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TRAVEL DETAILS
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Tour Day-by-day |
In Brief |
DAYS 1-2: Arrival
You head east, into a short night, and suddenly it's morning, and you're in England! Londontown: the hub and focus for theatre-goers worldwide.
Settle into your hotel, then set out to explore your surroundings. Red, double-decker buses groan along the "wrong" side of the road, escorted by innumerable black taxicabs with engines that sound like sewing machines.
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DAY 3: London City Sightseeing, Optional Thames River Cruise and Greenwich, West End Theatre
Enjoy a tour of the sights and sounds of the British capital. See Westminster Abbey, the Houses of Parliament, Big Ben, Trafalgar Square, St. Paul's Cathedral, the multi-cultural area of Soho, Oxford Street, home to the major shopping district of London, #10 Downing Street, location of the home and business office of the Prime Minister, and the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace, if scheduled.
Local Guide
A half-day local guide, well-educated and specially-trained on the history and culture of London, will accompany your group.
Free time in London
This afternoon is free to plan as you wish.
Consider a visit to the Tower of London to view Traitors' Gate, the Bloody Tower, the Block (where two of Henry VIII's ill-fated wives lost their heads), the White Tower and the Crown Jewels. If you choose to follow one of the Beefeaters, you'll also be able to visit the Royal Chapel.
Thames Cruise to Greenwich OPTIONAL
You will see London from the soothing perspective of the River Thames as you cruise from Westminster Pier all the way downstream to Greenwich. Entertaining cockney commentary punctuates the trip, introducing you to London's riverside treasures: the Globe Theatre, St. Paul's Cathedral, H.M.S. Belfast, Tower Bridge, and the spectacular waterfront of Greenwich.
The National Maritime Museum and the Greenwich Observatory
Visits are included to the Old Royal Observatory with its display of inventions and instruments that marked the advent of modern science, and the National Maritime Museum with the world's largest exhibit of ship models, naval instruments and maps.
West End Theatre
Enjoy a performance at a West End venue. In London you can find anything you're looking for, from classical drama to Rogers and Hammerstein. Perhaps a good tear-jerker by the great Bard himself?
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Highlights
Half-day city sightseeing in London
Services of a specially-trained half-day local guide in London
West End Theatre
Performance subject to availability.
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DAY 4: Excursion to Windsor, Optional Globe Theatre Workshop, Carvery Dinner
Head to Windsor, the location of royal residences for almost one thousand years, ever since William the Conqueror settled there in 1070.
Windsor Castle is the residence of H. M. Queen Elizabeth II. A visit includes the State Apartments, Queen Mary's Dolls' House (a palace-within-a-palace with functioning lights, running water and Lilliputian-size books written by famous authors of the 1920s) and St. George's Chapel, one of the country's finest churches in the typically English style known as Perpendicular Gothic.
If you choose, make your way to the Admissions Centre where you can join a guided tour of the Castle Precincts at no additional cost.
Free time in London
This afternoon is free to plan as you wish.
You may want to visit the Museum of London, which illustrates life in London from Roman times through the present. Its exhibits include architectural treasures and pop culture artifacts.
Globe Theatre Workshop OPTIONAL
You will meet and work with real Shakespearean actors and actresses at a Globe Theatre Workshop.
You will also follow a guide through the Globe Theatre for an inside look at the replica of Shakespeare's "Great Wooden O".
Carvery dinner
Enjoy a special Carvery dinner this evening. Most commonly found in pubs and hotels, a Carvery is where you will enjoy a typical Sunday-style dinner any day of the week. With meat sliced to order, along with sides usually consisting of potatoes, vegetables, gravy and yorkshire pudding, you will not leave hungry.
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Highlights
Half-day coach excursion to Windsor
Visit to Windsor Castle, including the State Apartments, Queen Mary's Dolls' House and St. George's Chapel, audio-guide included
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DAY 5: Canterbury, Battle, Brighton
Travel to Canterbury, home to literary playwright Christopher Marlowe, and backdrop for Chaucer's literary classic, Canterbury Tales.
Visit Canterbury Cathedral, site of the martyrdom of St. Thomas à Becket and the final destination of pilgrimages from Chaucer's day to the present. Canterbury Cathedral is also one of the artistic and architectural masterpieces of the English Gothic style. Its stained glass rivals that of almost any cathedral in France, both in quality and in abundance.
Your travels take you to the town of Battle.
Relive one of the most momentous days in England's history by visiting the village of Battle. There, in 1066, the Norman William the Conqueror came over from France to fight Harold, the other pretender to the English throne, and won. Get a deeper understanding of their famous encounter, which became known as the Battle of Hastings, on a visit to Battle Abbey, built on the site of the battlefield. Visitors enjoy the theme park, the audio-visual presentation that re-creates the sounds of the battle and a variety of interactive displays, such as Discovery Centre, filled with hands-on exhibits.
Lighter fare as you arrive in the seaside resort of Brighton-by-the-Sea. For over two centuries fashionable crowds have been lured to this spot, first by the medicinal properties of seawater, then by the extravagances of a Prince of Wales and, more recently, by the amenities of a pleasant resort. In the 1840s, Brighton featured the very first pier to be constructed in Great Britain. Check out the Palace Pier, which remains a fine example of this very British phenomenon.
Make your way to the Steine district to wander through the Lanes, a lovely pedestrian-only maze of narrow streets lined with quaint shops.
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Highlights
Travel to Brighton via Canterbury and Battle
Visit to Canterbury Cathedral, including audioguide
Entrance to 1066 Battle of Hastings, Abbey and Battlefield, headsets included
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DAY 6: Salisbury, Stonehenge, Bath Walking Tour
Travel to the medieval city of Salisbury.
Enjoy a guided tour of Salisbury Cathedral, where you'll view soaring Gothic arches, precious stained-glass windows and the oldest working clock in the world, built in 1386. In the Chapter House, you will see the best-preserved of the four remaining original copies of the Magna Carta, the Great Charter drafted in 1215, which was later titled The Great Charter of the Liberties of England.
Depart Salisbury heading north to Stonehenge in Wiltshire.
Learn about the origins of this colossal structure erected between 2,000 BC and 1,500 BC. Hear how the immense blocks of stone were transported to this site and speculate about the religious customs of these prehistoric builders, who possessed a sophisticated understanding of arithmetic and astronomy.
Travel to the elegant city of Bath to admire its Georgian splendor, in particular the beautiful rows of honey-colored stone houses, arranged in graceful curves, that are known as the Royal Crescent and the Circus.
Courier-led walking tour in Bath
A walking tour with your courier introduces landmarks such as the 15th-century abbey and the 18th-century Pulteney Bridge, lined with shops.
Visit the Roman baths, said to have been built on orders of the Emperor Claudius. Measuring over 900 feet in length and 350 feet wide, these remains are among the best examples of Roman architecture in England. A notable addition is the 18th-century Pump Room, which is also included in the visit.
End the day with a stroll around Stall and Union Streets, where alleyways and passages are lined with boutiques, galleries and various shops.
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Highlights
Travel to Bath via Salisbury and Stonehenge
Guided visit to Salisbury Cathedral, including a visit to the Chapter House (with the Magna Carta)
Visit to Stonehenge, including audioguide
Courier-led walking tour in Bath
Visit to the Roman Baths and Pump Room
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DAY 7: Cotswolds, Stratford-upon-Avon, Shakespeare's Birthplace and Anne Hathaway's Cottage, RSC Performance
Travel through the Cotswolds, a quaint region of Gloucestershire celebrated for its hedgerows, sheep and storybook villages. It has often served as a backdrop for movies, such as Dr. Dolittle (1967) and the Harry Potter series. By the late Middle Ages, Cotswolds shepherds were tending some 500,000 sheep, Flemish weavers had helped develop a thriving wool industry, local merchants had amassed great wealth, and King Edward III had created The Order of the Golden Fleece. Fleece indeed had brought prosperity to the Cotswolds. Many a "wool church" was built at that time in thanksgiving for the region's good fortune.
Shakespeare's Birthplace and Anne Hathaway's Cottage
Explore Stratford-upon-Avon, including Shakespeare's Birthplace on Henley Street and Anne Hathaway's Cottage, the romantic thatched-roof dwelling on the outskirts of town where Shakespeare courted Anne Hathaway before their marriage in 1582.
Royal Shakespeare Theatre performance
Enjoy a play by the Royal Shakespeare Company. Hear it the way he wrote it! Thrills and chills up and down your spine, here in Merry Old England.
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Highlights
Travel to Stratford via the Cotswolds
Scenic drive through the picturesque Cotswolds region
Shakespeare's Birthplace and Anne Hathaway's Cottage
Performance by the Royal Shakespeare Company
(scheduled according to availability)
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DAY 8: Oxford, London, Optional London Eye, Optional Jack the Ripper Walking Tour
On a walking tour led by your courier, you'll see landmarks such as Trinity College, the not-so-maudlin Magdalen College, the Bodleian Library, known for its immense and precious collections, and the Old Ashmolean Building, the center of scientific studies in Oxford for 150 years, which now houses the Museum of the History of Science.
Images of ornate Gothic spires and professors on bicycles will etch your memory and camera film. A visit is included to one of the colleges, such as Christ Church, where visitors can see the stained-glass window depicting Alice in Wonderland, the charming creation of one of Christ Church's most famous professors, Lewis Carroll.
A short drive down the motorway produces first the far-flung suburbs, then the metropolis of London.
Take a walk down Oxford Street, London's well-known shopping street, renowned for its fashion boutiques and large department stores, such as Selfridges and John Lewis. The largest branch of the Marks and Spencer chain is situated nearby.
London Eye OPTIONAL
Enjoy a ride on the London Eye, the world's highest Ferris wheel at 450 feet. It is magnificently situated across from the Houses of Parliament on the River Thames. Revolving slowly above the London skyline, this "Millennium Wheel" uses the latest in technology to take visitors on a unique ride over England's capital city.
Jack the Ripper guided walking tour OPTIONAL
Experience thrills and chills on a guided walking tour of London "In the Footsteps of Jack the Ripper."
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Highlights
Travel to London via Oxford
Courier-led walking tour in Oxford
Visit to Oxford University and one of the colleges
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DAY 9: Departure
With images of your journey still vivid in your mind, race the sun westward aboard your jet airplane. Write down what you remember best. You'll be home before you know it, eager to share your discoveries with family and friends.
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