WALES, THE LAND
OF SONG
Twin Centre Holiday
8 days / 7 nights - Saturday
to Saturday
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Wales
- derived from the Saxon word for foreigner. It was to these hills
that England original Celtic inhabitants retreated before the
conquering Roman, Saxon and Norman armies. Where 'foreigners'
established their Celtic redoubt and preserved their culture.
It is here that you find the living heart of the modern Welsh
culture. The hills are alive; both with singing and the second
oldest language spoken in Europe. But, despite the 'retreat' and
preservation of an ancient culture, made possible by the protection
of the magnificent mountains, the invader left his tell tale sign
in castles, settlement and industry.
On this
tour you'll see the fantastic scenery of the Snowdon National
Park and the most impressive range of 12th Century castles of
anywhere in the British Isles.
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You'll enjoy a heritage
coastline, a steam train ride into the mountains, see Cardiff the
capital city and the fantastic National Folk Museum of Wales. You'll
see fabulous industrial heritage of the Rhondda. We'll show you
prehistoric tombs, Roman remains, walled cities, the Valley of Kings,
beautiful gardens and hear a Welsh Male Voice Choir. All in all,
a simply perfect holiday in a simply perfect country! |
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DEPARTURE
DATES & PRICES FOR YEAR 2008
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Tour
Code
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Depart
Manchester
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Return
London
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LS
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Saturday
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Saturday
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LOS
01
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19 Apr
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26 Apr
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LOS
02
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03 May
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10 May
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LOS
03
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17 May
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24 May
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LOS
04
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31 May
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07 Jun
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LOS
05
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14 Jun
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21 Jun
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LOS
06
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28 Jun
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05 Jul
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LOS
07
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12 Jul
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19 Jul
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LOS
08
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26 Jul
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02 Aug
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LOS
09
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09 Aug
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16 Aug
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LOS
10
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23 Aug
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30 Aug
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LOS
11
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06 Sep
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13 Sep
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LOS
12
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20 Sep
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27 Sep
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LOS
13
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04 Oct
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11 Oct
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Price:
GBP £975 pp twin share / GBP £1035 single
room |
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What
your tour price includes
- Your
accommodation for 7 nights while on the tour is included
in your tour price, and this includes both full breakfasts
and dinners;
- Your
price also includes all entrance fees to attractions,
transportation, services of driver/guide-companion
and all taxes and tips other than those you may wish
to give your guide;
- Airport
transfers and accommodation pre and post tour is not
included but can be reserved at a specially discounted
price.
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TENTATIVE
ITINERARY
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NIGHTSTOP
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Day
One - Saturday
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We depart central Manchester at
08.30. En route to North Wales we stop to collect tour participants
at Chester who are combining this tour with our previous three day
Peaks and Cheshire Explorer. We'll enjoy a tour of the Roman walled
town of Chester with its cathedral and medieval shopping 'rows' before
continuing to Llandudno.
Llandudno is an elegant Victorian
seaside resort. The pier with its pier-end theatre, the wide, flower-filled
promenade, the imposing Victorian buildings that face the sea and
the covered shopping streets are all reminiscent of a bygone age.
The town also boasts a funicular railway that takes us to the top
of the Great Orme where we'll get splendid views of the Snowdonia
we have set our to explore.
We follow the coast a short distance
to our second walled city of the day at Conwy. This wall was erected
in the 12th century by Norman conquerors and with the massive castle
dominating one corner, it makes this harbour town one of the most
interesting in the UK. We'll find what claims to be Britain's smallest
house, as well as an impressively restored mediaeval one. Climbing
the turrets of one of Edward I's most imposing fortresses will not
be forgotten in a hurry!
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near
Conwy
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Day
Two - Sunday
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Today,
we explore the heart of Snowdonia. This National Park is one of dominating
peaks (the highest in England and Wales), narrow mountain passes,
flowing stream, cascading waterfalls, sheep-covered uplands and verdant,
hidden valleys. It has been claimed that these secluded valleys were
home to the real King Arthur. Certainly an ancient Welsh culture and
language still thrives here today. We'll explore it in true Back-Roads
fashion taking you beyond the regular tourist haunts downs tracks
and paths that will have you gasping!
Our day will
also include a visit to the great slate mine at Blaenau Ffestiniog,
or copper mine at Sygun, a steam train journey through the mountains
on a half-gage railway, a woollen mill, Harlech and the Llewyn Peninsular.
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as
above
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Day
Three - Monday
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Following an obligatory visit to Caernarfon,
we continue to the isle of Anglesey, crossing the Menai Straits by
Thomas Telford's famed suspension bridge - a wonder of the age of
the industrial revolution.
This ancient and mystic island offers
an astounding wealth of attractions including prehistoric burial
chambers and monuments, Celtic and Viking settlements, fabulous
flora and forna, and the village with the World's longest name -
Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerchwyrndrobwllllandysilliogogogoch.
There's the fabulously pretty harbour
of Beaumaris with its Victorian gaol (it has the only working tread-mill
wheel in Britain), a magnificent 12th Century Norman castle, and
a Roman Army museum, in addition to a 900 year old pub!
The island's geography is a natural
haven for birds, with its wildly contrasting variety of sheer cliffs,
sheltered coves, estuaries, dunes, heaths, wetlands, lakes and woodlands.
Along the coast you will discover major breeding colonies of puffins,
guillemots, razorbills, terns and cormorants - among many other
species. Spring and summer turn the Isle of Anglesey into a giant
rock garden, carpeted with flowers of every hue. Seal colonies are
a common sight on the rockier stretches of the coastline, whilst
dolphins can sometimes be glimpsed from shore.
We'll spend the full day exploring
this unique corner of the British Isles.
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as
above
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Day
Four - Tuesday
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Garden lovers are in for a treat this
morning with a visit to Bodnant gardens. Quoting from their own website,
it's 'one of the most beautiful gardens in the UK, spanning some 80
acres and is situated above the River Conwy on ground sloping towards
the west and looking across the valley towards the Snowdonia range.
The garden has two parts. The upper garden around Bodnant Hall consists
of the terraced gardens and informal lawns shaded by trees. The lower
portion, known as the "Dell" is formed by the valley of
the River Hiraethlyn and contains the Wild garden.
This afternoon we drive via Lake
Bala to Llangollen. From the canal wharf you embark on either a
horse drawn boat trip along the feeder for the main canal, or a
motorised aqueduct cruise which takes you across the famous Pontcysyllte
Aqueduct built by Thomas Telford. It's an unforgettable way to complete
our North Wales explorer.
Some tour participants may leave
at this point but those continuing with our Land of Song tour will
travelling south by train from Crewe (16.30) to arrive in Newport
South Wales, where they will be met by our local representative.
A light dinner is included tonight.
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South
Wales
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Day
Five - Wednesday
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After a leisurely start exploring the
local village and seeing life on the working farm on which we are
based for the next three nights. Our quaint local village throws up
some surprises, like evidence of a 17th century Tsunami that hit this
area, and the village stocks - which at least no longer house local
criminals!
Your next major sightseeing of the
day is at the ancient town of Chepstow. Some new tour participants
may join us at this time. This attractive town is dominated by a
huge 13th century castle. Climbing the battlements and gazing over
the surrounding countryside is something you'll not forget in a
hurry! Chepstow also boasts a Stuart Crystal outlet and some other
interesting shopping.
Our next stop is at the romantic
Tintern Abbey (inspiration for one of William Wordsworth's loveliest
poems). Then to see the fallen walls of the once mighty Roman city
of Caerwent, reputed by some to be the home of the great King Arthur
and his Knights of the Round Table.
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as
above
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Day
Six - Thursday
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The civic centre of the Welsh
capital - Cardiff - is magnificent by world standards. It will be
the showpiece of a panoramic city tour (which will also feature the
Millennium Stadium, formally known as the Arms Park, Mecca for the
millions of Rugby Football fans worldwide). On then to the superb
cathedral at Llandaff before arriving at the open-air Museum of Welsh
Life in the nearby village of St Fagans. This fascinating mirror of
hundreds of years of Welsh life embraces dozens of authentic buildings,
removed from all corners of the country and painstakingly and faithfully
rebuilt and refurbished here. Houses, churches and chapels, a mill,
bakery, pubs and even a school, have been wonderfully preserved. This
afternoon we explore the verdant Vale of Glamorgan, choosing from
the market town where Sir Anthony Hopkins went to school, the Valley
of Kings where the wizard Merlin was schooled, rugged coastline where
smugglers lured ships to the rocks, and we'll cross a river by 13th
century stepping stones. |
as
above
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Day
Seven - Friday
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According to our accommodation stop,
today will either begin or end in the once grey and hard world of
a Welsh mining valley, now transformed, but a time so memorably captured
in the great novel of industrial Wales, 'How Green Was My Valley'.
We'll climb the rim of the saucer of the coal-seam bearing, Rhigos
Mountain to view the sole surviving deep Welsh coal mine and the breathtaking
scenery of the Brecon Beacons, our next calling point. 'There'll be
a welcome in these hillsides' sing the Welsh. The market town of Brecon
could be our lunch stop (where there's an interesting military museum
), or perhaps Wales's oldest inn, used by the infamous 'Hanging Judge'
Jefferies as a court room. We'll also view the remote and atmospheric
ruins of Llantony Priory and a historic 'hidden' rural church.
Depending on time, we'll also be
visiting Abergaveny and its cattle market or the historic town of
Monmouth, well-known to Admiral Nelson, Mr Rolls of Rolls Royce
and Henry V.
As with all Back-Roads Touring Co.
Ltd tours, tour participants will be able have an input into what
we visit as we'll make allowance for weather conditions, local festivals
and individual interests.
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as
above
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Day
Eight - Saturday
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On our way back to London we'll visit
the mysterious ancient standing stones of Avebury and the amazing
Silbury Hill. But this will only be after a final memorable morning
in Roman Wales. The now small village of Caerleon was named after
the camp of the Roman Legions - perhaps up to 6000 Roman legionaries
were based here almost 2000 years ago. The imposing remains of that
camp remain and can be visited and include the barracks, the only
complete amphitheatre in Britain, the Roman baths, and the remains
of a Roman port.
We'll take our leave of the land
of the Red Dragon, crossing the river Severn in a most unusual fashion
before heading east and experiencing a spectacular exit from Wales.
Our drive back to London sees us passing through some of England's
timeless West country scenery and we'll arrive back into London
in the late afternoon.
Your accommodation tonight is not
included but can be reserved on your behalf at our West London base
hotel at a cost of £50 per person for a twin room and £65
for a single. Airport transfers can also be provided at a cost of
£40 to Heathrow and £65 to Gatwick.
This tour combines with our three-night Kent,
The Invader's Gateway tour which departs from London on a Sunday
morning. For those seeking a longer holiday, this provides a perfect
complement.
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