Founded in 1994. Built differently from the start.
Our innovative vision for home-based travel consultants revolutionised the travel industry, allowing experienced professionals and newcomers alike to build their own successful travel businesses. With an entrepreneurial spirit and a commitment to personalised service, we've empowered our franchisees to achieve their ambitions and deliver unbeatable travel experiences for over thirty years. Today, our supportive, award-winning community includes over 2,200 Travel Counsellors operating in six countries worldwide.
Where it began
A model built on proof, not promises.
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Built around you
From the beginning, the idea was simple: give people the freedom to run a travel business of their own, with the strength of a bigger business behind them.
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Personal by design
Great travel starts with great relationships. That belief in genuinely personal service has shaped Travel Counsellors from the start – and still sets us apart today.
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Independent, not alone
Our model combines the freedom of running your own business with the technology, expertise, buying power and community to help you make more of it.
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Proven over time
More than three decades later, thousands of Travel Counsellors have built businesses with us – proof that the original idea was made to last.
Milestones
From a homeworking idea to a global community of business owners
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1994
Travel Counsellors is founded and our innovative homeworking travel model is born - a radical idea that travel professionals should be able to serve customers from home, with full back-office support.
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2003
We were the first travel company to win the Queen's Award for Enterprise in the Innovation category which recognises businesses that demonstrate commercially successful and innovative services.
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2004
We launched our own unique financial trust in the UK, to ensure our customers' money is 100% safe when booking with us, no matter what.
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2006
Our bespoke-built, in-house booking platform, Phenix, is launched, enabling our Travel Counsellors to create tailor-made travel itineraries.
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2011
Travel Counsellors is highlighted as a key mid-size company in the UK’s economic recovery following the recession and is named in the Telegraph list of Britain’s 1,000 Brightest Businesses.
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2013
Our global expansion continues as we expand from the UK, Ireland, The Netherlands and South Africa into the UAE and Belgium.
New headquarters, new milestones
Always innovating. Still personal at heart
We celebrated our 20th year in style with a move from our birthplace in Bolton to stunning new £2m premises at Trafford City in Manchester. As we continued to scale and grow, we recruited the 300th member of our global support team in 2016, followed in 2017 by the launch of the myTC app. Developed to make the lives of our Travel Counsellors' customers even easier, over 15,000 users a year enjoy the paperless experience of having their travel documentation all in one app, and connecting to their Travel Counsellor at the tap of a button. In 2019 we celebrated sixteen years of successive record growth, with sales in excess of £650m, while customers voting in the British Travel Awards crowned us the UK's Best Travel Retailer in 2019 and 2020. Four years later, we hit our biggest milestone yet in September 2024 – achieving £1bn in sales during the previous 12 months, and launching TC Co-Pilot, our proprietary AI assistant. Then in 2026 we celebrated once again, when we were awarded the King’s Award for Enterprise 2026 in Innovation for TC Teams Technology — a unique way of working that empowers our Travel Counsellors to collaborate, share knowledge, and grow their businesses together.
Industry achievements
Awards and recognition
We have a five-star Trustpilot rating with customers and new Travel Counsellors, with a growing collection of accolades and travel industry endorsements - just another example of how we're built on proof, not promises.
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Winner
Kings Award for Enterprise in Innovation 2026
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Winner
Top Luxury Agency | TTG Top 50 2025
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Winner
Sunday Times Best Places to work 2025
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Winner
Homeworking Agency of the Year (Large) 2024
Could Travel Counsellors be right for you?
Be part of what comes next
Whether you're new to travel, an experienced agent, or already own your own travel franchise, your next chapter could start with Travel Counsellors. With cutting-edge tools, industry-leading training and a company culture that puts people first, you'll have everything you need to take your next step – and be part of what we build together.
What's next
Thinking of becoming
a Travel Counsellor?
Use TC Pathfinder to take our quick self-assessment and find out if Travel Counsellors could the right move for you
