15 years, hundreds of trips worldwide and tens of thousands of students served. Here are some of TCBC's most important milestones.
2020
A historic year. In February we were having our best year ever, we had surpassed all targets - highest number of tour booked, highest number of departures, highest annual turnover figures. Then coronavirus hit and everything suddenly looks a little different...
We will be back soon!
2019
TCBC gets a facelift, a new logo and an awesome new website, if we do say so ourselves!
We restructure internally to improve our efficiency and be more productive as sales reach record levels.
In June, we run our first familiarisation trip to Krakow, introducing 6 teachers to our local suppliers and showing them the tours we offer.
2018
After a rigorous application process, TCBC becomes a fully assured member of the School Travel Forum and receives its Quality Badge.
We continue to add new destinations to our portfolio and our first trip to CERN goes ahead in November. In December, 32 students from Cheadle Hulme School visit The Gambia for charity work.
2017
Natalia Sotshjova and Dan Hornby become certified Accommodation and Coach Auditors.
2016
Doha College travel to California for 9 days on a 16 hour flight making this the longest direct flight any group has flown on with us to date.
2015
Our 10th anniversary year! To celebrate, TCBC invites select teachers who have been with us from the very beginning to Tallinn along with our entire team.
We have our first team photo snapped on Tallinn's main square, Raekoja Plats.
2014
TCBC finally gets its own Flights department, Jo Gilbey is recruited to run it and we become an ATOL holder.
One more destination is added as Carmel College take 20 students to Iceland for 6 days.
TCBC now has 10 employees!
2013
TCBC branches out to the UAE - Dubai English Speaking College become the first school from the region to travel to Russia with us.
Annual turnover surpasses a million for the first time.
2012
It is time for Russian City Breaks to finally rebrand. We take The City Break Company's initials and TCBC School Tours is born alongside a new website.
First Italy tours depart and we have a couple of interesting customised trips, one for King Edward VI High School for Girls who visited Arkhangelsk and St Paul's School, São Paulo, who made the long journey from Brasil to Russia via the UK.
2011
First China tour. 38 students from King's School, Macclesfield travel to Beijing and Xian on an 8 day trip.
2010
Our best year to date with over 1,000 students travelling to Russia and several new destinations added to our portfolio including Turkey, Austria and Battlefields trips.
2009
Sparta High School in New Jersey become first American school to travel to Russia with us.
We run our first school trip to Krakow.
TCBC become an ABTA member.
2008
First tours to Washington DC and New York City depart.
British School of the Netherlands becomes first international school to travel with us.
2007
Kristina Sinitsona joins our Tallinn team as Operations Manager, our first non-Hornby employee.
RCB runs its first tours outside of Russia. KCS Wimbledon take 53 students to Berlin and Dresden for 6 days and Withington Girls' School travel to Paris.
2006
February sees our first school trip to Russia as RCB. 30 boys from Manchester Grammar School, led by Maths teacher and Russian language fanatic Andy Hunter, travel to Moscow and St Petersburg for 8 days.
2005
The City Break Company is founded by Dan Hornby to specialise in city breaks, with a focus on Eastern Europe. Russian City Breaks is the first trading name and a new website goes live as our first clients travel to Moscow and St Petersburg.
It's clear Dan is on to something with the niche nature of the business and TCBC quickly turns into a family operation as Mum (Diane), Dad (Chris) and brother (Ben) soon join the company in sales, finance and general running of the business respectively.
Dan sets up an office in Tallinn, Estonia.