Arrive London

Depart London

your choice

your choice

Price depends on number travelling and time of year.
Indicative price based on a minimum of six travelling is GB£

TENTATIVE ITINERARY

DAY ONE

You arrive at one of London's airports where your Back-Roads Touring Co. representative will meet you.

You have the day free to unwind and recover from your travel until this evening when you join your guide for a unique London evening tour of the ancient Thames-side dock regions and visit pubs along the river with maritime connections - including one where Nelson met his paramour Lady Emma Hamilton.

This morning we first visit the unique and picturesque New Forest village of Buckler's Hard where time has almost stood still since the days when warships for Nelson's fleet were built here, including Nelson's favourite the H.M.S. Agamemnon. Displays at the exhibition centre here include models of the ships built for Nelson and memorabilia relating to the Admiral. Other locations of interest include a shipwright's cottage and a reconstructed Inn of the sort used by sailors ashore.

This afternoon we concentrate on Portsmouth, Britain's historic Naval Base. The main focus of our day will be touring Nelson's flagship, 'The Victory' but there will also be an opportunity of visiting both the first ironclad Warrior and Henry VIII's Mary Rose.
http://www.nelsonsvictory.com/

We continue to enjoy Portsmouth and along the south coast exploring maritime connections in this historic port. We will take the oportunity not only of finding interesting sites from the Napoleonic war period but also bring ourselves up to date with visits to the D-Day exhibition, the 'Fire Power!' museum and various other naval related museums.

Keeping the English Channel in sight we tour through the ancient cinque ports of Dover, Hastings, Romney, Hythe, Winchelsea, and Rye. These ports received the royal charter for trade in 1050, even before the coming of William the Conqueror. During a memorable day you'll enjoy a wide variety of sightseeing highlights in these ports. Specifically relating to our theme, will be the great coastal fortifications built to repel Napoleon and then the ancient port of Deal. Here, Nelson recruited (or 'pressed' ), had flat-bottomed attack boats built at the ship yard, used Deal smugglers as pilots and supped in many of the 200 pubs that used to adorn the alleyways here. One highlight of our visit will be the unique four-floor museum of time and maritime communications on Deal's historic seafront.
http://www.eastbournemuseums.co.uk/redoubt/martello.htm

Rochester is almost where the River Thames meets the Channel. This lovely riverside town of cobbled streets and medieval houses boasts not only a 12th century castle but also an excellent local museum with an awe-inspiring recreation of a prison ship 'hulk'.

Next to the Royal Dockyards and Arsenal at Woolwich and Chatham. You'll see how the great 18th century 'walls of wood' were built and see a demonstration of rope making. Nearby we'll see the emotive merchant marine memorial to those who have perished on the sea during wartime.

We cross the river and drive north, following the North Sea coastline to Great Yarmouth in Norfolk.
http://www.great-yarmouth.co.uk

Norfolk was Horatio Nelson's home territory. He was born at Burham Thorpe and gained his first taste of the sea. He returned here often and landed at Great Yarmouth on his return from victory at the Battle of Copenhagen. Naturally, the area has a number of Nelson sites of interest and we'll see his birthplace and the Great Yarmouth Museum.
http://www.nelson-museum.co.uk

Later this afternoon we return to London with a late arrival here.

Dinner tonight is not included in your tour price.

London Day

Today we explore Nelson's London. His homes, his offices and other salient places relating to his life and times.

Our visits will include maritime centre of Greenwich. This very pretty town is renowned as the maritime centre of London. Here you'll visit the tea-clipper, 'Cutty Sark', stand on the meridian line that separate east from west, and tour the fantastic national maritime museum where amongst other things you'll see Nelson's tunic worn during the battle of Trafalgar, complete with bullet hole. www.nmm.ac.uk

We'll also enjoy a private visit to Lloyds of London, the greatest name in insurance where you'll see a collection of correspondence, silver, swords, paintings & other relics commemorating Lord Nelson & the Lloyds connection. Also material relating to HMS Lutine (wrecked 1799 with a cargo of bullion). Her salvaged bell is Lloyds' famous "Lutine Bell".

Finally, our day and tour would be incomplete without paying homage and respect to the great man with a visit to his tomb at St Paul's Cathedral.

Our 'Master & Commander' tour is over, also. It's time to weight anchor and depart.

You'll be transferred to your airport of choice for onward travel.

© As we publish full tour descriptions, you may find others offering our unique itineraries.  But, just as you find when others sing the songs of Paul McCartney, they're often not quite as good as when sung by the original composer!