MEET
MARTYN
The world of school educational and skiing tours was very much part of my life growing up, and I’m proud and excited to be driving the family business with SST. My qualifications and professional experience are within Leisure and Tourism, Public Relations, and as Marketing Manager within premium products.
MARTYN BOWDEN - Managing Director
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Over the past 50 years, I have founded several successful school travel companies. With Select School Travel I am proud to have gathered an extremely skilled and experienced group of individuals to make up the Select team.
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My qualifications and professional experience are within Leisure and Tourism, Public Relations, and as Marketing Manager within premium products. The world of school educational and skiing tours was very much part of my life growing up, and I’m proud and excited to be driving the family business.
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I have a wealth of experience in school travel and working with party leaders, ensuring quality with competitive prices. I'm thrilled to be part of the Select team which has brought together a highly experienced and customer focused team.
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I have been involved in school travel since 1999, working with a number of market leading operators. Over the past 20 years, no two days have been the same, continually learning about and delivering the support our group leaders need from their operator partner.
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My experience in school travel began in 1991. Over the years I have worked to ensure our school clients are provided with successful, safe and secure tours, during an ever changing travel industry and financial climate.
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Janet Ford
Sales Director & Regional Travel Advisor
Herefordshire, Worcestershire, Shropshire, Cheshire, Manchester, Stockport, Staffordshire, Mid & North Wales
My history within school travel stems back more than 29 years working with a number of well-known brands. The travel advisor team at Select are all highly experienced, which matters in this industry to ensure teachers receive great advice and service.
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Beth Hall
Regional Travel Advisor – Educational Tours
Berks, Hants, Surrey, Dorset, Isle of Wight & Channel Islands
Over 20 years’ I’ve paired my group and education travel experience with a passion for travelling. It never fails to amaze me how much a ‘real life classroom’ can positively impact young people. I am proud to work alongside party leaders to assist with the planning of their trips.
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The team place a high value on providing the best service, quality and value. I love building relationships with party leaders in the South West and helping to make their experience of taking a school trip abroad personalised and stress-free!
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Claire Mills
Regional Travel Advisor
North East, Cumbria, Yorkshire, Lancashire, Liverpool, Isle of Man & Scotland
I have over 15 years’ experience in the travel industry and a keen explorer myself, with the aim to see the Northern Lights next. My pride is the long-term relationships I’ve built with many amazing schools along my career.
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Karen Pooley
Regional Travel Advisor
City of London, Derbyshire, Greater London, Nottinghamshire, Oxfordshire, Warwickshire, West Midlands
I have been looking after school trips for the past 12 years, and have been seen first-hand the enjoyment and benefits that school trips bring to the pupils and staff. I am very proud of my work and love to spend time exploring the possibilities of new and exciting destinations.
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I have worked in the school travel industry for the last 13 years and am delighted to be joining the SST team I have been lucky enough to travel alongside many school groups and have seen firsthand the difference an amazing school trip can have on the students with it being a once in a life time opportunity for some.
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I have been involved in school travel since 1999, working with a number of market leading operators. Over the past 20 years, no two days have been the same, continually learning about and delivering the best support our group leaders need from their operator partner.
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I’m fortunate to have spent a good number of years based in the French Alps, as well as several years overseeing school group ski operations in Italy and Austria. I enjoy being part of Select School Travel and working with a great network of overseas suppliers and staff to ensure our groups have fantastic experiences.
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I have worked in the school ski travel business for 5 years. I grew up skiing and snowboarding as I was born in Austria and still live here. What I really love about this industry is that it enables pupils to experience and develop a passion for winter sports. I am very happy to be part of such an experienced team.
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I started working in school travel in 2003 and have since enjoyed getting to know a wide range of destinations both in the mountains and around the world for educational tours. I love planning and organising operational aspects for trips to make them run a smoothly as possible, but mostly to hear stories from the groups on their return!
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It is exciting to be part of a thriving company that has specialist staff with an extensive knowledge and understanding of how the school travel industry works. The company is growing fast and we’re getting glowing feedback from our groups. I love to read the positive emails, praising our staff members for their efficiency and professionalism.
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Having started in the educational tours industry in 2006, I’ve been lucky enough to spend 10 years sharing my passion for travel. If I had to choose my favourite destination I would say Normandy; it’s such a special place for school groups, and in the Chateau du Baffy we have a wonderful base that mirrors the history and culture of the local area.
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My roles working in school travel and ski have been varied, from junior, working in reception, reservations for adults, to working in resort as chalet girl then becoming a team leader Ski and Lakes and Mountains.
1967
Hourmont Travel
John’s first school ski trip was to Zurs - Austria, in the 1950s by coach with Caerphilly Grammar School (known today as St Martin’s School) The resort was relatively unknown and gave him his first opportunity to travel overseas. His taste for travel simply did not waiver, and he started his first travel role in Cardiff for Robert Hourmont. A timeline of his accolades and achievements follows:
1972
Founded Schools Abroad
Select has a long heritage within school travel. It all began when our current Chairman, John Bowden, founded SchoolPlan Travel over 40 years ago. John’s first hotel purchase: Seespitz - Seefeld, Austria.
1977
John Bowden founded SchoolPlan Travel
1985
Founded SkiBound Limited
With a keen understanding of the needs of teachers organising school trips, John went on to form several successful school travel companies including Skibound in 1985.
1999
Founded SkiPlan/STS
Maintaining a vision to grow and adapt with the changing school travel industry, John founded SkiPlan/STS in 1999.
2008
Founded Select Chalets & Hotels
With a growing portfolio of properties to manage, Select Chalets & Hotels was born.
2015
Select School Travel is formed with son Martyn at the helm.
With a fast-moving technological landscape, yet wanting to keep the personalised service at the heart of what we do, the next generation of school travel was founded. With son Martyn at the helm, we retain a family-run, friendly team, along with many of the experienced staff who have been part of the Bowden school travel journey.
1977-Present
Our team heritage
We're proud of providing a personalised service as school trip organisers. This has always centred on having a core team of experienced and dedicated individuals. Thank you to all our present and past team legends who have helped ensure hundreds of thousands of school children have had memorable school trip experiences.
1
Simplicity
We provide a core range of tried and trusted tours that deliver excellent experiences for students, with minimal stress for you.
2
Consistency
We are committed to providing the personal touch and also aim for consistency in our approach ensuring the number of people you deal with will be kept to the minimum.
3
Support
We understand that your time is precious, therefore we endeavour to provide you with that little bit extra support in all areas.
4
Clarity
We tell you what you need to know, when you need to know it, in a clear, honest and straightforward way.
Financial Protection & Select Policy Documents
Full financial protection is assured when you book with us, through our ATOL and ABTA accreditations. For your complete peace of mind the air tours and flights arranged by UK resident customers of Select School Travel Limited are ATOL protected by the Civil Aviation Authority. Our ATOL number is 11022. For more information visit the ATOL website. Download: Terms & Conditions, Data Retention Policy, Privacy Policy, GDPR Information, IT Security.
Click image to download our policies.
