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16-Day (14 Night) Escorted Tour out of Vancouver, B.C.
Land Package: Sunday, June 28 to Monday, July 13, 2009
Land package: approx £1,765 (approx. $3600 Cdn)
Air: approx $960.00 incl. tax
All-inclusive except lunches. No optional extras, no hidden costs, and we
stay at lovely countryside hotels. The exact Land
price will depend on exchange at time of payment: the above is based on a
rate of $2.15 to the pound. A commitment and deposit were required by
October 1, 2008 in order to secure the hotels.
Much of the terrain of the North of England and North Wales is as
dissimilar to that of the South of England as to be in an entirely
different country, which means that many of the gardens will be quite
unlike those in the South in both their environment and species. We cover
the beautiful Derbyshire "Peak District", lovely parts of
Yorkshire, wild Northumberland, the famous Lake District, more than a
taste of North Wales including Bodnant, its most well-known garden, a
little of the Welsh borders, and back to the gentler areas of Cheshire and
Staffordshire.
The tour is fully escorted by Margaret Rodgers who has
taught Travel courses for Continuing Education in Vancouver and Surrey,
B.C. for several years. She has designed and escorted several tours of
Rural Britain. Margaret has travelled extensively and really knows her
native England.
Included in the price:
- Airport transfers if arriving or departing with the group
- Accommodation and transportation (up to 35-seater coach) for 16 days
- All breakfasts and dinners, including coffee or tea with all hotel
dinners
- Admission to all attractions
- Porterage - one bag per person in and out of hotels
- Escort throughout
Not included:
- Airfare and related taxes
- All Insurance
- Personal requirements, laundry
- Alcoholic beverages
- Gratuities, and tips for driver and escort
Day 1/2 (Sunday/Monday)
Sunday, June 28 - We depart Vancouver to arrive at
Manchester Airport the following morning. A great way to start our tour is
the drive through the lovely Derbyshire 'Peak District' to our hotel in
Chesterfield. Depending on our arrival time, we will stop at a pub for
lunch en route.
First of 2 nights - Ringwood Hall Hotel, Chesterfield,
Derbyshire
Day 3 (Tuesday)
We have a leisurely start for Bakewell (home of the famous
Bakewell pudding - not 'tart'!) - with free time to look
around this little Derbyshire town prior to our visit to Haddon Hall,
whose gorgeous Elizabethan terraced gardens have won the National Trust
Garden of the Year Award. The house itself, more like a castle, is one of
the most interesting and romantic 16-century medieval residences, which
has appeared in many recent movies, such as Jane Eyre, Pride and
Prejudice, and Elizabeth I.
We continue on to Chatsworth for lunch, after which the rest of
the afternoon is for you to explore the magnificent, monumental, ancestral
home of the Dukes of Devonshire, one of England's greatest Treasure Houses
(its 175 rooms are filled with treasures), and its surrounding elaborate
gardens, greenhouses, rock gardens, cascading water, and terraces,
designed by two of England's greatest landscape artists, Capability Brown
and Joseph Paxton.
Last of 2 nights in Chesterfield
Day 4 (Wednesday)
This morning we transfer to Yorkshire, to a second of England's
Treasure Houses - Castle Howard, perhaps best known as the setting
for the TV series "Brideshead Revisited". Designed by Sir John
Vanbrugh who also designed Blenheim Palace, it took 60 years to build
(1699-1759). In the 18th century it was redesigned to become the best
private residence in Yorkshire. Its magnificent interior is packed with
fine furniture and works of art; and its beautiful landscape, where
peacocks and pheasants abound, includes a walled garden, woodland walks,
lakes, bridges, obelisks, temples, and a mausoleum.
After lunch, we continue to Nunnington Hall, a lovely small
house by comparison, with an attractive garden and its fascinating
"Carlisle Collection of Miniature Rooms." We then have a
beautiful drive through Yorkshire to our hotel in Ripon.
First of 3 nights - Ripon Spa Hotel, Ripon, Yorkshire
Day 5 (Thursday)
We depart for Harlow Carr Gardens, in Harrogate, one of
England's four special gardens administered by the Royal Horticultural
Society (as Wisley in the South). Now the premier botanic garden in the
North of England, it was originally set up to assess the suitability of
plants growing in northern climates, and continues to experiment with both
the climate and the different soil varieties in the area. There are many
highlights and special features, including their "Gardens through
Time" which takes you through 200 years of garden history.
We may wish to spend all day at Harlow Carr, but if not, Harrogate is
an excellent shopping town with sulphur baths and Valley Gardens of its
own, or we take a drive through part of the famous Yorkshire Dales,
depending on the weather.
Second of 3 nights in Ripon
Day 6 (Friday)
Time to enjoy the hotel's grounds before a nice late start for Fountains
Abbey and Studley Royal Water Gardens, now known as one of the most
remarkable World Heritage sites in Europe. Set within a 400-acre deer
park, the site encompasses the spectacular ruin of the 12-century
Cistercian Fountains Abbey, a Jacobean Mansion, and one of the
best-surviving Georgian water gardens, with long vistas along the lakes
towards the great ruins of the Abbey with its high tower and 13-century
arches.
After lunch we continue to Newby Hall, a beautifully-restored
Robert Adam house designed under the influence of Sir Christopher Wren and
set in award-winning gardens created in the early 1920's, renowned for
their collection of beautiful and rare plants. Of particular note
are its famous double herbaceous borders, which form the main axis down to
the river. Part of the layout is influenced by Lawrence Johnston's Hidcote
Manor in the Cotswolds, with formal "room" gardens. It is also
home of the National Cornus Collection - special trees with dogwood-like
flowers.
Last of 3 nights in Ripon
Day 7 (Saturday)
This morning we transfer to Northumberland to visit Cragside,
one of the most remarkable houses and gardens in the entire British Isles.
Built in a remote area at the edge of the Pennines, it was described as
"The Palace of the Modern Magician" because in the 1880's it
became the first house in the world to have electricity - hot and cold
running water, central heating, fire alarms, a Turkish bath and a
passenger lift, all run by hydro-electricity. It is an elaborate,
eye-catching Tudor-style mansion set in a vast estate of some 1,700 acres
with a substantial lake and one of Europe's largest rock gardens. Seven
million trees and bushes were planted, and there are over 30 miles of
footpaths to explore - sorry, we only have the rest of the day here!
First of 2 nights - Schooner Hotel, Alnmouth,
Northumberland
Day 8 (Sunday)
After breakfast you have free time to explore the medieval town
of Alnwick until we meet at Castle Square at 10 o'clock for
entrance to Alnwick Castle. It is the second largest inhabited
castle in England (the first being Windsor Castle), and has been home of
the Percy family (Earls and Dukes of Northumberland) since 1309. Some of
you may recognize it as the site of “Hogwarts” in the Harry Potter
movies, As one of the most beautiful and unspoilt historic movie settings,
it is a film-maker's dream. It was also winner of the 2007 Visitor
Attraction, and winner of the Gold Award in the national find for
England's Awards for Excellence– equivalent of the Oscars.
We meet again for entrance to Alnwick Garden for lunch, after
which the rest of afternoon is free for you to enjoy what must be
one of the most fantastic gardens in the world. The Alnwick Garden
Project is the present Duchess of Northumberland's vision of creating
a garden of spectacular beauty, for contemplation, fun and education. It
has extravagant water displays and one of the largest tree houses in the
world. Its Grand Cascade, the largest water feature of its kind in the UK,
simply has to be experienced.
Last of 2 nights in Alnmouth
Day 9 (Monday)
Today we have an impressive drive over the wild northern Pennines to
the lovely English Lake District, stopping for a pub lunch en route. After
Penrith, we have a stop for ice cream at Glenridding on Ullswater, then on
to our resort hotel near Lake Windermere.
First of 3 nights - Wild Boar Hotel, nr. Windermere
Day 10 (Tuesday)
Today our first stop is Fell Foot Park for magnificent views of
Lake Windermere, en route for Levens Hall, a grand 16th-century
manor house which is interesting and impressive in itself. But it is
especially famous for having the most incredible topiary garden in the
world. It was laid out in 1692 with yew and box hedges cut into elaborate
and curious shapes.
After lunch our next stop is Sizergh Castle, which remains the
home of the Strickland family after 750 years. Its impressive 14th-century
pele tower was extended in Tudor times, and it has some of the finest
Elizabethan carved overmantels in the country. The castle is home to the
National Trust's largest and most beautiful limestone rock garden.
Second of 3 nights at the Wild Boar Hotel
Day 11 (Wednesday)
Our tour of the northern section of the Lake District begins at Grasmere
to visit Dove Cottage and Wordsworth's Museum. This charming small
cottage was Wordsworth's home from 1799-1808. We stop at Castlerigg
Stone Circle, similar but smaller than Stonehenge, set on a hill
against the dramatic backdrop of the mountains. In the market town of Keswick
we visit the Cumberland Pencil Museum and you may also wish to
visit the exotic Teapot Factory. We stop in the small town of Ambleside
to photograph the tiniest house which straddles a stream, then to the edge
of Lake Windermere, the largest of the lakes, where you have free
time to explore Cumbria's most popular resort, and perhaps take a trip on
the lake
Last of 3 nights at the Wild Boar Hotel
Day 12 (Thursday)
We depart for North Wales, expecting to reach the elegant seaside
resort of Llandudno in time for lunch. After lunch and some free
time explore a little of this resort with its fine long beach stretching
between two headlands, known as the Great Orme and Little Orme, its lovely
wide promenade and many shops, we continue to Bodnant Gardens, the
pride of North Wales.
The Gardens date from 1875 in the time of the 2nd
Baron of Aberconway, and, spanning 80 acres situated above the River Conwy
with views over the Snowdonia range, are considered one of the most
beautiful gardens in the UK. The gardens are divided into two - the upper,
formal garden with Italianate terraces, wide lawns and a magnificent 120
ft. long Laburnum Arch; and the lower wild, wooded garden, known as
"The Dell". Bodnant has endeavoured to grow a wide range of
interesting and beautiful plants from all over the world, particularly
China, North America, Europe and Japan which are suited to the Welsh
climate and soil.
We continue to our hotel in Betws-y-Coed, North Wales's most
popular inland resort and principal village of Snowdonia National Park,
surrounded by dense woodland and magnificent mountain scenery.
First of two nights - Waterloo Hotel, Betws-y-Coed
Day 13 (Friday)
We depart for Conway Castle and town, where the morning is at
leisure to visit the amazing Plas Mawr Elizabethan Town House
(opens at 9:30), visit Conway Castle and walk on the walls
surrounding the town. Make sure you don't miss the smallest house in
the Britain by the harbour.
I suggest you either have lunch in Conway or pick up a sandwich for
lunch on the bus, and meet at 1:30 "meeting point" to transfer
to Penrhyn Castle situated between the Menai Strait and Snowdonia.
This huge, impressive-looking, neo-Norman fortress was built by architect
Thomas Hopper between 1820-1845 as his dream castle for his client, George
Pennant, who had instructed him to "Build a mansion for me. Do
what you like. Money is no object!" Described as "a lavish
residence, massive and stupendous in every way," it contains
interesting "Norman" furniture, panelling and plasterwork, and
the best private collection of paintings in North Wales. It also has a
surprising railway, a doll museum, and a lovely Victorian walled garden.
Last of two nights in Betws-y-Coed
Day 14 (Saturday)
Today we visit two most interesting attractions on the Welsh borders.
We drive through Llangollen, home of the Welsh International Music
Eisteddfod, to stop at the amazingly long Pontcysyllte Aqueduct,
high above the valley. Built by Thomas Telford from 1795-1805 at a cost of
£47,000 (which was even more of a fortune then), it is now used as a
canal for the long houseboats which you may see crossing up to 126 feet
above the valley.
We next visit Chirk Castle, an imposing Marcher fortress which
was completed in 1310, commanding fine views over the countryside, and
still inhabited by the Myddleham family. It has elaborate entrance gates,
elegantly-decorated state rooms, and a lovely formal garden with an
amazing array of fancifully-shaped topiary bushes. It also has a very rare
herd of black sheep!
First of two nights - Shrigley Hall Hotel, nr.
Macclesfield
Day 15 (Sunday)
Biddulph Grange Gardens are one of Britain's most unusual
gardens, where you can experience garden styles from across the world.
While it might sound a little 'gimmicky' it features the Great Wall of
China and the Egyptian Court, each area separated by a cleverly-planned
framework of hedges, rocks, banks and plantings. It is also home for a
wide-ranging collection of plants, such as the conifers in the Pinetum,
varied and exotic plants from China, and Himalayan trees in the Glen.
After lunch we continue to our final and very fascinating attraction - Little
Morton Hall, the most famous of England's "magpie" houses.
Begun in the 15th century and extensively restored in 1991, this gem is
regarded as the most perfect example of a black-and-white, timber-framed
moated house in the country, surrounded by a small garden which ideally
suits this amazing "crooked" house.
Last of 2 nights in Shrigley Hall
Day 16 (Monday)
After a full breakfast at the hotel we depart for the Airport.
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