Hi

Having just returned from the brilliant Elegance of Great Britain I thought I would pop up a tour tale to help those who are thinking of doing this tour.

The Elegance of Great Britain is a specialist tour focussing on Castles, Stately Homes and Gardens throughout England and Scotland. The tour avoids the main roads where possible, driving through some of the most amazing countryside allowing you not only to see the land but also some of England's wildlife. Gotta be fast with the camera to get photos though!

I would strongly recommend this tour to anyone who likes gardens, history, the British royal family, architecture, and/or art in general. This tour is just perfect for all this and much more.

I had wanted to do this tour back when it was the Country Roads, Stately Homes and Gardens tour so I was delighted when it came up again this year renamed the Elegance of Great Britain. It is a delightful tour and I am so glad that Insight offers it.

Now information about the tour itself:

The Tour is 11 days covering England and Scotland.

Pace is leisurely with most stops being for 2 hours or more. However we had plenty of time in each location. For example we had almost 4 hours in York, and over 3 1/2 hours in Beaulieu, Castle Howard, Hever Castle and Blenheim. You get plenty of time to explore, take photos, wander through the Houses and even have a bite to eat. This is no crazy dash through the country that's for sure.

Highlights:

Included Visits to:

Winston Churchill’s former country residence of Chartwell
Hever Castle, the childhood home of Anne Boleyn, tragic queen of King Henry VIII
The Palace House, Abbey ruins and National Motor Museum at Beaulieu
The birthplace of the celebrated bard, William Shakespeare, in pretty Stratford-upon-Avon
The house and gardens of Blenheim Palace, the greatest building of the English Baroque
The award-winning gardens of Sudeley Castle in the Cotswolds
The Edinburgh Botanical Gardens
The Honours of Scotland on your visit to Edinburgh Castle
Abbotsford, the house built and lived in by famous novelist and author, Sir Walter Scott
The fabulous 18th century Castle Howard, with its tapestries and scenic gardens
The dungeons, Great Hall and State Rooms of medieval Warwick Castle

With Time to Explore

The Cathedral town of Winchester
Salisbury Cathedral
Avebury’s stone circles
Ludlow’s ruined castle and Jacobean timbered buildings
Gretna Green
The New Town and the Royal Mile in Edinburgh
Hadrian’s Wall
York Minster and Shambles

Please note you have to pay to enter Winchester and Salisbury Cathedrals and Ludlow Castle if you want to see more than just the outside. Do not be fooled into thinking a "voluntary contribution" is really voluntary. You have to pay to go in to the Cathedrals. We did not go to York Minster so we don't know about there.

You also get to see:

Wenlock Edge
Jedburgh Abbey
Churchill’s statue in the village of Westerham

And have

Scenic Drives in the Cotswolds, New Forest and the Lake District

This tour packs a lot in every day and is beautifully balanced between House and Garden.

I was not bored for one minute! It was stunning.

My Tour:

My mother and I did the very first of the tour dates for this year, May 7 through to May 17 2009

The Tour Director was Stephen Russell and the Driver was Pat.

There were 24 of us on tour - an interesting mix of Canadians (with a large party coming from Nova Scotia), Americans and Australians. Quite a few of us had travelled with Insight before.

There was plenty of room on the coach so after we had done our first seat rotation we tended to just sit anywhere on the coach. There were no arguments about seating, and everyone got a chance to sit at the front.

Hotels: We had an interesting mix of hotels on this tour. The best one was the Hollins Hall in Bronte Country and the worst was the Hilton in Edinburgh. A note on the Hilton - Perhaps they were having a bad week, but the staff in the Hilton seemed utterly unprepared for groups at breakfast. On our first morning there the breakfast room was so full that we were told there was a 20 minute wait to be seated for breakfast, or you could have your breakfast in the bar!! We opted for the bar! The breakfast on that morning was quite sparse as well because there were so many people there and the staff were not restocking as quickly as they could have. That said, it was not enough of an issue to ruin my day. It is just an observation that the Hilton could improve its performance.

We had one change of hotel. We were due to go to the Windermere Hydro for our stay in the Lake District but they had overbooked and we were upgraded to the Beech Hill Hotel. Now the Beech Hill Hotel was stunning! Absolutely top notch! It was on the banks of Lake Windermere and had stunning views of the lake.

The Meals:

We were very happy with the included meals on this tour. Some of them - like the included dinner at Botley Park - were stunning. Not just for the taste but also the presentation and the attention to detail. The majority were fine. There was only one meal where we were given absolutely no choice and this was the second night in Bronte Country. We had had an included dinner at the hotel the night before which had been really good and we were looking forward to another meal there on the second night. However, we were sent to a pub/hotel in York (The Monk Bar) for dinner unexpectedly and the meal there was a set menu with no options. We had a mushroom soup, roast beef with the largest yorkshire puddings I have ever seen and bread and butter pudding. The meal was fine, but it did provoke comment within the group about the lack of choice.

The breakfasts were fine, with plenty of options and lots of tempting goodies to try. That said I usually just have a coffee for breakfast so I am not the best judge! I was overwhelmed by the amount of food available in most hotels and really enjoyed breakfast. After eating such a huge breakfast every morning I often just opted for a cake and a coffee for lunch. I was not very hungry until dinnertime.

The Dine Around Evening in Stratford:

This is a new feature offered by Insight and it is a lot of fun. Essentially you are given a choice of two restaurants for your evening meal. We had the choice of the Marlow or the Hathaway Tea Rooms (I think). Each of these restaurants were in Tudor Buildings and were quite a treat. We opted for the Marlowe and the meals were interesting and very filling. We had a great evening. We liked this new feature very much. It was certainly different.

Meals on the Optionals:

While I will discuss the optionals in detail below, I will make a short comment on the meals here. The meals for the optionals were often quite exceptional depending on what you chose. For example, we were offered a choice of fish and chips or a roast dinner for the Stratford Dinner. Those that opted for fish and chips found this to be a little dry and not so good, while those of us who opted for the roast dinner were overwhelmed. They had provided enough food for about 100 people. There were about 10 of us eating the roast dinner! The vegetables were well cooked and abundant, and the roast meats were melt in the mouth. I think that I certainly chose well that day!

The meal for the Edinburgh Scottish Cabaret was nice but rather rushed so we would be finished before the show started. This was no leisurely meal! However the show more than made up for it.

The Optionals:

ST01 STRATFORD DINNER
We enjoy a three-course dinner with wine in a traditional venue. UK £26.00

This optional included a wonderful drive through the Cotswolds with plenty of stops to get photos of thatched cottages and beautiful gardens. It was a wonderful drive and we certainly got plenty of time to enjoy the Cotswolds region. We visited several villages, including Stow on the Wold, and saw some stunning views.

After this we were driven to a sweet little pub for a drink and dinner. See comments above about the dinner

This optional was well worth doing (with the proviso about the fish and chips being not the best) and very enjoyable. I would not hesitate to do this again. It was just fabulous.

LKD01 LAKE WINDERMERE CRUISE & STEAM TRAIN RIDE
Windermere is England's largest lake, what better way than a cruise followed by a ride aboard a steam train from Lakeside to Haverthwaite. UK £13.00

This optional was a lot of fun. We did the Steam train ride first followed by the cruise.

The train ride lasts for 30 minutes and is really different. I recommend that you try to sit on the right side of the train if doing this trip train then cruise or on the left side of the train if you get cruise then train. Why?? Because the suggested side had great views of the lake. The other side of the train has views of the hills and woods and sweet little streams which run into the lake (still very pretty!). We got this view and managed to take great photos and even got some shots of the steam coming out of the train .

The cruise lasted for about an hour and was great. The included commentary was hard to hear and in the end we just ignored it. We bought a coffee and cake each and just sat back to enjoy the ride. We got lovely shots of lakeside houses and gardens and some interesting statuary.

This was a fun optional and it added a great deal to our experiences in the Lake District.

EDI01 SCOTTISH CABARET
Tonight is a chance to put on that tartan and join us for an evening of singing, dancing and bagpipe playing. There is food, wine and a great atmosphere. Join in with the singing, we'll show you a Highland dance or two and there's a chance to sample Scotland's national dish - haggis. It's a grand night and a wonderful way to celebrate an evening in Edinburgh. UK £ 41.00

Ah yes - Haggis Night!

This was a must do for us, we were determined to try Haggis and signed up for this optional as soon as it was offered. The meal was a little rushed as I have said but it was still good.
The entertainment put on by this show was great. I even got to see what a Scotsman wears under his kilt!!!!

Audience participation was encouraged and several people were taken from the audience to learn highland dances. We were all encouraged to join in the singing. Thankfully the songs included more modern ones so I could actually join in. I felt very out of it at first because I did not know the songs they were singing (many in the group did so they were singing along) but when they started to sing the Proclaimers "I would walk a 1000 miles" I felt better… I knew that one!!! LOL

In the middle of the show the Haggis was brought in. We got to see the Ceremony of the Haggis which was entertaining and then we were all offered a slice of haggis with neeps and tatties (parsnips and potato). It was amusing to watch people's reactions to the Haggis. We had been told by Stephen that the Haggis was made of minced lamb rather than the original recipe (fake haggis! LOL) but still people reacted as if it was the most offensive thing they had ever been offered. Very few people seemed to take up the offer of "fake" haggis, but I was determined to try it. It was very nice, and well worth trying.

Mum liked it so much that she would have been happy to have a complete haggis dinner!

This optional was heaps of fun and I am glad we did it - fake haggis and all!

EDI02 DINNER IN EDINBURGH
This evening we visit a local restaurant for a three-course dinner with a drink included. UK £26.00

We were offered a drive to the Two Bridges restaurant opposite, and with great views of, the rail bridge and road bridge across the Forth River. We were given the opportunity to take heaps of photos before dinner and then were encouraged to head on over to the restaurant. Now I was not well this evening so I ate barely anything. However, from what the others told me, and according to mum, the dinner was very nice. There was plenty of choice and the food was good. I can certainly say the staff were very nice, especially when I got so ill.

Mum said the dinner was nice, but she was disappointed that she was not offered the option of a full haggis dinner while in Edinburgh. Perhaps this could be offered as a dining choice at one of the two nights Insight ?? Apparently she could have had one at the hotel, but she didn't know this until about 20 minutes before we checked out

Mum said that this optional was good, but had she known about the Haggis Dinner at the Hotel she would have jettisoned this optional and had dinner at the hotel.

So if you are a Haggis Fan and heading to Edinburgh on any tour you may want to make a note of this and plan accordingly.

We were not offered the optional

EDI03 HOLYROOD PALACE

However we did this ourselves and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. We were there a few days before the Queen was due to arrive so we got to see the palace in all its splendour. We were not only able to see the Palace, and take photos, but I also got to see the Queen's Gallery and the Conversation Piece art display, while mum saw the gardens and the ruins of an abbey in the grounds. It was great and well worth a look. I think that this optional would have been nice if it had been offered, but we certainly had plenty of time to visit on our own.

Total Price for the Optionals for both of us worked out to $430 AUD or 212 GBP. We were more than happy with that.

Day 1 - LONDON - HAMPSHIRE

After a warm welcome from your Tour Director, make your way into the Kent countryside. At the pretty village of Westerham, Winston Churchill watches over the neat village green and you visit his nearby residence of Chartwell. Continue through brilliant yellow and green pastures to Hever Castle, home to the tragic tale of Anne Boleyn and Henry VIII. Cross the moat to explore the fortified manor house and stroll the pretty gardens.

Our tour started with a 6.45am wake up call and we were scheduled to leave at 8.15am. We met up with our TD Stephen and because the group was so small - only 24 of us - and we were well organised and on time we were on our way early. Stephen gave us a drive by tour of London as he and Pat (our Driver) negotiated their way out of the city. The regular route was very busy due to diversions so we went a different way and got interesting views of London.

As soon as was possible we got off the motorways and we introduced to the countryside. Pat tried hard to take scenic roads and show us the beauty of England. He certainly succeeded as far as I was concerned! I loved seeing the countryside.

We drove to Westerham and Chartwell where the staff were not exactly prepared for us! We were the first tour group of the season and they were not ready. No matter said Stephen, we'll go to Hever Castle first and come back for lunchtime.

So we travelled on to Hever Castle. Goodness me, Hever was beautiful! We were there before the Castle opened so we had time to explore the gardens. They were our first introduction to Gardens on this tour and as I had no idea what to expect they blew me away! There were so many different "gardens" within the green space. I was not expecting to see gardens broken up into rooms and the concept was thrilling. We walked our way through to the Italian Garden, passing through some knot gardens and some wilderness regions and the maze. All of the gardens were superb. The flowers were in bloom and some of the statuary were covered in flowers. It really was a spectacular introduction to the Gardens of England.

We made our way back to the Castle in time for its opening, and this was a moment of some confusion. We were told by Stephen to be back in good time for the opening of the castle for our "tour". This implied we were having a conducted tour of the Castle, but we didn't. We were able to go through the castle at our own pace and enjoy it. The layout was confusing as we seemed to go back on ourselves quite a bit as we followed the ropes.

However, that said, Hever Castle was just glorious. Our only disappointment was that we could not take photos! Hever was full of Henry VIII memorabilia, including minatures and portraits I had not seen before. This was a feature of the entire tour. As it is the 500th anniversary of his ascension to the throne England has Henry fever. He was everywhere (great for me as I was very interested in his history and his reign, and his marital woes) It was a pity I could not photograph the memorabilia as they did not have copies or postcards in the shop

Hever Castle was so interesting. We saw where Anne Boleyn had slept, where Henry VIII had slept and we saw some amazing portraits of those involved in settling "the King's Great Matter" including Cardinal Wolsey, and portraits of the family (including several of Henry's wives). There were even framed letters sent to Anne from Henry and some from her back to him, as well as her prayer book. The castle also had a display of waxworks dressed as Henry and his 6 wives. One thing I did notice was that for all Henry VIII rejected Anne of Cleves because she was "ugly" the waxwork of her did not reflect this. She was supposed to have had smallpox between the time Holbein had painted her portrait and the time she arrived in England and this had scarred her face. However, the portrayal of Anne in the waxworks showed a woman of some beauty!

Hever Castle was somewhere I had always wanted to see, given my interest in Henry VIII, and it certainly did not disappoint. I even got to see my first swan of the tour here!

All of the houses and gardens we went to had a gift shop and Hever Castle offered some unusual items. I picked up a book of the letters sent to Henry from Anne and from Henry to Anne. These were most unusual and I treasure this particular souvenir!

After leaving Hever Castle we returned to Chartwell for a "tour" and lunch. We started off by having lunch in the little restaurant. I had a strange sausage casserole - it was really nice! I was determined to eat all the regional dishes I could find and started well. It soon descended into all the regional soups I could find as I was not really hungry at lunchtime!

After our lunch we head up to the house for our "tour". Again the use of the word tour threw us. We envisioned a guided tour, only to find we did a self guided tour at our own pace. Not to worry, this gave us time to explore those things that tempted us.

Not being all that big on Winston Churchill I explored the house looking at the art and history that was there, while ignoring the Winston aspect of it all. We saw lovely portraits and paintings and enjoyed these very much. We did see a nice display of paintings done by Winston which was rather unexpected. One of our group bought a print of one of the more stunning paintings which was lovely.

After viewing the house we had plenty of time to explore the gardens. These were huge!!!! We found an enclosed garden "the Kitchen Garden" I think and looked at all the flowers.

On our way out of the gardens we passed a number of small pools with fish, the "Swimming Pool" and a large lake. We were beginning to get an idea of just how grand these houses and castles were. I don't have the land to put even a duck pond in my garden.. So to see places with 3 or 4 ponds and a good sized lake was illuminating!

After we finished at Chartwell, late afternoon, we drove on to our hotel for the next two nights, the Botley Park Golf and Country Club. We had a welcome drink and an included dinner here. and we got the chance to get to know members of the group and Stephen.

Day 2 - NEW FOREST EXCURSION

A scenic drive through the woods and glades of the New Forest brings you to Beaulieu Abbey, once a Cistercian Abbey, now the stately home of Lord Montagu. Tour the Palace House, Abbey ruins and visit his lordship's collection of cars in the National Motor Museum. Travel on to Salisbury to see the 13th century cathedral, whose spire is the tallest in the land. After some free time, return to your hotel where the remainder of the day is at leisure.

This morning began with a leisurely drive through the New Forest - which wasn't as wooded as I imagined - with stops to allow us to take photos of the wild New Forest Ponies and other wildlife. We certainly enjoyed that!

Soon though we arrived at Beaulieu Abbey. Now mum and I had only really registered the words National Motor Museum so we were not really looking forward to this particular day out, however, there is so much more at Beaulieu Abbey!!!!!!

We gave the museum a miss and headed off to explore the rest of the grounds. We headed through the gardens to the House but it wasn't open for another 30 minutes so we explored the gardens more fully and then we found the Abbey Ruins and the church. There was a wonderful film that ran continually all day so you could just drop in and watch it. This film gave the full history of the Abbey from its development through to its collapse. It was fascinating. After we watched the 20 minute film we wandered through a display of the Abbey's history and upstairs to a loft area with some glorious embroideries we just had to have postcards of them!. Then we headed through the ruins themselves. They had a real feel to them! Right in the centre of the ruins was a chapel (or kitchen I can't remember which) that had been turned into a church (still in use today). The church was very interesting.

After we left the Abbey ruins we found a display showing how Beaulieu Abbey had been used to train WWII operatives to "set the world ablaze", The Special Operations Executive (SOE) had operated out of the Abbey training spies and saboteurs. Mum was very interested in this so I left her to explore the display and headed over to the House. Mum was very impressed with the display and how it showed a very different side to WWII.

I went through to the Stately Home to explore. Now this place was amazing! The staff were all in costume and the whole place was full of portraiture and paintings. There was even a painting of John and Sarah Churchill. Sarah Churchill had been a personal favourite of Queen Anne's and she had lost her place at court and her power by being too bossy and powerful, there were hints of all kinds of scandals, but ultimately she was exiled from court for being more Queenly than the Queen! I was not expecting to see a portrait of Sarah until Blenheim and took endless photos! LOL. The house was beautifully arranged with wonderful items and artefacts. Thankfully photography was allowed. I got a wonderful photo of the staff in full costume, a butler, and 2 housemaids.

There was a gallery of photographs of the more modern history of Beaulieu with photos of stars at the Abbey - they included Michael Jackson and the Wombles! I just had to have a shot of the Wombles - I grew up with them on the TV!!!

Past the modern gallery were the kitchens. These were huge and well stocked. I brought mum back to look at the kitchens as she is very much into domestic history. We then headed through the gift shop and I found an interesting book on the history of the SOE for mum.

It was getting close to the time we needed to be back at the coach and we headed towards the exit and the gift shop. This gift shop did not have the same items as were on sale in the House, so if you see something you want at the house buy it as you will not be able to get it elsewhere! We were very glad that we had bought our goodies at the house. The gift shop by the exit was much more focussed on the motor museum and cars.

After leaving the Abbey we headed towards Salisbury and its amazing cathedral. Stephen took us on an orientation tour (drive by with locations pointed out) of the city and then took us to see the Cathedral. We were then given several hours to explore on our own and go into the cathedral if we wanted to. Mum and I decided to have lunch (the first soup of the tour) at the Cathedral and then explore it at length. The Cathedral was wonderful and we got a chance to get up close to the Magna Carta (no photos allowed - boohoo!)

I found a great book on the Magna Carta fully illustrated and translated! I just had to have that!

We wandered around Salisbury and explored some of the little lanes and window shopped before heading back to the coach and returning to our hotel.

This evening no dinner was included and we were expected to make our own arrangements. An early bird dinner was offered at the hotel and the majority of us took this option. However, if you did not opt for the dinner we were told that we could get a meal at the local pub, "just a short walk away" but apparently it was not a short walk away, and when you got there there was no food to be had. So you need to either have a big lunch and buy a snack to eat in your room or have a dinner at the hotel. Perhaps Insight might like to think about adding this dinner as an inclusion as it is hard to find an alternative. Just a thought.

That said - the early bird dinner was very good and we enjoyed it immensely. We opted for 3 courses including a dessert and I opted for a "chocolate fondant" - it sounded interesting - but it took 20 minutes to cook and the staff were not clear that the desserts for everyone on the table would arrive when my fondant was cooked and not before (oops! I would not have chosen it if I had realised that!!). Some of the others we were dining with were not amused! Still it was very nice when it arrived.

The hotel had autographed photographs of sporting personalities up on the walls and I just had to get photos of Lewis Hamilton for my brother - he's a big Formula One fan!

The hotel was very nice and well equipped - it even had a heated swimming pool - take your bathing costumes as you certainly have enough time to take a dip! I, of course, did not have mine with me! Doh!

Day 3 - HAMPSHIRE - STRATFORD

Visit the cathedral town of Winchester this morning, where King Alfred stands guard in the High Street. The country roads lead you past pretty villages en route to Avebury, which is partially situated in a huge prehistoric henge monument of several stone circles. Continue on to Stratford-upon-Avon to visit Shakespeare’s birthplace, full of memorabilia and artifacts relating to his life. Hotel: Swans Nest. (B)

This morning started with a lovely drive towards Winchester, we had lovely views as we drove along country roads. When we arrived in Winchester Stephen gave us an orientation tour before walking us through to the Cathedral. Mum and I decided we just had to go into the cathedral and mum wanted to show me the tombs of the Saxon Kings - including bishops, a Queen and King Canute. These tombs are over 500 yrs old and in mortuary chests up high in the cathedral. They were pretty stunning! The poor kings had been buried over 1000 yrs ago and then they were re-interred in these amazing mortuary chests. I got great photographs from every angle.

Many in the group wanted to see the tomb of Jane Austen and I have to say it was pretty good. There were some wonderful medieval floor tiles that had mum in raptures. We really enjoyed our visit and are very happy that we went in.

When we left we headed to the gift shop and I found a great pen and bookmark set featuring a Celtic dragon. Mum came home with some great stained glass. And we got it home in one piece!

After shopping we headed towards the coach pickup spot and I got distracted by a Past Times shop… I found a nice set of Queen coasters featuring album covers. Very nice. I was to be surprised by Queen in Ambleside too! But I will get to that soon.

We made it to the coach with plenty of time to spare and headed off to Avebury.

Ooooh I adored Avebury! Mum and I had done a day trip to Glastonbury, Avebury and Stonehenge only a week earlier so we thought oh yeah we've seen Avebury. But we got to see a whole different side to the place. We had much more time to see the area and we explored at length. We looked at the stone circles and then began to explore. We had seen just the stones and the thatched cottage pub last time, but there was so much more to see! We found a wonderful church, which had a 1000 yr old font in it, and the manor house. The house was closed but the gardens could be explored so I headed in to look. It was so quiet you could feel that you were completely alone. It redefined tranquil for me. I could see the charm of promenading in gardens at last.

We really enjoyed Avebury.

After Avebury we headed towards Stratford upon Avon. The drive was just beautiful. We stopped off at Anne Hathaway's House to have our group photo taken. We did not get to go through her house but stopped at a garden opposite to have the photo taken then we all got back on the coach to go to Shakespeare's birthplace. I think it might have been nice to view her house and gardens, but it would have made the day more rushed and cut into our time at other places.

We headed into Stratford upon Avon for our included view to Shakespeare's birthplace. Mum and I opted not to do this as we had done it before, so we had 90 minutes to explore Stratford. We headed into an antique and collectables fair and then wandered around the antique shops in town. It was great to explore the town. We really enjoyed it! Had we visited Shakespeare's birthplace we would not have had the time to really explore the town.

While the group was busy in Stratford, Pat and Stephen headed to the hotel to check us all in and get our bags to the rooms. This was designed to make it easier for us time wise as we had an optional that evening and they wanted to give us plenty of time for this.

We met the coach and were driven to our hotel - The Swan's Nest. Goodness me this hotel was in a pretty spot - just by the river. The river was full of swans and we could get great photos of them. We could, and did, wander along the river and just drink in the atmosphere.

We had been offered an optional for this evening. This was just described as Stratford Dinner so we had anticipated that it was just a meal but no it is way more than that! This was an opportunity to take a drive through the Cotswolds, to have the chance to stop to take photos and see thatched cottages. Then a pub dinner at the Royal Oak - a 1300s tavern was offered. We were given the choice of traditional fish and chips and mushy peas or a roast dinner. See my comments in optional meals.

The drive through the Cotswolds was just perfect! Very cold, but perfect. We got to see really quaint villages and lots of lovely houses and gardens. It was a real photo opportunity. I think we went to 3 villages including Stow on the Wold. I felt the optional was well worth doing.

Day 4 - COTSWOLDS EXCURSION

An enchanting day takes you across the beautiful Cotswold hills, a chocolate box scene of golden stone villages with roses round the doors. Visit Blenheim Palace, the greatest building of the English Baroque, residence of the Dukes of Marlborough and birthplace of Winston Churchill. After touring the house and gardens, visit the gardens of Sudeley Castle, former home to one of King Henry VIII’s wives, Katherine Parr. Tonight, you are offered a choice of restaurants for your dining pleasure. (B,DA)

This day was one of the best for me. We got to visit Blenheim, the home of John and Sarah Churchill, and I was over the moon! But first things first! We started the day with a drive through the Cotswolds and we were shown another village. It was very pretty, but its name escapes me - sorry. The important thing was we got to see Rose Cottage which was stunningly beautiful. More photos.

We were driven then to the grave of Winston Churchill. This was a simple ordinary gravesite in amongst his family. It was very delicately done and had only a small wreath on it. The gravesite was in a small cemetery outside a very sweet little village church.

Next we drove to on Blenheim. Our first view of Blenheim was overwhelming. The entry gates were great and beautifully carved. There was a film crew there filming for a new "blockbuster" movie! So there were trucks and equipment everywhere.

Blenheim was wonderful! We had heaps of time to explore the house and gardens and some even had time for lunch. I put lunch off til Sudeley as I was not missing one second of Blenheim. We were offered a tour of the private apartments which we jumped at. I bought a stack of books about Blenheim and the Churchills much to the amusement of everyone else in the group. "I'll have that one, and that one and that one oh yes and that one too. Oooh you have that - yes add that to my pile as well!" I had fun! LOL

I went upstairs to see an interactive display of the history of Blenheim which was fun. It was all from the point of view of Sarah Churchill's ladies maid, and it was fascinating. Although it took a lot of time to go through it was well worth it. Mum wandered through the state apartments and found Sarah and John's tomb before heading out to explore the gardens.

We met up in time for our tour of the private apartments. This tour was great, we got to see where the current Duke lives and his family's rooms. It was very homey and even had mum's crocheted blanket in there! It was great. We got to hear stories of the family and had the day to day life of a stately home revealed to us. If this is offered when you are at Blenheim it is well worth it. We were even allowed to take photos in this most private part of the palace.

After the tour mum and I raced off so she could show me Sarah's tomb before we had to head to the coach. More photos! It was stunning and completely over the top! It is a tomb that has to be seen to be believed! What a complete contrast to Winston's tomb!

I could have spent all day at Blenheim, I was all for having Stephen leaving me there and collecting me at the end of the day… but I did want to see Sudeley too, choices, choices!

We headed on to Sudeley to see the gardens. Sudeley was very different. Again the gardens were broken up into rooms with sculpted hedges and trained roses trailing over arches. There was a glorious rose garden and the Queen's garden was very nice. There were fountains and water features, and right in the centre of the garden was a church with the tomb of Katharine Parr. It was lovely, very grand and it certainly made a statement. It had Tudor roses carved into it as well.

Sudeley also featured a "pheasantry" which was a collection of pheasants in an aviary. They had so much space to explore and very naturalistic settings. It was wonderful, but I still preferred seeing the wild pheasants in the fields.

After finishing at Sudeley we returned to Stratford for our Dine Around Evening. See comments above.

Day 5 - STRATFORD - LAKE DISTRICT

Travel through the orchards of Worcestershire to the border town of Ludlow with its impressive castle ruins. As you drive through the remote Shropshire hills, you will pass Wenlock Edge, which is celebrated in the poetry of AE Housman. Reach historic Ironbridge Gorge, birthplace of the Industrial Revolution and marvel at the 200-year-old Iron Bridge before continuing north to the stunning English Lake District.
Hotel: Windermere Hydro. (B,D)

We started our day with a drive to Ludlow. Ludlow was great - we had an orientation tour and we saw some amazingly old houses and shops (more photos!). We were then given plenty of time to explore and mum took off to see Ludlow Castle where Katharine of Aragon had lived with Prince Arthur (brother of Henry VIII) and where the princes (of the princes in the tower fame) first heard of the death of their father Edward IV. She loved the Castle and it was one of her highlights of the entire trip. I wandered through the town taking photos for her, and looking for a place to buy new suitcase locks - one of ours having given up the ghost the night before!

Our next highlight was a drive through the Shropshire Hills with a photo stop at Wenlock Edge. This natural limestone escarpment was just amazing. It cut through the landscape and was really stunning. We were able to stand by the side of the road and take some great photos of the views. It was a truly wonderful view of England!

Then it was on to Ironbridge Gorge to see the bridge. We wondered at the amazing skill it must have taken to build the bridge. What an accomplishment. I got totally distracted by a set of slate coasters with covers of Beatles singles on them. They were in the window of an arts and crafts shop. Well they didn't have a second set so we dismantled the window display to get at them! They were just perfect and I hot footed it to the post office next door to send them to my brother as a gift. He loved them and has declared they are so good that he will put them on his wall as pictures rather than putting coffee mugs on them!

We stopped off at a lovely little tea shop for lunch and I had my first ploughman's lunch. Cheese and Pickles and Salad with a crusty roll. Just divine!

After lunch we started the long and very scenic drive to the Lake District arriving at our hotel late afternoon. The included dinner on this night was really good.

Day 6 - LAKE DISTRICT EXCURSION

A whole day is devoted to the Lake District - a scenic wonderland of rugged mountains and tranquil waters and an inspiration to a host of English poets. Visit Wordsworth’s grave in the small churchyard at Grasmere, then admire the vast expanse of Windermere, the largest of the lakes. Consider taking a cruise on its peaceful waters before returning to the hotel. (B,D)

The day in the Lake District was great. We went on the Steam Train and Lake Cruise Optional which was well worth it. 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. Mum picked up a lovely embroidery kit featuring the tiniest house in England - it is hard to believe a family of 6 were brought up in this little house! 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 (Snaefell). This drive was an unexpected extra based on the fact that we had done well time-wise 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.

Day 7 - LAKE DISTRICT - EDINBURGH

Cross the Scottish border at Gretna - for years the destination of eloping English lovers. Spend your spare time shopping before enjoying the contrasting beauty of the Southern Lowlands en route to Edinburgh. Here, discover the wonders of the plant kingdom in the Botanical Gardens which form a remarkable haven of tranquillity in the south of the city, as well as being a world-renowned centre for botanical science.

We were taken for a drive through the Lake District to see the little villages and towns as well as the sea. It was really something else to see these lovely little villages. Stephen showed us a "Folly" - an architectural oddity built just because the owner could afford to build it. This one was a lighthouse on top of a hill - no water covered rocks in sight! LOL

Our first stop this morning was Cartmel to see Cartmel Priory. This was a wonderful place, it was very strange to look at as the roof was multi-layered and the spire rose out of the centre of this strange roof. Inside was glorious and mum had a blast exploring it. The people running the place seemed far more used to the quiet life and were rather overwhelmed by this invasion of 25 people. Of course once we all started buying things I think they developed a liking for groups !! LOL I headed outside to take photos for mum and then wandered off to watch a wonderful river that thundered through the centre of town. It was delightful. I love attention-seeking rivers and streams!

We drove on to Gretna Green to see where people elope to. Well actually mum and I headed straight for the shops to get a kilt for my brother's girlfriend. We ended up buying three and having them posted home. They are very nice and great to wear. We opted for 2 of the classic royal tartan (the red one), and a nice shades of green tartan for mum.

We drove on through the Lowlands to Edinburgh. The scenery here was much more stark and rocky than the scenery we had seen throughout England. It was great to see such a difference. We saw streams and flowers and the wonderful sheep and cows of Scotland. It was great! Although I had seen lots of rabbits throughout England rabbits were in short supply in Scotland - or at least as far as I could see LOL

We drove on to Edinburgh for our orientation drive-through and a stop for lunch in the New Town. We found a great shopping centre and had our first McDonalds of the trip. We had hoped to see a McHaggis LOL but no such luck! We had our lunch and found a great array of unusual shops - shops we just don't get at home. It is always nice to see someone else's shopping centres. One of our party found their way to John Lewis' and came back in absolute raptures - I understood that feeling I really did! We got to see the unusual buildings of New Town with their neo-classic facades - it was great.

We then headed off for our included visit to the Botanical Gardens. This was great. We went through the greenhouse area and saw all the plants grown under glass - it was like walking through my garden at home! It was full of all the exotic Australian plants that are hard to grow in the Northern hemisphere but grow like weeds at home. I stopped feeling homesick! LOL

We then headed off to our Hotel and out for our optional Edinburgh Scottish Dinner. This was the Tastes of Scotland Show. It was such a fun - and educational - evening! LOL. It is always nice to get age old questions answered (like what does a Scotsman wear under his kilt)

Day 8 - EDINBURGH SIGHTSEEING

Today a local guide shows you the glory of the 'Athens of the North'. In the old town visit Edinburgh Castle containing the Honours of Scotland, the oldest Royal regalia in the British Isles. Follow the Royal Mile to the Palace of Holyroodhouse where Mary Queen of Scots lived - it is still the official Scottish residence of the Queen. Drive along Prince's Street to see the ornate Scott Memorial, then visit the 18th century 'New Town' with its classical Adam facades. The rest of the day is at leisure.

We started our day with a drive around tour of the old town and then headed to the Castle. We were given a guided tour and then were set free to explore for a few hours. We wandered through the Great Hall which was used in the Harry Potter Films, went to see the State Apartments and the little Chapel. The Castle was wonderful and full of tapestries. We had seen tapestries throughout our trip and I had been buying cushions from the Unicorn Tapestries Series. When we got to Edinburgh Castle there was a massive book on the Unicorn Tapestries - I just had to have that (Poor Pat must have groaned each time he saw us with a shopping bag with books in it… those books weigh a ton! When we returned to London we posted home 50 kilos of books!)

We had plenty of time to fully explore the castle and take heaps of photos of the scenery. It was a fun morning. The rest of our day was "at leisure" and we took the opportunity to wander down the Royal Mile towards the Holyroodhouse. We had plenty of time to explore the Royal Mile and go in to the museums and exhibitions along the mile. We stopped off to go through the Loch Ness 3D experience. Although we did not get up as far as Loch Ness we still got to see it through this exhibition. We were shown the history of the Loch and the history of the monster and the search for the Loch Ness Monster. It was fabulous! I really enjoyed it. I found a snowglobe with the monster in it and just had to have that!

We then headed on to John Knox's house. We toured the house and got to see some amazing old manuscripts. We enjoyed our tour and I got heaps of photos. This was a highlight for mum and somewhere she had wanted to see for years. She had never imagined that she would actually get to see the house. We then wandered on down to a museum of Edinburgh focusing on unions and the "common man" - "The People's Story". This was set in the Cannongate Tollbooth, a former tax collecting house, court and prison. We got to see working class lives and the life of the unions. We got to see union banners and vintage shop fronts, the fight for female emancipation and more - it was brilliant!

Finally we headed to Holyroodhouse to see the palace, the Queen's Gallery, the gardens and the ruins of the abbey. It was magnificent, and we enjoyed every second of it.

After we had finished we got a taxi back to the hotel.

This evening we had the Scottish Dinner at the Two Bridges Optional - see above for comments

Late in the afternoon I fell sick and was sick for the next two days. My solution was to sleep on the back seat of the coach. Everyone was very sympathetic and helpful with one lovely lady even getting me a blanket to keep me warm! I slept on and off throughout the next day - the journey to York - and so missed much of the scenery. However, mum was wide awake and has shared her recollections.