Great places, happy faces across Tauck’s England, Scotland and Wales (left to right): Discovering the charming Cotswolds... celebrating Scottish heritage in Edinburgh... visiting a world wonder, Stonehenge... a stay at the Macdonald Bath Spa Hotel... exploring castles from Windsor to Caernarfon
is renowned for its mix of Italianate pastel-colored architectural styles and landscape designs. Once a Victorian villa, the Hotel Portmeirion overlooks Cardigan Bay from its own peninsula, and was a key location in the 1960s TV series, The Prisoner. Meals BD
7. CAERNARFON / ALONG THE WELSH COAST Venture to Caernarfon for a guided tour of its 13th-century riverside castle, built by King Edward I, where the investiture of the Prince of Wales takes place. Return along the Atlantic coast to Portmeirion for free time and an à la carte dinner at the hotel. Meals BD
8. STRATFORD-UPON-AVON / BATH After traversing the Welsh countryside, cross back into England and arrive in the lovely riverside town of Stratford-upon-Avon in Warwickshire, revered throughout the world as the hometown of William Shakespeare. Tauck includes admission to sites associated with the town’s famous favorite son – ranging from his birthplace to Holy Trinity Church, where both the playwright and Anne Hathaway are buried – which you can visit at your leisure. Continue on through the bucolic English countryside this afternoon to the beautiful city of Bath for a two-night stay at the elegant Macdonald Bath Spa Hotel. Meals BD
9. EXPERIENCE THE BEST OF BATH Founded by the Romans as a thermal spa and developed more than a thousand years later into a lavish resort by the 18th-century British aristocracy, Bath today reigns unequaled as a magnificent Georgian townscape crafted from native limestone, and architecturally ranks among Britain’s finest cities. A guided tour visits the famous Roman baths – which the city’s Georgian occupants never knew existed, as the Roman-era structures were not unearthed until excavations during Victorian days – and views the Royal Crescent, the Circus and other major sights. The rest of the day and evening are free to enjoy Bath as you wish. Meals B
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10. STONEHENGE / OXFORD After departing Bath and crossing the vast Salisbury Plain, you’ll see them looming out of a sea of grass and grazing sheep – the mysterious monoliths of Stonehenge, England’s oldest prehistoric monument and one of the world’s wonders; possibly dating back 5,000 years, the ancient stone circle’s origins are still debated today. Travel to Oxford for a guided walking tour of esteemed Oxford University – the oldest university in the English-speaking world – and a two-night stay in town at the historic Macdonald Randolph Hotel; spend the rest of the day at leisure. Meals BL
11. BLENHEIM PALACE / THE COTSWOLDS Gain insights on the life, career and legacy of famed 20th-century British statesman Sir Winston Churchill with visits to his stately birthplace – Blenheim Palace, a 2,100-acre Oxfordshire estate with grounds and gardens by the famed “Capability Brown,” now home to the Duke and Duchess of Marlborough – and to his final resting place in Bladen. Explore the rolling landscapes of the Cotswolds, stopping in one of the charming villages for lunch on your own. Join us back in Oxford for dinner. Meals BD
12. WINDSOR CASTLE / ON TO LONDON A drive through the Berkshire countryside brings you to one of England’s most important addresses – Windsor Castle, the largest inhabited castle in the world, and home to British royalty for over 900 years; your tour includes St. George’s Chapel, Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House and the State Apartments (schedule permitting). Continue on to London for two nights in the historic heart of the legendary British capital at The Langham, London. Meals B
13. WESTMINSTER ABBEY / PRIVATE EVENING Begin a memorable day in London with a visit to Westminster Abbey, burial place of Britain’s monarchs since the 11th century. More guided sightseeing includes Big Ben, Piccadilly Circus,
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