Elegant Estates & Magnificent Gardens (2024)

June 24 - 30, 2024

Apart from the enjoyment of England's best stately homes, we will be exploring many of the nation's finest gardens, and staying at some wonderful hotels, including Hartwell House in Buckinghamshire.
Each hotel, country house, restaurant, or experience has been carefully selected to ensure that our time together is memorable from start to finish. Not just memorable, but special and unique.

Welcome!

The joy of traveling and exploring new areas of the United Kingdom has been a passion of mine for many years. My own experiences have created a wealth of knowledge that I intend to share with you during this unforgettable tour.

Each hotel, country house, restaurant, or experience has been carefully selected to ensure that our time together is memorable from start to finish. Not just memorable, but special and unique.

Apart from the enjoyment of England’s best stately homes, we will be exploring many of the nation’s finest gardens, and staying at some wonderful hotels, including Hartwell House in Buckinghamshire – where we will dine privately in the magnificent Doric Dining Room, frequently used by King Louis XVIII, the exiled King of France – during his 5 years of living at Hartwell House.

I do hope you will join us for this memorable tour, where we will explore together, the very best of England

Andrew Lannerd
Tour Director | Transcendent Travel

Tour Highlights:

11 superior meals
6 nights of deluxe accommodations divided between London, Rye, Buckinghamshire, and Oxford
Superior motor coach transportation between tour destinations
Guides, tours and admission fees at tour venues

SPECIAL EXTRAS INCLUDED IN YOUR ITINERARY

Curator/expert led tours at various times
Wine included with all group dinners
Snacks at various points throughout the tour
Welcome goodie bag with various gifts/niceties

Itinerary

Day 1 - Monday

AM arrivals into London
Travel to Central London
A convenient journey from Heathrow or Gatwick airports
Check into The Cavendish Hotel, St. James’s London
Located in London’s fashionable St. James’s neighborhood
Curator led tour of Spencer House
London ancestral townhouse of the Spencer family and Lady Diana Spencer
6:30PM | Welcome to London dinner
Overnight accommodations at The Cavendish Hotel

The tour will begin at London’s top-rated Cavendish Hotel located just steps from Fortnum and Mason on fashionable Jermyn Street. In the afternoon guests will enjoy a curator-led tour of magnificent Spencer House, one of London’s finest townhomes and the ancestral London home of the Spencer family. In the evening we will enjoy a reception and group dinner as we begin a week exploring many of England’s finest estates and gardens.

Day 2 - Tuesday

Full English or Continental Breakfast
Coach to Chartwell: home & gardens of Sir Winston Churchill
Lunch at your leisure at Chartwell
Coach to Sissinghurst: the most famous gardens in England
Time to explore Sissinghurst Castle and Gardens
Coach to Rye
Gourmet 3-course dinner in Rye
Overnight accommodations at The George Inn, Rye

We will begin our day together with a delicious breakfast -- then we are off to Chartwell, the beloved home and gardens of Sir Winston Churchill. The estate remains very much as it was during his lifetime, and was the place from which Sir Winston drew inspiration from 1924 until the end of his life.

After Chartwell, we head to the most magnificent gardens in England, Sissinghurst. Located in the beautiful, rolling countryside of Kent, Sissinghurst was the renowned home and gardens of novelist, Vita Sackville-West.

After Sissinghurst, we will visit Rye, one of the best preserved medieval towns in England, where we will enjoy a gourmet 3-course dinner together and will stay in The George Inn, built in 1575.

Day 3 - Wednesday

Full English or Continental Breakfast
Visit to Great Dixter House and Gardens, one of England’s finest cottage gardens
Visit to Brighton
Tour of the magnificent Brighton Pavilion
The seaside pleasure palace of King George IV
Return to Rye for an evening at leisure
Overnight accommodations at The George Inn, Rye

Today you will visit what is easily the best cottage garden in England -- Great Dixter. This lush garden is a treat to behold for the loving care that has gone into creating such beauty. You will also have time to explore the house set amongst the gardens which dates from the 1450s.

Later in the day, we will head to the exciting seaside city of Brighton where you will have a little free time to explore. In the afternoon we will tour the glorious Royal Pavilion built in splendor by King George IV. Later we will head back to the medieval town of Rye where you can settle back into The George Inn for a relaxing evening.

Day 4 - Thursday

Full English or Continental Breakfast
Morning departure for Arundel
Tour of Arundel Castle and gardens
Lunch at your leisure in Arundel
Coach to Hartwell House, Buckinghamshire
Pre-dinner drinks in the elegant Library
Private 3-course dinner
Overnight accommodations at Hartwell House, Buckinghamshire

The day will begin with a lovely breakfast at our hotel by the seaside, then we are off to the charming and picturesque town of Arundel – home to the magnificent Arundel Castle. The castle was established on Christmas Day 1067, and is still today home to the Duke of Norfolk.

After our tour of the castle’s glorious state rooms, you will have some time to explore the charming village just outside the castle gates.

After lunch, we are then off to Buckinghamshire for our luxurious dinner and overnight stay at Hartwell House. Its most famous resident was Louis XVIII, exiled King of France, who lived there with his Court for five years. Situated in 90 acres of landscaped parkland, Hartwell House will provide us with an unforgettable country house experience.

Day 5 - Friday

Luxurious breakfast at Hartwell House
Travel to Waddesdon Manor
Tour of Waddesdon Manor
Coach to Oxford
Time to explore Oxford on a unique tour
Overnight accommodations at the centrally located Oxford Eastgate Hotel

After a delicious breakfast at Hartwell House, we will head to Waddesdon Manor, one of the most recognizable and famous of England’s country houses. The house was built in the Neo-Renaissance style of a French château between 1874 and 1889 for Baron Ferdinand de Rothschild. After a few hours of exploring the house and gardens, we will enjoy a delicious onsite lunch. In the afternoon, we will head to Oxford where you will have some time to explore why the city has long influenced and attracted the world’s greatest scholars. Our overnight accommodations will be at the Oxford Eastgate Hotel, located in the heart of historic Oxford.

Day 6 - Saturday

Full English or Continental Breakfast
Morning expert-led tour of Oxford’s historic universities
Afternoon at Blenheim Palace & Gardens
Journey back to London
Farewell reception and dinner in London
Overnight accommodations at The Cavendish Hotel, London

After breakfast, we will enjoy a behind-the-scenes, expert-led tour of some of the many universities that make Oxford a worldwide center for higher education. During the afternoon we will visit Blenheim Palace & Gardens, the monumental and breathtaking residence of the Dukes of Marlborough.

Later in the day we will head back to London for a farewell dinner, where we will toast a great week exploring the best of England!

Day 7 - Sunday

Breakfast at the Cavendish Hotel, London
In the beautiful St. James’s neighborhood of London
Tour departures after breakfast
Or, perhaps you’ll extend your time in London?