UK & IRELAND LITERARY BREAKS DESTINATIONS
Kicking back with a good book is as much of a holiday ritual as scouting out sun, sea and sand, allowing for some much-needed escapism and me-time. For real bookworms, a literary escape offers the perfect excuse to enjoy a break while indulging their imagination by delving into the world of a great author. Whether it’s a tour of the
location that inspired their favourite novel, a trip to a literary museum or even a stay in a house where a famous writer once lived, these bookish breaks are bound to leave clients feeling inspired.
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BEATRIX POTTER’S LAKE DISTRICT Peter Rabbit, Jemima Puddle Duck and Mrs
Tiggy-Winkle owe their origins to the rugged, unspoiled landscapes of the Lake District, where their creator Beatrix Potter used to holiday as a child. Hawkshead was the setting
for Johnny Townmouse, Squirrel Nutkin sailed on Derwent Water, and Potter bought 17th-century farmhouse Hill Top with the proceeds from The T
to four sharing a standard two- bedroom caravan, for selected dates in July and August.
haven.com
July 1881, Robert Louis Stevenson sat down with his stepson Lloyd at the family cottage they were renting in Braemar, Scotland. Together they drew a map of an island, with Stevenson adding names and a location for buried treasure. After Lloyd excitedly asked for a story about the island, Stevenson obliged, penning 15 chapters of his legendary Treasure Island in the cottage in so many days. Clients can settle down in the
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same traditional stone cottage that Stevenson once did, and read the evocative tale of buccaneers and buried gold for themselves. Adventurers are well-placed
ale of Peter
Rabbit. This year marks the 150th anniversary of the birth of the children’s author, so there’s no better time for clients to explore the area’s awe-inspiring scenery, making stops at the World of Beatrix Potter attraction, Potter’s former home Hill Top or the Beatrix Potter gallery in Hawkshead along the way. BOOK IT: Haven offers a week’s stay at Lakeland in the Lake District from £349, based on up
to explore the surrounding area, and even hunt out treasure of a different kind at the Queen’s Scottish retreat of Balmoral. BOOK IT: Prices for a week’s stay at Treasure Island Cottage start from £315 per week with Unique Cottages.
uniquecottages.co.uk
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SHAKESPEARE’S STRATFORD-UPON-AVON This year marks 400 years since the death of
William Shakespeare, giving fans of the Bard the perfect excuse to visit his famed birthplace, Stratford-upon-Avon.
ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON’S SCOTLAND On a rainy afternoon in
The quintessentially pretty English town is home to the internationally renowned Royal Shakespeare Company – where theatre lovers can catch one of Shakespeare’s plays – and five beautifully preserved houses which link back to Shakespeare and his family. After a morning visit to the
playwright’s birthplace and the pretty thatched cottage of his then bride-to-be, Anne Hathaway, clients can spend an afternoon cruising down the River Avon, or channelling The Merchant of Venice with a gondola ride. BOOK IT: SuperBreak offers a Shakespeare’s Houses pass package, which entitles visitors to see three of the five historic Shakespeare’s houses, plus two nights’ B&B accommodation at Ettington Chase hotel and complimentary dinner on the first night, for £93 per person.
superbreak.com/agents
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CHAUCER’S CANTERBURY Clients can meet the Wife of Bath, the Miller
and even Geoffrey Chaucer himself at St Margaret’s Church in Canterbury, home to the excellent Canterbury Tales attraction. The interactive tour through
Chaucer’s Canterbury allows clients to experience the sights, sounds and smells of the poet’s medieval England, ending at the shrine of St Thomas Becket. Canterbury makes an enjoyable
day out for couples, but it’s also a great way to bring this tricky text to life for kids who are studying
it at school, and there are plenty of family-friendly attractions in the vicinity to make it into a proper family break. Hoseasons features accommodation at Courthope Farm Bluebells Stable, less than half an hour’s drive from Canterbury; set in 120 acres of forest, it has an on-site farm for kids to explore and its own hot tub (prices from £300 a week). BOOK IT: Belmond offers a Historic Canterbury rail journey, which includes brunch with bellini, a guided walking tour of Canterbury and admission to the cathedral, from £250.
belmond.com
Yorkshire and East Lancashire Pennines leaves little doubt as to why the region inspired the Brontë sisters to write such classics as Wuthering Heights, Jane Eyre and The T
5 enant of
Wildfell Hall. Brontë Country, as the area
is now known, includes the village of Haworth, where Emily, Charlotte and Anne lived; Top Withens, the crumbling farmhouse and supposed setting of Wuthering Heights; and Thornton, on the outskirts of Bradford, where the Brontë sisters were born. The most popular literary
attraction in the area is the Brontë Parsonage Museum, where the sisters once lived and wrote. The museum is still furnished as it was when the family lived
23 June 2016
travelweekly.co.uk 45
BRONTE COUNTRY A visit to the windswept, heather-cloaked moors that link the West
TOP TIP
British Tours offers a trip to London and
Portsmouth to discover where Charles Dickens lived and worked
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