Hello, everyone,

I am your driver and Tour manager Dave. Well what can I say, 2025 was an amazing year with some fifty trips, many returning customers and lots of new excited passengers enjoying our service. This year we have been all over the mainland and even across the water to Normandy. We’ve had lots of fun meeting many new customers and lots more entertainment with our regular customers, all of whom have become a part of the David Manning Coach Tours Family. We had lots of laughter, been to many new places, seen so many friendship’s made, had a few entertaining moments on the coach, including meeting a convoy of trucks carrying extra wide earth moving vehicles in narrow lanes, several Hairpin turns and shunts to destinations in the back of beyond, some beautiful scenic drives, Locals waving us on through tight turns of diversions through housing estate and again on the Euro tunnel shuttle. Stayed in beautiful hotels and eaten way too much food. We’ve even witnessed Julie as the Shooting range queen of Potters resorts. Now here we are with our second brochure, with over 70 trips and more destinations. I hope you enjoy browsing through it and hope to see you on board soon. Just a little bit of background of myself for you to digest, I qualified as a PCV driver in the spring of 1997 with Armchair coaches of London. In 1998 I also went on to qualify as a tour manager with Trafalgar Tours of London. Over the years since I have completed several courses including the Guild of coach drivers’ parts 1,2 and 3, Red Rose welcome host, working with the blind and ongoing CPC.

My early years was mainly driving visiting Americans via various international agents (Barton Hill, Worldwide Country Tours) Germans (Studiousis) and Chinese (Nippon Express) around the UK. I quickly became a member and regular driver with the Armchair Tours department. Quickly becoming the regular driver and tour manager for the Normandy, and TV weekend tours as well as a regular reserve driver for the Austrian and Rhine tours. For three years running I drove a 42-day tour across Europe which included dozens of countries for the Girl Guides association.

In 1998 whilst still with the Armchair family I was commissioned with driving the late Lady Jane Howard and her very exclusive VIP international clientele on various tours around Britain and its many islands, as well as Italy and France. Meeting with many people of the aristocracy world, including the now King Charles, Lady Hunt (apparently the richest woman in Texas,) various museum curators and trusts, including the America Smithsonian and Seattle Art museums, Rice University, Trustees of Reservations, Decorative Arts Council, Peabody Essex and Winterthur museums, Eurpa Nostra and The Walpole Society. It was due to the late Lady Jane that my knowledge and love of Scotland now flourishes, for which I’m forever grateful.

I have driven many high-profile personnel, parliamentary and military organisations on many occasions and often under police escort. I was for three years the regular team driver for the French national Rugby team whilst in Britain. Including the last ever 5 nations final held at the old Wembley stadium. One of the funniest passengers was Neil Kinnock and I shall share that experience and many others with you on the trips. Others include the rock band ACDC, the Oxford Boat race team, executives of Ferrari formula one racing.

Since moving to Lincolnshire, I have driven for several coach and tour companies around Britain and Europe. My areas of expertise is Ypres, Northern France, the Somme and Opal coast, London, the South Coast and of course Scotland.

I have had a most wonderful experience and career driving coaches and now I hope to share that with you guys on our future day trips and tours. I am a firm believer in attention to detail, as well as customer care and service. And that is why all our trips will run with Julie as hostess and myself as your driver working together as a team to serve you all the best we can. Whilst on our trips I hope to be able to share my experience and knowledge with you as well as a few laughs and entertainment in our making you all some happy memories.

Within this group there is a former Armchair Tours office manager, a couple of PC management staff who have been very gracious with their support and in supplying the vehicles, a few former colleague drivers and a few previous passengers. of whom all I’m sure can vouch from their own experiences for the professionalism, customer care, experience, entertainment and laughter that comes with myself as your driver.

Now it’s time for a new venture as Julie and I look to grow the group and our future day trips and tours. We look forward to meeting every one of you at some point and we look forward to you travelling with us in the future. Please continue to share our group with your friends and family far and wide. 

Many thanks