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Authors of Fact and Fiction
Authors of Fact and Fiction
Britain has been blessed with some of the best authors and writers, both ancient and modern from William Shakespeare to AA Milne and JK Rowling via The Bronte's, Robert Burns and Ian Rankin. This tour is a sample itinerary that encourages the participant to visit some of the places associated with the some of the world's greatest writers. Places where they lived experienced and performed and in some case where they still live and can be seen. This tour will often be amended by clients and timed to be in the country to coincide with an event, whether this be the annual Literature Festivals like those in Hay on Wye and Cheltenham or some great literary anniversary.
SAMPLE DAILY ITINERARY BELOW
SOME OF THE TOUR’S SIGHTS.
Day 1 — Arrival London
On arrival meet with your professional tour guide and transfer in to central London to experience an introductory tour of some of the famous landmarks such as Big Ben, Trafalgar Square and Westminster Abbey, suitable for first time and repeat visitors to London. Overnight stay in London.
Day 2 — London
After breakfast visit firstly The Charles Dickens Museum, which houses the world's most important collection of material relating to the Victorian novelist and social commentator. See The Old Curiosity Shop and parts of Bloomsbury that Dickens new. The afternoon is devoted to a guide tour of Shakespeare's Globe Theatre and to the nearby site of The Rose Theatre, the first Elizabethan Theatre in this area. Please note that these two distinct areas are best visited as we do on a private walking tour. A fully guided visit is also included to Westminster Abbey and to Poets' Corner, the final resting places of people such as Chaucer, Dickens and Hardy. Dinner tonight can be in Rules, London's oldest restaurant where Dickens is said to have eaten. Overnight stay in London.
Day 3 — London
Groups on this day discuss with us there specific interest and we can accommodate most requests. Samples that could be of interest include but are not limited to private Tours of The British Library, Jack the Ripper's London, Sherlock Holmes Tours, Harry Potters London, The Da Vinci Code in London, The London of Peter Pan, Paddington Bear or Jane Austen. Overnight stay in London.
Day 4 — Charles Darwin and Winnie The Pooh
Leaving London to the south our day begins with a visit to Downe House, the home of Charles Darwin and where he wrote "Upon the Origin of the Species" Nearby is the town of Rochester where a guide in period costume takes you on a pleasant walk on the life of Dickens. A change in pace as you travel deeper in to Kent to discover the wonders of the real 100 Acre Wood and Pooh Bridge. Overnight stay in Surrey.
Day 5 — Jane Austen in Hampshire and Wiltshire
Crossing from the heavily wooded county of Surrey to the rich farmlands of Hampshire a pause is made to visit the home of Jane Austen before we pay our respects at her tomb in nearby Winchester Cathedral. Here we can also see the tomb to Lawrence of Arabia before we travel to Salisbury to see a Magna Carta and cross Wiltshire to arrive in Oxford. Overnight stay in Oxford.
Day 6 — Oxford and Stratford-upon-Avon
A tour of literary Oxford teaches us more about Alice in Wonderland, JRR Tolkien, CS Lewis, Philip Pullman, Colin Dexter, JK Rowling and more and has to include a visit inside Christ Church and the pub associated with The Inklings. In the early afternoon travel north to pay our respects to William Shakespeare in Stratford-upon-Avon. Visit his tomb in Holy Trinity Church, visit his birthplace and visit the nearby home of his wife at Anne Hathaway's Cottage. Overnight stay in Staffordshire.
Day 7 — The Bronte Family in Yorkshire
Travelling further north we reach Yorkshire and the wild and windy moors and the small market town of Haworth to visit the Parsonage home of The Bronte Family and to take a canal boat journey on England's longest inland waterway. Travelling via the Yorkshire Dales National Park cross The Pennine Mountains to arrive in Cumbria. Overnight stay in The Lake District National Park.
Day 8 — Beatrix Potter and William Wordsworth in The Lake District
A whole day exploring The Lake District National Park takes us to the isolated farmhouse home of Beatrix Potter, spend fee time in Ambleside, Hawkshead and the lovely village of Grasmere to the home of the poet William Wordsworth. Arguably seeing the lakes form the water is the best so a cruise on Lake Windermere is included. Overnight stay in The Lake District National Park.
Day 9 — Scottish Borders
After breakfast journey north towards the Scottish Border. Pause to visit the Birthplace of Thomas Carlyle. Little did anyone know that the boy born here in 1795 would go on to become one of the most prolific writers and social commentators of the 19th century. The unassuming exterior of this wee house in Ecclefechan, near Lockerbie, belies its significance in Scottish history. When Thomas Carlyle was 13, he left here and walked 84 miles to Edinburgh, to attend the university. A little further north visit the humble cottage where Robert Burns was born and spent the first years of his life. Explore the museum which houses more than 5,000 Burns artefacts including his handwritten manuscripts. Follow in Tam o’ Shanter’s footsteps to atmospheric Alloway Auld Kirk and over the Brig o’ Doon. Overnight stay in Edinburgh.
Day 10— Edinburgh
A full day to enjoy stunning Edinburgh. Our locally guided tour will take you inside Edinburgh Castle and The Scottish Writers Museum to learn more about Robert Burns, Sir Walter Scott and Robert Louis Stevenson in the city forever associated with the likes Jekyll and Hyde, Burke and Hare, Greyfriars Bobby, JK Rowling and Ian Rankin. Private story telling sessions can be arranged on request to make a unique end to the tour. Overnight stay in Edinburgh.
Day 11 — Departure
An executive motor coach is provided for the transfer to Edinburgh Airport.