Norwegian to acquire Nordic Leisure Travel Group

Norwegian has entered into an agreement to acquire Nordic Leisure Travel Group (NLTG), the leading hotel and leisure travel experiences company in the Nordics. The transaction brings together household names and award-winning brands such as Ving, Spies, Tjäreborg, Globetrotter, and Sunclass Airlines with Norwegian and Widerøe, creating a stronger and unique end-to-end Nordic travel player. The acquisition combines NLTG’s expertise in packaged travel and hotels with Norwegian and Widerøe’s existing network with 27 million passengers. Together, the combined company will create a leading Nordic provider of leisure and business travel. For travellers, this means a wider selection of destinations, simpler bookings, and seamless travel.

The agreement will unite Norwegian, Widerøe, and NLTG under a single ownership structure, creating a vertically integrated travel group in the leisure and business segments. The addition of a new hotel and leisure experience business with its own brands will enable Norwegian, Widerøe and NLTG to develop distinct value drivers, while benefiting from strong group coordination to unlock synergies, optimise performance and deliver enhanced customer value. The group will be able to offer everything from individual flights across Norwegian’s and Widerøe’s extensive route networks to complete holiday packages with Ving from Norway and Sweden, Spies from Denmark, Tjäreborg from Finland as well as Globetrotter. This leading, integrated Nordic travel group will encompass close to 160 aircraft, extensive tour and hotel operations, serving a total of approximately 30 million customers every year. Included in the acquisition are NLTG’s profitable own concept hotels in Spain, Greece, Cyprus, Thailand and Türkiye, which now will benefit from a steady stream of customers from an expanded group network. The transaction is expected to increase annual group operating revenue by close to 50 percent.

“This is a milestone in Nordic travel history. Norwegian and Widerøe will still be dedicated to offering competitive air travel for our customers. By adding NLTG’s leading position in leisure travel to the Norwegian Group’s comprehensive route network, we are building a better and more flexible customer offering. We see a significant opportunity to grow hotel and holiday sales across our existing customer base, turning every flight into a potential gateway to a full holiday experience and unlocking meaningful additional revenue per passenger. In addition, we create a stronger platform for growth across the Nordics, in particular in Sweden and Denmark and through multiple travel concepts we can drive load and booking visibility earlier in the booking windows. This transaction will secure Nordic ownership of NLTG and deliver a more comprehensive product for all current and new customers of Norwegian, Widerøe and NLTG,” said Geir Karlsen, CEO of Norwegian.

Sunclass Airlines, NLTG’s subsidiary airline, operates a fleet of 12 medium- and long-haul Airbus aircraft. The Sunclass, Norwegian and Widerøe networks have limited overlap. Norwegian’s close to 390 routes are concentrated on scheduled traffic to key destinations in the Nordics, Europe and closely adjacent countries, while Sunclass operates to approximately 25 destinations focused on leisure charter, enabling improved utilisation and increased coverage when routes are coordinated within the combined group. NLTG also operates its own travel retail platform, Airshoppen, whose strategy for further growth and development will be strengthened in the enlarged group.

Joint growth and synergies

Norwegian sees a clear path to grow NLTG’s revenue and profitability over the coming years. NLTG plans to achieve this by optimising flight programs, potentially doubling the number of successful own concept hotels, improving volume at the existing hotel portfolio, recent and future deliveries of new and fuel-efficient Airbus A321neo and A330neo aircraft, and implementing a range of profit enhancing measures with effects already from 2027. Beyond this, Norwegian also expects to create significant value by leveraging its broader network to reach new leisure destinations, such as mainland Spain, and by connecting its flights with Widerøe’s to offer a seamless travel experience for holiday guests. Further value will be created by offering package holidays to Norwegian’s extensive customer base. The shared loyalty points, Spenn, already used by Norwegian and Strawberry, are planned to be extended to NLTG’s brands and concept hotels. The acquisition is expected to unlock substantial synergies and to be earnings accretive for Norwegian shareholders already in 2027, improving further from 2028. On top of continued growth and synergies, the profit enhancing initiatives are expected to increase the underlying operating margin by approximately 2 percent in 2027 relative to the last twelve months to March 2026, with further improvement from 2028 and beyond.

“We are confident that this transaction will create substantial, long-term value. The acquisition is a strategic step that prepares our business for the future. The transaction is backed by a unanimous board, reflecting our clear ambition to build the leading integrated travel group in the Nordics, being the best choice for both business and leisure travellers,” said Dag Mejdell, Chair of the Board of Directors at Norwegian.

A simpler and better customer offering

The new group brings together flight and holiday package offerings in one company. Travellers will benefit from a wider selection of destinations and hotels, and a more seamless travel experience from booking to arrival.

“I have a great passion for hotels and hotel experiences, and our ambition at NLTG has always been to create unique hotel concepts tailored for Nordic guests. NLTG already has an ambitious pipeline of new concept hotels planned for the coming years, but through this partnership with Norwegian, we are unlocking a unique opportunity to further accelerate that growth by bringing our great concept hotels to many new destinations across Norwegian’s extensive route network. The new Norwegian Group will become one of Strawberry’s largest strategic investments, and we are committed to being a long-term owner and active partner in its continued development and growth,” said Petter A. Stordalen, founder and owner of Strawberry.

“This is a fantastic milestone in our 70-year history, and the start of a new era for NLTG. With Norwegian as our owner, we gain access to one of Europe’s most extensive flight networks. It gives us a completely new platform to broaden our customer offering and reach more customers, not least when it comes to a broader portfolio of hotels, tailored to the Nordic customer,” said Magnus Wikner, Chief Executive Officer of NLTG.

Transaction details and process

The consideration for the acquisition is approximately SEK 7.94 billion, comprising a cash component of SEK 3.5 billion and 300 million consideration shares in Norwegian, based on latest 5-day average share price (VWAP) of NOK 14.95 and SEKNOK exchange rate of 1.01. In addition, up to 30 million additional shares payable to be determined during the fourth quarter of 2026. The cash component will be financed through a combination of cash, bond issue and other sources to be arranged prior to closing. Upon completion, the current owners of NLTG – Strawberry, Altor, and TDR – will become significant shareholders in the combined group. The substantial share component signals the selling shareholders’ continued alignment with and confidence in the combined group. Strawberry and Altor will each own approximately 8.9 percent and TDR will own approximately 4.4 percent, assuming no additional consideration shares are issued. Strawberry and Altor will be proposed one representative each for representation in the Board of Directors. Strawberry, Altor and TDR have agreed to a customary 180-day lock-up period for their consideration shares after closing, subject to customary exemptions or waiver by the Board of Directors.

The cash component will be financed through a combination of cash from Norwegian’s balance sheet and new debt facilities to be arranged prior to closing. The current owners of NLTG have agreed to a 180-day lock-up period for their new shares. Norwegian will also consider a secondary listing in Stockholm following closing, to reflect the enlarged group’s broader Nordic shareholder base and customer footprint.

Completion of the transaction is subject to approval by Norwegian’s Extraordinary General Meeting, regulatory approvals, including EU competition clearance, and other customary closing conditions. The EGM is expected to take place on or about 8 July 2026 in order to approve an authorisation of the share issuance to the Board of Directors. Closing is targeted during the second half of 2026.