Thomas Cook: The Holiday Maker

by Jill Hamilton

Thomas Cook (1808-92), the father of tourism, is a forgotten hero of his age. When he was born, neither of the words 'tourism' or 'sightseeing' had been invented. Driven by his Baptist faith and the promotion of Temperance, Cook founded the travel industry - now one of the world's biggest sectors. One hundred and fifty years after his first overseas conducted tour, Jill Hamilton brings to life the complex man behind the famous name. There have been many accounts of the history of his firm, but this book is the first full-length biography of Cook himself. His early years in Melbourne, Derbyshire, as a gardener, carpenter and preacher, then in Leicester as a printer and travel organiser, give a vivid picture of the political influence of the Nonconformists in England in the nineteenth century. Cook did everything from starting soup kitchens to leading an innovative campaign for the repeal of the Corn Laws. During his fifty-year career in travel he drew on the same enthusiasm and originality to make holidays easier by introducing pre-paid inclusive tours, hotel coupons, traveller's cheques, the 'round the world' trip and the first travel newspaper. Few people, though, know of his determination to improve the lot of the working classes, his abhorrence of drink and his deep faith. The sex, alcohol and over-spending now associated with holidays would horrify the man whose first escorted trip in 1841 was a Temperance outing to Loughborough. He also helped set up a Baptist Chapel in Rome in the 1870s, and from 1869 onwards he brought the largest number of British people to the Holy Land since the Crusaders. At the end of his life Cook could boast that he had escorted thousands of touristsabroad without mishap, but he sadly witnessed the accidental death of his only daughter in his own home. This book gives a new perspective not only on Thomas Cook himself but on the birth of the travel industry.

288 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

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Reviews

[Pam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jill Hamilton‘s book on the history of Cook’s Tours and more particularly Thomas Cook himself devotes fully one-third of its length to his religion and why that was the base for his novel career. It’s a little excessive in that way. He was a nonconforming church member (in his case Baptist Church but the same would hold for any non Episcopal Church of England faith in his early life). Thomas Cook could not avail himself of public education in England, the two existing universities of the time, and could not be a professional such as a doctor or lawyer or own much land. Nonconformists who had ambition and were looking for a way in the world had to inherit a family business or find a trade in their nonconformist community. Cook tried many things in his youth. Although he didn’t succeed in any of these things he did happen upon apprenticeships that were useful when he launched his tour business. He tried ministry (public speaking, organization, reading), printing of religious tracts (printing business, advertising), traveling work (learning to accept criticism and having rotten vegetables thrown at him) and running soup kitchens (feeding large groups).

Hamilton shows his lifelong passion for educating the working class and those who lacked the opportunity for travel and enrichment. This was the base for Thomas Cook and Son Tours. There is probably a better book for details of the trips and the tourism industry he started and how the company collapsed suddenly in 2019 after 178 years of business. Cook was long gone and this book was written before 2019.

It is very interesting to see the history of how everything fell into line to create an industry we are still in love with today. He brought the masses to places they would never have dreamed of going before the mid nineteenth century. Snobs and aristocrats had a hard time stomaching the great unwashed encroaching on alpine sports or their grand gardens but Cook resolutely soldiered on for a group he never turned his back on.

The book’s style isn’t particularly fascinating and I have a pet peeve with Hamilton calling Cook “Thomas” throughout as if she were talking to her tour guide.

[Beatrice · Rating 2 out of 5]

I understand that the author has written a large number of books, but unfortunately I found this book to be poorly written. There is a lot of background that feels like it's there to fill up the requisite number of pages and it is not well integrated with the rest of the subject matter. At the end of the book I was left with the feeling that I hadn't learned a great deal about the man.

[SWC · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thomas Cook could be said to be first big promoter of tourism. I found interesting the background historical information which explained how Thomas Cook was able to use new developments to assist in the growth of tourism.