TRAVEL-LISTS: EDITORIAL POLICY
House Style
The house style for our content is designed as if a friend has said "I'm thinking about going to this destination (or taking this type of break). Got any suggestions?".
We are saying "Yeah, here's a list of all the specialists we are aware of", or put another way "here are all the ones we think are worth bothering with"!
We are not necessarily endorsing the company. We are recommending that you take a look at them and make up your own mind.
In particular you should check out the ones we've marked with stars because we think they are offering something special or a bit different...
As well as indicating in a listing what the company does, we also like to mention what's new and try to include a little bit of company history so you get an idea of its pedigree and experience.
Editorial Structure
Travel Lists is aimed at British holiday-makers and travellers so the first list for any destination or category covers companies that are based in the UK.
Generally, the website focuses on specialities so companies appear in the most likely lists, rather than every list for which they could qualify. EG. a ski operator might appear in the Ski Operators list, but not in destination lists for countries they operate to.
As the subject area (destination or category) is expanded, lists of local/ground operators and other companies/organisations are added - covering almost anything from local agents, transport companies or attractions to local hotel chains, tourist offices or ski schools. We also add lists of Special Places to Stay, which are far from comprehensive (!) but include places we come across that we consider are worth mentioning.
Variations of tour operator lists can also cover local travel companies and travel companies from a third country. So, there can be up to three lists of tour companies for one destination (eg. Libya):
- UK tour operators taking Brits on tours in Libya
- Libyan tour operators taking Brits on tours in Libya
- American/German/French tour operators taking Brits on tours in Libya.
Editorial Criteria
We do look for financial protection schemes (eg. ATOL, AITO Trust, ABTA). A UK-based operator or agent without any visible client protection scheme is unlikely to appear in our lists.
Sometimes a company's location can be a little blurred - eg. a British couple running a ski chalet in France with phone numbers in the UK and France. The key question for us is "where is the booking made?".