With a thriving school sports scene across all curriculum disciplines, award-winning gastronomy, friendly locals, bustling cities and beautiful beaches, it’s little wonder Malaysia is cropping up in conversation so often with our teachers. Sat just 12 hours’ direct flying time from London, students can enjoy the modern comforts of the A380 Malaysia Airlines aircraft and on board entertainment offered on this overnight flight from Heathrow. One of Kuala Lumpur’s key attractions – Malaysia’s capital – is its geographical contrasts.  Skyscrapers and towers overlook wooden huts surrounded by a panoramic of natural rainforest,  all of which offer an exciting array of excursions for your touring group. Spend the morning exploring the Perdana Botanical Gardens and Forest Research Institute of Malaysia (FRIM) where exotic fauna makes way for colossal trees and walkways guided by local experts.  After a sumptuous locally cooked lunch, explore Batu Caves, Chinatown and witness this incredible city from the 41st floor of the world’s tallest twin towers – Petronas – as dusk meets night. Continue your playing experiences in the southern city of Melaka, located 3 hours’ bus drive from ‘KL’.  Take in the modern art at The Orangutan House, sample local delicacies cooked freshly on Jonker Street and revel in the culture of the numerous temples around Bukit St Paul. Your trip continues to deliver excitement and intrigue, this time with the 4h journey via bus to Singapore.  This ultra-modern, English-speaking city entertains endlessly outside of your planned touring fixtures.  Must-do’s include Singapore Night Safari, journey to Sentosa Island cable car and the stunning Gardens by the Bay.  No visit is complete without observing the city from the aerial walkway over Marina Bay Sands Hotel. My travels and research trips around both Singapore and Malaysia are wholly responsible for the enthusiasm we have for these countries and their suitability for UK school groups.  The best bit? The affordability of such a trip in our traditionally higher priced summer months.  A travel budget of £1500 per person can go a long way over 11  days to these remarkable areas featuring flights, transfers, 4* hotels, sports fixtures and daily breakfast / dinner sandwiching a number of memorable excursions. It’s a little bit different to most summer touring destinations but that’s what we’re all about.  Taking you outside the touring box and constantly delivering the unexpected.

In honour of the Ireland v Wales showdown tomorrow in Dublin, we’re spotlighting local clubs set to travel with us. After a brilliant win in the All-Ireland Junior Cup, Clogher Valley RFC in Northern Ireland, are travelling to British Columbia in 2023 to compete in Vancouver and Victoria.  Putting the disappointment of a cancelled Lions tour to South Africa behind them, Clogher will head west to explore the best of this stunning region. The visit will include time in the ski resort of Whistler for summer white water rafting. 80 members of Beddau RFC are touring Cape Town, South Africa. They’ll watch The Stormers, a professional rugby union team, in the Currie Cup. Later they will test their own skills against a local outfit. “We wanted to visit a destination with a good blend of rugby, outdoor activities and vibrant nightlife. Cape Town is easy to get to from the UK, plus no jetlag, so we can hit the ground running! It has excellent value for money against the South African Rand in terms of quality of accommodation, food and drink, and a low cost of excursions,” commented David Leyshon, Beddau RFC on their reasons for choosing South Africa. Alongside the rugby highlights, they’ll visit Table Mountain, Stellenbosch, and have a tour of the Cape Peninsula to fully experience the beauty of South Africa’s Western Cape.

Ahead of our travelling Welsh rugby fans following the Series against the Springboks, touring students from Coleg Gwent depart today as our official advanced party. We are delighted they’ve been able to embark on this journey after their original tour – due to coincide with the Lions in 2021 – was cancelled due to the Pandemic. With lots of hard work, planning, late access to funding and sponsorship donations, the tour has become a reality, including prestigious tickets to South Africa v Wales in the first Test at Loftus Versfeld stadium. As a Coleg Gwent alumni, managing director Mark Gardner has personally organised this tour, knowing the value of it to the boys, having toured with the group to South Africa as a player in 1996. “Despite two and half decades passing, our group from the ’96 trip remain a tight unit with friendships made for life.  When the opportunity arose to get the Coleg back in the skies, no stone has been left unturned in making this happen at the most affordable price for the students and staff.” – Mark Gardner Read what the college has written about their tour and what it means for the group:The Coleg Gwent Rugby Academy depart on their whistle stop 9-day tour of South Africa on Sunday. The 2-match itinerary includes 4 nights in Cape Town and 2 nights in Pretoria, affording opportunities to experience a range of cultural and heritage excursions including walking up Table Mountain, the Cape Peninsular tour to the southern tip of Africa, a safari game drive, a visit to Soweto and the Apartheid Museum.

RLC Rugby was among the exceptional touring groups that embarked on their own rugby tour whilst in France for Rugby…

Flying into Gibraltar, just south of Spain, St David’s College settled in for their 5-day rugby tour. After much deliberation, tour leader Mr Lycett settled on Gibraltar: “We like to tour places slightly off the beaten track with previous trips encompassing Georgia and the Basque region in Spain. (This) trip to Gibraltar we hope is the start of many trips to this hidden gem.” As well as absorbing Gibraltarian culture, it was important that the team had a distinct rugby experience. In their first fixture, St David’s lined up against a Gibraltar Select XV. After an impressive game, it was great for the team to get the tour off to a winning start. According to Mr Lycett, “The boys put on a real display of what they are capable of.” But it wasn’t all intense games and training, the next day they climbed The Rock, which Lycett described as “the mother of the Beast (skip leg day) walk.” The evening was spent exploring more of what Gibraltar had to offer. On a high from their first win, the group travelled across the border to neighbouring Spain for their second match, against Marbella Rugby Club. After a day of high-quality rugby and gracious hosts, they headed back to Gibraltar, ready for another day. Whilst spending their last day soaking up even more Gibraltarian history at the Kings Bastion, an ex-military fortress, Mr Lycett reflected on the meaning of this tour: “Getting back to the core of what makes school sport pretty darn special. Experiences, people, enjoyment, testing yourself in new environments.” Travel is officially back! What a week it has been.

Army Medical Services Football Tour to the Deep South A very warm welcome to the Army Medical Services who travel with MSG on their two-state military football tour to Nashville and Atlanta in September. This trip was set to depart in 2020 and postponed due to covid restrictions. Now travel is back, and they’re set to travel in September 2022. Last week, I caught up with the Tour Leader, Sgt. Jordan Page from the Queen Alexander Royal Army Nursing Corps on his career and the work he’s put in to get this tour off the ground. “I’m a bit different because of my Cap Badge, my trade within the army. The football team is the AMS, made up of 4 corps: the Royal Army Medical Corp – your combat medical technicians, doctors, paramedics who all fall under that cap badge. Then you’ve the Royal Army Dental Corp which does what it says on the tin. The Veterinary Corp (comprises of) vets, dog handlers and the likes. Then my cap badge is the Queen Alexander’s Royal Army Nurses Corp. So, I’m obviously a qualified nurse but within my Corp we’ve got nurses and healthcare assistants.” Jordan, like many of the team, has been essential in the Covid-19 response. He’s recently spent a few months in Scotland working in the high dependency units to cover staff shortages, and in vaccination centres around the country. Due to the nature of the Army, particularly in the AMS, they often get deployed overseas or around the country, which can make planning a tour and organising the troops difficult. However, this makes the tour and all the time spent as a team even more valuable. Army Sport “The Army puts a lot of emphasis on sport and rightly so,” said Jordan. “It brings out your natural leadership, communication skills and (is) a good way for people to decompress if they’ve been busy”. Due to this focus on sport within the military, they’ve been successful in getting funding from The Army Sports Lottery, The Berlin Infantry Memorial Fund, AMS Sports Union, and several private sponsorships to make this trip a success. None of this would be possible without sign off from the Army Sport Control Board. “I must have gone through a process of speaking to about 20 different companies getting a list of around 50 quotes. And, actually, your company, I hadn’t heard of until last minute when one of lads I know said I went on a tour with (MSG), might be worth contacting them.” Two years of communication later due to Covid and army restrictions, here we are. We are delighted that his hard work has paid off and this important trip is finally happening. The team will be playing three touring fixtures and receiving pro-coaching in both Atlanta and Nashville.  The tour will be crucial for building the team’s morale and preparing them for the season ahead.

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 […]

This summer we’ve been putting the focus on our home turf, the beautiful, and often underestimated, island of Great Britain….

Bath City FC’s u16s visited us in the Midlands this Easter for a football tour to remember. With their original…

We spoke to Tour Leader and Captain Steve Blanks before they departed for Washington, who stated “after the two-year delay…