Classic Travelling was founded in 2003 by Sarah Dowding, who is a life-long car and driving enthusiast with a love of travel. Having been on a tour with a car club, Sarah was frustrated and disappointed by the lack detail and knowledge from the tour organisers. Armed with various guidebooks and maps, and having done the research, other tour participants then started following Sarah each day on the tour. Sarah had previously organised holidays and weekends away for friends, both with and without cars, so it was an easy progression into organising motoring tours. Not being one to start small, the first tour Classic Travelling organised in 2003 was a 6-week tour to South Africa! And from that epic trip it snowballed into the successful and popular classic car tour and road trip organisation it is today.
Most of the tours Classic Travelling organises are small, accompanied Group Tours for individuals or friends to join and enjoy scenic driving, fabulous hotels, delicious food and wines, and fun camaraderie. We also offer Independent Tours for those who are unable or don’t wish to join a group.
- We also arrange group tours for Clubs, and have a wealth of experience in this area, having organised and run three major anniversary tours for the three most famous cars in the world:
- The Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost Centenary,
- The Jaguar E-type 50th anniversary
- The Aston Martin Centenary
- We organised two tours to celebrate the Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost Centenary in 2007, with 63 Silver Ghosts (including THE Silver Ghost, AX 201) travelling from 5 continents to the UK for a three-week tour of Scotland in May and then a 10-day tour of England’s west country in September. We have subsequently organised three further tours for the 20-Ghost Club.
- Classic Travelling organised The Italian Job Tour, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Jaguar E-type in 2011, on behalf of the E-type Club. We had 40 cars from 10 countries across 4 continents on a fabulous 12-day tour to France, Switzerland and Italy, accompanied by the prototype car, 9600 HP and the red roadster from The Italian Job film, 848 CRY. Click here to see the photos.
- Classic Travelling organised a day tour to celebrate the Centenary of Aston Martin in 2013, on behalf of the Aston Martin Owners’ Club, starting at Stoke Park, Buckinghamshire and finishing at Wilton House, Wiltshire to coincide with the Wilton Classic & Supercars event on Sunday 4 August 2013.
- Since 2008 Classic Travelling has developed and run tours for the Jaguar Drivers’ Club, with tours to the Italian Lakes, the Baltic States, Spain & Portugal, Tuscany & Umbria, as well as various tours in the UK. We also organised the SS Register Tour to Wales in 2011. Click here to see photos.
- Classic Travelling organised tours for the E-type Club and XK Club from 2009 to 2011 inclusive, with multiple tours to France, Norway, Italy, Scotland and around the UK. Click here to see photos.
- CAAR GB, a multi-marque club, enjoyed Classic Travelling’s gorgeous Trans-Alpine Tour in May/June 2011, with 10 cars as a private tour.
- Classic Travelling has organised tours for the Bentley Drivers’ Club, either side of the Monaco Historique event in 2018 & 2020. The Pyrenees to Monaco Tour across the Pyrenees to Monaco, and the Apres Monaco tour to return to the UK afterwards.
- We have created and organised many other tours for private groups of friends and other marques of cars.
