He has been in the industry for more than 40 years, but Tim Giles, co-owner of World Market Travel, is currently dealing with one of his most unusual requests to date.
Giles, who founded the Bath-based independent with his brother Peter in 1981, has organised travel for 80 Palestinian teenagers to fly to the UK to take part in a sports festival.
The festival is being held as part of a link-up between Bath and Bethlehem – entitled Bethlehem-B&NES Links.
Giles has organised for the youngsters to travel from Amman, Jordan, to Heathrow with British Airways.
The 63-year-old, who is also a consultant director for the Travel Network Group, said:
“It is one of the more unusual requests, but we were more than happy to do it.
“We (Giles and his brother) are proud Bathonians and we were only too happy to help with a project that is great for the community.
“When they arrive in Bath having flown from Amman, they will take part in this sports festival, which includes basketball and lots of other sports, as well as dancing.
“It’s a great opportunity for the kids and we are delighted to be involved.
“I think we were chosen to handle the travel because we are the only independent left in the area and we are respected locally.
“We deal with group bookings a lot but they are mainly always outbound from the UK, so the fact that this is inbound is quite unique.”
Giles said he enjoyed working in the industry because it was a “rewarding job” requiring “endless passion and dedication”.
Giles said his company, which has 10 staff, planned to sponsor an event at the festival. Peter Downey, the scheme’s founder, said the process for gaining access for the Palestinian students was lengthy and difficult.
Agents who want to sponsor the Bethlehem-B&NES Links festival should email communications@bethlehem-banes.com or call 07887 942578.
Sponsorship opportunities range from £500 to £2,500.