Albatross Tours

Name: Euan Landsborough, (Managing Director)

Business: Albatross Tours

How long has your business been operating?

16 years

What inspired you to start the business?

Huge numbers of people pay substantial amounts of money on dream holidays to Europe, not realizing how big the place is and therefore how much time they waste trapped on coaches and on endless freeways when joining heavily-commercialized European Coach tours. That seems daft. So, why couldn’t we create programmes that genuinely provide more time off the coach and longer stays while building in tremendous local sightseeing that other mainstream companies readily ignore?

Do you travel regularly to Europe?

Yes, once a year for our annual company international conference. Every two years I go with my family to research for our range of Christmas tours and we ‘play’. It’s an amazing time of year and the European festive season is so much fun and incredibly rewarding.

Are any other family members involved in the business?

No. Although my wife has plenty of advice and suggestions!

What do you enjoy most about running this kind of business?

That we are providing what we know to be distinctly better products. Really satisfying touring, and because our tours are genuinely inclusive we design them to cover the areas and regions the way they should be done. If you know your products are unique and the content is well thought out, then they are so easy to sell.

Albatross ToursDo you have any funny/memorable/inspirational memories of the business to share with us?

The day I received a telephone call requesting me to help with a group of 500 people to travel internationally in three months time! It seemed like such a ludicrous request - I mean such a big, lucrative group at such short notice. I actually thought it was a radio station playing one of those ‘gotcha calls’ so I played along thinking it was a joke. Suddenly the penny dropped. Luckily just in time. The group travelled and all went well.

Another memory? Just before Christmas in Salzburg, Austria. My pink faced children wrapped in bright red scarves and woollen mittens whilst eating freshly roasted chestnuts. My wife and I sipping steaming hot mulled wine, the smell of cinnamon in the air, ginger biscuits being munched, the sizzle of bratwurst and brass bands playing Christmas tunes. Christmas trees cut and lined up ready for revelers to take home, and Christmas decorations all around. All this in the wonderful setting surrounded by medieval and baroque buildings and snow tumbling from the skies. Christmas must be experienced this way at least once in your life.

Why should travellers consider Albatross for their next holiday to Europe?

Because they see so much more. Instead of endless hours trapped on coaches on motorways they have over double the time in glorious medieval towns and at the destinations they’ve paid so much to see. They have time to enjoy, not endure. We provide so much better value and a much more fulfilling experience.

Listen to our interview with Albatross' Managing Director, Euan Landsborough >>