England 2014

Your Land Tour of England Includes:

Transport by deluxe motor coach with professional Driver and Tour Guide
Hotel accommodations for 7 nights - 2 nights in Bristol, 2 nights in Solihull and 3 nights in London.
Breakfast Daily (except day of arrival)
Welcome Pub Dinner in Bristol
Two Hotel Dinners at Solihull
Traditional Cream Tea at a Farmhouse in the Frome Valley
Dinner at a London Pub with literary connections
Elizabethan Farewell Banquet
Admissions as follows: SS Great Britain, Roman Baths, Avebury, Alexander Keiller Museum, Anne Hathaway's Cottage, Shakespeare Birthplace, Warwick Castle, Highclere Castle
Oxford Walking Tour
London Hope On/Hop Off Bus Tour
Fully escorted sightseeing as per itinerary
Hotel porterage of one suitcase per person (plus one carry-on bag)
Hotel tips and taxes throughout. (Except tips to your personal Driver/Guide)

Itinerary

Day One – 8/1/14 - Friday Depart US

Tonight we begin our journey as we board our jet bound for England. If you have selected the optional group air flight you will enjoy getting to know our group as we make our way to London, England!

Day Two – 8/2/14 - Saturday Bristol
We arrive in the morning at London Heathrow Airport where, after clearing customs, we are met by our Driver and Tour Guide. We make our way via Reading & Swindon to Bristol. Historically split between Gloucestershire & Somerset, the city received a Royal charter in 1155 and was granted County status in 1373. From the 13th century, for half a millennium, it ranked amongst the top three English cities after London, alongside York and Norwich, on the basis of tax receipts, until the rapid rise of Liverpool, Birmingham and Manchester during the Industrial Revolution in the latter part of the 18th century. It borders the counties of Somerset and Gloucestershire, and is also located near the historic cities of Bath to the southeast and Gloucester to the north. The city is built around the River Avon, and it also has a short coastline on the Severn Estuary, which flows into the Bristol Channel. We enjoy a brief tour of the city, then the rest of the day is free. Tonight we enjoy a Welcome Dinner at a local Pub!

Day Three – 8/3/14 - Sunday Bristol and Bath

This morning we enjoy a visit to the SS Great Britain, the world's first ocean-going, propeller-driven, iron ship. The SS Great Britain enjoyed a long working life from 1845 to 1933 thanks to Brunel's engineering skills. In 1886 she was badly damaged in a storm and her ocean going career came to an end. Bought by the Falklands Islands Company, she spent the next 47 years as a floating warehouse. In 1937, after becoming too unsafe even for this, she was towed to Sparrow Cove, a remote bay near Port William, and scuttled in its shallow waters. And there she might have remained, a sorry sight left to rust and rot, gradually losing her fittings to trophy hunters and visited only by the occasional picnic party or curious penguin. But destiny had a different fate in store for this lucky ship.

This afternoon we head towards Bath. On arrival we will meet a local guide for a sightseeing tour, including a visit to the Roman Baths, from which the city takes its name. We return afterwards to Bristol via the beautiful Frome Valley where we will stop for an English Cream Tea at a traditional farmhouse. Enjoy dinner on your own this evening.

Day Four – 8/4/14 - Monday Bristol - Warwickshire

After breakfast we depart Bristol and make our way to Avebury. Avebury contains the largest stone circle in Europe, and is one of the best known prehistoric sites in Britain! Constructed around 2600 BC, during the Neolithic, or 'New Stone Age', the monument comprises a large henge (that is a bank and a ditch) with a large outer stone circle and two separate smaller stone circles situated inside the centre of the monument. Its original purpose is unknown, although archaeologists believe that it was most likely used for some form of ritual or ceremony. Avebury is owned and run by the National Trust, a charitable organization who keep it open to the public. It has been designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument, and is a World Heritage Site as a part of the wider prehistoric landscape of Wiltshire known as Stonehenge, Avebury and Associated Sites.

We will also visit the Alexander Keiller Museum nearby. In the 1930s, the pretty village of Avebury, partially encompassed by the stone circle of this World Heritage Site, was witness to the excavations of archaeologist Alexander Keiller. Keiller opened the museum here to display his findings in 1938 in the old stable building of Avebury Manor where he lived. In re-erecting many of the stones, Keiller uncovered the true wonder of one of the most important megalithic monuments in Europe. You can see his fascinating finds on display in the museum, still housed in the stables but now also in the 17th-century threshing barn, where interactive displays bring the landscape to life.

We then continue on to Cirencester, one of England's major cities in Roman times. We will view the site of the ancient Amphitheatre and visit the Corinium Museum. Our drive afterwards takes us through the quaint heart of England...the beautiful villages of the Cotswolds...with stops en route, to our hotel near Stratford-Upon-Avon. Dinner is included in our hotel tonight.

Day Five - 8/5/14 - Tuesday Stratford-Upon-Avon

After breakfast in the hotel we enjoy a visit to Anne Hathaway's Cottage at Shottery. This twelve-roomed farmhouse is where the wife of William Shakespeare lived as a child. Spacious, and with several bedrooms, it is now set in extensive gardens. The earliest part of the house was built prior to the 15th century. The cottage was known as Newlands Farm in Shakespeare's day and had more than 90 acres of land attached to it. As in many houses of the period, it has multiple chimneys to spread the heat evenly throughout the house during winter. The largest chimney was used for cooking. It also has visible timber framing, typical of vernacular Tudor style architecture.

We will then continue on to Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England, where it is believed that William Shakespeare was born in 1564 and spent his childhood years. The house itself is relatively simple, but for the late 16th century it would have been considered quite a substantial dwelling. John Shakespeare, William's father, was a glove maker and wool dealer, and the house was originally divided in two parts to allow him to carry out his business from the same premises. We will enjoy some free time in Stratford-Upon-Avon.

This afternoon we travel to ancient Warwick and enjoy a visit to Warwick Castle, the finest preserved Medieval Castle in England. This castle was developed from an original built by William the Conqueror in 1068. Situated on a bend of the River Avon, the original wooden motte-and-bailey castle was rebuilt in stone in the 12th century. In 1978, after 374 years in the Greville family, it was sold to a media and entertainment company, the Tussauds Group, who opened it as a tourist attraction. In 2001, Warwick Castle was named one of Britain's "Top 10 historic houses and monuments" by the British Tourist Authority. In June 2005, Warwick Castle became home to one of the world's largest working siege engines, or catapult. Tonight we will return to our nearby hotel where we will enjoy our included dinner.

Day Six-8/6/14 - Wednesday Oxfordshire

This morning we will travel into Oxfordshire and make a short visit to the village of Bampton, which followers of Downton Abbey may find familiar. Most of the village scenes were filmed here.

We will continue on to Oxford for a walking tour of the city. The city is known worldwide as a university town and home of the University of Oxford, the oldest university in the country and the English-speaking world. Buildings in Oxford demonstrate an example of every English architectural period since the arrival of the Saxons, including the iconic, mid-18th-century Radcliffe Camera (Camera, meaning "room" in Italian). Oxford is known as the "city of dreaming spires", a term coined by poet Matthew Arnold in reference to the harmonious architecture of Oxford's university buildings. This afternoon we will arrive in London where we will receive an orientation tour en route to our centrally located hotel. Our dinner tonight is at a historic London pub with literary connections!

Day Seven-8/7/14 - Thursday London-Newbury-London

After breakfast we travel to Newbury for a visit to Highclere Castle, now known worldwide for its portrayal as Downton Abbey. Highclere Castle is one of England's most beautiful Victorian Castles, set amidst 1,000 acres of spectacular parkland. The Carnarvon family has lived at Highclere since 1679, and the current Castle stands on the site of an earlier house, which in turn was built on the foundations of the medieval place owned by the Bishops of Winchester for some 800 years. We will visit inside the Castle as well as have some time to enjoy the parklands. You may wish to stop into the Castle Gift Shop for a souvenir or have a light lunch or tea, made in the Castle kitchens, in the Tea Room! Dinner on your own this evening to enjoy London.

Day Eight-8/8/14 - Friday London

After breakfast with the group, enjoy your free day in London to explore the many famous sites. We have included tickets to the Hop On/Hop Off Bus Tour. You can customize your own tour by hopping on and off the bus at any stop, as many times as you like. The Yellow Route features live onboard commentary and makes frequent stops - simply hop off where you want to, and return to the same stop to continue your tour. London Highlights: Madame Tussauds, Piccadilly Circus, Leicester Square, Trafalgar Square, Downing street, Big Ben and Parliament, London Eye, Covent Garden, St. Paul's Cathedral, Tower Bridge, Tower of London, Shakespeare's Globe, Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace.

This evening our group will travel to Hatfield House for an Elizabethan Banquet, a fitting finale for our wonderful tour of England!

Day Nine-8/9/14 - Saturday London - USA

Sadly, today our English vacation has come to its final day. We will transfer to the London Heathrow Airport in good time to check in for our flight. We will arrive home the same day with many fond memories and new friends!

Land Cost

9 days - Only $2595.00 per person double

Single Supplement $650 (Very limited)

(Please let us know if you are single & would like to room with someone by noting it in the comment box on the online reservation form!)

Join the group for our overseas flight to London on Britain's Virgin Atlantic airlines!

(Optional group air rate: $1350 per person roundtrip from Newark, NJ to London.)

Trip Insurance is available and recommended

(Trip cancellation insurance covers cancellation prior to your trip due to illness or death of self, roommate or immediate family (not aunt, uncles or cousins).
Immediate family members traveling together, living at the same address, must each purchase insurance to be covered.)

PAYMENTS:

A $350 per person deposit ($450 if air is selected) is required for space confirmation. Final payment is due May 19, 2014.

The deposit is refundable if cancelled before May 19, 2014.

CANCELLATIONS:

All cancellations must be received in writing.

Cancellation Penalties (Please consider the trip insurance)

May 19, 2014–June 15, 2014....50% cancellation penalty

June 16, 2014 - Day of departure/no show......100% penalty (No refund)

DOCUMENTS:

All travel documents will be sent approximately 2 weeks prior to departure.

PROOF OF CITIZENSHIP:

All U. S. passengers must carry a passport valid for 6 months past the last date of travel.
Passengers who are denied entry to aircraft or foreign country due to improper documents are NOT entitled to a refund.

This tour is not suitable for young children.