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Top Tour Operators and Travel Agencies in England 2024/2025

Top Tour Operators and Travel Agencies in England. Below you will find 24 of the best tour operators and travel agencies in England offering in total 255 tours and holidays through-out England. Combined they have received 438 customer reviews and an average rating of 5 out of 5 stars. The top tour activities offered in England are: Sightseeing, attractions, culture and history, Adventure and sport & Wildlife, landscapes and nature.

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• England Travel Guide

24 Tour Operators in England with 438 Reviews

Brendan Vacations

• Address Brendan Vacations 801 E. Katella Avenue Anaheim, California 92805, California, USA
• Response Rate 90%
• Response Time 3 hours

Walkers' Britain

• Address 1B Osiers Road, London, England
• Response Rate 83%
• Response Time 1 hour

• Best-in-Class Top 5% of companies
• Excellent Service Top 10% of companies
• Superior Service Top 15% of companies

• Address 109 Power Road, Chiswick, London, England
• Response Rate 81%

• Address Picquet House, St Peter Port, Guernsey, London, England
• Response Time 2 hours

Mckenzie Mountaineering

• Address Hillcrest Braes , Ullapool, Scotland
• Response Rate 100%

• Address Nelson House, 55-59 Victoria Rd, Farnborough, England
• Response Rate 96%

Expat Explore

• Address 10 Merryweather Place, London, England

Collette Tours

• Address 162 Middle Street, Pawtucket, Rhode Island, USA
• Response Rate 86%

• Address 33 Kern Road, Toronto, Canada
• Response Rate 88%

Luxury Gold

• Response Rate 60%

• Address 38-51 Bedford Way, London, England

The London Bicycle Tour Company

• Address 74 Kennington Road, London, England

Indus Travels

• Address 233, 11951 Hammersmith Way, Richmond, Canada
• Response Rate 98%

Scenic Luxury Cruises and Tours

• Address 15/56 Pitt St, Sydney, Australia
• Response Rate 74%

England Tour Reviews

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Welcome to Barrhead Travel

For nearly 50 years, Barrhead Travel has been helping people to plan their perfect trips. We’re the experts – the UK’s leading independent British travel agents, with an array of awards to our name. We’re dedicated to providing you with the best prices, impartial advice and the widest variety of holidays, combined with top-notch customer service.

Barrhead Travel has exclusive holiday products that you won't find anywhere else, so let us help you to plan your next journey, no matter where in the world you want to go. Where can Barrhead Travel take you next?

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* 0800 calls are free for landlines and mobiles. 0333 calls are included within inclusive minutes package on mobiles, otherwise standard rates apply. 0844/0845 calls are 7p/pm plus your local carrier charge. Prices are per person twin share, correct as at the date of publication, subject to change and may be higher/unavailable for certain dates. Airfares are economy on specified airlines from London, unless otherwise stated. For full booking conditions visit Booking Conditions . Some of the flights and flight-inclusive holidays on this website are financially protected by the ATOL scheme. But ATOL protection does not apply to all holiday and travel services listed on this website. We will provide you with information on the protection that applies in the case of each holiday and travel service offered before you make your booking. If you do not receive an ATOL Certificate then the booking will not be ATOL protected. If you do receive an ATOL Certificate but not all the parts of your trip are listed on it, those parts not listed will not be ATOL protected. Please see our booking conditions for information, or for more information about financial protection and the ATOL Certificate go to: www.caa.co.uk .

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THE ONLY WAY TO TRAVEL

The ultimate travel company.

Independent and family-run, we have been offering a rare blend of luxury and adventure travel experiences to our clientele for more than four decades. The depth of knowledge and insight, together with a global network of trusted partners, gained over the years allows us to design itineraries that are flexible and entirely personalised to you. We do so with perception, creativity and enthusiasm, but with a profound appreciation for your investment and an absolute respect for the environment, the wildlife and the local cultures of the destinations in which we operate.

TAILOR-MADE TRAVEL

Whether you wish to explore Antarctica, experience the Great Migration in Kenya or simply relax on a beach, we will personalise your trip so that it’s just right for you.

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Travelling at the perfect time can truly enhance your experience. Whatever you’re looking for, we will help you decide where to go, and just as importantly, when.

GROUP ESCORTED TOURS

Unique small group journeys with expert guides, guest lecturers and exclusive access to sought after sites and events.

INSPIRING STORIES

We are inspired by hidden gems and the wonderful people we encounter on our journeys. Explore our stories…

“…relocate to Jose Ignacio”

11 Interesting Facts About Chile You Might Not know

A Chilean Patagonia Adventure

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Wherever you choose to travel with Cox & Kings, you can travel with confidence.

• Highlights of South Africa
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• Across Albania & Kosovo
• Grand Tour of Indochina
• Spirit of Vietnam Superior
• Taiwan: The Beautiful Island
• Japan in Style
• Vietnam in Style
• Japan’s Cultural Treasures
• China: The Grand Tour
• A Journey through Malaysia
• Classic Thailand
• Vietnam & Cambodia in Style
• The Enchanted Island
• Splendours of Sri Lanka: Solo Travellers Tour
• The Grand Tour of India
• Passage through Kerala
• Nepal in Style
• Sri Lanka: Wonders of the Wild
• The Golden Triangle & Shimla
• Passage through Rajasthan
• Treasures of Southern India
• Exotic Sri Lanka
• Boutique Rajasthan
• Egypt: Ancient Wonders of Cairo & the Nile
• Moroccan Explorer: Imperial Cities to Desert
• The Wonders of Jordan & Jerusalem
• The Ancient Wonders of Jordan & Egypt
• Nile Cruise & Lake Nasser
• Splendours of Jordan
• Oman: An Arabian Odyssey
• Treasures of Israel
• Moroccan Discovery
• Jordan: Crusaders, Traders & Raiders
• Historic Cities & Culinary Delights of Morocco

Grand Tour of South America

• Splendours of Chile
• Patagonia: Untouched Wilderness
• Ultimate South America
• Splendours of South America
• Train to Machu Picchu (Superior)
• Wonders of the New World
• Ecuador & Galápagos Experience
• Brazil: Wildlife & Waterfalls
• Peru & Galápagos Odyssey
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This tour takes you to the best that the island has to offer.

This escorted tour blends a selection of South Africa’s quintessential experiences into a well-paced itinerary for lovers of wildlife, walks, and wine.

Staying in good hotels with great character and with some free time to relax, this tour reveals Peru’s many wonders.

• Tailor-made holidays overview
• Family adventures
• Private groups
• Off the beaten track
• Submit tailor-made enquiry

For centuries, Italy's scenic Amalfi coast has drawn visitors for its historical sites, coastal vistas and small villages. 

Explore the vivid colours, architecture and landscapes of little-known Gujarat. 

This epic journey travels across seven countries to explore South America's greatest cultural, historic and natural wonders, including a cruise of the Galápagos islands.

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• Refer a friend and get £250 off your next holiday
• Top offer: save up to £300pp on Grand Tour of South America

Enjoy discounted fares on selected cabin upgrades on our private tailor-made holidays and worldwide small group tours.

Both you and your friend will enjoy a £250 saving on your next qualifying bookings with Cox & Kings.

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With over 265 years' experience, we offer great service, value and support. 

Our expert travel consultants are passionate, knowledgeable and love to travel. 

View the awards Cox & Kings has won over the years for service and more.

The season of discovery

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Small Group Tours and Tailor-Made Holidays

Cox & Kings has over 265 years of experience arranging high quality travel to the world's most captivating destinations. Whether you're seeking culture, adventure or a blend of both, our holidays are designed by experts and brought to life by the finest guides.

Group tours

Our high quality small group tours offer superb value – combining sightseeing with expert guides, signature experiences and free time to relax.

Tailor-made holidays

Holidays and experiences designed around you, created by our experts.

Late availability tours

For those keen to travel sooner rather than later, browse our last-minute small-group tours.

Solo travellers group tours

With Cox & Kings you can travel solo alongside like-minded travellers – at no extra cost.

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Where to travel next

Central america, central asia, indian subcontinent, middle east, south america, ready to start planning your next trip.

• Popular group tours

18 days 16 nights

From £4,795

This tour focuses on South America's cultural and natural highlights, revealing the continent's diversity, and passing from high Andean scenery down to the thundering Iguazú Falls

Journey through the Heart of Spain

8 days 7 nights

From £1,895

Beyond the busy shores of the Mediterranean and Andalucía's popular tourist trail lies Extremadura, one of Spain's least-visited provinces but certainly one full of surprises

Treasures of Peru: Solo Travellers Tour

11 days 9 nights

From £3,095

This introductory tour of Peru includes the country’s most celebrated sights

Looking for a holiday that’s tailored to you?

• Popular tailor-made holidays

Taste of India

9 days 7 nights

From £2,315

Spend a week soaking up the sights and sounds of India’s famed Golden Triangle

A Journey through Jordan

10 days 9 nights

From £2,895

Rich with history and natural beauty, Jordan has an impressive selection of crusader castles, archaeological sites and beautiful desert scenery

Naples, Sorrento and Capri

From £1,865

This itinerary stays in the most popular locations of the Amalfi Coast - Naples, Sorrento and the island of Capri

Read our month-by-month travel guide

Read our blog, jordan's top 10 adventure and culture activities, 10 best places to visit in ecuador, the natural wonders of japan, 7 reasons to visit kenya with cox and kings, 10 best things to do in india, natural splendours of costa rica, why travel with cox & kings, genuinely small groups.

Small groups promise a more personal touring experience. That’s why Cox & Kings maintains a maximum group size of 18 guests on most tours, and an average of just 14.

Worldwide support

Enjoy round-the-clock support – in person, over the phone and online. This is made possible by our well-travelled staff and unrivalled network of offices in destinations across the world.

Your money is protected

Cox & Kings is ABTA bonded and ATOL protected. When you arrange a holiday with us, rest assured that your booking is secure and your money is protected.

Experts since 1758

Cox & Kings is a name you can trust. We’ve been helping the curious traveller explore for more than 265 years – longer than any other travel company.

Begin your journey

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Top 10 Best Travel Agents Near London, London

1 .  Crystal Travel

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“All in all you will not be disappointed in the least..... Thanks Crystal Travel ...”   more

2 .  Travelmania

3 .  STA Travel

“It advertised a price that was cheaper than the competitors so I tried to buy through them and they...”   more

4 .  Global Travel Agency

5 .  Thomas Cook

6 .  Flight Express Travel

7 .  Fleetway Travel

“The second time, the travel agent who I left a voicemail for, didn't bother to return my call. ...”   more

8 .  Lux Travel

9 .  Travelbag

10 .  Carlton Leisure

“I've booked the tickets through Carlton Leisure and must say that their services are simply beyond...”   more

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"We really enjoyed every aspect of our trip to Barcelona. Need to go back - there was too much to see in a weekend. Experienced Tapas at its best. We went to the football also and that was amazing. The hop on and hop off Sightseeing Bus Tour is a must. 3 routes to choose from - we did the green route and that took all day!! Very good value for money. We stayed in the Nova City hotel and that was amazing. Outside the main Catalunya but Metro takes you everywhere. We purchased a T10 ticket for €9.95 - this enables you to take 10 trips on Metro/Tram - we used this between the 4 of us. All in all you will not be disappointed in the least..... Thanks Crystal Travel"

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Who We Are?

Aero Travels is one of the top, modern and flexible online UK travel agents. Offering a sought out, wide range of travel and holiday destinations around the world, from European countries Italy, Greece, France to tropical countries such as Indonesia, Thailand, Sri Lanka and all the way to America.

Popular among UK travel agents, Aero Travels take pride in offering the best facilities and flexibility with personal customization to meet all your requirements. Giving attention to every little detail of your needs, Aero Travels have been known for its excellent service provider among cheap online Travel Agents in UK.

Most popular destinations among European tour packages are Paris, Prague and Vienna, Amsterdam, Iceland, Berlin city and Rome in Italy. These tours are full of beautiful sightseeing attractions and rich historical beauty and European cuisine which varies from city to city. Aero travels offer this variety at a cheap rate online.

Many travel agents in UK are known for curating Asia tour packages that include exciting sightseeing tours at historical and modern attractions, shopping tours, exploring Asian cuisine and fun packed tours.

From beautiful beaches with crystal clear snorkelling spots in Indonesia to dazzling good markets and beautiful ancient Buddhist temples in Thailand to experiencing exotic island life in Sri Lanka, Asian tour packages have much more to offer.

Aero Travels is a cheap online travel agent in UK, offering Modern Asia can be discovered in Singapore, a unique destination to explore many aspects as a destination; Merlion, Sentosa Island, Gardens by the Bay are few of them. Singaporean cuisine is one of the most loved type of cuisine around the world.

We offer an exclusive, cheap Western destination tours from UK to United States which will keep you excited throughout. Tours include Los Angeles, Las Vegas and New York City.

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As a subsidiary of Aero Travel Groups Limited, Pinoy Travels takes pride in being one of the most experienced and customer-oriented travel agents serving for the Filipino Travellers in the UK.

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Premier Travel

Premier Travel is a privately owned, independent travel agency with over 87 years' experience in the travel industry and 27 branches throughout East Anglia and Southern England.

Being independent, we have the flexibility to work with a multitude of tour operators to offer the widest range of travel products, from traditional UK holidays, bespoke tailor-made journeys around the world, cruises, city stays, beach holidays and theatre breaks to an overseas wedding of your dreams. Take a moment to explore our website and discover for yourself the wide range of options available.

Our travel specialists make Premier what it is

Friendly, knowledgeable and enthusiastic, our travel specialists make Premier what it is.

Our people have a passion for travel! They have travelled extensively, perhaps even lived abroad, and have their own specialist destinations along with their favourite places around the globe, which they regularly revisit.

Our people ensure they are up to date with all travel related issues and are proud to offer impartial advice along with their first-hand knowledge and expertise. They believe in an honest “tell it how it is” approach to planning an itinerary, suggesting sights, selecting accommodation and discussing the practicalities of travel.

We’re thrilled to announce that we’ve won “Star Travel Agency Group - Medium” in the Travel Bulletin Star Awards 2023. This incredible honour is a direct result of the hard work and dedication of our Premier Travel team. We are deeply appreciative of this accolade and even more committed to provide our customers with the unforgettable holidays that they deserve.

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UK Travel Agents & Reviews

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Customers rate Zicasso's travel referral service  5  on a scale of 1 to 5 based on  1541  reviews on Trustpilot

We match you with top tour companies that specialize in the trip you want,  whether it's a customized private tour or a group tour.

Our UK travel agents craft quintessential English experiences showcasing the history, culture, and famous destinations in this dynamic region.  Discover cosmopolitan London and ancient Stonehenge. Hike wild Windermere fells. Learn local tales at a British pub. Step into the halls of Downton Abbey filming locations. Sample award-winning spirits at centuries-old distilleries. Handling all logistics and designing trips just for you, our travel agencies in the UK curate dream travel experiences.  With care and insider access, our UK travel agencies create personalized journeys engaging you in the places and people shaping England, Scotland, and Wales.

Discover our UK travel agents, the top 10% of local specialists

Our UK travel agents craft quintessential English experiences showcasing the history, culture, and famous destinations in this dynamic region. 

Discover cosmopolitan London and ancient Stonehenge. Hike wild Windermere fells. Learn local tales at a British pub. Step into the halls of Downton Abbey filming locations. Sample award-winning spirits at centuries-old distilleries. Handling all logistics and designing trips just for you, our travel agencies in the UK curate dream travel experiences. 

With care and insider access, our UK travel agencies create personalized journeys engaging you in the places and people shaping England, Scotland, and Wales.

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Adam's Travel Agency

 Based on  101  reviews

Destinations:

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The trip was wonderful. Our Zicasso tour operator was great and really responsive during the trip. I loved the app, which made everything so much easier and clearer, and having everything in one place on our phones was so nice.

Mario's Travel Agency

 Based on  484  reviews

Zicasso’s travel agents were able to meet my budget needs and responded quickly to questions. The hotels they recommended were good to great and the experiences were just enough for us without overbooking our days. Their information on the train travel was lacking, however. In Brussels, it was not indicated which of the three stations we were to use, the transfer time on one trip was too short to make the connection when our train was only a bit late, and the train info for our last leg was totally inaccurate as to times and connection point. Luckily, other trains were available, so it didn’t cost us anything but a little stress and a $10 Uber.

Neil's Travel Agency

 Based on  50  reviews

The trip was wonderful and the support from the travel agency was unstinting. From the first day, they were quickly responsive and continually exceeded our expectations. We had no hiccups along the way, so we didn't need to call on them during the trip, but I am confident they would have sorted any issue that arose.  Their reputation was reinforced by our guide in Bath, who said they were a great company to work with and emphasized that anybody who "picked up the phone" would provide the high level of service we'd experienced.

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Jane's Travel Agency

 Based on  7  reviews

Our trip, starting and ending in Edinburgh and looping through the Highlands with an emphasis on the Isle of Skye, Inverness, and Speyside, was very enjoyable, much to the credit of our travel agency. We were awed by the sheer beauty of the Highlands, the warmth and friendliness of the Scottish people, and the country's fascinating historical sites.  Our culinary experience was outstanding, with a variety of traditional dishes and contemporary cuisine prepared by world-class chefs. As could be expected, distillery visits gave us an opportunity to enjoy a range of whiskey flavors and styles. Jane, the owner of the travel agency, was accommodating in creating the ideal itinerary, finding superb lodging and dining experiences for us, and helping us through last-minute bookings due to a flight cancellation.  Our driver/guide was personable, knowledgeable, timely, and professional. He entertained us with amusing Scottish lore, local and regional information, and eagerly adjusted the itinerary as needed to suit our personal tastes and interests.

Aeneas' Travel Agency

 Based on  8  reviews

Zicasso’s tour operator was nothing short of exceptional to work with. From the early stages of planning, communication was seamless. The lovely travel planner helped plan the most magical trip. Every accommodation was out of this world, the meals were amazing, and the itinerary was outstanding. We traveled with two babies and they helped plan a wonderful, magical trip. We enjoyed Scotland so much and are looking forward to traveling there again with the same travel company! They even planned a sweet surprise for my four-year-old’s birthday that was so special for her. We were just so pleased with everything.

Jeff's Travel Agency

 Based on  54  reviews

Zicasso’s travel planner provided outstanding support over a year of planning to ensure all was prepared for our trip. Then he went above and beyond to ensure all went smoothly, including picking us up at the airport, giving us a windshield tour of Edinburgh, and safely delivering us to our hotel. When the weather caused a scheduled ferry crossing to be canceled, our travel agent immediately helped us to change our day's plans at no notice. Finally, he took the time to meet us in Glasgow the day before our departure and take us into town for our last day of touring. I can't recommend his company highly enough to folks looking to explore Scotland!

Tom's Travel Agency

 Based on  140  reviews

We absolutely loved working with Zicasso’s travel agents. They offered some great experiences and accommodations that I would have never considered, and did it all within our budget. We can't wait to go back to Ireland or make our first trip to Scotland, and I will definitely be calling Zicasso’s company for the next trip!

Anne Marie's Travel Agency

 Based on  131  reviews

Our anniversary trip to Scotland and Ireland, planned by Zicasso’s travel company, was unforgettable! Our travel agent was very easy to work with! She made several adjustments to our itinerary at our request and also to address some of the vendor's changes, such as one of our flights (originally from Inverness to Dublin) and one of our "in a local home, dinner and cooking lessons" (originally in Scotland). She was cognizant of my budget constraints and suggested I do some of the driving myself to reduce the cost of private drivers. Then, during our trip, little things like a wine and cheese board in our room upon our arrival in Edinburgh were very much appreciated! Also, when things didn't go as planned (flight delay from Aberdeen to Dublin), she was available (at 2am Pacific time) to help smooth out the bumps! Even the way our trip itinerary built up to a subtle crescendo with our stay in a castle made this a trip we will never forget!

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UK and Great Britain Tour Companies

Looking for an unforgettable UK and Great Britain tour? Book a fully-organized trip with the best tour companies in UK and Great Britain and let the tour operator take care of everything for you. Check out the tour details and read 195033 reviews from our customers to help you choose the perfect tour for you.

List of UK And Great Britain travel companies & tour operators with 195033 reviews

• Excellent - 74,887 reviews for UK and Great Britain tours

Introduction to Ireland was a well rounded beautiful adventure. I enjoyed every single moment. Accomodations were good. Bus was comfortable and the driver was amazing. Our tour guide Tom was great. I respect the fact he runs a tight ship so people were on time,organized and directed us each day as to what to expect. I enjoyed his abundance of Irish history and story telling.

Great trip, good hotels and guiding and lovely food!

Europamundo

• Good - 3,030 reviews for UK and Great Britain tours

TRAVELERS IF YOU SPEAK ENGLISH ONLY THIS MAY NOT BE THE TRIP/COMPANY FOR YOU! If you are ready to spend most of the time on a bus, and very little time in the places they advertise. The guides we had were not organized, or gave very little history on the places we did visit. Guides often referring to Google for history of the places we went. Gave more information in Spanish. If you don't speak Spanish this can be very confusing and frustrating. Explanations for the times returning to meet to return to the bus NOT ALWAYS CLEAR, God forbid if you were late arriving at the bus, often RUDE TO THE TRAVELERS. Some of the bus drivers were giving the guides explanations, and history of the places we were passing though, but the guides not passing the information on to us. Also what they needed to do when crossing borders, having strangers on the bus helping them sort out our passports and other personal information! Excursions that I paid, BEING CHARGED 25$ EUR MORE THAN THE EXCUSION WAS LISTED FOR, the company DID NOT HAVE THEM ON THIER LIST!! I HAD IT ON MY "MY TRIP" When asked about this, I was told the Company "Boss" didn't know anything about these situations, trips, or times, "that they just drive their fancy cars!" Being told that we would be reimbursed for excursions but NEVER HAPPENED! Trying to contact the company about this situation, but NEVER getting an answer.

Quality or quantity is your choice. The tour list plenty of cities you get to visit and sounds like a great value; it’s wasn’t. London and the two cities Cambridge, and York were very good. I enjoyed them Windsor even after paying extra. Scotland was a different story. Edinburgh was nice we had a guided tour on the bus and an hour and a half of free time. Edinburgh has a history museum: where they kept the first cloned sheep; never even seen the building from the outside. The hotel was a twenty minute ride back into town. We checked in at 20:00 or 8 pm. Needing to be up and ready to leave by eight in the morning negates taking a bus for twenty minutes. Hotel location should have been closer to city center not the edge of town. Then we spent a day going through the Scottish Highlands to the Loch where Nessie is supposed to reside. The boat ride and time at the castle ruins while picturesque ate up three hours. We arrived in Glasgow at 8pm or 20:00 right from the freeway to the hotel. Glasgow was a complete and total disappointment. The hotel was set up for the thirty and under crowd all industrial and noisy. I didn’t care for it and the others in my group agreed it was the worst we stayed at. Now it was clean and modern just not a relaxing place. Rooms were tiny and there wasn’t a chair in it; just an ottoman looking thing to sit on. Only part of Glasgow we were able to see was when the bus took some riders to the train station. Then we were off to Ireland. Belfast was our first stop. Dropped off at the capital building and given two hours. No drive by the Titanic museum no history of Belfast except for a light touching of the troubles and a brief mention of the peace wall. I didn’t bother taking the Dublin tour and did my laundry that morning. I spoke with people who did the tour and wasn’t impressed by their experience. I did a full trip around the island exactly one year before and had pictures on my phone. When asked did they show you this or that the answer was generally no. Cork they set us down across the street from a department store and gave us an hour before we had to get on the bus to go to the hotel. No tour of Cork no history. Hotel again was far enough you couldn’t just walk in the time we had. The roast of the trip was the same story over and over again. The hotels while nice and clean were never where you could get out and about to enjoy and explore by yourself. I was looking forward to Galway as it was one of my favorite spots visited last year; the mall built with a castle wall inside it. Didn’t have time to go there if I also wanted to eat dinner. I did see two sights in Ireland I didn’t see last time. Filming location for The Quit Man and a monastery relics in the middle of Ireland. So this was quantity over quality and I wasn’t impressed.

• Excellent - 876 reviews for UK and Great Britain tours

Great tour Probably Experiences of my life. The tour was very well organized by our tour, Director Deborah she was very knowledgeable and fun !!! I got to see everything I wanted to for my first initial experience to Europe. The hotels were nice and breakfast was decent. Met a great group of people on my tour as a solo traveler!!! Highly recommend best money ever spent !!! Book this tour !!!!

The tour guide was excellent. Some accommodations could be better. At Hilton in London I realized too late that the shower switch wasn't even there exposing outside threads, but I had to get to the airport on time, so I had to tell about it at the reception when I was already leaving. I learned a lesson. I should xhexk if everything fine with the room before unpacking

Expat Explore Travel

• Excellent - 4,277 reviews for UK and Great Britain tours

This was a great tour and I'm so happy we did this. It gave us all of the highlights of Ireland so we wouldn't feel bad if we were never able to go back but left enough that if we did come back, we would know right where to go and what to do. I do have a few minor complaints but overall I do recommend the tour. First, the company is NOT good with communication. We emailed multiple times trying to get details about things like hotels or where we would be going on certain days or how to get signed up for optional excursions. Sometimes they would respond, sometimes not. And never with an actual answer. Don't expect to get any actual info until 5 days before the trip when you're assigned a tour guide (which to me, a planner, is INSANE). We couldn't even find out the starting hotel to stay near it. Which was another issue, the hotel in Dublin is so far away from everything, all the way on the south side of the city. Luckily it's on the train line but from that hotel to our additional hotel for our last night, it was an hour and a half of riding trains and buses. My second complaint is that we were not given enough time at many of the stops and not given the information we needed about the stops. For example, we stopped one day in Sligo and given an hour and a half for lunch. We just found out we were stopping in Sligo that day so we knew nothing about the town or what to do. We wandered around and all of the shops and restaurants weren't even open yet for lunch. I ended up having to get take away at the one bar we could find that was open and it was awful. Had we known where we were going ahead of time, we could have done some research and found what was open. Bunratty castle we were given an hour and a half to see things and eat. But then they tried to lead us on a tour that took almost an hour. We ended up walking out of the tour because Bunratty is a whole folk park village and it was amazing. Ultimately most people didn't even have time to eat. The same was true at Blarney. We were the first ones off the bus and power walked straight to the castle to get in line to kiss the stone. We were 5 minutes late getting back onto the bus and we did not a singular other thing on the Blarney Castle grounds. The tour guide told us there was a 4 story gift shop, we didn't even get to step foot in it. Most of the people didn't even get to go kiss the Blarney stone. Can you imagine, a whole trip to Ireland and having to make the choice not to see one of the most iconic things because we weren't given enough time? My last complaint is that there is no bathroom on the bus. Give or take if that was a good thing with some of the people on our trip, but I'm like a small child in that regard and some of the times we were driving were way too long. There was one place where we stopped for a photo op and I had to find some bushes, as did many of the men on the tour. Not a great experience having to do that but I simply could not wait another half hour to the next destination. Again, I do still recommend this tour but people deserve to know what they're getting themselves into. The tour guide was friendly and we all liked her. The driver was even better, Dermot - You're the BEST! And overall, a great introduction to Ireland.

Amazing tour! Thank you!

• Excellent - 1,895 reviews for UK and Great Britain tours

Itinerary was ok - some locations, like Plymouth, really aren’t worth visiting, while others with lots to see had minimal time (an hour or so) allocated.

Fine tour with a lot of nice people from almost all over the world. To us it was a disappointment that the optional tour in Edinburgh with Johnnie Walker experts, advertised in the program, wasn’t available.

Insight Vacations

• Excellent - 634 reviews for UK and Great Britain tours

My first Insight Tour and it was amazing. Scenic tour of the beautiful countryside, towns, and historic sites of England, Scotland, Wales, and Republic of Ireland. Our Travel Director, Greg, was very professional, knowledgeable of the history, culture, food, music, and local 'celebrities'. Greg and our driver (Arthur - the best) worked together as a team, making our trip enjoyable, memorable, and fun. Always courteous, respectful, and conscientious of our time, safety, and well-being. Good job!

What a wonderful way to experience my first tour. This 13 day highlight of the best that Britain an Ireland have to offer was full of amazing opportunities to taste the culture and meet locals that lovel and adore their country and the history that holds. Greg our tour guide was exceptionally in his organisation, knowledge and commitment to ensuring that we enjoyed our trip. His attention to details and the extras to make the group feel welcomed and special. My personal experience on my special day was made even more heart warming by Greg's kindness and effort in make sure that I felt loved and acknowledge with an celebration at the evening meal. Arthur our driver was amazing and his experience in driving showed in the professionalism he demonstrated in through the entire 13 days. Overall i would throughly recommend this trip to anyone especially if they are blessed with Greg and Arthur.

• Excellent - 19,650 reviews for UK and Great Britain tours

Good adventure through Ireland, saw all the spots you hear about. Wish there was more time at some locations, but overall very good

Not really my type of holiday travel! The stops are short and mainly at freeway truck and rest stops. The hotels were way too far from any real sites and some were small and cramped. I expected this tour to be hectic, given the countries visited and the days involved, . but IMO it could have been organized a lot better. The Tour Director and Driver were excellent but working with hands tied behind her back.The driven tours by coach just went too fast apart from road blocks or traffic jams. I appreciate that the TD kept mentioning that there are other tours by Cosmos, Globes that are lconcentrated on longer stays, however if they are at the hotels that we stayed at, then seeing the good sights are going to be a massive struggle. IMHO, even if the costs are higher for better hotels and safer areas, most would rather pay than skimp. Most of the stops overnight did not even have any decent restaurants where one could experience a decent meal of the region. Yes there were a couple of organized option dinners that involved costs, but these had to be reached via the coach. The three included meals are at the hotels which really did not have kitchens other than ones that could prepare breakfasts and the meals were simple and buffet style with one fixed item being served. As I started it may be OK for some, but definitely not my cup for tea!

Haggis Adventures

• Excellent - 1,964 reviews for UK and Great Britain tours

Tom is a great guide. Would recommend the tour.

Great tour really knowledgeable guides Steve and Brodie were fantastic Great content for the tour and would highly recommend Haggis tours

MacBackpackers

• Excellent - 2,545 reviews for UK and Great Britain tours

Epic scenery with a funny charismatic tour leader with lots of walks, Scottish music, secret spots away from other tour groups.

Wonderful night in Loch Ness and spectacular view in Skye🤩

Overland Ireland - Small Gr…

• Excellent - 473 reviews for UK and Great Britain tours

The daily itinerary was packed full of adventures, learning and interesting sites. David, our tour guide was very informative, patient with us, and exercised flexibility to meet all the tourists needs. The group size and diversity was perfect. (We had 11). The van was very comfortable with plenty room for everyone. Lodging accommodations were very nice. I loved the small B&B and lodging experience. We definitely will use Overland Ireland again for our next trip to Ireland.

A wonderful trip with a wonderful leader! Flexible when needed. Very nice accommodations. Would book with Overland again!

• Excellent - 29 reviews for UK and Great Britain tours

Jose the tourist guide was excellent, the hotels except for the last one were very good, the landscape and scenery was amazing, very recommended

Back-Roads Touring

• Excellent - 138 reviews for UK and Great Britain tours

This tour was excellent. Derek was a very entertaining tour guide & our driver had a great sense of humour. I highly recommend travelling with Tour Rad.

All worked pretty well. Tour Leader and Driver really good.

Irish Experience Tours

• Excellent - 267 reviews for UK and Great Britain tours

I highly recommend the Irish Experience Tours to anyone, especially people who don’t like tours! This company took care of all the details leaving us to just enjoy the ride. The itinerary and the accommodations were excellent. The smaller bus allowed us to go places less traveled and enjoy the major attractions with fewer crowds because our driver/guide, Lee, always got us there well ahead of the other tour groups. The accommodations were all situated in the midst of town or a short easy walk away. The itinerary was robust! We packed a lot of sightseeing into 8 days and yet the pace was just right, not too much driving time, just enough leisure time. Our guide, Lee couldn’t have been better. He shared his vast knowledge of Irish history and culture all along the way, as well as providing laughs and stories to entertain us as we drove. He was always helpful with recommendations for dining and traditional music venues. Overall, this trip was a ten+.

I joined the group from 18 to 30 April 2024. What a fantastic experience. It is "authentically" Irish experience. Sean our guide lugged everyone's luggage up and down the stairs in the accommodation provided - I really felt sorry for him. Sean also educated us on Irish slang and how to use it. Sean shared his local knowledge with the group. The places visited were great. The tour has a good spread of activities and "own time". I would highly recommend the tour to anyone, whether travelling solo like me, or as couples. The sheep dog demonstration was a highlight!

Intrepid Travel

• Excellent - 11,717 reviews for UK and Great Britain tours

Intrepid needs to tighten up this tour. Two free afternoons is too much when one has only three days on the island. Either make the tour two full days or two full days with one full day free to make plans to go to Hoy or Rousay. Give people guidance on what to do on the free day.

I recently traveled with a friend to Scotland. We included a week long tour with Intrepid, booked through Tour Radar. We paid a very healthy sum for the tour, $3,460 each. The description said the trip was appropriate for ages 15-99. It also described two nights in Portree on Isle of Skye with a private van tour on the full day on Isle of Sky. My friend and I chose this tour because of the time spent in Portree and on Isle of Skye, the small group size, and that if it was okay for ages 15-99 then I’d be fine six months post a major knee surgery. What wasn’t included in the description and what happened: -No where did it say that we’d be expected to walk/transport our luggage on foot from Points of transportation to our lodging ranging from 10-20 minutes. My 94 year old father-in-law lives with us and is able bodied, but there’s no way he could have done these distances While also carrying/pulling luggage. My 87 year old mother could not accomplish this either. I could do it with my recovering knee, but I was slower and it also used up some of the energy I needed for enjoying walking portions of the tour. I didn’t anticipate having to schlep my suitcase for 15 minutes at a time over uneven sidewalks, etc. I would have packed differently had I known or we would have looked for a different tour. -My friend and I still wonder why Fort Williams was included on the itinerary as a place to stay?
The only thing Intrepid provided was a walk to a castle that wasn’t open for visitors. The rest was on our own and there really wasn’t much happening other than a nice, little museum. We would have preferred more time on Isle of Skye. -We were notified prior to departure that our time on Isle of Skye would be at Kyleakin - not in Portree- and we’d have to arrange our own tour. Phone numbers were provided but no one on the tour had any luck booking anything prior to arriving, calls not returned, no availability, etc. So, 3-4 of our tour group spent 2 FULL hours or more on their phones while we were in Fort Williams trying to come up with some options for us. They pieced together a public bus ride to/from Kyleakin to Portree and a private taxi tour at our own expense! (After paying for it in the cost of our tour.) This should have been done by Intrepid!! Not once were we offered reimbursement. We didn’t have any time in Portree. We’d hoped to have lunch before our taxi tour, but all the restaurants were full. I found a to-go cup of tea and scone at a bike shop, then time in cue to use a bathroom. I’d looked forward to staying in Portree and had many places I had planned to walk to when not on the private van tour we were sold but didn’t get. Also, While staying in Kyleakin, the guest house did not provide a cooked breakfast, just light snacks in our rooms. Breakfast was provided, but we had to walk to/from the restaurant that was a mile each way. This used up time we could have been site seeing. Also, it would use up my knee energy for the days site-seeing. My friend went to breakfast but I skipped the walk to reserve my energy for site-seeing. Oh, and the whiskey tasting…we passed distilleries but we Were given a private lesson on tasting with our tour guide. While he did a fine job, the setting was not the same as a distillery setting. The room was bare, we used wine glasses, we were Supposed to take notes but no hard surfaces to write on, etc. Just wasn’t what any of us were expecting. I found Intrepid’s disregard for the changes and the misleading descriptions as to be very unprofessional. I use tours so that I don’t have to do all of the arranging. Why pay you if I’m going to have to do it myself? Next time I book a tour, I’ll be sure to avoid Intrepid. Many friends have asked about my trip. Unfortunately, the biggest disappointment was the tour. I’ve shared that multiple times now. I’m not the only member of the group that walked away Disappointed. We didn’t want to “blame” the tour guide, I don’t think he was responsible, he was just trying to keep us happy as he could sense how displeased we were. His answers too our questions were not satisfying at all. He seemed to be trying to cover for the company best he could.

Highland Experience Tours

• Excellent - 211 reviews for UK and Great Britain tours

Keith Wilson as the tour guide is passionate and full of fun both as a driver and Troy guide: what a great commentator and what a passionate Scotsman. We had a wonderful tour of edenburg, Inverness and lochness. Keep it up Keith.

Loved it. Jamie our guide was great

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Travel agencies in the United Kingdom - statistics & Facts

Retail travel agencies in the united kingdom, online travel agencies (otas) in the united kingdom, key insights.

Detailed statistics

Annual output of travel agencies and tour operators in the UK 2010-2022

Number of businesses in the travel agency industry in the UK 2013-2023

Number of businesses in the travel agency industry in the UK 2023, by employment size

Editor’s Picks Current statistics on this topic

Current statistics on this topic.

Tour Operators & Travel Agencies

Leading travel agents ranked by number of outlets in the UK 2024

Number of retail travel agents in the UK 2019-2023

TUI UK Limited revenue 2015-2022

Related topics

• Travel agency industry
• Package holidays in the United Kingdom (UK)

Travel and tourism in the UK

• Travel and tourism in the United Kingdom (UK)
• Vacation travel behavior in the United Kingdom (UK)
• Tourism in London
• Online travel market
• Digitalization of the travel industry
• Mobile travel trends
• Impact of technology on travel and tourism

Recommended statistics

• Premium Statistic Annual output of travel agencies and tour operators in the UK 2010-2022
• Premium Statistic Monthly output growth of travel agencies and tour operators in the UK 2019-2023
• Premium Statistic Market size of the travel agency industry in the UK 2013-2023
• Premium Statistic Revenue of travel agencies in the UK 2008-2021
• Premium Statistic Gross value added (GVA): travel agencies in the UK 2008-2021
• Premium Statistic Travel agency, tour operator, and reservation services employment in the UK 2015-2021
• Basic Statistic Number of businesses in the travel agency industry in the UK 2023, by employment size
• Premium Statistic Number of businesses in the travel agency industry in the UK 2013-2023

Annual output of travel agencies, tour operators, and other reservation services in the United Kingdom (UK) from 2010 to 2022 (in million GBP)

Monthly output growth of travel agencies and tour operators in the UK 2019-2023

Monthly output growth of travel agencies, tour operators, and other reservation services in the United Kingdom (UK) from January 2019 to March 2023

Market size of the travel agency industry in the UK 2013-2023

Market size of the travel agency industry in the United Kingdom (UK) from 2013 to 2022, with a forecast for 2023 (in million GBP)

Revenue of travel agencies in the UK 2008-2021

Annual revenue of travel agency enterprises in the United Kingdom (UK) from 2008 to 2021 (in million GBP)

Gross value added (GVA): travel agencies in the UK 2008-2021

Gross value added (GVA) of travel agencies in the United Kingdom (UK) from 2008 to 2021 (in million GBP)

Travel agency, tour operator, and reservation services employment in the UK 2015-2021

Employment in travel agency, tour operator, and other reservation services and activities in the United Kingdom (UK) from 2015 to 2021 (in 1000s)

Number of VAT/PAYE based enterprises in the travel agency, tour operator, and other reservation services and related activities industry in the United Kingdom (UK) in 2023, by employment size band

Number of businesses in the travel agency industry in the United Kingdom (UK) from 2013 to 2022, with a forecast for 2023

Travel agents

• Premium Statistic Number of retail travel agents in the UK 2019-2023
• Premium Statistic Number of retail travel agents in the UK 2023, by retailer
• Premium Statistic Leading travel agents ranked by number of outlets in the UK 2024
• Basic Statistic Most popular amusement, cruise, and travel brands in the UK Q4 2023
• Premium Statistic TUI UK Limited revenue 2015-2022
• Premium Statistic TUI UK Limited net income 2015-2022
• Basic Statistic Number of TUI AG employees worldwide 2011-2023, by region
• Premium Statistic Turnover of Hays Travel Limited in the UK 2008-2023
• Premium Statistic Profit/loss after tax of Hays Travel Limited in the UK 2008-2023
• Premium Statistic Key financial figures for Flight Centre (UK) Limited 2020-2022

Number of travel shops operated by retail travel agents in the United Kingdom (UK) from 2019 to 2023

Number of retail travel agents in the UK 2023, by retailer

Number of retail travel agent stores in the United Kingdom (UK) as of June 2023, by retailer type

Leading travel agencies in the United Kingdom (UK) as of February 2024, by number of travel shops

Most popular amusement, cruise, and travel brands in the UK Q4 2023

Most popular amusement, cruise, and travel brands in the United Kingdom as of 4th quarter of 2023

Annual revenue of TUI UK Limited in the United Kingdom (UK) from 2015 to 2022 (in million GBP)

TUI UK Limited net income 2015-2022

Net income of TUI UK Limited in the United Kingdom (UK) from 2015 to 2022 (in million GBP)

Number of TUI AG employees worldwide 2011-2023, by region

Number of TUI AG employees worldwide from 2011 to 2023, by region

Turnover of Hays Travel Limited in the UK 2008-2023

Turnover of Hays Travel Limited in the United Kingdom from 2008 to 2023 (in million GBP)

Profit/loss after tax of Hays Travel Limited in the UK 2008-2023

Profit/loss after tax of Hays Travel Limited in the United Kingdom from 2008 to 2023 (in million GBP)

Key financial figures for Flight Centre (UK) Limited 2020-2022

Key financial figures for Flight Centre (UK) Limited from 2020 to 2022 (in 1,000 GBP)

Online travel agencies

• Basic Statistic Market cap of leading online travel companies worldwide 2023
• Premium Statistic Estimated EV/EBITDA ratio in the online travel market 2024, by segment
• Premium Statistic Key information on the online travel agency industry in the UK January 2023
• Premium Statistic Revenue of On the Beach Group plc in the UK 2012-2022, by segment
• Premium Statistic Net income of On the Beach in the UK 2014-2022
• Premium Statistic Revenue of Tripadvisor worldwide 2012-2023, by region
• Premium Statistic Lastminute.com Group revenue worldwide 2019-2023, by country
• Premium Statistic Skyscanner annual revenue 2011-2021
• Premium Statistic Revenue of Skyscanner 2014-2021, by business segment
• Premium Statistic Key financial figures for Thomas Cook Tourism (UK) 2019-2022

Market cap of leading online travel companies worldwide 2023

Market cap of leading online travel companies worldwide as of September 2023 (in million U.S. dollars)

Estimated EV/EBITDA ratio in the online travel market 2024, by segment

Estimated enterprise value to EBITDA (EV/EBITDA) ratio in the online travel market worldwide as of April 2024, by segment

Key information on the online travel agency industry in the UK January 2023

Key data on the online travel agency industry in the United Kingdom (UK) as of January 2023

Revenue of On the Beach Group plc in the UK 2012-2022, by segment

Revenue of On the Beach Group plc in the United Kingdom (UK) from 2014 to 2022, by business segment (in million GBP)

Net income of On the Beach in the UK 2014-2022

Net income of On the Beach Group plc in the United Kingdom (UK) from 2014 to 2022 (in million GBP)

Revenue of Tripadvisor worldwide 2012-2023, by region

Revenue of Tripadvisor, Inc. worldwide from 2012 to 2023, by region (in million U.S. dollars)

Lastminute.com Group revenue worldwide 2019-2023, by country

Revenue of Lastminute.com Group (lm Group) worldwide from 2019 to 2023, by country (in million euros)

Skyscanner annual revenue 2011-2021

Annual revenue of Skyscanner Limited from 2011 to 2021 (in 1,000 GBP)

Revenue of Skyscanner 2014-2021, by business segment

Revenue of Skyscanner Limited from 2014 to 2021, by business segment (in 1,000 GBP)

Key financial figures for Thomas Cook Tourism (UK) 2019-2022

Key financial figures for Thomas Cook Tourism (UK) Company Limited from 2019 to 2022 (in 1,000 GBP)

Booking behavior

• Premium Statistic Preferred methods to book the next overseas holiday in the UK October 2022
• Premium Statistic Preferred methods to book the next overseas holiday in the UK October 2022, by age
• Premium Statistic Leading holiday travel provider websites in the UK Q1 2024, by share of voice
• Premium Statistic Hotel / private accommodation online bookings by brand in the UK 2023
• Premium Statistic Package holiday bookings by brand in the UK 2023

Preferred methods to book the next overseas holiday in the UK October 2022

Preferred methods to book the next overseas holiday among individuals in the United Kingdom (UK) as of October 2022

Preferred methods to book the next overseas holiday in the UK October 2022, by age

Preferred methods to book the next overseas holiday among individuals in the United Kingdom (UK) as of October 2022, by age group

Leading holiday travel provider websites in the UK Q1 2024, by share of voice

Leading websites for holiday searches in the United Kingdom in 1st quarter of 2024, by share of voice

Hotel / private accommodation online bookings by brand in the UK 2023

Hotel / private accommodation online bookings by brand in the UK as of December 2023

Package holiday bookings by brand in the UK 2023

Package holiday bookings by brand in the UK as of December 2023

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10 best business travel management companies in the UK

The best corporate travel management companies in the uk, 1. travelperk/click travel.

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• TravelPerk’s VAT recovery solution enables you to save up to 25% on your travel budget. Clarity doesn’t offer VAT recovery solutions.
• Clarity’s inventory is large, but TravelPerk’s is larger.
• G2 rating : As of March 2024, Clarity is not listed on G2.
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• Available to a number of industry sectors : ATPI provides unique travel solutions to organisations in the marine, mining, sports, and energy sectors.
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• TravelPerk’s larger inventory providing you with negotiated rates
• TravelPerk’s customer support is with you in target 15 seconds.
• TravelPerk integrates with a number of third-party apps to ensure your travel management is seamless. ATPI doesn’t provide the same seamless experience.
• G2 rating : As of March 2024, ATPI is not listed on G2.
• Capterra rating : As of March 2024, ATPI is not listed on Capterra.

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• Carbon offsetting : to minimise the environmental impact of your corporate travel plans.
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• TravelPerk has a wider variety of accommodation options—Agiito only offers 300,000 properties to choose from.
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• TravelPerk provides a proprietary booking tool, whereas Agiito uses SAP Concur’s booking system—giving them no power over the pace of development and adaptation.
• G2 rating : As of March 2024, Agiito is not listed on G2.
• Capterra rating : As of March 2024, Capterra is not listed on G2.

• Traveller tracking : enables you to locate employees at all times.
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• Industry-specific solutions : for event travel, sports travel, and ERM (energy, resources, and marine) travel.
• TravelPerk provides stellar, 24-7 customer support with a target 15-second response time—a standard that CTM doesn’t aim to match. 
• TravelPerk’s leading inventory provides you with amazing rates for flights and accommodation, with options for car rental and train travel, too. CTM does not offer the same wide variety of options. 
• TravelPerk’s seamless mobile app has been lauded by customers as a “must have for all companies who travel” who say that it’s “cost-effective, easy to use, with great customer support”. Users of CTM’s mobile app have reported challenges when trying to log in, rendering it ineffective for its purpose.  
• G2 rating : 1.8 / 5, based on two review s
• Capterra rating : As of March 2024, CTM is not listed on Capterra.

6. Diversity

• Charity and non-profit sector expertise : provides negotiated rates for humanitarian and academic airfares.
• Experts in arranging out-of-the-box travel : to destinations all over the globe.
• Experienced support : Diversity’s travel agents have an average of 9 years of experience in the industry.
• TravelPerk’s expert customer support team works around the clock to get you support in target 15 seconds. Diversity’s support team is smaller and unable to provide the same speedy support.
• Unlike Diversity, TravelPerk offers a VAT recovery solution to help you save on your travel budget.
• TravelPerk’s industry-leading inventory finds you the competitive rates for corporate travel, whereas Diversity can only offer rates from a smaller selection of travel.
• G2 rating : As of March 2024, Diversity is not listed on G2.
• Capterra rating : As of March 2024, Diversity is not listed on Capterra.

7. Corporate Traveller

• Online booking tool : enables employees to self-book corporate travel.
• Negotiated corporate rates : find you great deals from a wide variety of providers.
• Traveller tracking solutions : help you locate and support employees around the globe to ensure traveller safety.
• Concierge services : helps ensure you’re talking to someone who understands your unique needs.
• Corporate Traveler offers a decent travel inventory, but is unparalleled compared to TravelPerk’s worldwide travel inventory that covers rail tickets, hotels, and flights for all budgets. 
• TravelPerk enables you to create travel profiles for people outside of your organisation with guest accounts. This is a useful feature that Corporate Traveller doesn’t offer.
• TravelPerk’s third-party integrations make corporate travelling a seamless experience. Corporate Traveller doesn’t offer the same wide variety of integration options.
• G2 rating : As of March 2024, Corporate Traveller is not listed on G2.
• Capterra rating : As of March 2024, Corporate Traveller is not listed on Capterra.

Click below to compare both platforms’ features and benefits

• Travel spend reports and analysis : helps you keep travel expenses low and within budget. 
• Risk management software : keeps your travellers safe during business trips. 
• Corporate travel policy design and compliance : helps you book travel while adhering to company policy.
• With a consumer-grade platform, TravelPerk ensures a stellar user experience and provides a level of functionality that surpasses what Fello can offer.
• TravelPerk’s vast, industry-leading travel inventory is not only larger than Fello’s UK-focused inventory, but also extends worldwide, helping you get great deals no matter where you’re travelling. 
• TravelPerk offers integrations with the most popular software solutions — including HR and expense management platforms — to help you sync your software stack while streamlining business travel processes. 
• G2 rating : As of March 2024, Fello is not listed on G2.
• Capterra rating : As of March 2024, Fello is not listed on Capterra.

9. CT Business Travel

• Online booking tools : automates approval processes, enables travel booking and cancellations, provides a supplier inventory, and are tailored to a company’s workflows and travel policy. 
• Travel manager platform : designed in-house, the platform enables travel managers to submit travel requests through a portal, provides a booking dashboard for visibility, and is customizable for unique requirements. 
• Direct agent support : provides access to a team of travel experts who source the best travel options for your needs.
• TravelPerk’s 24/7 customer support is unmatched: TravelPerk wins with its consistent 5-star reviews for dedicated customer service (via chat, phone, and email) and its target response time of 15 seconds. 
• While CT Business Travel doesn’t offer any third-party integrations, TravelPerk offers an extensive library of integrations with HR software, expense management systems, and many more. 
• TravelPerk provides added value in terms of sustainability and flexibility. With FlexiPerk, you can book flexible travel with the assurance of an 80% refund for cancellations made up to two hours in advance. With GreenPerk, you can offset 100% of the CO2 emissions from your business trips for just 1% of the total travel cost.
• G2 rating : As of March 2024, CT Business Travel is not listed on G2.
• Capterra rating : As of March 2024, CT Business Travel is not listed on Capterra.

10. Egencia

• Travel policy compliance : helps companies ensure that travellers always make in-policy choices across all booking channels. 
• Reporting and analytics : helps you analyse travel data, track spending patterns, and identify areas for cost savings or optimization.
• Expense management : helps you track, control, and manage travel expenses. However, Egencia does not offer built-in travel expense management functionality.
• Whereas Egencia’s customer support function is “bolstered” by artificial intelligence, you won’t find bots anywhere near TravelPerk’s 24/7, 7-star customer service, available via chat, phone, and email.
• From rail tickets to hotels and flights, TravelPerk's inventory easily outperforms competitors like Egencia and other travel management companies.
• With TravelPerk, there’s no need to worry about any hidden fees or confusing pricing. Complete transparency means you’ll always know what you're paying for. 
• G2 rating : 4.4 / 5, based on 657 ratings
• Capterra rating : 3.9 / 5, based on 51 ratings

Wrapping up

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75-year-old ‘mastermind’ of a 2005 armed robbery that killed a UK police officer sentenced to life

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A 75-year-old man will spend the rest of his life in prison after being sentenced Friday for the murder of a British police officer who was shot dead during an armed robbery in northern England nearly two decades ago.

Piran Ditta Khan was convicted in April, as he had fled the country to Pakistan soon after the murder of Sharon Beshenivsky. He was extradited to the U.K. last year.

Judge Nicholas Hilliard sentenced him in Leeds Crown Court to life imprisonment. He must serve a minimum term of 40 years in prison.

“You will inevitably spend the remainder of your life in custody, but that is a consequence of sentencing a man of your age for a crime of this particular gravity,” he said. “You have had your younger and healthier years at liberty because you chose to leave the country when you feared you were about to be arrested.”

Though Khan stayed in the lookout car during the robbery at the family-run Universal Express travel agents in the city of Bradford in November 2005, prosecutors argued that he was the “mastermind” behind the robbery as he organized it and purchased the weapons. Police officers in Britain do not carry guns on routine patrols.

“Even though he did not fire the fatal shot, his actions stole from Sharon and those who knew her a lifetime together, and as he is sentenced today our thoughts remain with her family and loved ones,” said specialist prosecutor David Holderness.

Beshenivsky was 38 years old and only nine months into the job when she responded to an alert about the robbery. She was shot dead at point-blank range by one of the three men who carried out the robbery. Her colleague, Teresa Milburn, survived after being shot in the chest.

Beshenivsky, who had three children and two stepchildren, was gunned down on her youngest daughter’s fourth birthday. In a victim personal statement read in court, Beshenivsky’s daughter Lydia said she was “too young and innocent” to understand what happened when her mother failed to return home from work to celebrate her birthday.

“There will always be a void in my life — a void that should have been filled with my mum’s presence but as a result of violent, callous actions by you, Piran Ditta Khan, and your associates that day, you robbed me of a future and precious time with my mum,” she said. “Every birthday is a reminder of what happened that day.”

Paul Beshenivsky, who had been married to his wife for four years when she died, said telling the children what had happened was “the hardest thing I have ever had to do.”

Khan fled to Pakistan two months after the robbery. He was arrested by local authorities in Pakistan in January 2020 and extradited to the U.K. last year.

Khan denied the allegations.

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Sharon Beshenivsky: Piran Ditta Khan jailed for life for murdering police officer

Khan was the mastermind of the armed robbery at a travel agent in bradford, west yorkshire, where pc beshenivsky was shot dead..

By Henry Vaughan, Home affairs reporter and feature writer @Henry_Vaughan

Friday 10 May 2024 19:16, UK

The mastermind of an armed robbery in which PC Sharon Beshenivsky was shot dead in 2005 will likely die in prison after he was sentenced today.

Piran Ditta Khan, 75, was last month found guilty of murdering the West Yorkshire Police officer, who was shot at point-blank range at Universal Express travel agent in Morley Street, Bradford .

He has been jailed for life with a minimum term of 40 years.

Prosecutors said that although Khan was not one of the three smartly dressed men who carried out the raid, he had played a "pivotal" role and was guilty of murder "as surely as if he pulled the trigger on that pistol himself".

PC Beshenivsky, 38 - who had only been a police officer for nine months - and colleague PC Teresa Milburn, then 37, were both unarmed when they responded to an alarm call and were shot in the chest on 18 November 2005.

PC Beshenivsky collapsed to the floor with an immediately fatal injury, while PC Milburn survived after radioing for help while she was on the pavement coughing up blood.

Khan fled to Pakistan three months after the shooting and evaded arrest for 15 years until he was detained by Pakistani authorities in 2020 and extradited to the UK last year.

He pleaded guilty to robbery and was found guilty of murder, two counts of possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life, and two counts of possession of a prohibited weapon, after a trial at Leeds Crown Court.

The judge, Mr Justice Hilliard, handed him a life sentence with a minimum term of 40 years today, telling Khan he will spend the rest of his life in prison.

He told Khan he was sure he had the idea of robbing the travel agency, and "intended that the weapons should be used to kill if necessary to do so", adding that he was part of a "planned enterprise" and shared "murderous intent".

He praised PC Beshenivsky for responding to the call "when she and her colleague had no way of knowing what they would be confronted with when they got there".

"PC Sharon Beshenivsky's courage and commitment to duty that day cost her life," he said.

Khan, wearing a blue tracksuit and listening to his interpreter, had his head down as he was sentenced.

He is the last of the seven men involved in the raid to be tried - Mustaf Jama, Yusuf Jama and Muzzaker Shah are serving life sentences with minimum 35-year terms after being found guilty of murder, robbery and firearms offences in 2006 and 2007.

'A hero who paid the ultimate sacrifice'

PC Beshenivsky had three children and was stepmother to her husband Paul Beshenivsky's two children from a previous relationship. Her widow and children watched as Khan was sentenced.

The court heard she was nearing the end of her shift and talked about how she was looking forward to her youngest daughter Lydia's fourth birthday party moments before volunteering for the fatal call.

In a victim personal statement read at court, Lydia praised her mother as "a hero who paid the ultimate sacrifice".

Lydia said she was "too young and innocent" to understand what happened and was told she "screamed her head off" after being told that her mother had died, although she has no memory of it.

Read more: How fatal robbery unfolded

She said she was proud of her mother for "doing the job she loved", adding: "There will always be a void in my life - a void that should have been filled with my mum's presence but as a result of violent, callous actions by you, Piran Ditta Khan, and your associates that day, you robbed me of a future and precious time with my mum.

"Every birthday is a reminder of what happened that day. It has recently been Mother's Day, and while my friends are celebrating with their mums, I sadly can never do that."

Paul Beshenivsky, who had been married to PC Beshenivsky for four years when she died, said telling the children what had happened was "the hardest thing I have ever had to do".

"The way we lost Sharon was in the most brutal, callous and futile way," he said in a statement.

"If Piran Ditta Khan had never organised the robbery, Sharon would never have been shot dead and she would have come home that day."

Botched robbery

Khan was the only member of the group who was familiar with the travel agency and had previously used them to send money to family in Pakistan, the court heard.

At his trial, Khan told the jury the owner owed him £12,000 and thought the men sent to recover the money would only "intimidate" the staff.

Three men went into the travel agency, posing as customers before jumping over the counter and demanding money.

They struck several staff members with their weapons, tied their hands and threatened to "shoot the youngest" if they were not given cash.

The men initially demanded £100,000 before stating they wouldn't leave without £50,000 and the business owner's son managed to press an alarm which alerted police.

When PC Beshenivsky and PC Milburn arrived on the scene, the robbers shouted "the feds are here" and fled with around £5,400 after one of them gunned down the officers.

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The court heard Khan, who had told his accomplices they would make between £50,000 to £100,000, did not leave the safety of the Mercedes SLK, used as the lookout car.

PC Milburn said in a statement she and her colleague "didn't have a chance" and described PC Beshenivsky "stopping in terror" as she approached the door of Universal Express and saw the gunman.

She was the seventh serving female officer ever to be killed in the line of duty in Britain and left behind her husband Paul, three children and two stepchildren.

'A journey seeking truth and justice'

In a statement, her family said 18 November 2005 "is a date that will remain etched in our memories forever" and was the start of an almost 19-year journey".

"A journey seeking the truth and justice for Sharon, who was not just a police officer, but a loving mum, wife, daughter, sister, and a friend to many," they said.

"Our journey seeking justice and closure of the judicial process is now at an end. This journey has and continues to be difficult for us all."

The statement added: "No prison sentence could ever compensate us for Sharon's life and our loss, but we will move forward knowing that justice has been served.

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West Yorkshire Police Assistant Chief Constable Patrick Twiggs added: "For 18 years we have never given up on getting justice for Sharon and Teresa, and today their families have received that justice.

"Sharon was murdered in the line of duty, in what was a totally unnecessary act. Sharon was doing her job and protecting the public."

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Murdered Pc had been looking forward to daughter’s birthday party, court hears

Pc Sharon Beshenivsky was shot in the street after attending a robbery at Universal Express travel agents in Bradford in 2005.

A police officer shot dead while interrupting an armed robbery was discussing how much she was looking forward to her daughter’s birthday party at the end of her shift moments before volunteering for the fatal call, a court heard.

Pc Sharon Beshenivsky was gunned down in the street on November 18 2005 by one of three men who had just carried out a raid at Universal Express travel agents in Bradford.

The 38-year-old’s husband and children watched as the last of the men involved in the robbery to be convicted was sentenced at Leeds Crown Court on Friday.

Piran Ditta Khan, 75, was the mastermind behind the raid and was convicted of Pc Beshenivsky’s murder due to his “pivotal” role in planning it, knowing that loaded firearms were to be used.

The sentencing hearing was told Pc Beshenivsky, who had three children and was stepmother to her husband’s two children from a previous relationship, had been a PCSO for 18 months, but had only been an officer with West Yorkshire Police for nine months when she was killed.

In a victim personal statement in January 2009, Paul Beshenivsky described how his wife had loved being a police officer, the court heard.

Prosecutor Robert Smith said Pc Beshenivsky and her colleague Pc Teresa Milburn, who survived being shot in the chest during the incident, were due to be finishing their shift in less than an hour, and were “on a specific form of duty that day which did not require them to answer calls”.

The pair volunteered to attend the reported robbery at Universal Express because no other officers were able to respond at that time to the control room’s request for a unit, Mr Smith said.

He told the court Pc Beshenivsky and Pc Milburn discussed whether they should respond to the request, and decided to volunteer when it was repeated for the fourth time.

Mr Smith said: “As their shift was reaching an end they had been discussing arrangements Pc Beshenivsky was making for her daughter Lydia’s fourth birthday that day.

“She told Pc Milburn she was looking forward to the party and opening her daughter’s birthday presents with her.

“Both were hoping to finish their shift at the appointed time.”

Pc Milburn had described how the incident left her feeling “frightened every day, not only at work but in everything she did,” Mr Smith said.

“These events had a profound effect on her life and on the lives of her husband and son.

“The pain she felt after being shot was so severe she was unable to describe it.”

The court heard Pc Milburn “still can’t understand why they were shot” as they had made no attempt to arrest the three men and posed no threat to them.

Her victim personal statement read: “I think back to that incident every day, I think back to Sharon every day. I’ve never grieved for someone as much as I have done for Sharon.”

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Travel chaos at Heathrow and major UK airports over Border Force issue

Thousands of passengers were stranded at Britain’s busiest airports on Tuesday night as the e-gate system failed.

Heathrow, Gatwick and Manchester airports were thrown into chaos as the technology suffered a nationwide fault, leaving passengers facing queues of two hours as they returned from extended Bank holiday breaks.

It is the second time the e-gates have failed in two weeks, raising questions over the reliability of the system which is designed to speed up passengers through passport checks.

There was no evidence to link the border chaos to a cyber attack, but it came just a day after the armed forces payroll system was hacked by a suspected “state actor”.

The gates are understood to have failed at 8pm on Tuesday night just as thousands of passengers landed on early evening planes.

A Home Office spokesman said the e-gates were restored four hours later, shortly after midnight.

“As soon as engineers detected a wider system network issue at 7.44pm last night, a large scale contingency response was activated within six minutes,” the spokesman said.

“At no point was border security compromised and there is no indication of malicious cyber activity.

“We apologise to travellers caught up in disruption and thank our partners, including airlines for their co-operation and support.” 

The main Border Force security database - called “Border Crossing” which was introduced just under three years ago at a cost of £372 million – appeared to have suffered a complete shutdown.

Thousands of arrivals at Heathrow, the UK’s busiest airport, were delayed, with passengers waiting in queues for up to two hours. There were also long delays at Stansted, Manchester and Edinburgh airports, and delays of 90 minutes were reported at Gatwick.

Passenger Nathan Lane posted on X: “The entire Egate immigration system at Heathrow Airport is down at all terminals. Now all the systems at the desks are too. Brits and foreigners alike. Nobody is getting through. This is management yelling updates at everyone.”

Richard Gaisford posted on the social media site: “E-gates down at LHR T3, and seemingly across Heathrow Airport. Border Force suggests to passengers it might be a nationwide outage.”

Justin Bronk, a senior research fellow at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) in London, who was among those queuing at Heathrow, said: “You see how high-capacity the system normally is by how rapidly things turn to chaos when it breaks; plane after plane of people pouring in and backing up in the corridor.”

There were indications that planes may have been delayed and stacked up in the air to prevent increasing the pressure on queues of passengers waiting to have their documents manually processed by Border Force officers.

Dominic Baliszewski, co-founder of a PR company, said: “Apparently Heathrow isn’t letting planes land and doesn’t have a real plan. E-gates down and they’re processing everyone manually through one gate. This is only a small portion of the queue. Almost no staff on hand.”

At Bournemouth airport, Border Force staff were reported to have resorted to laptops to process passports. Richard Heading, a passenger, reported on X: “All systems are down and they are using laptops to check passports. There are moderate delays.”

A spokesman for Heathrow airport said: “Border Force is currently experiencing a nationwide issue which is impacting passengers being processed through the border.

“Our teams are supporting [them] with their contingency plans to help resolve the problem as quickly as possible and are on hand to provide passenger welfare. We apologise for any impact this is having to passenger journeys.”

There are more than 270 e-gates in place at 15 airports and train stations in the UK that were all understood to have failed. The cause of the issue was unclear. The Home Office apologised last month following the failure on April 25, which it blamed on a “technical issue”.

E-gates usually process the vast majority of passengers, including children aged ten and over, arriving in the UK. They were originally restricted to British and EU arrivals.

However, their use has been extended over the years to include arrivals from Australia, Canada, Iceland, Japan, Liechtenstein, New Zealand, Norway, Singapore, South Korea, Switzerland and the US.

E-gates have repeatedly failed

The e-gates have failed on a number of occasions in the past three years. The whole system collapsed at the start of the late May bank holiday weekend in 2023 because of a failed system upgrade, resulting in four-hour queues at airports. In 2021 technical issues caused the gates to fail three times in two months.

An aviation source said: “It is underinvestment again - the system falls over at peak periods. The last major outage like this was the same weekend last year - the Coronation weekend.”

The apparent collapse of the system will raise questions over Border Force’s ambition to create an “intelligent border” with new e-gates capable of allowing arrivals into the country using only advanced facial recognition.

Phil Douglas, the director-general of Border Force, said that the plans have been designed to bring Britain’s border up to a gold standard that has been developed overseas.

Trials of the new technology are expected to begin at airports later this year before the launch of a full procurement process for new gates.

It comes amid growing concerns in the UK Government about the prospect for chaos at the border over French plans to scan fingerprints at the EU border.

Lord Cameron, James Cleverly and Mark Harper have all recently raised concerns about the potential impact of the new Entry/Exit System (EES), with French ministers.

Rishi Sunak was due to bring up the practical impact of the changes, which start in October, with Emmanuel Macron on a call last month but other issues dominated instead.

From Oct 6, people travelling into the EU will have to scan their fingerprints and be photographed at border checks instead of simply presenting their passport.

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Heathrow statement

“Border Force is currently experiencing a nationwide issue which is impacting passengers being processed through the Border. “Our teams are supporting Border Force with their contingency plans to help resolve the problem as quickly as possible and are on hand to provide passenger welfare. “We apologise for any impact this is having to passenger journeys.”

No relief as travellers face long queues

Long queues continue to build, including at Heathrow, with one traveller describing border officials rushing to manually process passport holders.

“All the e-gates were totally blank and there was just a lot of chaotic scenes,” said Sam Morter, 32, who was returning to London’s Heathrow from a holiday in Sri Lanka.

He told PA: “There was a lot of Border Force officials running and scrambling around. Four or five went to man the posts and start processing the UK passports manually.

“But at the same time, hundreds of passengers started to flood into passport control, so it all of a sudden became chaotic and they couldn’t cope with the number of the people coming in.

“We weren’t given any information. There was no information on the Tannoys or from staff.”

He made it through the airport after around 90 minutes.

Videos posted on X showed long queues of passengers at passport desks.

E-gates appear to be reopening

E-gates are beginning to reopen at some airports, but long queues remain. 

Paul Curievici, from Haslemere in Surrey, landed at Gatwick Airport at around 7.30pm on a flight from Lyon and waited in line for almost an hour at passport control.

The 41-year-old said: “(I was) a little bit resigned at what initially looked like another British infrastructure failing, and (I had) quite a lot of sympathy for the poor buggers furrowing their brows and trying not to look embarrassed.”

Mr Curievici said the e-gates at Gatwick had since reopened but that fast-track passengers continued to be prioritised, which he found “pretty galling”.

He continued: “There was an awkward moment - half of us had been funnelled into the ‘all passports’ queue.

“When the system came back online they reopened almost all the UK/EU gates without opening any for us - I actually raised it with a member of staff and they finally opened one.”

Outage comes a day after MoD hack

The outage comes just a day after news emerged of a hack on the Ministry of Defence, which has been blamed by sources on China. It is unclear if the e-gate crash was caused by a hack. 

‘The system falls over at peak periods’

An aviation source told the Telegraph: “It is underinvestment again - the system falls over at peak periods. The last major outage like this was the same weekend last year, the Coronation weekend.”

Pictured: Long queues at Gatwick

Issues come after recent strikes

The disruption comes after Border Force workers staged a four-day strike at Heathrow in a dispute over working conditions last week.

The union said the workers were protesting against plans to introduce new rosters they claim will see around 250 of them forced out of their jobs at passport control.

‘Lots of children and no water’

Seems to be a UK nationwide airport system crash. No e gates working. This is the current queue in Gatwick airport with lots of children and no water #welcometotheuk pic.twitter.com/ckT21gJYXx — Rosie (@rxsiebo) May 7, 2024

‘Some passengers may experience longer than normal waits’

Edinburgh Airport statement: “Border Force is experiencing a nationwide technical outage affecting UK airports.

“Although not in a peak arrivals period, some passengers may experience longer than normal waits at the border while UKBF works to fix the issue. Thank you for your patience.”

Stansted Airport statement

“We are aware of an issue with UK Border Force’s systems across the country, affecting all UK airports. “Our operational and customer service colleagues are supporting passengers while UK Border Force and the Home Office fix the issue.”

‘No communication on timeframe’

Pictured: manchester airport.

E-gates closed at Edinburgh

Passengers reporting chaos on social media

All systems down and thousands in queues across all terminals @HeathrowAirport . No plan in sight either. Water bottles are being handed out, never a good sign. Photo courtesy of my husband in Terminal 5. @SkyNews @BBCNews pic.twitter.com/j8QDl7M0mk — Molly Rosedale (@MRosedale) May 7, 2024

@HeathrowAirport all terminals affected by an IT glitch and no one is being processed through the UK border 🥲 left waiting an undetermined amount of time to enter the UK. This is Terminal 5 arrivals. 😬 pic.twitter.com/rIQ19qLicF — Megan Henderson (@mhenderson24) May 7, 2024

Manchester Airport statement

“We are aware of an issue with UK Border Force’s systems across the country, affecting a significant number of airports. “Our Resilience Team and customer services colleagues are supporting passengers while UK Border Force and the Home Office fix the issue.”

Ryanair statement

“Please be advised that the Electronic Passport gates are temporarily unavailable at all UK Airports.  “You may experience extended queue times at passport control in airports in the United Kingdom as a result of this outage.”

Gatwick statement

“Some passengers may experience delays at immigration due to a nationwide issue with UK Border Force e-gates. “Our staff are working with UK Border Force - who operate passport control including the e-gates - to provide assistance to passengers where necessary.”

Long queues

E-gates down at LHR T3, and seemingly across @HeathrowAirport . Border Force suggests to passengers it might be a nationwide outage. pic.twitter.com/XzAJcyoI95 — Richard Gaisford (@richardgaisford) May 7, 2024

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Robbery mastermind behind Pc Sharon Beshenivsky’s murder jailed for life

Officer was shot dead after interrupting a raid on a travel agents in bradford, article bookmarked.

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The mastermind behind a bungled armed robbery that resulted in a police officer being gunned down in the street was jailed for life on Friday.

Pc Sharon Beshenivsky was shot dead on her daughter’s fourth birthday after she and a colleague interrupted a raid at Universal Express travel agents in Bradford , West Yorkshire , in November 2005.

She and Pc Teresa Milburn, who were both unarmed, were shot at point-blank range after four men had just carried out the robbery.

At the time of her death, she had only been an officer for nine months and “didn’t have a chance” to get away from the gunman.

Almost two decades on, the gang’s ringleader, Piran Ditta Khan, became the last of the seven men involved in the robbery to be convicted in April this year.

He was arrested in Pakistan after spending 15 years on the run, and was extradited back to the UK to stand trial. The 75-year-old was found guilty of two counts of possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life and two counts of possession of a prohibited weapon. He pleaded guilty to robbery.

On Friday, he was sentenced at Leeds Crown Court to life with a minimum term of 40 years for the murder of Beshenivsky.

The court heard that although Khan did not leave the safety of a lookout car throughout the raid, he played a “pivotal” role in planning it and knew loaded weapons would be used.

Prosecutors said this made him guilty of Beshenivsky’s murder “as surely as if he had pulled the trigger himself”.

During the trial, jurors heard Khan was the only one of the group who was familiar with Universal Express and had used them in the past to send money to family.

Khan told jurors he did not know that a robbery was going to be carried out, or that weapons were going to be taken.

He claimed he was owed £12,000 by Universal Express’s owner and that debt collector Hassan Razzaq, who was later convicted of manslaughter over Beshenivsky’s death, had offered to help get his money back. Prosecutors said there was no evidence of this.

CCTV cameras had captured the chilling moment the two police officers were gunned down in the street, after her killer began “firing indiscriminately” as he ran away.

The court heard Beshenivsky’s injury was immediately fatal. Pc Milburn, who activated her personal radio and called for help as she was coughing up blood, survived her injuries after hospital treatment.

Passing sentence, judge Mr Justice Hilliard said: “You intended that the weapons should be used to kill if necessary to do so” and added that he was part of a “planned enterprise” and shared “murderous intent”.

Beshenivksy’s family said her murderer’s conviction marked the end of a tortuous 19-year journey of seeking “truth and justice”, but no punishment could compensate for her death.

In a statement, they said: “November 2005 was the start of an almost 19-year journey. A journey seeking the truth and justice for Sharon, who was not just a police officer, but a loving mum, wife, daughter, sister, and a friend to many.

“That was the day the lives of our family and those close to Sharon changed forever. As well as Sharon’s friend and colleague Teresa, and her family.

“No prison sentence could ever compensate us for Sharon’s life and our loss, but we will move forward knowing that justice has been served.”

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