Audley Travel is a travel company based in the UK based in Witney, Oxfordshire, with offices in London, Boston and Toronto. The company specialises in tailor-made travel; according to the Financial Times it is the largest operator in this market.
History
The company was founded in a Northamptonpost office in 1996 by Craig Burkinshaw and John Brewer, both graduates of the London School of Economics. The pair originally offered tours of Vietnam, advertising in The Sunday Times. In 2006 the company moved to their current headquarters at New Mill in Witney, Oxfordshire, and tourism executive Ian Simkins joined the company as CEO in 2011. In 2014 the company opened an office in London and a US office in Boston, Massachusetts after it discovered 20% of its web traffic was coming from the United States. It arranges holidays in 87 countries, with South East Asia, Africa, Latin America and the US its main destinations. In 2012, equity firm Equistone Partners Europe invested a majority stake in Audley Travel during a management buyout. Equistone exited its investment in 2015, selling its share of the company to a private equity firm3i.
Awards
Audley Travel has been recognised for numerous achievements as a company. The company has won awards including:
Guardian/Observer Travel Awards 2006: Best Tour Operator
The Sunday Times 100 Best Small Companies to Work For 2006-2018
Telegraph Green Travel Awards 2007: Luxury Tour Operator of the Year
Guardian/Observer Travel Awards 2008: Best Tour Operator
Conde Nast Traveller Readers’ Travel Awards: First Place Specialist Tour Operator 2010
Wanderlust Travel Awards 2011: Best Website
Wanderlust Travel Awards 2012 and 2019: Top Tour Operator
Telegraph Travel Awards 2013: Best Tour Operator
Guardian/Observer Travel Awards 2014: Best Tour Operator
The Oxfordshire Business Awards 2014: Employer of the Year
The Times and Sunday Times Travel Awards 2016 and 2019: Best Luxury Tour Operator
Telegraph Travel Awards 2016, 2017 and 2019: Best Tour Operator
Which? Recommended Travel Agents
Charity and philanthropy
Audley supports a number of social and environmental charities and projects around the world. In January 2020, the company was granted the Travelife Partner award in recognition of its efforts to improve sustainability and corporate social responsibility. Travelife is the leading international sustainability certification in the travel sector. The company fundraises for a specific charity, which is chosen biannually by its staff. Staff are also given a half-day volunteering allowance to support a local charity of their choice.
