Blackpool travel specialist acquires three school travel brands

Next Generation Travel directors

Blackpool-based specialist educational travel company Next Generation Travel (NGT) has acquired three Surrey-based educational travel brands: Study Experiences, Sport Experiences and Remembrance Travel.

The deal, for an undisclosed sum, means the firm now holds six specialist educational travel brands.

The parent company offers immersive tours to young people from 10-21 years-of-age, which are designed to offer unique and empowering learning experiences outside of the classroom.

The acquisition enables the group, which organises school trips throughout the UK, continental Europe and worldwide, to increase its turnover to £25m, with staff figures reaching 80 and annual passenger figures increasing to more than 70,000.

Established in 2010, NGT is one of the sector’s largest privately-owned companies, and includes the WST Travel, FHT Travel and Anglia Tours brands.

This latest strategic acquisition follows the group’s expansion success in 2013, which saw the firm purchase FHT Travel Ltd, a Cambridgeshire-based specialist tour operator providing trips for students in further and higher education.

Anglia Tours, a leading battlefields tours specialist, was acquired by NGT in 2017.

The only educational travel company to be awarded the Investors in People standard and Service Excellence Award, WST Travel was named the UK’s Best School Tour Operator in The School Travel Awards in 2016/2017 and in 2017/18.

Deborah Beckett, managing director of Next Generation Travel, said: “These new brands enable us to enter new markets and deliver a broader selection of specialist tours for our clients.

“A key part of our strategic expansion plans, we’re delighted to bring NGT’s high levels of customer service and experience to these well-established brands.”

Click here to sign up to receive our new South West business news...
Close