BELGIUM | OLIVIER DUGARDYN AND CARLA GHISLAIN 71 national law by the Law of 16 February 1994 regulating package travel and travel intermediation contracts, which came into force on 4 October 1994. Aware of the excessive disparities that still existed in Europe due to the minimal nature of the 1990 Directive, the European legislator adopted a new Directive regulating travel law, replacing the 1990 Directive, and this time of maximum harmonisation. This new Directive was transposed in Belgium through the Law of 21 November 2017, which entered into force on 1 July 2018. The adoption of this new Directive is due not only to the disparities left behind by the 1990 Directive due to its minimal nature, but also to the (technological) evolution of the travel sector, which has been notably transformed by the arrival of the Internet. Twenty-five years after the first European directive concerning the package travel, it seemed essential to update this legal framework to enable travellers, retailers and organisers to know their rights and duties. This directive takes account of new developments, particularly technological ones, which could not be foreseen by the legislator when drafting the initial texts of the law and aims to improve transparency and avoid legal uncertainty. As the 2015 Directive is of maximum harmonisation, the Belgian law of 21 November 2017 transposing the Directive is, therefore, with a few exceptions – sometimes, as we will see, questionable – a copy and paste of the Directive. The latter makes major changes to the old regime, in particular by strengthening the level of protection for the traveller. This reinforcement is not without consequences for professionals in the travel market, who are faced with considerable changes. The 2015 Directive is currently (already) under review. Despite its maximal harmonisation, there are considerable differences among the Member states in its practical application. The definitions used in the Directive are excessively complicated and consumers/travellers are not always protected after all. 3.2. Definitions First of all, it seems necessary to analyse the new definitions in the law to become aware of its impact on the sector. Indeed, one of the most significant changes brought to the previous regime is to be found in the definitions of the new law, which have a major impact on the liability regime of the actors concerned by the Directive.
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