My tour departs on 10th September and has just changed from PD to DEF!!! I have been anxiously checking every day and its finally changed to definate.
Is there anyone that can post a tour tale of this tour?
Jeni - you said in March that you were going on the tour in May - are you back yet? I am dying to read a tale!!!!

sydneysue,

the "Elegance of Great Britain" tour is a renaming this year of an Insight tour that has been running for several years with the title: "Country Roads, Gardens & Stately Homes of Britain".

There is a detailed tour journal for that tour on this BB written by Cat's Inheritance who visits the BB most days and he may be able to answer some of your questions related to this tour. You can find a link to the tour journal in the Where Are All the Tales? topic.

You can also find links to several sets of photos of the tour in the topic Where are ALL the Photos & Videos?.

phil

This message has been edited. Last edited by: phil,

thanks Phil, I have read that but it is out of date now as the tour has changed a bit since then, for instance it stays in Bronte Country = Hollins Hall and I would like to see if it will be possible to visit the Bronte Parsonage in Haworth which is not far from the hotel, depending on the time the coach arrives at the hotel. etc,

Hi SydneySue

Yes I am back and it was amazing!!!!! I loved every minute of it!
I am hoping to write a tour tale soon, but in the meantime feel free to ask any questions you have and I will answer them asap

I remember I think, that you were asking if we went to the Brontes house in "Bronte Country" and the simple answer to that is no. We went to a stunning hotel in the area (Marriot Hollins Hall) that had pictures on the walls illustrating different books which was nice. I think it would be good if Insight were to take us to the Brontes' home and that might be something for them to think about in the future.

That said - we were in the hotel by 5pm and we would have been able to get a taxi to the Parsonage to see it I would think. Just ask the hotel staff for help.

This hotel was the best of the entire trip! It was stunning! We loved it. Double beds (one each) extra pillows, great views and staff that did everything possible for us! It was great... and the views of the wild rabbits out the window was a thrill for me.

The following day was in York. We had several hours in the morning in York and got time to really explore the city. Mum and I went through Yorvik Viking Archaeological Exhibit and reenactment Centre and explored the shambles and a few antique shops as well as having lunch - so there was plenty of time. In the afternoon we headed to Castle Howard - oh my what a place that is! It was absolutely stunning and quite a highlight for me - I even got to take photos throughout. Mum called it a neo-classical monstronsity, but each to their own! LOL

This tour is very specialist, but it is just fabulous! There are very few optionals (4 I think?? I will have to check my list) but they were all worth it.

The highlight for me was Castle Howard. I just loved it. Mum's highlights were Ludlow Castle, York and Yorvik.

The days are full - but the pace is very relaxed. You really get to see everything on the tour and have plenty of free time to explore the places we stop.

I cannot recommend this tour highly enough and I thank Insight for adding it to their repertoire.

Feel free to ask me questions and I will try to get a tour tale up asap.

You should love this tour it is completely different from anything else we have done (3 other tours - 2 with Insight) and it is a real gem!
We loved it

Enjoy the countdown to your trip.

Best wishes
Jeni

Hi Jeni
Welcome back! So glad you and Mother enjoyed your trip. I am eagerly awaiting your tale with baited breath!! Getting to Hollins Hall at 5pm may be too late to get a cab to the Bronte Parsonage - maybe I can discuss this with the TD and other passengers and see if we can arrive 1 hour earlier, worth a try!. Your valuable info is so helpful.Thank you.

Doesn't it seem a bit odd to go to Bronte Country and not have at least an optional visit to the parsonage?

Yes, I am sure a lot of people would love to visit the parsonage and it's in the near vicinity, it would increase bookings on the tour for Insight as well, as no other coach tour company visits the parsonage. It would be a highlight.

Hi Jeni

When you stayed in Windemere in the Lake District did you do the optional cruise of the lake and was it worth it? How long was the cruise? Did you go on any walks nearby, see Beatrix Potter exhibition , Wordsworth Dove Cottage etc. I would like to utilise well my full day in the area. Thank you in advance for your advice.

The day in the Lake District was great. We had been scheduled to stay in the Windermere Hydro but they had double booked so we were upgraded to the Beech Hill Hotel. This hotel was right on Lake Windermere and you could walk down some (okay lots) of steps and be at the waters edge.

The main day in the Lake District was interesting. We went on the Steam Train and Lake Cruise Optional which was well worth it - if you do this optional sit on the right hand side of the steam train for views of the Lakes.

The train journey was 30 minutes long and then the Lake Cruise goes for about an hour. The commentary is hard to hear, but it is a great opportunity to see the lakeside cottages and gardens. We enjoyed it very much.

We were then taken to Grasmere where we had about 2 hours to wander. Now Grasmere was interesting, but not that interesting! Not at least to us anyway. We had lunch and just wandered around for a while.

While we were at Grasmere there was plenty of time to go into Dove Cottage and explore the little church where Wordsworth was buried. If you were into Wordsworth you certainly had enough time to explore his village and treat yourself to some souvenirs. You also had enough time to wander down a little path to beside the lake for great photos of the area.

When we returned to the coach we were driven a little way up the road to Ambleside for a look at the tiniest house in England and we had about an hour there. Now I could have spent all day in Ambleside. It was fabulous. The town had so many odd features and a river that just demanded attention. I found a record shop and stocked up on Queen CDs. It was great. I wish we had stopped in Ambleside for the lunch break not Grasmere! But that is just me - others were in raptures over Grasmere.

After leaving Ambleside our TD Stephen took us for a long drive up to a pass through the mountains. This drive was an unexpected extra based on the fact that we had done well timewise and had some extra time. It was not part of the itinerary so whether it would be offered on your trip I could not say for sure. Once there, the views were stunning but gee it was cold and windy. I got some wonderful photos. We visited the pub at the top of this pass and I got to see my first real wood fire. I took a photo and a young man shot out from behind the bar to stoke the fire so I would get an even better photo! It was quite thrilling.

After this we drove back to our hotel ready for our included dinner. The dinner was stunning and we really enjoyed ourselves.

While we enjoyed immensely our time in the Lake District there was not much free time, especially as we were not at our scheduled hotel. If anyone had not opted for the optional I do not know what they would have done. It would have been difficult to go out walking on your own given that the hotel seemed to be on a main road and there was little else around. That said, it was a stunning hotel!

Our TD mentioned Beatrix Potter but we did not get to time to locate or see the Beatrix Potter exhibition. However, it is worth checking with your TD to see what is possible. Stephen was more than happy to accommodate special requests throughout our tour, and ensured that everyone got to see their special treats.

Hope that helps
Hugs
Jeni

Jeni,

Thanks for sharing so much of your trip! I too am going on the September tour and I look forward very much to seeing Churchill's home and the Cotswolds ... did you have much free time to wander around in the villages themselves? Which villages did you get to visit? Was the tour "full" (how many folks were on your trip)? I checked every day for a long time (months, I think) before my trip became a "DEF" and when it did, I was so happy I had to email my family immediately and give them the good news! Keep the tales coming!