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Martin Randall's Cultural Holidays are ATOL and AITO protected.
Voysey House,
Barley Mow Passage
London W4 4GF
United Kingdom
Telephone: +44 (0)20 8742 3355
USA: 1-800-988-6168
Canada: (647) 382 1644
Australia: 1300 55 95 95
New Zealand: 61-7-3377-0141
Houses & Gardens Tours
Cities shape culture. For this reason many, perhaps a majority, of cultural holidays relate in some way to the urban environment. MRT’s houses and gardens tours, by contrast, focus on a type of domestic architecture that is specifically set against the idea of the city: these villas, private gardens and country houses were to be places of escape, of freedom and self-expression, where the preoccupations of the city were kept distant. Many are accessible only by private arrangement. All remain oases of harmonious tranquility. All our small-group tours are led by expert lecturers, chosen for their companionability and communication skills as well as their scholarship.
Walking in Cornwall
- Walks on most days through some of the most beautiful scenery in England.
- Visits to gardens, country houses, art galleries, and historic towns and villages. Maritime history, literary associations and the history of the county feature.
- Attention is also paid to geology, botany, ecology and other aspects of the natural world.
Gardens of Tuscany
- Wonderful range of gardens from Early Renaissance to 20th-century, several visited by special arrangement.
- Hotels in central Florence and Siena with free time to explore both cities.
- Ideal time of year to see Tuscany in bloom.
Brittany
- A new tour for 2012.
- Brittany’s landscapes captured and cultivated: gardens, châteaux and historic towns.
- Some of the finest prehistoric sites in Europe.
Ardgowan
- Stay as guests at Ardgowan, a grand 18th-century country house which remains a private home, not a hotel nor a museum.
- Visit other country houses in the vicinity, some not generally open to the public, all with special arrangements or privileged access.
- Pass through the stunning coastal and Lowland landscapes of western Scotland.
Great Houses of the East
- The best country houses in East Anglia and the East Midlands, outstanding examples from the end of the Middle Ages to the Victorian era.
- The Tudor and Stuart age is particularly well represented, as is the Palladian style.
- Great architecture, major works of art, spectacular gardens, landscaped parks, life both sides of the green baize door.
Country House Opera
- Three operas at three of England’s highest quality country-house opera festivals – Longborough, Grange Park and Garsington at its new home at Wormsley.
- La Périchole (Offenbach), Katya Kabanova (Janáček), and Idomeneo (Mozart).
- Staying at the finest hotel in Oxford and a country house hotel outside Winchester.
Great Houses of the South West
- A new tour for 2012.
- Great country houses, historic gardens and parks in Wiltshire, Gloucestershire, Somerset, Dorset and Devon.
- Major examples of a huge range of styles from the twelfth century to the twentieth.
Villas & Gardens of Campagna Romana
- Renaissance villas and gardens, most accessible by special arrangement.
- Vivid remains of Etruscan civilisation, emulated and displaced by the Romans.
- Beguiling scenery of tufa hills and ‘classical’ compositions.
The Cotswolds
- Nine walks through some of the loveliest countryside in the world with stops to enjoy buildings and landscape features.
- A carefully selected itinerary which favours the lesser-visited and less accessible places over some of the more touristy ones.
- Several outstanding gardens are a feature, as are manor houses and a handful of the finest parish churches in the country.
Courts of Northern Italy
- Mantua, Ferrara, Parma, Ravenna, Urbino and surroundings.
- Art and architecture of the Renaissance produced in the service of the ruling dynasties rather than for free cities.
- Mediaeval and later art also features.
Our lecturer’s knowledge and enthusiasm were a pleasure to behold.
Our lecturer’s love of plants and knowledge of garden history ensured that every garden was of interest.Really enjoyed the tour – super.
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