|
DAY 01: NORTH AMERICA / LONDON, ENGLAND.
Depart North America aboard our transatlantic jet bound for London.
DAY 02: LONDON.
Upon arrival at London Airport we are met by our tour escort and motor
coach and transferred to our hotel in England's exciting capital city of
London. The balance of the day is at leisure, dinner and overnight at
our hotel.
 DAY 03: LONDON.
Our
full day sightseeing tour of London will commence with the West End. We
will see Hyde Park, Marble Arch, Mayfair, Piccadilly, the Houses of
Parliament and Big Ben, Buckingham Palace and the Changing of the Guard
ceremony (if held). A highlight will be a visit to impressive
Westminster Abbey. This afternoon we travel into the City of London,
rich in history and for many centuries the leading commercial and
financial centre. We visit St Paul's Cathedral, the masterpiece
designed by Sir Christopher Wren, and which is the final resting place
of many renowned sailors, soldiers and painters. We then continue to
the infamous Tower of London which for 900 years has guarded the
approach to London from the River Thames and has been a fortress, royal
palace and prison. steeped in the nation's history it has been the scene
of many executions including the beheading of Anne Boleyn, wife of Henry
VIII. We also see the Crown Jewels before returning to our hotel for
dinner and overnight.
DAY 04: LONDON / CANTERBURY / LONDON.
This morning we drive through
the Kentish countryside to Canterbury, the traditional home of the
Archbishop of Canterbury, and the most important religious city in
England. In 1170 Thomas A Beckett was murdered in his own cathedral by
the knights of Henry II and shortly afterwards was canonized; for
centuries pilgrims flocked to his shrine - they have been immortalized
in "The Canterbury Tales" by Geoffrey Chaucer. We have a detailed visit
to the Cathedral and also see some of the medieval walls of the city;
some time at leisure before returning to our hotel in London. Dinner
tonight is on our own, overnight at our hotel.
DAY 05: LONDON / YORK. This morning we drive
northwards through central England to the medieval town of York, where
we visit the Minster with its majestic towers and priceless stained
glass windows. We also enjoy a brief walking tour through the city
seeing the ancient streets where the upper stories lean precariously
across the roadways towards each other before visiting the Yorkshire
Museum which celebrates 1000 years of the region's heritage and houses
one of the finest archaeological collections in Europe. You will also
discover the history of St Mary's Abbey, the ruins of which are situated
in the grounds of the Museum. Dinner at our hotel, after which this
evening we enjoy a ghost walk through the ancient streets of York.
 DAY 06: YORK / BOLTON / SKIPTON / MOLD.
This morning we visit Bolton Abbey near Leyburn before driving to
Skipton to visit the Castle, one of the most complete and well-preserved
medieval castles in England. See the gatehouse which contains the Shell
Roam decorated in 1620 with shells and Jamaican coral and the yew tree
planted in the Tudor courtyard in 1659 by Lady Anne Clifford as well as
the rest of the Castle. We then drive swiftly into North Wales and the
small town of Mold for dinner and overnight.
DAY 07: MOLD / CONWAY / HOLYHEAD /
DUBLIN. Drive this morning
through Wales, land of the Red Dragon, to Conway where we visit the
Castle, a masterpiece of military architecture built between 1238 and
1289 by Edward I and which helped to complete the conquest of the Welsh
princes in North Wales. We then drive to Holyhead where we board our
ferry for the crossing of the Trish Sea to Dun Loaghaire; a short drive
brings us to Ireland's capital city of Dublin for dinner and overnight.
 DAY 08: DUBLIN. Our morning sightseeing tour
of Dublin includes many of the highlights of this fascinating city. We
will visit St Patrick's Cathedral, see O'Connell Street, the historic
Post Office and gracious Merrion Square and St Stephen's Square. Also
visit Trinity College to see the famous Book of Kells, Dublin Castle and
Dublinia which tells the story of medieval Dublin. This afternoon we
drive out to the Boyne Valley and Newgrange one of the most
extraordinary prehistoric sites in Europe. The bend in the River Boyne
holds a megalithic cemetery over 4000 years old comprising three huge
passage-tombs and a number of other graves, and at Newgrange the rising
sun on Midwinter Day penetrates the darkness of the tomb for a few
moments, symbolizing the notion of life after death. We return to
Dublin, where dinner this evening is on our own, overnight at our hotel.
DAY 09: DUBLIN / BRU BORU / ROCK OF
CASHEL / LIMERICK. Leaving
Dublin this morning we drive through the dairy lands of Co Tipperary to
visit the Bru Boru National Heritage Centre. This cultural village is
designed around a village green and is a home to the study and
celebration of native Irish song, dance, theatre and Celtic studies. We
also visit the Rock of Cashel; Cashel was the seat of the kings of what
is now south Munster until 1101 when Nuircheartach O'Brien presented it
to the Church. We next visit Holy Cross Abbey which stands out as one of
the few shining examples of what has been achieved by determination and
hard work as it has risen from its ruins when it was destroyed during
the Reformation and is now the finest 15th century parish church in
Ireland. Our last visit today is to Hore Abbey en route to Limerick.
This evening we attend the Medieval banquet at Bunratty Castle,
returning to our hotel for overnight.
 DAY 10: LIMERICK / WEXFORD.
Our morning orientation tour of Limerick, Ireland's oldest city, will
show us St. Mary's Cathedral, the Treaty Stone and 13th century King
John's Castle. We then drive southwards to Cork where we see it's tiny
shops, narrow streets and majestic churches before driving along the
headlands of the southern coast through Youghal and Dungarvan to Wexford
for dinner and overnight.
DAY 11: WEXFORD / ROSSLARE / FISHGUARD /
ST. DAVID'S / CARDIFF / BRISTOL.
Drive the short distance to the seaport of Rosslare where we board our
ferry for the crossing to Fishguard in Wales. We drive the short
distance to St Davids to visit the Bishop's Palace, an imposing medieval
palace standing in a grassy hollow next to purple-stoned St David's
Cathedral. We then drive through Pembroke, past Carmarthen Castle and
the seaport city of Swansea to the Welsh capital of Cardiff. Here we
visit the Castle, rebuilt in the 19th century as an extravagant and
idealized vision of the middle ages for the third Marquis of Bute by the
Architect William Burges. We also visit the Museum of Welsh Life St
Fagans, where you can experience Wales and Welsh life by traveling from
a Celtic village of 2000 years ago to a miner's cottage in the 1980's;
on the way you will find the bustle of a pre-war grocery, the chill of a
Victorian schoolroom, a 19th century farmyard and the aroma of freshly
baked bread from a working bakery. A short drive brings us to our hotel
in Bristol for dinner and overnight.
 DAY 12: BRISTOL / BATH / WELLS /
GLASTONBURY / BRISTOL. Our
first visit this morning is to the beautifully preserved Georgian town
of Bath, built by the Romans 2000 years ago and revived by fashionable
Georgian society who came to Bath to "take the waters". We visit the
Roman Baths and the 15th century Abbey as well as seeing the charming
squares and crescents and the River Avon and delightful Pulteney Bridge
before driving to the small town of Wells where we visit the Cathedral,
a 12th/13th century Gothic building with a magnificent 12th century West
Front. Our last visit is to the ruins of Glastonbury Abbey,
traditionally the oldest Christian sanctuary in the British Isles and
legendary burial place of King Arthur; it was built to house the Grail
brought here by Joseph of Arimathea and the thorn bush that sprang from
his staff. We then return to our hotel for dinner and overnight.
DAY 13: BRISTOL / OXFORD / LONDON.
We drive swiftly this morning to the world famous university city of
Oxford where we visit Christ Church Cathedral (the smallest cathedral in
England) and also the Ashmolean Museum which is the oldest museum open
to the public. Some time at leisure before joining the motorway system
and driving swiftly to London for dinner and overnight.
DAY 14: LONDON / USA.
Transfer this morning to the airport for our return flight to the United
States at the end of our enjoyable tour. |
