Transcendent Travel Featured In The UK's Daily Mail
Dine in the same spot as Doc Martin and tread in the footsteps of Lady Grantham: Week-long tour around UK film locations costing £5,000 is a hit with U.S. fans of British TV
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Published: 08:03 EST, 27 February 2019 | Updated: 08:03 EST, 27 February 2019
With two British TV streaming firms surpassing the one million mark with the number of subscribers, one travel company is offering a pricey tour appealing to square-eyed anglophiles.
US-based Transcendent Travel is offering a one-week excursion taking people to UK film sets, with the trip priced at $6,495 (£4,883).
The itinerary includes a visit to Highclere Castle in Hampshire, the set of Downton Abbey, a tour of all of the Midsomer Murders sites in the Oxfordshire village of Dorchester-on-Thames and a stop in Port Isaac, the Cornwall fishing village made famous by Doc Martin.
Two British TV streaming services have surpassed the one million mark with the number of subscribers
Andrew Lannerd says this increased viewership means his pricey tours are more popular than ever
He offers a one-week tour taking people around a UK film sets, with the trip priced at $6,495 (£4,883)
Transcendent Travel is offering a one-week tour taking people to UK film sets, with the trip priced at $6,495 (£4,883). The itinerary includes a visit to Highclere Castle in Hampshire, the set of Downton Abbey.
For Poirot fans, there is a trip to the Greenaway Estate in Devon, which was the former holiday home of the Belgian detective's creator, Agatha Christie.
And if you're hooked on Sky One's comedy crime drama Agatha Raisin, there's a chance to slink through the picturesque Cotswold village of Biddestone, where the series is set.
Acorn TV and BritBox, which are competing firms offering classic UK programming to North American subscribers, have collectively amassed more than one million users in the past couple of years.
Andrew Lannerd, a self-confessed anglophile from Indiana who founded Transcendent Travel in 2013, says this increased viewership means his tours are more popular than ever.
The TV-themed tour calls in at Port Isaac, the Cornwall fishing village made famous by Doc Martin.
Travellers on the tour will get the opportunity to wander around all of the Midsomer Murders sites in the Oxfordshire village of Dorchester-on-Thames.
He told The Times: '[My clients are] looking for something that is very different than their day-to-day lives.
'I think that there's so much turmoil in the U.S. that it's a kind of escape.'
Lannerd designs TV-themed trips on behalf of Acorn TV and says wealthy elderly women form his main client base.
His Best of Acorn TV 7 Day Tour of England is now in its third year.
If you're hooked to Sky One's comedy crime drama Agatha Raisin, there's a chance to slink through the picturesque Cotswold village of Biddestone where the series is set, during the TV tour.
It costs $6,495 (£4,883) for seven days, excluding flights, or $5,495 (£4,132) per person, per couple.
There are around 25 to 30 people in each tours and along with meals, transport and accommodation is provided.
Perks include behind-the-scenes tours of some sets and promised 'meet-and-greets' with cast members.
Lannerd, whose love of the UK started when he studied British history, added: 'Most of my clients have been to the UK before but they will have just done London.'
THE BEST OF ACORN TV TOUR PROGRAMME
MONDAY: A tour of the state apartments at Windsor Castle and meet-and-greet with best-selling author and Agatha Christie expert, Sophie Hannah
TUESDAY: A tour of Highclere Castle, the setting for Downton Abbey, and an evening tour of the Roman Baths
WEDNESDAY: A visit Biddestone, known as a shooting location for the Acorn TV series Agatha Raisin, and a two-night stay at Boringdon Hall in Plymouth, used in the filming of the series Delicious
THURSDAY: Travel to Port Isaac, the Cornwall fishing village made famous by Doc Martin, for an 'expert-led tour' followed by a 'very special' celebrity dinner - 'perhaps your favorite cast member will pop-in to say hello!'
FRIDAY: A visit to The Greenway Estate, the beloved home of Agatha Christie, followed by an afternoon visit to the town of Sidmouth for some 'seaside fun'
SATURDAY: A visit to Dorchester-on-Thames in Oxfordshire to tour all of the Midsomer Murders sites
SUNDAY: A return to Windsor with guests leaving from a hotel close to Heathrow