Howard Travel

What Howard Travel does

Howard Travel is an independent, family-owned travel agency founded in 1981 and headquartered in Trowbridge, Wiltshire, United Kingdom. The company sells flights, package holidays, cruises, accommodation, tours, and destination experiences on behalf of principal suppliers, earning commissions on each booking. Its core offering is bespoke itinerary design delivered through a consultative sales motion via phone (01225 777 227), email ([email protected]), and in-person consultations at its Trowbridge office. The company holds ATOL Licence No. 6758 and references ABTA and IATA financial protection schemes, providing statutory consumer safeguards required for UK package travel sellers. It maintains a team of 9 travel consultants and 2 administrative staff with a stated 180+ years of combined industry expertise, supplemented by specialist sub-products for Japan, Arctic expeditions, boutique cruises, weddings and honeymoons, family holidays, and adventure travel. The company partners with major cruise lines (Cunard, P&O, Celebrity, MSC, Norwegian, Viking, Princess, Holland America), boutique cruise operators (Azamara), and resort brands (Sandals).

The firm's go-to-market is sales-led and highly personalized: customers (primarily UK-based individual travelers seeking luxury and bespoke holidays) engage directly with named consultants rather than through online self-service booking. Distribution spans a single retail location in Trowbridge, phone and email inside sales, and discovery via an SEO-optimized website, blog, email newsletter, Instagram, and Twitter. Marketing emphasizes expertise, first-hand destination knowledge, and trust signals including 153 Trustpilot reviews. Revenue is generated through transaction commissions on bookings, with bespoke quote-based pricing and no publicly disclosed tiers. The firm does not develop proprietary technology and operates on standard travel-industry booking systems and a Wix-hosted web platform.

Howard Travel is privately held with no external institutional investors, no subsidiaries, no parent company, and no disclosed funding history. The firm displays self-described 'award-winning' credentials but does not disclose the awarding body. Operating geographies span six continents (Europe, Asia, Americas, Africa, Middle East, Australasia, Caribbean, Indian Ocean) but are served through supplier relationships rather than owned international offices. Headcount has not visibly expanded beyond 11 total staff, and there are no recent M&A, leadership change, restructuring, or fundraising events in the public record.

Name

Howard Travel

Legal name

Howard Travel

Website

https://howardtravel.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1981

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Howard Travel is an independent, family-owned UK travel agency founded in 1981, based in Trowbridge, Wiltshire. It designs and books bespoke leisure holidays, cruises, and luxury travel for individual UK travelers via consultative phone, email, and in-person sales.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Travel Agency Services

NAICS

Travel Agencies (561510)

SIC

Transportation Services (4700)

akta.pro primary industry

Leisure & Generalist Retail Travel Agencies (THAKABAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Luxury & Premium Leisure Travel Agencies (THAKABAC), Cruise Travel Agencies & Specialist Cruise Consultants (THAEAFAB), Adventure & Expedition Travel Agencies (THAKAFAB)

Keywords

• Bespoke travel agency
• Tailor-made holidays
• Luxury cruise booking
• Honeymoon travel planning
• Worldwide travel consultancy

Headquarters

HQ city

Trowbridge

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Travel Agency Commissions: Howard Travel acts as an agent selling flights, package holidays, cruises, accommodation, and tour services on behalf of principal suppliers (tour operators, airlines, hotels). They earn commissions on bookings made through their agency. The company is fully licensed and bonded, working with reputable operators and providers. Financial protection is provided through ATOL scheme for package holidays.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Howard Travel is a long-established UK travel agency that designs and books tailor-made holidays for individual travellers, including cruises, honeymoons, family trips, and adventure getaways. The firm operates from a single office in Trowbridge, Wiltshire, and is supported by a team of nine travel consultants and two administrative staff. It is ATOL-licensed (No. 6758), allowing it to sell package holidays with financial protection.

Product overview

Howard Travel is an award-winning independent travel agency offering a unified suite of personalized travel services. The core offering centers on tailor-made travel planning with specialized divisions for cruise bookings, tropical destinations (Maldives, Seychelles, Bali), Europe travel, Asia travel, adventure expeditions, and destination weddings/honeymoons. The company provides destination-specific sub-products including Japan travel packages, Arctic expeditions, and boutique cruise experiences. All services are connected through their bespoke planning approach, with over 180 years of combined expertise across their team of travel consultants.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Tailor-Made Holidays
• Cruise Bookings
• Honeymoon and Wedding Travel
• Family Holiday Packages
• Adventure Holidays

Quantifiable outcome

• 153 positive reviews on Trustpilot platform
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• AzamaracoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAzamara is a boutique cruise line offering intimate ocean voyages. Howard Travel sells Azamara cruise packages as a certified agent. Wayne Aldridge from Howard Travel personally experienced the Azamara Journey cruise ship to provide firsthand knowledge to customers.
• Sandals ResortscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorSandals is a Caribbean luxury resort chain. Howard Travel is an authorized agent selling Sandals Jamaica resorts including Sandals Ochi Beach, Sandals Royal Plantation, Sandals Royal Caribbean, and Sandals Inn.
• Travel Partners (Logos Displayed)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorWebsite displays multiple travel partner logos including airlines, cruise lines, tour operators, and accommodation providers. Specific names not individually listed in text content. Partners include major cruise lines (Cunard, P&O, Celebrity, MSC, Norwegian, Viking, Princess, Holland America) and tour operators.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Elegant Resorts: UK luxury tour operator focused on high-end resorts, beach, and villa holidays. Comparable on luxury leisure focus, ATOL-style financial protection, and curated supplier relationships in the same affluent segment.
• Hayes & Jarvis: Long-established UK luxury tour operator offering tailor-made worldwide holidays and cruises. Highly comparable on bespoke service, multi-decade heritage, cruise and luxury positioning, and UK leisure customer base.
• Trailfinders: UK-based independent travel agency offering bespoke leisure and corporate travel with multiple offices and a comparable consultant-led sales model. Closest direct peer to Howard Travel in terms of independent, expert-led UK travel agency positioning.
• Flight Centre UK: UK arm of the global retail travel agency group, selling leisure holidays, flights, and cruises through consultative in-person and phone sales. Comparable retail agency model for the same UK leisure customer.
• Destinology: UK luxury tour operator selling tailor-made long-haul holidays to affluent leisure travelers. Directly comparable on boutique high-end positioning, personal service model, and curated long-haul destination expertise.
• Wexas Travel: UK specialist travel company focused on luxury, adventure, and expedition holidays. Directly comparable on niche specialty (expedition/adventure) and high-touch consultant model serving discerning UK travelers.
• Travel Counsellors: UK home-based travel consultant network selling bespoke holidays to leisure travelers. Operates a similar consultant-led, relationship-driven model targeting the same UK customer base with personalized travel services.
• Riviera Travel: UK tour operator and travel agent offering river cruises, escorted tours, and tailor-made holidays. Comparable on cruise specialization, luxury/upmarket positioning, and long-standing UK heritage in travel distribution.
• Audley Travel: UK specialist in tailor-made, long-haul luxury and adventure holidays. Directly comparable customer segment (affluent leisure travelers seeking bespoke itineraries) and similar specialist destination expertise.
• Imagine Cruising: UK specialist cruise and stay holiday retailer offering cruise packages plus add-ons. Direct overlap on cruise bookings as a core product and on the UK outbound leisure customer profile.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/howardtravel
• Facebookfacebook.com/Howardtravel
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/howard-travel

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

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 Howard Travel