Dream Vacations Parent World Travel Holdings Secures Outside Investment
by Daniel McCarthy
Photo: World Travel Holdings
World Travel Holdings (WTH), the parent company of Dream Vacations and CruiseOne, is taking on a strategic investment from the private equity firm Citation Capital.
Based in Dallas, Citation Capital specializes in partnering with founder- and family-led businesses. Its portfolio includes the residential pest control company Aptive Environmental, the snack brand Cibo Vita, and Gallo Mechanical, a mechanical contracting and services firm based in the Gulf South.
The deal ensures that WTH co-founders and co-CEOs, Jeff and Brad Tolkin, retain significant ownership and continue to lead day-to-day operations. World Travel Holdings currently generates more than $2.5 billion in annual booking volume and operates a network of more than 2,000 franchise agencies through its Dream Vacations and CruiseOne brands.
The deal is a bet by Citation Capital on the continued success of the travel agency channel, and a move by WTH to help it continue to scale.
“This partnership marks an exciting new chapter for World Travel Holdings,” said Jeff Tolkin. “Over more than two decades, we have built a platform that serves blue-chip partners, franchisees, and travelers through a combination of proprietary technology, deep supplier relationships, and differentiated distribution capabilities. We believe Citation is the right partner to help us continue to scale.”





