Staycation boost: Caledonian Leisure sees coach trip bookings surge as first-year sales top £40m

Coach holiday and short-break operator Caledonian Leisure has posted an annual turnover in excess of £40 million for its first full year of trading.

Caledonian Travel’s eye-catching ‘Pride of Lions’ fleet continues to expand. Picture: Andy Forman

The firm, which launched in June 2021 and operates under the Caledonian Travel and UKBreakaways brands, said it was on course for “further significant growth” for the current year. The business was acquired in 2020 by the senior management team of Caledonian Travel and National Holidays following the collapse of parent company Specialist Leisure Group.

During 2021, the restructured business secured a multi-million pound investment from Mobeus Equity Partners to accelerate its growth strategy. Since then, the company has built on the success and heritage of the Caledonian Travel brand, expanding from its Scottish roots into the north of England with new departure points throughout the north east of England and Yorkshire.

Bosses said the Caledonian Travel business, which has also had to battle the fallout from the pandemic, had already opened five regional travel centres in key departure areas and intended to further expand its network in the coming months, along with “significant” investment in technology, recruitment and further expansion to the substantial fleet of Caledonian branded coaches. Additionally, the UKBreakaways brand, which specialises in hotel breaks, has seen successful expansion of its wide-ranging programme of “entertainment experiences”.

Managing director Graham Rogers said: “We have been delighted with the fantastic growth of the business over the last two years and will now look to build further upon these results as we continue to develop our programmes, channels and partnerships. Particularly, whilst the economic climate is impacting upon household budgets, we recognise the ongoing need to deliver great value and outstanding service to our fast-growing customer base.”

Commercial director Martin Lock added: “Our multi-channel campaigns have seen 2023 bookings surge ahead by over 30 per cent on last year with an encouraging blend of both repeat and new customers. This has been supported by investment in the latest customer data analytics software which will enable us to target continued growth in both our traditional and new experience driven markets. With sector leading review scores from our customers, combined with our BTA 2022 Best Travel Company Award, we are committed to continue the exciting growth of our brands.”