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Wendy Haines Travel - Where Personal Service Meets Global Adventure
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Wendy Haines Travel - Where Personal Service Meets Global Adventure |
Meet the Burton-on-Trent Travel Agent Empowering Women to See the World Together |
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If you’ve ever wandered through Craythorne Courtyard in Stretton and spotted a beach hut that looks delightfully out of place in the Staffordshire countryside, you’ve likely found the home of Wendy Haines Travel.
Step inside and you won’t find corporate desks or impersonal counters. Instead, there are seashells, beach chairs, travel mementos from across the globe and the unmistakable feeling that you’re about to start something exciting. This is the “Holiday Hut” - and at the heart of it all is Wendy Haines, a travel expert with over 35 years of experience and a passion that has never dimmed.
A Lifelong Love Affair with Travel
Wendy’s journey into travel began, as many great British travel stories do, with a touch of inspiration from television legend Judith Chalmers. “I always wanted to work in travel,” Wendy laughs. “I thought I wanted to be cabin crew until I saw what they actually did!”
After studying travel at college, her first role was covering maternity leave at a tourist information centre. A travel agent job soon came up in Uttoxeter, where she lived at the time - and the rest, as they say, is history. Wendy spent over 20 years working for high street agencies before launching her own independent business 13 years ago.
What keeps her motivated after more than three decades?
“The joy of helping people create memories,” she says. “There’s nothing quite like hearing from clients when they get back from a wonderful holiday.”
And what holidays they’ve been. Wendy has arranged beach weddings in Mauritius - and even one officiated by Elvis in Las Vegas. She’s booked honeymoons in Antarctica, family dream trips to Disneyland, and once helped organise a marriage proposal in a hot air balloon over the Masai Mara.
Ask her favourite destination and she smiles knowingly. “How can you compare seeing animals in their natural environment in Kenya to the neon lights of Tokyo, the vast Grand Canyon, the geysers in Iceland or the beauty of Madeira? They’re all incredible for different reasons.” It’s this genuine enthusiasm that shines through in every conversation. Why Personal Travel Planning Still Matters
In an age where flights and hotels can be booked online in minutes, some might question the role of a travel advisor. Wendy sees it differently.
“Yes, you can book online in minutes - but should you?” she asks. Over the years, she has helped countless clients who found themselves stranded or stressed after booking through faceless comparison sites.
One particularly memorable example involved a client who proudly secured bargain flights to Sydney for a wedding - only to discover she’d booked Sydney in Nova Scotia, not Australia.
“When things go wrong, those websites disappear,” Wendy explains. “When you book with me, you have my direct number. If something happens while you’re away, I’m there.”
And things do happen. Wendy has dealt with missed connections in Doha at 7am on a Sunday morning, companies going bust, ash clouds, strikes, delays, illness, natural disasters, lost luggage and even wars and terrorism. She recalls one family weekend in Rome where a mother fell in a restaurant and broke her hip on the first night. Wendy guided her daughters through insurance claims, flight changes and accommodation adjustments from back home.
That’s what she means by “looking after you from start to finish.”
Together with her team - Claire, who helps book trips, and Jane, who meticulously checks paperwork, sends tickets and assists with check-in - Wendy ensures there is always someone available to help. For many clients, especially those less confident with technology, that reassurance is priceless.
Everything booked through Wendy Haines Travel is ATOL and ABTA protected. “When you’re spending thousands on a once-in-a-lifetime trip, you need that safety net,” she says. “It’s non-negotiable for me.” Award-Winning Excellence
Wendy’s dedication hasn’t gone unnoticed. She was named Leisure Agent of the Year at the prestigious Agent Achievement Awards - a national accolade that recognises excellence across the UK.
“I never believed I’d win,” she admits. “The competition is massive.” She has also been a finalist in the Great British Entrepreneur Awards and the East Staffs and Derbys Business Awards in 2023, 2024 and 2025 - a remarkable achievement for an independent Burton-based business.
Yet for Wendy, the awards, while appreciated, aren’t what matter most. It’s the handwritten postcards, the photos sent from beaches and mountains, and the emotional messages from clients who thought they might never travel again due to mobility issues.
“One couple sent me a postcard from Cyprus saying they were having the time of their lives and couldn’t wait to book again,” she recalls. “That makes me emotional.”
Inside the Holiday Hut, certificates sit alongside gifts from around the world - a Kiwi from New Zealand, a lucky blue eye from Greece, even a knitted llama. It’s a space that tells a story.
Introducing Wendy’s Wanderers
If there’s one initiative that truly captures Wendy’s community spirit, it’s Wendy’s Wanderers - her hugely successful travel group for solo ladies.
The idea was born from listening. Many women told Wendy they longed to travel but had no one to go with. Some were widowed, some single, others simply had partners uninterested in adventure.
So Wendy created a solution.
Wendy’s Wanderers offers small, fully escorted group trips in a fun and safe environment. With over 1,100 ladies in the group - and the name now officially trademarked - it has grown beyond all expectations. Last year alone saw 15 sell-out trips. This year includes day trips, social events and even more international adventures.
The experience begins long before departure. Around ten weeks before travelling, the group enjoys a themed meal - perhaps Italian cuisine before Tuscany, or a specially crafted menu from a private chef. A month before departure, there’s a coffee morning. A week before, a video call. A WhatsApp group hums with chatter sometimes years in advance.
By the time the group reaches the airport, strangers have become friends.
Trips have included Iceland for the Northern Lights, safaris in Kenya, opera in Tuscany, the Taj Mahal in India, basket rides in Madeira and even conga lines in Lake Garda. Wendy once found herself wrestling a sumo wrestler in Japan - volunteered by her laughing Wanderers.
More importantly, friendships flourish. Some ladies now spend Christmas Day together rather than alone. One participant had to buy a diary to keep track of her social life.
As one Wanderer, Julie White, puts it: “Trips are fun, inclusive, and no one is ever left on their own. Wendy is enabling, encouraging and supportive without being controlling or stifling. It makes travelling on your own feel very safe and very easy.”
A Proud Part of the Local Community
Though Wendy works with clients nationwide, she is fiercely proud of her Burton roots. Many clients come from Burton-on-Trent, Stretton, Swadlincote, Tutbury, Uttoxeter and beyond.
She sponsors local organisations including Rolleston Cricket Club, the YMCA annual sleepout, and The Little Theatre Company. For every booking, she donates to Me&Dee and The Footprints Family - and recently took three suitcases of provisions to Kenya during a Wanderers visit to support the charity there.
The Holiday Hut itself sits among a charming cluster of independent businesses - a wool shop, hairdresser, florist, beautician, candle shop, farm shop and café (which Wendy admits serves the best cappuccino in town).
It’s this local connection that sets her apart. “With a national chain, you’re just a booking number,” she says. “With me, you’re a person.” Looking Ahead
The Wanderers’ upcoming adventures include India, a Rhine cruise, Montenegro and Albania, Canada, Norway’s Northern Lights, Jordan, Nepal, South Africa, Ireland and even Nashville, Memphis and New Orleans in 2028.
Meanwhile, Wendy and her team are expanding to meet growing demand - with this year already shaping up to be the busiest yet.
As for her own travels, a milestone birthday trip to New Zealand and the Cook Islands is on the horizon - cleverly timed so her husband can celebrate his 60th twice by crossing the international date line. ✈️ Ready to Start Planning Your Next Adventure?
If you're thinking about booking your next holiday, be sure to check out Wendy Haines Travel.
📍 The Holiday Hut
📞 Phone: 0330 880 7813 🌍 Website: www.wendyhainestravel.co.uk
You’ll be in safe hands with Wendy and her team - and your next adventure might just begin with a cup of coffee in a beach hut in Burton. |
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