Riviera Travel celebrates 40 years in style

Forty years ago, Burton-based businessman Michael Wright launched Riviera Travel with just a handful of tents on a campsite in the south of France. The success of this initial foray led Wright to run the first Riviera Travel coach tour to Paris on March 8, 2024 in conjunction with the Burton Mail.

The promotion worked, and, in 1985, Riviera Travel expanded to the Loire Valley before launching a Paris tour with tastings at Ruinart – the oldest champagne house in France – followed by a four-course dinner in a Michelin-starred restaurant.

And while the operator has had to upscale a couple of times over the years, their head office very much remains in Burton-upon-Trent.

Over time, Riviera Travel established itself as the UK’s leading operator of not only curated tours but also river cruises – it now operates on the Rhine, Moselle, Danube, Rhône ,Seine, Main, Dutch Waterways, the Douro, the Nile and the Mekong – and glamorous tall-ship voyages.

But some things never change. Case in point? The company’s head office remains firmly in Burton-upon-Trent in Staffordshire, while its values have never wavered. Make no mistake: Riviera Travel’s mission remains as it did in 1984 – to curate an exceptional holiday experience for every guest, exploring the places you can't wait to see with people you can't wait to see again.

Indeed Riviera Travel is so sure you’ll be satisfied by its tours that it offers a Happiness Guarantee – so that, in the unlikely event you’re not 100 per cent happy by day two of your trip, you can return home and still be refunded.

With such service, it’s little wonder that Riviera Travel has not only survived but thrived for 40 years – weathering an economic recession, Brexit and a global pandemic.

To mark its milestone birthday, Riviera Travel returned to Paris – where it all began – at the end of last month to throw the ultimate party.

And World of Cruising’s senior digital editor, Kaye Holland, print editor Sarah Riches, chief executive officer Chris Pitchford, and chief operating officer Lina Slater were delighted to receive an invitation to take part in the celebrations – and only to happy to accept!

As part of the memorable birthday bash, the company’s 140-passenger Jane Austen – an identical sister to Lord Byron – made two short cruises on the Seine. During this time, we relished the chance to catch the Eiffel Tower’s dazzling evening light.

Meanwhile on land, we were whisked to the Atelier des Lumières digital art centre – Paris first digital museum of fine art that’s housed in a former foundry in the eastern part of the city – to catch the Egyptian Pharaohs exhibition.

Back onboard Jane Austen, gala dinners, break dancers, silhouette artists and magicians entertained us all until the early hours. We did, however take a break from partying, to compose our Happy Birthday messages which we’ll share with you, dear reader, here:

“Forty years is a huge achievement for any business so, on behalf of the whole team at World of Cruising, I would like to wish Riviera Travel a very Happy 40th Birthday. It is a huge milestone – and they are a travel company we have been immensely proud to be involved with.”Kaye Holland