Halsbury Travel Group

What Halsbury Travel Group does

Halsbury Travel Group, trading as Halsbury Travel, is a UK-based specialist tour operator focused exclusively on school trips. Founded in 1986 by former teacher Sue Sharkey and now led by Managing Director Keith Sharkey, the company is headquartered at 35 Churchill Park, Nottingham, and has operated continuously for 40 years in the educational travel sector. It serves UK primary and secondary schools across four core product categories: Education School Trips (curriculum-linked by subject and destination), Ski Trips, Sports & Adventure Tours, and Music Tours, with an additional International Schools segment targeting non-UK institutions.

The company's offering combines bespoke human-curated itinerary design with a small digital layer: the My Trip Zone customer portal, the third-party Vamoos mobile travel app for on-trip document access, a downloadable Trip Launch Pack for parent communications, and a published Safety Management System for risk assessments. Trips are supported by specialist Tour Advisers, dedicated Itinerary Coordinators, and 24/7 phone support while groups are abroad, with pricing on a per-person basis (minimum 15 paying passengers) and free staff place ratios built in. Direct distribution is via website quote requests, phone, and email, with no self-serve online booking.

Halsbury monetises primarily through packaged school tour sales (flights, accommodation, activities, coaching sessions, fixtures) supplemented by optional travel insurance add-ons. It holds five sector-specific accreditations — ABTA, ATOL, ABTOT, School Travel Forum membership, and the LOtC Quality Badge — which function as a procurement gate for UK schools. The company has built differentiated supply-side partnerships with elite sports clubs and federations (Feyenoord, AZ Alkmaar, KNVB Campus, HC Rotterdam, SV Kampong, BSAC) that anchor a premium 'Pro Training' tier and is privately held with no disclosed funding, M&A, or institutional ownership.

Name

Halsbury Travel Group

Legal name

Halsbury Travel Ltd

Website

https://halsbury.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1986

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Halsbury Travel Group is a UK-based specialist school travel operator founded in 1986, designing bespoke educational, ski, sports and music trips for UK primary and secondary schools with 24/7 in-trip support and multiple safety accreditations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Educational School Travel Services

NAICS

Tour Operators (56152), Tour Operators (561520), Scenic and Sightseeing Transportation, Land (487110)

SIC

Transportation Services (4700), Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

School Group & Curriculum-Led Trips (THAKAGAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Student & Youth Educational Tours (THAKAGAA), Educational & Student Multi-Day Tour Operators (THAKADAJ), Escorted Coach & Bus Package Tour Operators (THAKADAA)

Keywords

• School educational trips
• School ski tours
• School sports tours
• School music tours
• Bespoke group travel

Headquarters

HQ city

Nottingham

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. School Trip Packages: Bespoke tour packages for schools combining flights, accommodation, activities, coaching/training sessions, and friendly fixtures. Pricing is per person (PP) with free staff place ratios (1:8 for coach trips, 1:10 for air trips). Packages include various durations from 3-5 nights to 12 days.
2. Travel Insurance (Optional Add-on): Optional travel insurance offered as an add-on to bookings, providing supplementary revenue from customers who opt in.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Halsbury Travel Group is a specialist school travel company that organizes and delivers bespoke international trips for UK schools. Its offering covers four core categories — Educational Subject Trips, Ski Tours, Sports & Adventure Tours, and Music Tours — combining flights, accommodation, activities, professional coaching or training sessions, fixtures, and 24/7 in-trip support into tailored per-person packages. The company coordinates all logistics end-to-end, from itinerary design and bookings to risk assessment documentation and parent communications, serving primarily teachers and group leaders at primary and secondary schools.

Product overview

Halsbury Travel Group operates as a specialist school trip company offering four core product categories: Education School Trips, Ski Trips, Sports & Adventure Tours, and Music Tours. The company provides comprehensive trip planning services with supporting tools including My Trip Zone (customer portal) and Vamoos Travel App (document access). The portfolio covers destinations across Europe, the Americas, Asia, Africa, and Oceania, serving school groups with tailored itineraries, professional coaching partnerships, and end-to-end trip management.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Education School Trips

Quantifiable outcome

• Free staff place ratio: 1:8 for coach trips, 1:10 for air trips (included in package pricing)
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers36 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Pinoke HCcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHockey club offering professional training sessions for UK school groups. One of the top clubs in Europe, known for strong focus on technique, teamwork and sportsmanship. Provides top-tier coaching and world-class facilities for student hockey development.
• HC RotterdamcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDutch field hockey club whose men's team plays in the Hoofdklasse (highest level of Dutch field hockey). Provides professionally coached training sessions for UK school hockey tours. Students learn from elite-level coaches and can test skills against local opposition.
• SV KampongcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDescribed as the largest hockey club in the world with 9 pitches. Located in Netherlands, provides professional training facilities for school hockey tours from UK.
• KNVB CampuscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNetherlands' answer to St. George's Park. Home of Dutch national team training and coach education. Offers professional training sessions with KNVB coaches, facility tours, and exposure to Dutch football culture for UK school groups.
• AZ AlkmaarcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerProfessional Dutch football club providing academy-level coaching sessions for UK school football tours. Students train with club academy coaches and experience professional facilities.
• FeyenoordcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMajor Dutch football club offering academy coaching sessions for UK school football tours. Part of premium pro training tour packages with sessions led by club academy coaches.
• Ajax (Johan Cruyff Arena)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSelf-guided stadium tours and club shop visits included in Pro Training Football Tours. Not direct training partnership but access to facilities for educational stadium experiences.
• British Sub-Aqua Club (BSAC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerProvides Ocean Diver Course certification for scuba diving school trips to Malta. Students complete 3-day course including theory, pool/sheltered water sessions, and open-water dives with BSAC-certified instructors.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• NST Travel Group: One of the largest UK school tour operators, offering curriculum-linked trips, ski tours, and sports tours to schools. Directly comparable to Halsbury in customer base (UK schools), product mix (education, ski, sports), and bespoke, consultant-led booking model.
• Rayburn Travel: UK school trip specialist offering educational, ski, music, and sports tours with similar accreditations and a focus on UK schools. Closely comparable on product breadth, school-customer focus, and bespoke quotation workflow.
• WST Travel: School tour operator serving UK schools with educational and sports tours across Europe and beyond. Comparable in target customer (UK schools), destination breadth, and tour categories including Pro Training football tours.
• StudyTrips: UK-based educational tour operator focused on curriculum-linked school trips abroad. Direct competitor for Halsbury's core Education School Trips vertical with a similar school-customer base.
• Equity School Travel: UK school tour operator providing bespoke educational and subject-specific trips for primary and secondary schools. Comparable in customer segment (UK schools) and bespoke booking model.
• Travelbound: School and educational group travel company offering international trips for UK schools. Comparable in customer base, tour categories, and bespoke itinerary design.

Emerging players

• Sundown Sports Tours: UK sports tour specialist focused on school and club sports fixtures and tournaments. Comparable on the sports-tour vertical though with a narrower product mix than Halsbury.

Others

• School Travel Forum: Industry body whose members are UK school travel operators including Halsbury itself. Useful as an ecosystem reference for accredited peers operating in the same regulatory framework.

Broad incumbents

• STA Travel (legacy operations): Historically a major youth and student travel brand; its school-groups business overlapped with Halsbury's market. Included as a broader incumbent reference for the school/youth travel category.
• Explore Worldwide: UK adventure tour operator serving small group and educational clients including schools. Comparable as a UK-based operator offering guided group travel, though broader in customer base than Halsbury.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCddKgXrS18XeNsEeNFsKSxQ
• Facebookfacebook.com/HalsburySchoolTravel
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/halsburytravel
• Instagraminstagram.com/halsburytravel/?hl=en
• Pinterestpinterest.co.uk/halsburytravel
• Xx.com/HalsburyTravel

Compliance6 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Halsbury Travel Group