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Monday
Today is Chenies Dahlia Festival so
the 5 acre gardens should be at their best with many varieties of
dahlias on display throughout the gardens. In attendance will be the
Dahlia specialist 'Rose Cottage Plants' who supply National Trust
& other notable gardens. Of course no open garden day would be
complete without home made teas & plants for sale. There will also
be vintage tractor to have a tractor trailer ride around the farm.
This
Grade I Listed Building, known formerly as Chenies Palace, was owned by
the Cheyne family who were granted the manorial rights in 1180. The
manor remained in their possession until the end of the 15th century.
The house which will be open is steeped in history and supposed to be
haunted. Both Henry VIII and Queen Elizabeth I visited the house on
numerous occasions accompanied by their Courts.
Our hotel for the night is the Hilton Reading
Chance to use leisure facilities before dinner
Tuesday
After a good
breakfast we send the day exploring & discovering 250 years of
history at the world's most famous Botanic Gardens, Kew Gardens &
Palace (all on the same site)
As seen on the television & newspapers 'The Hive' has just opened.
The Hive is a unique structure, inspired by scientific research into the health of bees. Designed
by UK based artist Wolfgang Buttress, it was originally created as the
centrepiece of the UK Pavilion at the 2015 Milan Expo.
The installation is made from thousands of pieces of aluminium which
create a lattice effect and is fitted with hundreds of LED lights that
glow and fade as a unique soundtrack hums and buzzes around you.
These multi-sensory elements of the Hive
are in fact responding to the real-time activity of bees in a beehive
behind the scenes at Kew. The sound and light intensity within the space
changes as the energy levels in the real beehive surge, giving visitors
an insight into life inside a bee colony.
For those that would prefer
to let the train take the strain, there is a Kew Explorer Land Train,
which you can hop on/off & enjoy a tour around the gardens (Cost
£5)
Highlights of the garden should include Rose Garden, Rose Pagoda, Dukes & Queens Gardens, Palm House, Princess of
Wales conservatory, Water-lily House, Alpine House & the Treetop
Walkway which stands in the Arboretum & offers spectacular views of
the treetops and gardens.
Kew Palace more like a home than a palace, the privacy and intimacy of this
smallest of English royal palaces made it the favourite country retreat
for the royal family in the late 18th century.
The palace tells the story of George III and his family at rest at and play.
Highlights including exploring the Royal Kitchens for the very first time. Open the door
to a lost space, left untouched since Queen Charlotte's death in
1818, to discover more about these historic royal kitchens, the servants
who worked in them and Georgian culinary life. See the chair that Queen Charlotte was resting in when she died.
Included in the cost of the break
Coach with pickups, Forde Park, Railway Station, B&Q Newton Abbot,
Next & Greenhill Way route Kingsteignton & Exeter Services
Bed Breakfast & 3 course dinner at Hilton Reading
Entry to Chenies Manor
Entry to Kew Gardens & Kew Palace
COST £110 PER PERSON SHARING
£20 SINGLE SUPPLEMENT
(limited availability)
£25 per person deposit with booking
Final payment by 14th July
Please note insurance in not included
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