Sudeley Castle

Day at the Chelsea Flower Show

Hidcote Manor Gardens

A not-to-miss trip of a lifetime for garden enthusiasts and for all people who love nature's beauty!

We'll spend a week in The Cotswolds touring renowned award-winning gardens -- Hidcote, Highgrove, Barnsley House, Kiftsgate, Sezincote House and many more... seeing Cotswold historic market villages... capping off the week in London visiting Royal Horticulture Society's world-famous Chelsea Flower Show.

​

Great trip for garden club members, flower loving friends, and for solo travelers. Limited to 15 persons.

​

Chelsea Flower Show & Cotswold Gardens Tour Is Designed To Provide:

• A fabulous vacation experience in the beautiful English countryside when The Cotswolds' landscape is in glorious full bloom!

• A comprehensive week visiting renowned Cotswold gardens and historic market villages with our Cotswold local Blue Badge English guide.. capped spending a day at the world-famous Chelsea Flower Show with a horticulture expert.

• A friendly and fun small group environment limited to 15 persons. Enjoy the camaraderie and begin friendships with like-minded travelers.

• Optional before breakfast group pleasure walks.

• Recommended restaurants should you want to explore on your own, yet everyone is invited to join local-cuisine group meals.

• Concierge service & support – fully escorted tour with personal & customized service.​

2021 Itinerary Summary:

May 15, Saturday – Windsor - English High Tea Welcome Reception
May 16, Sunday – Travel to The Cotswolds - National Garden Scheme Gardens - Moreton-in-Marsh
May 17, Monday – Hidcote Manor - Kiftsgate Court - Cotswold Historic Market Villages
May 18, Tuesday – The Royal Gardens at Highgrove - Abbey House - Barnsley House
May 19, Wednesday – Sudeley Castle - Bourton House - Sezincote House

May 20, Thursday  – Blenheim Palace - Chenies Manor House - London
May 21, Friday – RHS Chelsea Flower Show - Farewell Dinner
May 22, Saturday – London I London Post-Tour Extension Begins or Departure for Home or Continued Travels

Detailed Trip Itinerary:

​

Saturday, May 15, 2021

Tour participants will arrive independently to London. At Heathrow Airport (LHR) you will be met by a private transfer car service driver who will drive you to your hotel in the Royal Borough of Windsor. We’ll stay in the heart of historic Windsor at the Macdonald Sir Christopher Wren Hotel & Spa, a charming 4-star hotel located along River Thames by Eton Bridge and a short walk to Windsor Castle. Once checked in, the balance of the day is at leisure. The week-long garden tour begins at 6.30PM with an English High Tea Welcome Reception Dinner… an opportunity to meet everyone and review the week’s itinerary.

Sunday, May 16, 2021

For early risers, an optional before breakfast group pleasure walk through Windsor, over River Thames and past Eton College. Full English breakfast is served at the hotel. For those who are regular church goers back home, you might like to attend the 8:30AM Communion Service or 10:45AM Choral Mattins Service at Windsor Castle in St. George's Chapel where Prince Harry & Meghan Markle were married... or take a morning stroll in Windsor Great Park... or visit the beautiful ornamental The Savill Garden.

We’ll be on our way at 12:30PM for the drive into The Cotswolds where we will stop and tour a private garden that is part of the National Garden Scheme. Afternoon tea and cakes will be part of the garden visit.

​

We’ll stay the next four nights in The Cotswolds at The Manor House Hotel located in Moreton-in-Marsh, Gloucestershire. The Manor House is a member of the Cotswold Inns & Hotels luxury boutique collection. The hotel is set in a former 16th-century manor house, designed to match the English splendor of The Cotswolds with comfort and luxury. Moreton-in-Marsh is a treasured historic Cotswolds market town... an ideal central location for visiting Cotswold gardens.

Monday, May 17, 2021

Optional before breakfast morning pleasure walk through Moreton-in-Marsh, followed with a full English breakfast at the hotel. After breakfast we’ll board our private bus, with our Cotswold local Blue Badge guide, for an enjoyable day visiting Hidcote Manor Garden, Kiftsgate Court Gardens. plus visiting Cotswold historic golden stone market villages in route; i.e.:  Chipping Campden. Mid-day we’ll stop to have an English country lunch in Kiftsgate’s charming tearoom. After lunch we'll stop at Chipping Camden, the beautiful small market town with golden Cotswold stone buildings and market hall... and tour the stunning Cotswold countryside.

​

Hidcote Manor Garden is considered to be one of the masterpiece gardens in England. It was started in 1907 by Lawrence Johnston. Johnston’s garden design with themed “outdoor rooms” revolutionized garden design throughout England,.. and still influences garden designers today. Throughout Johnston’s extensive world travels to Continental Europe, China and Africa, he would bring back plants for Hidcote… and he would have plants imported from Australia and Japan. Over the years many plants have been named after Johnston or Hidcote in recognition of his extraordinary talent and plantsmanship. Within Hidcote’s gardens are hedges,  topiaries, flowers in bedding schemes, stone walls, ponds & fountains, and grand vistas. The garden feels secluded and private as if Johnston was still there today.

Kiftsgate Court Gardens is where three generations of women in one family created and shaped a garden to be one of the Cotswold’s most treasured. Kiftsgate gardens began in the 1920s by Heather Muir who had an organic approach, with a feminine feel, to gardening. In the 1930s she developed the property’s steep banks to take advantage of the spectacular views to the west. In the 1950s Muir’s daughter, Diany Binny, opened up the garden for public viewing. She added many features including a pool in the lower garden, two major sculptures, and she redesigned the sunk garden to incorporate a small pool and a wellhead fountain. Anne Chambers, daughter of Binny and granddaughter of Muir, continues the family tradition of seeking out new and interesting plants for Kiftsgate to complement the color schemes which were established when the garden was originally laid out. The new water garden is a contemporary oasis and evidence of her desire to bring the garden into the 21st century.

​

Tuesday, May 18, 2021

Morning optional pleasure walk followed by a full English breakfast… then we are off to visit three renowned Cotswold gardens -- Prince Charles's The Royal Gardens at Highgrove where we'll have a guided tour and afterwards have lunch at Highgrove's restaurant, Abbey House Gardens and Barnsley House Gardens.

The Royal Gardens at Highgrove are the private gardens owned by The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall. The estate is located just outside Tetbury. Prince Charles, an avid gardener, bought the estate in 1980. He is adamant that it should be an entirely organic garden and farm. We'll end our Highgrove morning tour having lunch at Highgrove's restaurant. Abbey House Gardens is a lovely country house garden located in Malmesbury. The garden is set on five acre with over 10,000 different plants, including over 2,000 rose varieties. Barnsley House, built in 1697 of Cotswold stone, is a perfect example of the English country house and garden. The internationally acclaimed garden, with remarkable beauty, was designed by Rosemary Verey, recognized as the “Grand Dame” of Cotswold garden designers.

​

Wednesday, May 19, 2021

Today is an exciting full day of touring… we’ll visit three noted Cotswold gardens – Bourton House, Sezincote House and Sudeley Castle… and take a circular tour of northern historic Cotswold market villages – i.e.: Stow on the Wold, Bourton on the Water, Broadway and Chipping Campden.

​

Sezincote House & Gardens is an unique family-owned agriculture country estate set in the Gloucestershire countryside covering over 4,500 acres. The landscape has remained unchanged since the mid-19th century. The estate's 200-year old house, designed by Samuel Pepys Cockerell and built in 1805, resembles a Moghul Indian Palace.  The garden has a series of spring-fed pools that connect downward to an island pool in the valley bottom before joining the River Evenlode. Bourton House Gardens is an award-winning three acre jewel… winner of the prestigious Historic Houses Association / Christie’s “Garden of the Year” Award. The garden is surrounded by a stately 18th-century manor house. Sudeley Castle is the former home and the burial place of Queen Catherine Parr, the sixth wife of King Henry VIII. Sudeley Castle has nine individual gardens… all unique and beautiful. Elizabeth, Lady Ashcomb, is the current owner and lives on the estate.

​

Thursday, May 20, 2021

After breakfast we’ll check out of our Moreton-in-Marsh hotel and we’ll be off on our final day of touring beautiful country gardens before arriving to London. We’ll first tour magnificent Blenheim Palace and stroll through its expansive gardens. The palace is a grandiose country house built in the early 1700s. It is one of England’s largest houses. Blenheim is the birthplace and ancestral home of Sir Winston Churchill. It is a not-to-miss UNSECO World Heritage Site.

​

In the afternoon we’ll tour Chenies Manor House and Gardens, a historic and distinguished Tudor manor house with award-winning gardens which are considered one of England’s most beautiful gardens. Chenies is a past winner of the Historic Houses Association / Christie’s “Garden of the Year” Award.

​

We’ll then head to London where we’ll stay two nights at The Chesterfield Mayfair Hotel, in 2019 the hotel was ranked #5 by Travel + Leisure in their Top 10 City Hotels in London. The Regency-style hotel is located in the exclusive Mayfair district of central London, near designer shopping and many of the city's most iconic attractions. The hotel feels comparable to a traditional London private club.

Friday, May 21, 2021

Friday morning we’ll rise early to be among the first visitors to enter the Royal Horticulture Society’s Chelsea Flower Show with our private horticulture/garden guide. We'll take a private transfer from the hotel for a short drive to experience a memorable day visiting the RHS Chelsea Flower Show, the world’s most prestigious flower show, that attracts gardening enthusiasts and designers from all corners of the world. The show is held in the middle of London at the Royal Hospital Chelsea. We’ll see the show’s highlights, including Best in Show, Best Fresh Garden and Best Artisan Garden… and we'll tour the Great Pavilion that has more than 100 colorful exhibits from the world’s best nurseries, growers and florists. It will be a treasured day to remember for all flower lovers!

​

The afternoon will be open for personal free time to tour the flower show at your leisure... visit London landmarks and museums… go shopping in London’s fabulous boutiques and department stores… or have a relaxing lunch.

Friday evening we’ll gather for a traditional English cuisine Farewell Dinner.

Saturday, May 22, 2021

After an optional morning pleasure walk we’ll gather for a full English breakfast… we’ll share our inspirations from the trip… and say our goodbyes.

​

What's Included:​

• Small group tour, limited to 15 persons

• Seven nights premium accommodations in personally selected elegant and charming premiere/signature hotels.

• Daily English breakfasts.

• Four traditional English dinner meals - English high-tea welcome reception dinner in Windsor, two evening dinners at The Manor House Hotel in Moreton-in-Marsh, farewell dinner with traditional English cuisine in London

• Lunch or afternoon champagne tea at The Royal Gardens at Highgrove

• Tea & cakes at National Garden Scheme Private Garden

• Tea at Barnsley House Garden

• Visit to private garden with the National Garden Scheme.

• Day trip to The Royal Gardens at Highgrove, Abbey House, and Barnsley House Garden

• Day trip to Hidcote Manor, Kiftsgate Court and Cotswold market villages

• Day trip to Bourton House, Sezincote, and Sudeley Castle

• Day trip to Blenheim Palace and Chenies Manor House

• Visit and tour of the RHS Chelsea Flower Show.

• Cotswold local Blue Badge English guide.

• Admission to all gardens, palaces, castles, and villas.

• Admission to the Chelsea Flower Show.

• Private car service transport from London's LHR airport to Windsor

• Ground transportation for all group activities and day trips.

• Concierge service & support.​

Arrival & Departure City:

Arrival: Windsor, England

Departure: London, England

2021 Trip Cost:

• $6,475 – 8 days / 7 nights per person in double occupancy shared hotel room. For solo travelers, we will try to find you a roommate. Tour cost does not include airfare.

• Added cost for private single room hotel accommodation option - $1,700

2022 Trip Cost:

• $6,795 – 8 days / 7 nights per person in double occupancy shared hotel room. For solo travelers, we will try to find you a roommate. Tour cost does not include airfare.

• Added cost for private single room hotel accommodation option - $1,925

Tour cost includes group transfer from The Cotswolds to London.