Staff at seven Going Places travel agencies in York and North Yorkshire face an uncertain future.

Package holiday parent group Airtours has announced it is to close 120 of its Going Places and Travelworld high street shops.

But it has not yet published a list of those Going Places which are to close.

The move, which will reduce the group's number of high street stores to 720, will affect about 550 staff.

The most modern of the Going Places in York is the new concept travel agency in Monks Cross which opened in August 1999 with "check-in" desks, lounge, information screens, currency exchange kiosks and children's entertainments.

It appears to be spared because the group has vowed to continue to invest in its out-of-town stores.

But there are also Going Places in Feasgate, Ousegate and Piccadilly, York; in Market Place, Market Weighton and Westborough, Scarborough. The majority of the shops to be closed are branded under the Going Places name, but a spokesperson for the group said: "We have had a lot of inquiries but we have not yet announced which branches will be affected."

Richard Carrick, chief executive of the group's UK Leisure Group division, said it was hoped that affected staff would be redeployed elsewhere in the group.

Mr Carrick added the closures partly reflected the changing face of shopping.

"Shopping is changing - we don't shop in the areas we used to, or at the time of day that we did," he said.

Updated: 12:33 Friday, March 02, 2001