Itinerary

Day 1 – Friday 24th April 

Arriving by door-to-door car at the Bull Hotel at Gerrard’s Cross, you will be greeted by your Tour Manager who will be with you throughout the holiday. Coffee or tea with pastries will be served before we board the coach. We will begin our journey to Stratford-upon-Avon, with a stop en-route at the Castle, Edgehill for a light lunch. On arrival to Stratford in the early afternoon we have a visit to Stratford Butterfly Farm, before arriving at the Swan’s Nest for check-in. There will be time to unpack and freshen up before we immerse ourselves in our first ‘Shakespeare’ experience of the holiday. Our evening meal tonight will be enjoyed at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre’s Rooftop Restaurant. The restaurant provides the best of British food in stylish surroundings with stunning panoramic views of the town. After enjoying our three-course meal we will move down to the theatre to enjoy a performance of ‘Henry V’. 

Day 2 – Saturday 25th April 

Following a full English or continental breakfast, we will leave the hotel and take the short walk in to the town centre and make our way to where the ceremonial showpiece takes place. The grand Birthday Procession begins with Stafford’s primary school children led by the Air Training Corps band. They are followed by a multitude of musicians, costumed players and street performers. The procession continues to the Holy Trinity Church, where flowers are lain on the poet’s grave. When the parade moves on we will make our way to the Thatch Tavern for a light lunch. After lunch there is the option to return to the hotel for some free time or to stay in the town to enjoy a leisurely look around the shops and market stalls. 

Day 3 – Sunday 26th April 

Today will be spent visiting some of the properties that shaped Shakespeare’s life. Shakespeare’s Birthplace is where he grew up and spent the first five years of his marriage to Anne Hathaway. Room guides are situated throughout the building which we can explore at our own pace. After our visit here, we will take the short walk along to New Place. Shakespeare bought this prestigious 20 room residence, the largest house in the borough in 1957 and it is where he died in 1616. Demolished in 1759 this is now preserved as a garden. We will enjoy a self-led tour of New Place.

Our lunch will be at a close by restaurant. Following on from lunch we will take a short stroll along the road to Shakespeare’s Schoolroom and Guildhall. Here we will step back in time into sixteenth century Stratford-upon-Avon with an interactive experience bringing stories of the Guildhall to life. We will sit in the room where William Shakespeare sat as a pupil in the 1570’s and have a Tudor style school lesson withShakespeare’slastschool master.We will have a Quill writing lesson and finish our experience with a glass of fizz and homemade scone, jam and cream. 

Day 4 – Monday 27th April  

Taking the opportunity of being in Warwickshire, we have included a visit to a popular National Trust property, Baddersley Clinton. The property is a moated manor house with delightful gardens set in the heart of the Forest of Arden and has a history spanning 500 years. We will enjoy a light lunch here before making our way back to Stratford-upon-Avon and a visit to Anne Hathaway’s Cottage. The cottage is a beautiful thatched farmhouse which was the childhood home of Shakespeare's wife, Anne Hathaway. In the romantic setting where young William wooed his beloved, we can stroll around the award-winning gardens which overflow with beautiful blooms, shrubs and traditional vegetables. 

Day 5 - Tuesday 28th April

After breakfast, we check out from the hotel but remain in Stratford-upon-Avon for our final visit – the resting place of William Shakespeare at Holy Trinity Church, also known as Shakespeare’s Church. The first mention of this church was in the charter of 845 and would have been made of wood. The limestone building that is present today was begun in 1210, so a building that holds lots of history. We will visit The Chancel where Shakespeare was buried in 1616. Following our visit here, we will take the short drive to the Stratford Manor Hotel for our two-course farewell lunch. We then board the coach for our journey back to the Bull Hotel where refreshments will be served before our door to door cars arrive.