MSG Welcome Jess and LaurenJess - Marketing Coordinator Education and Interests  I grew up in a small area in Derbyshire, attended all the local schools and worked part time in hospitality alongside my GCSE’s. I started my 3D art and design course at college, studying a mixture of photography, fine art, graphic design and Architecture. This course inspired me to go to the University of Lincoln to start a Degree in Interior Architecture. After a year of study, I decided that university wasn’t for me. I enjoyed interior design and architecture as a hobby but no longer as a career. However, I still enjoyed graphic design and started to research what other career I would enjoy.  Marketing Apprenticeships I started my research and discovered the world of marketing. I then came across EMA Training and applied to some of their open vacancies. After interviewing for my Level 3, I was added to the talent pool which ultimately led to finding an employer and starting the course, which I recently completed achieving a distinction. I am progressing my knowledge and career by starting my Level 4 Marketing Executive course at MSG Tours. Travel I have always loved to travel. My most recent family trip was to sunny Florida for a week where we visited all the parks and attractions that I have been dreaming of trying. Then we headed to Playa De Carmen in Mexico, for my favourite destination of the holiday, for another week of amazing sunshine, jet skiing, beaches and the seeing the local wildlife.   I also visited Amsterdam for a brief city break in December, visiting the Heineken Experience, Fabrique des Lumières and a canal boat cruise. My dream destinations are Australia to see the Sydney Opera house and enjoy the beaches and the lovely weather. As well as Thailand to travel around the islands such as Phuket and Ko Samui and would love to be able to visit them both one day! LaurenEarly Years I have always loved to travel; I first found my love for travel when going on a variety of family holidays during my childhood.  In secondary school I volunteered for a month in Tanzania with the aim of improving the quality of schools and wildlife conservation work. This led us to travel around and visit the likes of the town of Moshi, city of Tanga, the capital Dodoma, Siha, one of the seven administrative districts of Kilimanjaro and the town of Mwanza.  Before embarking on a safari, we camped out in the bush with elephants. I finished the trip by completing the PADI scuba diving qualification after relaxing on the white sandy beaches.  This trip ignited my interest in travelling! Sports and Education Sports have always been a big part of my life: football, cricket, netball, swimming and martial arts. I also went onto be a swimming teacher for 5 years.  I chose to do a BSc in Sport and Exercise Science, at the University of Derby (which I finished this May.) This course bought me face to face with the world of sports tourism, it combined two large parts of my life, and I decided it was the industry that I want to work in.  Travel To celebrate finishing uni’, I spent a month touring Vietnam and Cambodia, starting in Hanoi and ending in Siem Reap. Vietnam is a country that’s been at the top of my bucket list for a while and is possibly my new favourite place. There are too many highlights of this trip to single out one: both the Vietnamese and Cambodian cooking classes, kayaking through Ha Long Bay, cycling Ninh Binh’s mountains and visiting Angkor Wat were all amazing. I returned home to attend a very rainy (but entertaining) British Grand Prix at Silverstone.  I am looking forward to my journey at MSG Tours and the ongoing travel opportunities the role presents!  As a small business, we believe it is important to give young people the best start possible. A key way to achieve this is through apprenticeships. Primarily, we partner with EMA Training for Marketing and Finance courses. Ben, our current Sales and Marketing Coordinator, completed his Level 3 Content Creator last year and Jess has just recently started her Level 4 Marketing Executive Apprenticeship with EMA. Here are their apprenticeship stories.

MSG’s Jen Ellis Takes Berlin by Storm MSG’s own Tour Operator, Jen Ellis recently travelled to Berlin with Kazakhstan school, Haileybury Almaty for their WWII themed history trip. This was her account of the tour: There are many things you can say about Berlin… disappointing isn’t one of them. A city that’s full of history, stories, free speech, and beauty, it captures a country that has been through an incredible journey and has come out telling its tale. I accompanied Haileybury Almaty – an independent school from Kazakhstan – on their History Study Tour. With a curriculum focus on WWII and the Cold War, there was a wealth of experience and learning to be had around Berlin. We started with a walking tour which covered a multitude of historical importance: Prussian inspired architecture, memorials for lives lost, a simple line of bricks across the city representing the divide of the Berlin Wall. The group were not divided in the opinion of how incredible the guide was at sharing these stories. Standing in the square where the forgotten library is marked and looking at the windows of the university building where Einstein once stood and watched the Nazi party burn his life’s work, it puts into perspective how important stepping outside and walking in the footsteps of history is.   In the city, there are so many wonderful opportunities to learn outside the classroom and bring out the inner historian in everyone. Not only this but hitting the heights of the Berlin TV Tower and watching the sun set at dusk across Berlin from the Reichstag Dome will last in the memories of these intrepid explorers. My time with the group was short but we were able to squeeze in some bratwurst, pomme frites and even watch Hertha Berlin smash their rivals 5-2 at the Olympiastadion Berlin: what an atmosphere and bucket list moment!  The group will continue their historical journey by following the journey of the millions of Jews that were ostracised and exiled to concentration camps away from Berlin. On an overnight coach the group will reach Krakow, Poland to explore a beautiful city risen from the ashes of a harrowing history. The students will take in a study tour of the Auschwitz – Birkenau Concentration Camp and see the results of those major decisions made in Berlin by the leaders of the Nazi Party. Leading to the real outcome of the tour – students being able to relate and humanise the statistics thrown at them in a classroom to better themselves. They’ll walk where those who are emblazoned across their textbooks once lived and breathed and empathise with those that lost their lives, experiencing the voices of today and see the influences from which it came.

We are delighted to announce Coleg Sir Gar have booked their 2024 rugby tour to South Africa. Home to the Llanelli Rugby Academy, the college puts an emphasis on the academic success alongside the building of players. Lanelli Rugby Academy:  The Llanelli Rugby Academy’s main aim is to ensure that young players receive all the […]

Ben Anglade, our newest tour operator, made his debut on our final trip of the year, flanked by fellow operator Jen Ellis, as Mill Hill School departed for the Basque region.   The duo arrived in Bordeaux late on 11th December to see as much of the local culture as possible. They collected a car and […]

2022 Military Booking Announcement   We are delighted to announce the Army’s Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME) have secured three overseas tours to the USA with MSG.   REME Rugby Union are returning for their second tour (Washington and Richmond, Virginia) after previously visiting Australia and Malaysia.  Captain Steve Blanks commented:  “After the two-year delay of our 1st team’s four-yearly rugby tour we are very much looking forward to facing our American cousins on the rugby […]

MSG Tours Ltd announce two new apprentices Natalia, ‘The Detective’, joins us as our Accounting Assistant to aid our financial and administration duties. Lucy, ‘The Northerner’, arrives as our Marketing Assistant to aid the growth of our social media and online presence.  Both starters will be crucial in the continued expansion and development of MSG, […]

NFL Miami Long Weekender 5-11 January 2022 Miami Dolphins v New England Patriots 6 DAYS | 5-11  January 2022   Looking to tick off the NFL bucket list?  If a London getaway doesn’t quite possess that authentic feel, join MSG in Miami this January for the Dolphins v Pats at the hosts’ Hard Rock Stadium. With […]

One Million Rand #10kaday By Sam Brooks Since the turn of the year, the dream of hundreds of MSG Tours patrons partaking in the tour of a lifetime to South Africa in the summer of 2021, has unfortunately faded. As a member of the team that has worked on the Lions 2021 project, I have personally seen the immense quantity and quality of work that the […]

[text_output] Keep the Lions Tour in South Africa – Postpone to 2022 and DO NOT switch to UK and Ireland [/text_output][line id=” class=” style=”][text_output]In just over two days, more than 2,700 rugby fans have signed this petition to postpone the Lions Tour to 2022 and keep it in South Africa. Two of those to have signed are former Lions stars, Graham Price and Tim Stimpson. Other past rugby players adding their name to the list are ex-Springboks, Tonderai Chavanga, Corne Krige and ex-England prop and media star, David Flatman.   The supporter who is personally fronting the campaign is our MD and five-time Lions tourist, Mark Gardner. Asked by South African newspaper, The Weekend Argus why he launched the campaign, Mark explained: “I decided to start this Petition to give an official fans’ viewpoint on what the tour means to them.  The rugby games are a circular process of making friendships, experiencing a new culture, exploring new lands and investing in the local economy.  It’s part of Lions DNA and folklore and should not be tampered with.” [/text_output].vc_btn3-style-gradient-custom.vc_btn-gradient-btn-67849ae4e4bec:hover{color: #ffffff;background-color: #e820de;border: none;background-position: 100% 0;}.vc_btn3-style-gradient-custom.vc_btn-gradient-btn-67849ae4e4bec{color: #ffffff;border: none;background-color: #dd3333;background-image: -webkit-linear-gradient(left, #dd3333 0%, #e820de 50%,#dd3333 100%);background-image: linear-gradient(to right, #dd3333 0%, #e820de 50%,#dd3333 100%);-webkit-transition: all .2s ease-in-out;transition: all .2s ease-in-out;background-size: 200% 100%;}SIGN TO KEEP THE LIONS TOUR IN SA [image src=”22356″ alt=”David Flatman supports the Lions Fans’ petition” href=”https://twitter.com/davidflatman/status/1348652629535186946″ title=” info_content=” lightbox_caption=” id=” class=” style=”][text_output]Thanks to HUGE backing from supporters, The Sun, Daily Mail, Irish Examiner, The Scotsman, News24 and an array of other media outlets have all reported the story. Popular social media accounts, including RugbyPass, have also promoted the campaign alongside numerous media outlets across South Africa.  Help protect the magic of the Lions and South Africa tourism.  Our ONE MILLION RAND charities need this.  The game of rugby needs this.  But, most of all, the fans need this. Mark Gardner Lions Fan [/text_output][text_output] Show your support by signing the petition via the link below [/text_output][line id=” class=” style=”].vc_btn3-style-gradient-custom.vc_btn-gradient-btn-67849ae4e523b:hover{color: #ffffff;background-color: #e820de;border: none;background-position: 100% 0;}.vc_btn3-style-gradient-custom.vc_btn-gradient-btn-67849ae4e523b{color: #ffffff;border: none;background-color: #dd3333;background-image: -webkit-linear-gradient(left, #dd3333 0%, #e820de 50%,#dd3333 100%);background-image: linear-gradient(to right, #dd3333 0%, #e820de 50%,#dd3333 100%);-webkit-transition: all .2s ease-in-out;transition: all .2s ease-in-out;background-size: 200% 100%;}SIGN TO POSTPONE TO 2022

[text_output] Save South African Tourism #SAnotUK [/text_output][line id=” class=” style=”][text_output]Covid-19 will almost certainly prevent the 2021 British & Irish Lions tour from taking place in the host country of South Africa. I am petitioning for the home nations of England (RFU), Scotland (SRU), Ireland (IRFU) Wales (WRU) who collectively make up the British & Irish Lions Board, and South Africa (SA Rugby) to do the right thing by agreeing to switch the Lions tour to 2022, placing this before the needs of their own country’s proposed summer tours.    As The Sunday Times’ esteemed journalist, Stephen Jones described in his article on 10th January 2021, ‘The Lions bring a marvellous boost for rugby and the economy — a conservative estimate for 2021 indicates that 3.1 billion Rand (about £150 million) will be injected into the faltering economy by about 30,000 fans.’  Ex-Springbok, Tonderai Chavhanga supports this notion.  “As a country, we’ve been excitedly preparing for this event for 12 years.  Our fantastic fans should not be denied the opportunity to watch this Series, nor should our tourism infrastructure suffer any further financial losses that Covid has already delivered.”[/text_output].vc_btn3-style-gradient-custom.vc_btn-gradient-btn-67849ae4e6068:hover{color: #ffffff;background-color: #e820de;border: none;background-position: 100% 0;}.vc_btn3-style-gradient-custom.vc_btn-gradient-btn-67849ae4e6068{color: #ffffff;border: none;background-color: #dd3333;background-image: -webkit-linear-gradient(left, #dd3333 0%, #e820de 50%,#dd3333 100%);background-image: linear-gradient(to right, #dd3333 0%, #e820de 50%,#dd3333 100%);-webkit-transition: all .2s ease-in-out;transition: all .2s ease-in-out;background-size: 200% 100%;}SIGN TO KEEP THE LIONS TOUR IN SA [image src=”20450″ alt=” href=” title=” info_content=” lightbox_caption=” id=” class=” style=”][text_output]What makes the Lions special, what makes the Lions unique is the power it has to tempt 30,000+ passionate rugby fans from across the British and Irish Isles to embark on a sporting pilgrimage to the opposite side of the globe.  The recipients and beneficiaries are thousands of South African supporters, businesses and organisations that have dedicated their resources to hosting our travelling army of fans.Mark Gardner Lions Fan [/text_output][text_output] Show your support by signing the petition via the link below [/text_output].vc_btn3-style-gradient-custom.vc_btn-gradient-btn-67849ae4e666a:hover{color: #ffffff;background-color: #e820de;border: none;background-position: 100% 0;}.vc_btn3-style-gradient-custom.vc_btn-gradient-btn-67849ae4e666a{color: #ffffff;border: none;background-color: #dd3333;background-image: -webkit-linear-gradient(left, #dd3333 0%, #e820de 50%,#dd3333 100%);background-image: linear-gradient(to right, #dd3333 0%, #e820de 50%,#dd3333 100%);-webkit-transition: all .2s ease-in-out;transition: all .2s ease-in-out;background-size: 200% 100%;}SIGN TO POSTPONE TO 2022