Depart from USA
Today you will make your way to the airport for your flight to London. The adventure begins!
London Private Airport Arrival Transfer
Arrive this morning and after clearing Customs and Immigration, meet your driver and be transferred to your accommodations. Remainder of the day at leisure.
London - Private Full Day London Tour – Driver/Guide
Today meet your Guide and begin your private tour to many of the major sites of London. At London’s vibrant West End you can enjoy the famous sites of London such as Buckingham Palace, Trafalgar Square and the Piccadilly Circus.
At the Tower of London you will visit the White, Bloody and Martin Towers, where prisoners were held and often tortured. Also you will see the Crown Jewels, displayed in a specially built jewel house.
Then you will visit Westminster Abby, one of Britain’s most important churches, which was built in the eleventh century by King Edward, the Confessor. The abbey now houses the tombs of many royals from subsequent centuries. Both Henry Purcell and Georg Frederic Handel are buried here.
Breakfast
London – Private Driver/Guide London Tour.
Today you will be picked up at your hotel by your private driver/guide and continue your tour of London, visiting St. Paul’s Cathedral, Covent Garden, Kensington Palace, Big Ben and Parliament.
Optional: Tonight enjoy a night at the London Theater - see a Musical or Play. Just ask we’ll be happy to arrange your theater tickets!
Breakfast
This morning you will be transferred to the London Paddington Station, board your train to St. Austell (about a 4 hour train ride). Upon arrival transfer to your hotel. Remainder of day at leisure to explore on your own.
These few days down in the beautiful surroundings of Cornwall, will make a wonderful addition to your stay in the UK. If you are a fan of Poldark and Doc Martin you will visit the locations featured in the TV Series and they will not disappoint. In fact the whole of Cornwall will not disappoint.
Poldark Day 1 Tour
You will be picked you up from your hotel around 9.00am by a local tour guide. The order of the day will change depending on where you are staying, but here’s a taste of what you’ll see in the day.
Truro… See the streets of Truro so vividly described in the books, where the Rich mine owners had their fashionable town houses and Ladies bought the latest fashions. We’ll take a quick look at the impressive Victorian Cathedral while we are here.
Charlestown… Dressed up as Truro harbour, this once busy Georgian Clay port is a perfect location for the filming, there is often a tall ship in the harbour which really adds atmosphere. We’ll park up and take a wander around this evocative harbour and imagine life in the 1700’s.
Minions…One of the highest villages in Cornwall, and the bleak moorland setting of many a horse riding scene in Poldark, and the area around Ross’s and Francis’s estates. We’ll take a walk past the Hurlers stone circle, up towards the Cheesering Tor along some of the old mining paths used in the series. Expect to get close to some wild Dartmoor Ponies and amongst the hardy sheep and lambs, and see spectacular views all the way to Devon as wind our way back to the Engine House and mining heritage centre.
You will be taken for lunch in one of the cafes here, hopefully sitting outside watching the wild ponies wandering through the village.
St Breward…After a spectacular drive across the moors we reach St Beward, which hosts Ross and Demelza’s ‘Nampara’ farm house as well as some of the workers cottages. Just a quick stop here before we head for the North coast and our next stop at..
Porthcothan…Some of the most evocative shots of the coastline are on the headland between Porthcothan and Porth mear, with Trevose lighthouse in the background, (which incidentally wasn’t built until after the period…oops). We’ll walk out to the coast path to take in the spectacular views and atmosphere.
You finish the day with a drive down the coast past Newquay and Perranporth (where Winston Graham lived whilst writing the books) to the coastal mines at Wheal Coates and mining town of St Agnes. This is the area that inspired the writing of the books and fits in geographically with many of the scenes described, you can almost imagine the Illogan miners coming over the hill, to start a fight, or the miners trudging back wearily after a 12 hour shift down underground!!
Poldark Day 2 Tour
Today you head west with your guide to some of the most spectacular coastal scenery in Cornwall. You start down on the Lizard peninsula, with a walk down onto…
Church Cove at Gunwalloe, which was used for the shipwreck scene in series one, which also happens to be beautiful beach well off the beaten track.
We then wind our way along the coast to …
Kynance Cove, probably one of the prettiest and most photographed beaches along the Cornwall coastline, and used for filming in series 2 this Autumn.
Whilst down on the Lizard we’ll visit Lizard point which is the most Southerly point in the UK and hasn’t been spoilt like it’s neighbour Lands End! We’ll also pick up an ‘Annes Pasty’ for lunch before we drive around to the Penwith peninsula.
You’ll know when we’ve reached Penwith when we drive into Marazion and spy the famous and spectacular St Michaels Mount, we’ll do a quick camera stop before we continue winding our way through Penzance, Newlyn, Mousehole, Lamorna to a first filming location…
Penberth Cove. This was always one of our favourite unspoilt fishing coves, and it was used for filming in series 2 this autumn.
We then must visit the most popular attraction in this part of Cornwall is the Minack theatre, the breathtaking clifftop open air theatre built overlooking Porthcurno and Pedn Vounder beaches, with its turquoise water and white sand it’s more Greek Islands than Great Britain!! Just west of Porthcurno is…
Porthgwarra, now famous for that scene where Demelza spies Ross taking a swim, it’s also tiny slipway and fishing cove, where you can just imagine the smugglers landing in the dead of night to land their booty, in fear of being spotted by the custom men.
If you want a quick photo of Lands End then we can drive through, but our next stop is the derelict mine ruins of…
Botallack, Wheal Owles and Crown mines. With a little CGI these were Wheal leisure and Grambler mines in the series, used in many scenes, and are a fascinating insight to Tin and Copper mining in Cornwall. We’ll take a wander amongst the mines and the Arsenic Labyrinth whilst we chat about life down the mines.
You will finish the day with one of the most scenic drives in Cornwall, along the coastal road to St Ives where if time allows you’ll have time to explore the ancient harbour, streets, shops and galleries.
Best of the West Part 1 & Doc Martin
You start with a trip up the coast to explore North Cornwall. First stop will be the 14th century Huers hut in Newquay to enjoy the view up the coast and learn a little about the life of a pilchard fisherman. After a drive through the vibrant streets of Europe’s surfing capital, we whisk you away to the quiet Monastic village of St Mawgan to explore the 13th century church and Carmolite Convent. The perfect Cornish village! Then we head Just up the road to the famous beauty spot of Bedruthan Steps with its dramatic cliff-top views, we’ll take a short stroll on the cliffs before heading to Padstow. Made famous by Rick Stein and the Seafood Restaurant, this charming harbour town is normally bustling with visitors enjoying the fine mix of shops, cafes and restaurants all set around the water.
Your next stop is around the other side of the estuary, and also our lunch stop. Port Quin is a picturesque tiny cove with Fiona’s cafe making the best crab sandwiches on the planet! (probably!!). We have the option here to walk up the coast path and get some more great views of the coastline.
Port Isaac, or ‘Port Wenn’ as it’s known in Doc Martin is only a mile up the road, and you’ll be dropped at the bottom by the harbour to explore the tiny streets and possibly bump into the grumpy doctor himself!
Following a drive along some spectacularly tiny roads you get to Tintagel, and possibly the most famous tale to come out of Cornwall. Reputed to be King Arthurs birth place, we get a spectacular view of the island and ruins from the coast path, whilst we fill you in on the stories that make up this famous legend.
The last stop of the day, is Boscastle, with its steep sided valley and natural harbour entrance, it’s an ideal spot to get a cream tea and reflect on the day.
Best of the West Part 2
Visit the famous Lost Gardens of Heligan. This glorious Victorian garden went to sleep following the First World War and has been lovingly pieced back together and restored to its former glory by a dedicated team of Gardeners and volunteers. You’ll get a personal guided tour before we take lunch in the Garden restaurant, full of their home grown produce.
The Eden project is our destination for the afternoon. This engineering marvel is built in a disused China clay pit, and is composed of two large Biomes, one full of tropical rainforest and the other a fragrant Mediterranean temperate zone. Designed to be not only a tourist destination, Eden is also all about education and research. Your guide will give you a personal guided tour so you don’t miss anything.
Best of the West Part 3
The final day in Cornwall, your driver/guide will collect you once again from your hotel for another amazing day out. Start the day down at Marazion visiting the famous St Michaels Mount. Steeped in fascinating history, with amazing views over Mounts Bay, and still the family home of the St Aubyns, with its little fishing harbour and tidal causeway the Mount holds plenty to see and explore. After the mount we take a scenic drive around the bay to Mousehole, take a little wander then head off around the Lands End peninsula with a mix of Ancient stones, fishing coves, the amazing Minack Theatre, mines and stunning sea and coastal views. We end the day in the Artist mecca of St Ives where you can wander around this picturesque fishing town and peruse the Shops and Art galleries.
This morning you will be transferred to the St Austell Train Station and board your train for London Heathrow via London Paddington Station. On arrival make your own way via walkway or via hotel shuttle to your hotel for the night.
London - Home
Today say goodbye to England, departing for home with a lifetime of wonderful memories!
