Adele Youngs

Co-founder & Director, Live Travel and Tours/ Board Member, ETOA

Adele’s career in the travel industry began as a university language student, when she worked during the holidays as a Tour Director for American high school groups travelling throughout France and Spain.

After graduating, Adele moved to London to work for a management consultancy company in their financial services division. It took only nine months, however, for her to realise travel was in her blood, and she was recruited by one of the largest inbound tour operators in the UK, where she progressed to Director for Europe, responsible for all their group tours.

In 2008, she and a colleague set up their own company specialising in tours for amateur performing and educational groups across Europe – Live Travel and Tours. Since then, the company has grown to be a leader in its sector, being involved in the London 2012 Olympic Games, and running its own annual music festival for young people.

Regularly asked to speak at international conferences and in webinars, Adele champions the importance of young travellers in our industry. She holds a number of advisory roles, and has recently stepped down as President of US-based global travel association, SYTA (Student and Youth Travel Association). She also currently sits on the Board of Directors of ETOA.