Travel Corp founder enters Hall of Fame

Travel Corp founder enters Hall of Fame

A glittering ceremony in London’s Dorchester Hotel has seen Stanley Tollman welcomed into the hall of fame.

Presented by Travel Weekly UK and The Caterer, Tollman was entered into the British Travel & Hospitality Hall of Fame, joining a cohort of individuals from all realms in travel, hospitality, leisure and tourism sectors.

The other new members also inducted in to the Hall of Fame were: Stephen Kaufer, President & CEO – TripAdvisor;  Peter Kerkar, Group CEO – Cox & Kings; Gerald Lawless, President & Group CEO – Jumeirah Group; Chris Corbin and Jeremy King, Co-Founders – Corbin & King and Bill Munro, Chairman – Barrhead Travel.

Born in South Africa in 1930, Tollman’s first taste of the industry came from his parents’ hotel and restaurant near Cape Town, and from the age of 19 he set about building his own portfolio of hospitality businesses.

His second hotel was The Hyde Park Hotel in Johannesburg, which preceded the Red Carnation Hotel Collection in the early 80s, before growing to include 17 properties including Ashford Castle in Ireland.

Over the following decades, he expanded his interests to include guided holidays, premium and luxury escorted tours, small group adventures, luxury river cruising, safari and adventure and youth travel business, turning his company into what is now The Travel Corporation.

Tollman was joined on the evening by his family and Senior Executives of The Travel Corporation.

“When I first started out in the hotel business, my father said to me ‘Give the customer what they want’ and I’ve tried to follow that over the years in everything we do,” Tollman said on accepting his honour.

“In the pursuit of excellence and trying to make everything we do the best it can be, I have been enormously helped: my wife, my partner and my soulmate, has been there supporting and working all along the way, later joined by my children who made all the difference.

“In addition the 10,000 people who work for us around the world, we call our family. Thank you very much for this honour – it is a very humbling experience and probably the highlight of my life.”

The Travel Corporation is a highly successful group of 30 award-winning brands including Trafalgar, Insight Vacations, Contiki Holidays, The Red Carnation Hotel Collection and Uniworld Boutique River Cruise Collection.

Latest News

  • Destinations
  • News

APT Launches 2025 Asia Adventures

APT has launched its Asia Adventures for 2025, including new luxury holidays in India, Sri Lanka and Japan. Five new tours lead guests to the highlights of India, including a seven-night cruise along the rarely travelled Lower Ganges aboard the Ganges Voyager. Further south, Sri Lanka’s greatest destinations are revealed on a new 15-day Land […]

  • Cruise
  • Luxury
  • News

Seabourn announces Western Kimberley Traditional Owners as Godparents of Seabourn Pursuit

Seabourn has named Western Kimberley Traditional Owners, the Wunambal Gaambera, as Godparents of the ultra-luxury purpose-built Seabourn Pursuit. It is the first cruise line to appoint Traditional Owners as godparents of a ship. Seabourn Pursuit embarks on its inaugural season in the Kimberley region this June. The naming ceremony will take place on Seabourn Pursuit’s […]

  • Luxury

Malolo Island Resort opens brand new Spa

Fiji’s Malolo Island has added another string to its bow – opening its $1.3 million day spa on Thursday, 18th April 2024. (Lead Image: matriarch Rosie Whitton with spa staff) Located at the edge of the resort’s luscious patch of tropical rainforest, the new “Leilani’s Spa” adds another level of elevated experiences to Malolo’s already […]