| Journal: TWUK | Section: |
| Title: | Issue Date: 15/05/00 |
| Author: | Page Number: 54 |
| Copyright: Other |
10 Great British Getaways by Linsey McNeill
Treat yourself to the best of British
Operators broaden home appeal
UK tour operators have realised that if they are to sell more domestic holidays they must offer more variety. As a result, programmes have been expanded to give clients a greater choice of location, accommodation and activities.In particular, there has been a growth in the range of special-interest holidays available. Virtually any type of activity, from trekking in the highlands of Scotland to learning how to drive a sports car can now be booked as a package through both specialist and mainstream operators.
Here we have selected 10 British breaks to give an idea of what’s available in operators’ brochures.
Go llama trekking in Somerset
Strange as it may seem, llama trekking in Somerset has become a popular excursion for Sunvil UK’s clients.
Clients are introduced to the llamas and then invited to lead (or ride) them on a 4hrwalk, which includes a stop for lunch.
The llama excursion costs £39 per person. Accommodation costs from £50 per person per night.
Other popular activities available from Sunvil include A Day with a Country Vet in Stratford-upon-Avon, which costs £149, cooking lessons with a celebrity chef for £179, and Ferrari driving, which costs £199.
Bookings for Sunvil’s most popular activities must be made at least five to six weeks in advance.
Play golf in Scotland
Scotland has some of the best golf courses in the world, including the famous Old Course in St Andrews. The Rusacks Hotel overlooks the first tee and the 18th green.
One night at the hotel costs from £108 per person when booked through Superbreak’s Luxury Hotel Collection.
The operator also features the Carnoustie Golf Course Hotel, Scotland’s newest four-star golf resort, which costs from £75 per night. For clients who want to do more than golf, there’s The Gleneagles Hotel which, as well as offering access to the world-renowned King’s, Queen’s and Monarch’s courses, has a wide range of leisure activities including riding, shooting, falconry and off-road driving. It costs from £221.50 per person per night.
Make a Dome run: take a look at the Greenwich wonder with a London package
Take a health spa weekend
Choose from a full-blown health farm or check into a hotel that offers spa facilities.
Dedicated health farms usually give the option of a professional health consultation and generally have a wider choice of treatments than hotel spas. Crystal’s Premier Britain programme offers one night at the five-star Champneys health farm in Hertfordshire from £245 including full-board accommodation, professional consultation and a complimentary heat treatment and massage.
Clients just looking for a relaxing break may prefer the ambience of a hotel spa. A number of UK operators, including Crystal, Sunvil UK and Jetset have added more properties with spa facilities this year and several offer special health and beauty packages.
Specialist spa operator Thermalia Travel features the five-star St David’s Hotel and Spa in Cardiff with prices from £314 for a two-night Sheer Indulgence package, with half-board accommodation.
Taking it easy: hotel spas are great for clients looking for a relaxing break
Tour the Outer Isles
A seven-night self-drive tour of the far-flung Outer Hebrides, off Scotland’s west coast, can be organised through Sunvil UK, which will pre-book ferries and stays en route on a dinner, bed-and-breakfast basis.
The holiday starts at Ullapool, on the west coast, and takes in the Isles of Lewis, Harris, North Uist and Barra before returning to Oban on the mainland.
The price of £625 includes ferry crossings and half-board accommodation, which is described as basic, due to the remoteness of the islands but clean and comfortable. Car hire is available at an extra cost.
Visit the Millennium Dome and London Eye
It’s had a lot of bad publicity but wouldn’t it be a shame not to see the Dome?
Operators including Crystal, Highlife and Superbreak offer packages that combine overnight accommodation in London together with entry tickets to the Dome.
Highlife’s packages lead in at £57 per person per night for accommodation at a three-star London hotel including breakfast, tickets to the Dome, discount vouchers for a variety of city attractions and a discount voucher for 20% off a meal in more than 20 London hotel restaurants.
Crystal will also pre-book tickets on the London Eye, the world’s largest observation wheel, which cost from £7.45 for adults and from £4.95 for children.
Venice Simplon-Orient-Express weekend
Here’s a good way of experiencing the luxury and splendour of a trip on the world’s most famous train, without having to pay to travel all the way to continental Europe. The Orient Express operates several weekend breaks in the UK, including trips to the Lake District, York and Edinburgh, Bath and Cornwall.
The trips depart from London and passengers transfer to hotel accommodation on arrival in their chosen destination for a two-night stay. On both the outward and return train journey, passengers are treated to a three-course meal (or five courses on the return from Cornwall) with champagne and wine.
Crystal Premier Britain offers weekend breaks on the Orient Express, starting at £420 for two nights in Bath including return train travel, hotel accommodation, breakfast and transfers. Guided tours are included with some of the more expensive weekend breaks.
Bath: is on the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express route
Stay at acountry-house hotel
Many country-house hotels are former stately homes or manor houses and are often set in magnificent grounds.
Activities such as horse riding, falconry, clay-pigeon shooting and off-road driving are often on offer and a handful have spa facilities.
Featured in Macdonald’s Quality Breaks brochure is the four-star Buxted Park Country-house Hotel – a Georgian mansion set in 312 acres of Sussex countryside, with a health club, beauty salon and outdoor heated pools. Prices start at £50 per person per night bed and breakfast, based on two sharing.
Hire a Cornish cottage
Cornwall is one of the most popular destinations for self-catering cottage holidays. Styles range from modern bungalows to cosy stone-built cottages and large converted barns.
Standards may vary and though most brochured properties are comfortable, some have more facilities than others.
Country Holidays and the Thomson-owned Holiday Cottages have a wide range of properties. One cottage highly commended by Country Holidays is The Old Mill near Padstow on the north Cornwall coast, which sleeps six, and facilities include central heating, washer/dryer, cable TV, payphone, microwave and freezer. It costs from £113 for two nights, or from £227 for a week.
Boating on the Norfolk Broads
Sailing the Norfolk Broads is a great way to get away from it all.
Blakes has a wide range of yachts and cruisers to choose from for both experienced and novice sailors. Two hours free tuition is offered to first-time sailors on arrival. All boats come with modern facilities such as cookers, fridges and flushing toilets, and some sleep up to 12 guests – so they’re big enough for two families or a large party of friends.
Prices lead in at £166 for a yacht for three nights, or £255 for a week.
Go walking in Wales
Follow the Red Kite Trail, a strenuous 74-mile walk across the hills of the southern Cambrian Mountains of mid-Wales, which is home to the Red Kite and other birds of prey. The guided walk, which is one of a number of long-distance routes featured by specialist operator Countrywide, takes six days to complete and costs £429 per person including accommodation, dinner and breakfast, a guide, luggage-handling service and transfers. Countrywide has an extensive programme of walking holidays in England, Wales and Scotland, including many less challenging walks. Rival operator HF Holidays also offers broad programme of guided walks.