Staycations and sporting events pay off as Caledonian Leisure eyes summer milestone

Coach holiday and short-break operator Caledonian Leisure is gearing up to welcome its one millionth customer after booking a sharp rise in turnover thanks to strong demand for staycations.

The firm, which launched in its current form in June 2021 and operates under the Caledonian Travel and UKBreakaways brands, said it had established itself as the fastest growing operator of short breaks and holidays in the UK. The group has posted turnover in excess of £55 million for 2023, up from £40m the year before. It now employs more than 100 people and later this summer is looking forward to welcoming its one millionth customer.

Earlier this year, the company strengthened Caledonian Travel’s presence in Scotland with the acquisition of Glasgow-based operator Tartan Travel and announced new departure points in Edinburgh and the east of Scotland. Further expansion of its network of regional travel centres has also been a key priority with new facilities in high footfall central locations in Leeds and Newcastle taking the total number of travel centres in key locations to seven.

Part of the Caledonian Travel coach fleet. Picture: Andy Forman

Managing director Graham Rogers said: “We are delighted to share another year of strong financial results for 2023 and have ambitious plans to build on this as we continue to develop our product portfolio, infrastructure and commercial partnerships. The key to our success is putting our customers at the heart of our strategy and it is particularly satisfying to see the positive feedback we receive from our customers, with many focusing on the exceptional value of our breaks and the customer service they receive from our team.”

Caledonian Travel has continued to expand its product portfolio across the UK, Ireland and mainland Europe with packages to sport events including the British F1 Grand Prix, The Grand National and Cheltenham Festival enjoying “unprecedented” demand. Meanwhile, the UKBreakaways brand, which specialises in hotel breaks, has seen successful expansion of its wide-ranging programme of entertainment experiences.

Commercial director Martin Lock added: “Sustaining a steady rate of growth across our brands is great news and we are encouraged by recent research which shows that over 50 per cent of our customers intend to travel more with us over the next 12 months.”