About us

Leaders in the field

First-rate lecturers

Original itineraries, meticulously planned

Travelling in comfort

Small groups, and congenial company

Care for our clients, suppliers & employees

Travelling solo

Value for money, and no surcharges

Gastronomy tours

Martin Randall Travel is committed to providing the best planned, the best led and altogether the most fulfilling and enjoyable cultural tours available.

Since 1988 we have been the most influential organisation in the field of cultural travel, offering an unequalled range of tours and events focusing on art, architecture, music, archaeology, history, gardens and gastronomy.

Operating in around 40 countries in Europe, North Africa, the Middle East, Asia and the Americas, our mission is to deepen your understanding and enhance your appreciation of the achievements of civilisations around the world.

Pioneering and innovative, we have led the way with ideas and itineraries and by setting the benchmarks for customer service and administration.

Read more: 'The story of MRT – an interview with Martin Randall'.

Expert speakers are a key ingredient in our tours and events. Academics, curators, writers, broadcasters and researchers, they are selected not only for their knowledge but also for their ability to communicate clearly and engagingly to a lay audience.

Their brief is to enlighten and stimulate, not merely to inform – and they also have to be good travelling companions.

We select our speakers through reputation, interview and audition, and provide them with guidance and training.

Most of our tours are also accompanied by a trained tour manager who unobtrusively attends to administrative matters.

Rooted in the knowledge of the destination and of the subject matter of the tour, the outcome of assiduous research and reconnaissance, and underpinned by many years of reflection and experience, our itineraries are second to none.

They are original and imaginative, well-paced and carefully balanced. Meticulous attention to practical matters ensures a smooth-running as well as an enriching experience.

Special arrangements are a feature of our tours – for admission to places not generally open to travellers, for access outside public hours, for private concerts and extraordinary events.

In innumerable ways, large and small, we lift our clients’ experience far above standards which are regarded as normal for tourists.

We select our hotels with great care. Not only have nearly all been inspected by members of our staff, but we have stayed in most of them. Hundreds more have been seen and rejected.

Comfort ranks high among our criteria, together with good service and warmth of welcome. We also set high priority on charm and style, and location is an important consideration. Most of the hotels we use are rated as 4-star, with some 5-star and a few 3-star.

We invest similar efforts in the selection of restaurants, menus and wines, aided by staff with a specialist knowledge of these areas.

For flights and trains we try to choose the most convenient departure times. Rail journeys are usually in first-class seats.

We can provide a holiday without international travel if you prefer, allowing you to make your own arrangements. It is also usually possible to make other variations to the package.

Most of our tours run with between 10 and 20 participants. We strictly limit numbers, specifying the applicable maximum in each tour description. The higher costs of smaller numbers are outweighed by the benefits of manoeuvrability, social cohesion and access to the lecturer.

The small-group principle is diluted when there are private concerts or several speakers exclusively for our clients.

Not the least attractive aspect of travelling with MRT is that you are highly likely to find yourself in congenial company, self-selected by common interests and endorsement of the company’s ethos.

We are one of the most respected travel companies in the world, among both travellers and the tourism community.

We aim for faultless administration from your first encounter with us to the end of the holiday, and beyond. Personal service is a feature.

If anything does go wrong, we will put it right or compensate appropriately. We want you to come back again and again – as most of our clients do.

We are a fair, inclusive company and we trust everyone who has dealings with MRT to treat our clients, suppliers and employees with courtesy, empathy and respect.

Read over 1,000 independent reviews about Martin Randall Travel

We welcome people travelling on their own, for whom our tours are ideal, as many of our clients testify. There are usually several solo travellers on a tour. On evenings when dinner is not included there is always the option of dining with the tour manager.

Hotels usually charge a supplement for single occupancy of a room, but we never add anything to this – indeed, some of the supplements we charge are subsidised by ourselves, sometimes by hundreds of pounds.

Where we are able to, we assign those travelling on their own to rooms which are normally sold as doubles.

Tours exclusively for solo travellers

Unfortunately, we do not have any solo tours planned for 2025. Contact us to register your interest in future departures.

The price includes nearly everything, not only the major ingredients such as hotel, transport and the costs of the lecturer and manager but also tips, drinks with meals (contact us for a reduction if you don’t drink alcohol) and airport taxes.

We do not levy surcharges for fuel price increases, exchange rate changes, additional taxes or for any other reason. The price published here is the price you pay.

On a tour that focuses on food, wine and cooking traditions, we regret that participants with special diets may not have the same gastronomic experience as those with no restrictions. Please discuss your requirements with us before booking.