The Best Workplaces in Travel Awards 2025

What are the Best Workplaces in Travel Awards? 

The Best Workplaces in Travel Awards is dedicated to showcasing the travel industry as a fantastic sector in which to build a career. It aims to recognise how travel companies support and value their employees. 

Using an employee engagement survey completed by all participating businesses, it compiles the results across nine award categories. Three of these categories relate to Best Company, with six special awards recognising progression, happiness, recognition, purpose, wellbeing, and equity. You can find out more about the awards here. 

Third place – Best Small Company 

While we knew we had been nominated, we had no idea which category we might be placed in. As the ceremony began, we waited eagerly for our name to be mentioned. When the Best Small Company award was announced, we were delighted to discover we had secured third place. This was a significant achievement and a moment of real excitement for our team.

Winner - Award for Equity in Travel 

Still celebrating that success, we moved into the special award categories. As the Award for Equity was being introduced—an award that recognises organisations that truly champion inclusivity in their workplace culture—we listened closely. When Travel Nation was announced as the winner, we were ecstatic and hurried to the stage to collect our award. 

This recognition means a great deal to us, as it reflects that our employees feel we treat them fairly, respectfully and with a genuine commitment to equal opportunities for everyone. It is a huge milestone for us, and we’re over the moon.

A bit about Travel Nation and its employees 

When our founder established Travel Nation in 2001, his vision was to build a specialist travel company supported by exceptional people. Over 24 years, we have grown into a business shaped by a remarkably talented and dedicated team. Following the pandemic, we worked tirelessly to rebuild the company and managed to retain many of our long-serving employees. 

Today’s team brings together the experience of those long-term members with the fresh perspectives of new colleagues who have joined us over the past six years. Together, they are the heart of Travel Nation. 

We share our first-hand, specialist knowledge of more than 100 countries with our customers, helping them create unforgettable journeys—just as our founder envisioned. None of this would be possible without our outstanding employees.

What it’s like to work at Travel Nation 

Work makes up such a huge part of our adult lives, and the people we work alongside often see us more than those at home. Over the years, especially with our long-term employees, we’ve shared life’s biggest moments—births, marriages, losses, and everything in between. You go through life with your colleagues by your side. 

As HR Manager, I believe strongly in offering our employees flexibility and support with whatever life throws at them. Life outside work isn’t always adaptable—the date of your child’s nativity play, a series of dental appointments, or an urgent vet visit for your poorly dog. For me, the priority is ensuring that when life isn’t flexible, work can be.

We trust our employees to manage their work with autonomy. They are experts in their fields and deserve our trust that they will deliver their tasks and projects to a high standard, whether working from home or in the office. We manage our hours openly and share our whereabouts with our teams. 

Our company strategy is clear, and everyone is aligned in working toward a common goal. We are focused, busy and committed—and we also understand the importance of celebrating our successes. We enjoy acknowledging each other’s achievements, whether it’s completing a project or achieving a record-breaking month of bookings. We take time to mark these moments, often heading out for drinks to celebrate.

We also cherish our company traditions, coming together every Christmas for a lively celebration and every summer for a wholesome team walk, whatever the weather. I’ve worked for Travel Nation for 12 years and feel incredibly proud of the team we have built. It is truly a great place to work.