JOURNEYS THAT TAKE YOU TO FAR HORIZONS
1300 219 885 (AU)
0800 456 219 (NZ)
Quilt Tour of Wales & England with Birmingham Quilt Festival
11 - 24 August 2022
From (AUD)
$5,990
Tour Overview
Linda White is leading this tour to the UK which incorporates many different textile related experiences.
There will be numerous stops as we make our way through the beautiful UK countryside, visiting famous places of interest. Two full days will be spent at the biggest quilt show in Europe and the UK – The Festival of Quilts in Birmingham, where you will be able to immerse yourself in quilt displays, classes, demonstrations and of course shopping.
- Experience London, including the famous Victoria and Albert Museum
- 2 days at Festival of Quilts in Birmingham
- Visit the American Museum, Jen Jones Welsh Quilt Centre, and Minerva Arts Centre
- Explore the rural warmth of Cotswold, a locale known for its golden-hued limestone and bucolic rolling hills
- Visit York Minster and Bowes Museum in York
- Enjoy a class with Sharon from the Raggy Robin Sewing Room
- Patchwork Shops and retail therapy!
Dates & Prices
|
Tour Prices* |
|
|---|---|
| Per person, twin share | $5,990 |
| Single room supplement | $1,390 |
| Tour deposit | $600 |
*Tour price is Land Only, starts in London and finishes in Manchester Airport.
About your tour leader - Linda White
Linda White has been a patchworker and quilter for over 40 years, and is never without a stitching project close by. She loves the way that sewing and craft brings like minded people together, and how, many long time friendships have been made through the classes and events that she has held in her shop, Gum Valley Patchwork. Linda has a passion for English Paper Piecing, and is renowned for her award winning quilts ‘Dear Prudence’ and ‘Elenor Jean’.
What's Included
Tour Inclusions:
- 13 nights accommodation in well selected hotels on a bed and breakfast basis
- Packed lunch and 4 dinners
- Travel in first-class coaches from day 2 to day 14
- Tour is led by a professional quilter
- Sightseeing and general entry fees as detailed in the tour itinerary, including the Birmingham Festival of Quilts
- Tour manager in UK throughout the entire trip
- Porterage of one piece of luggage in and out of hotels
Not Included:
- Travel insurance
- Meals and drinks not specified in the itinerary
- Sightseeing and general expenses not specified in the itinerary
- Items of a personal nature
- Additional travel arrangements not in the tour itinerary
To enquire or book this tour, please contact
Phone: 1300 219 885 Email: enquiries@opulentjourneys.com.au
Please Click Here to download the tour details.
FITNESS REQUIREMENTS:
In order to get the most from your travels and keep up with the group, a reasonable level of fitness is required.
- You will need to be able to walk for a few hours at a gentle pace
- Use combined shower/bath facilities (it is impossible to guarantee walk-in shower facilities)
- Undertake walking tours of 1-2 hours duration, including using stairs, walking over cobblestones and other uneven surfaces
- Stand for long periods in museums and other sites
- Embark / disembark coaches, trains and other methods of transportation without assistance
- Handle your own luggage
COVID-19 cancellation policy
All participants are required to be fully vaccinated against Covid-19.
If Government imposed COVID-19 restrictions mean that we cannot run a tour, or that you cannot travel to join a tour, then you will be given a 100% refund of all monies paid to Opulent Journeys for your tour.
Itinerary
Meet your fellow group members in the hotel lobby, attend the welcome dinner, and receive a special stitching gift from Linda.
(Meals: D)
Orientation tour of London’s most famous sights on our panoramic peek at some of the best including Big Ben, Parliament, Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace, and Tower of London. Visit the Victoria & Albert Museum, the world’s largest museum of decorative art and design, housing a permanent collection of over 4.5 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and named after Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. We will also pay a visit to Liberty of London for some fabric shopping.
(Meals: B)
Today we visit fabric and quilting shops, Antique Textile Company and Taylors Buttons, operating for over 100 years in what was once the home of Charles Dickens.
(Meals: B)
After breakfast on the way to Bristol, we will stop at Lady Sew & Sew; followed by a visit to Stonehenge, the world’s most famous prehistoric monument. Arrive in Bristol for overnight stay.
(Meals: B)
This morning we’ll visit the Roman Baths of the historical city of Barth and explore textile collections at the American Museum, where vintage American quilts include 18th century examples by Sioux and Amish women, and slaves. We have an opportunity to have a guided quilt tour at the Museum. Also visit the patchwork and quilting shop Country Threads.
(Meals: B)
Today we visit Lacock, one of the charming English villages in the heart of Cotswold. The Cotswold’s honey-coloured limestone houses, historical market towns and rolling green hills framed by drystone walls represent an unspoiled idyll of quintessential England. Return to Bristol and enjoy the rest of the day at leisure.
(Meals: B)
Today enjoy a scenic drive to Lampeter, a small market and university town in the middle of the beautiful Welsh countryside. Here you will enjoy a visit and tour at the Jen Jones Welsh Quilt Centre. Have some free time to enjoy and explore the smallest town in Wales. Stop for a visit in the Calico Kate Quilt Shop, Red Apple Yarn Shop, return to further explore the Jen Jones Welsh Quilt Centre.
(Meals: B, L, D)
After breakfast, we depart Lampeter to Birmingham. En route, visit the Minerva Arts Centre in Llanidloes - the home of the Quilt Association and its collection of heritage quilts. The collection contains a large number of antique quilts made in Wales during the 19th and 20th Centuries, along with various associated items such as quilting templates and frames. Afterwards check in at the hotel in Birmingham and enjoy a group dinner with Australian Designer Gail Pan.
(Meals: B D)
Explore the Festival of Quilts at the NEC Convention Centre in Birmingham.
(Meals: B)
Travel through green English countryside to York, where you can stroll through the narrow streets of this medieval city. After a visit to York Minster, we meet with a member of the Quilter’s Guild of the British Isles who specialises in North Country quilts. (subject to the member’s availability). Her private collection dates from the early 19th and 20th century, and she has invited us to view the extraordinary detail of her pristine collection.
(Meals: B)
Visit an ancient market town - Barnard Castle and the Bowes Museum, Britain’s largest and best European textile collection, with tapestries, needlework, lace and quilts from the 15th to 19th centuries. Attend a workshop with Sharon at the Raggy Robin Sewing Room.
(Meals: B)
Take in the great natural beauty at the Yorkshire Dales and enjoy a day excursion to the village of Haworth, home of the famous Brontë sisters. Farewell dinner tonight.
(Meals: B, D)
Travel by coach to Manchester Airport for your departure flight.
(Meals: B)
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