does

FlightGuard estimates your flight’s disruption risk in advance by combining weather, carrier punctuality, air traffic control delays and other factors, so you know what to expect before you travel. The data sources are listed at /en/sources/.

Flight cancelled or delayed?Up to €600 EU261 compensation.Check your claim →

Frequently asked questions

If the flight is part of a package holiday, the tour operator is your first point of contact for the package refund. EU261 compensation for the cancelled flight, however, remains a right against the operating carrier, Travel Service / Smartwings.

€250 up to 1,500 km, €400 between 1,500 and 3,500 km, €600 over 3,500 km. It also applies to charter and holiday flights if the cancellation is late and the airline's fault.

Yes. EU261 does not distinguish between scheduled and charter flights: what matters is that the flight departs the EU/EEA or arrives there on an EU/EEA carrier. Travel Service is a Czech carrier, so an EU carrier.

Yes, they are distinct rights. A refund returns the price of the unused ticket; EU261 compensation is a separate fixed sum for the disruption.

Check a Travel Service flight