Historical Exploration Tour of Southern England

My husband and I had an excellent anniversary trip and were able to explore London, the Cotswolds, and Wales. Having never been out of the country, and after saving up enough money to finally go, I wanted to ensure the trip went well, so I decided to contact a professional agency who would know the best places to stay and things to do. 

We started in London in Sloane Square, which had us conveniently next to the underground. We visited Tower of London, Westminster Abbey, Kensington, and Hampton Court Palace. I did most of the research about where we were going to eat, and we did one night at a three Michelin star restaurant; Alain Ducasse at the Dorchester.  So if I could suggest one improvement, it would be for the travel specialists to ask about dining preferences so bookings could be made in time. We had also wanted to do tea at The Savoy, and dinner at Restaurant Gordon Ramsay, but it was all booked by the time we looked. But that is my only complaint.All of our accommodations were wonderful with excellent staff attending to our every need. At our hotel in the Cotswolds, they even provided us with boots to walk in the muddy terrain.  

At our hotel in Wales we had the cutest room, with a wonderfully large bath tub to soak in after walking all day.  The hotel in Narberth was likely our favorite hotel of them all, and we wished we had skipped going to Bath and done an extra night at Narberth. 

I think I would skip Bath next time, as we are a more outdoorsy hiking sort of couple, and we would have stayed in Wales to hike more routes. It also felt very rushed to just to one night in a single location. That being said, the accommodation at the hotel was absolutely gorgeous.our final location was in Berkshire, which used to be a Tudor hunting lodge. Our dinner at The Tudor Pass was absolutely divine. However, our room was a bit dusty with cobwebs, and some of the pillows had hair from possible previous guests. That being said, the room layout itself was wonderful. 

Backtracking, once we got out of London, our travel specialist arranged a car rental for us, which went very smoothly. Having a car to travel at our leisure versus needing to time train stops and tube stops, was wonderful. 

Overall, we had a wonderful trip, and wish that it did not have to end.

Every hotel had beautiful grounds and views. We had asked for hotels that also had the ambiance of age and antiquity. One of our favorites was in Chelsea. The staff was especially warm and friendly. We felt very comfortable with everyone! We loved all of the rooms in the entry level. It was cozy and beautiful, even the patio.

The Broadway hotel really blew us away. It was built in 1300 or so. It has an outstanding courtyard and landscaping. The staff were flexible. Theye even helped me to find a secluded area for dinner the last evening. We were mesmerized by every sitting area. There were antiques everywhere; I should say ancient antiquities. The coastal hotel was nautical and charming. There were lovely staff there as well! The views of the estuary were stunning. At high tide, the river came right up to the outdoor patio. It was mesmerizing!

Another hotel was very pretty inside and had compelling views of gardens and sweeping lawns. It overlooked the Jurassic coast, as well as a very large beach and piers. It was very far to walk and straight downhill. We could not get any taxi or bus to get to the harbor for our boat ride, sadly. We tried walking, but it was too far. There was no taxi for the return trip either. We had to walk up steep steps and then along a winding garden path back to the top. It was very stressful for me because I have a damaged tendon in my ankle, which hurt me quite a lot. It was very disappointing. However, my husband was thrilled that I made it up the hill. So was I.

There was a mix-up at the hotel about our room. We had discussed with our agent that we needed rooms on the ground floors. They had us on the first floor and moved us at the last minute to a very small corner room with cheap furniture and no space for two people to maneuver. We were both appalled, but fortunately our agent was able to take our call and we ended up in an apartment instead. It had no view other than of parked cars, but it was spacious and modern. It was the best they could do. This hotel was located in Lyme Regis.

Our next stop was Henley on Thames. The hotel was very nice and the two was pretty, but we didn’t arrive until 4.30. There was no Sunday dinner, so went elsewhere. Then we left the next morning at 9.30. The river was lovely to view.

We had fantastic drivers and driver guides throughout London, the Cotswolds, Cornwall, and Dorset back to London.

We missed our tour of Westminster Abbey due to the time change and lack of sleep. Our concierge tried his best to arrange for us to visit it on our last day. I called our travel company and was given the ticket number by email. Westminster Abbey declined because the company it was purchased through refused to confirm it. We were again disappointed. I tried calling the travel company back, left a message for help, but never got a return call.

We may go back again, but I would arrange for someone to meet me at the airport with a wheelchair. I would have been less stressed. That airport was overwhelming and confusing.

I sincerely wished that we did not have the Chelsea Flower Show and Windsor Castle on the same day. I could hardly walk by the end. Our agents offered to change Windsor to a different day, but it was an additional £350 or so. That seemed very unfair.

Many thanks to Eleanor and the whole team for creating a detailed, bespoke itinerary for our last minute trip to London, Wales, and the Cotswolds. Every step of the way went flawlessly. Even when we disembarked at the wrong train station in rural Wales (totally self-inflicted mistake), a quick phone call to the travel agency, set everything right within minutes. A driver showed up out of nowhere to save the day so that our misstep was a mere blip. The accommodations were charming and the dining recommendations were spot-on. Our days were filled with memorable experiences, from a backstage tour of the spectacular Tottenham Hotspurs stadium, to theatre tickets in Soho, to the wild green hilltops of Pembrokeshire, to the picturesque beach town of Newport, to the standing stones of Pentre Ifan, to Skomer island with its thousands of nesting puffins, to the tour of Oxford University - the pacing of the journey was just perfect!   I have no words to describe the natural beauty of Wales and the Cotswolds. Special commendations for the hotels in Newport and Cotswolds for locations and  excellent hospitality. We had delightful meals - especially the unique outdoor bar at the Secret Garden behind the hotel in Newport, the prix-fixe dinner at the Tides in Newport and the Sunday roast at the Old Parsonage near Oxford. We thoroughly enjoyed our Welsh tour guides and their charming dog, Mabli. This was a highlight for me, personally.  At one point, we pulled over to admire the beautiful Pembrokeshire landscape slopping down to the sea and were approached by the sweetest half-wild Welsh pony! This magical creature joined several family photos I will treasure forever!Our days in the Cotswolds were delightfully picturesque and relaxing. So many interesting shops, beautiful hikes and well-behaved dogs!On the final leg of our journey, we had a private driver for a tour of Oxford University and the surrounds. Our very personable guide, was a treasure-trove of history and lore that greatly enriched our experience of Oxford.To top it off, our travel agent, Eleanor, exceeded all of our expectations in planning and communication. Not only was the tour itself exactly what we hoped for, but her writing is delightful!  The written itinerary was lovely in its descriptions. We savored each day in anticipation and will save the itinerary to remember our tour all the more vividly.

We so appreciated the opportunity to work with Zicasso’s travel agent for our trip to London, Bath, and the Cotswolds. Her knowledge was great and her enthusiasm got us excited.

We presented her with a number of challenges, from adapting our 2020 itinerary (canceled due to the pandemic) to rescheduling this trip by a few weeks when we came down with Covid. She met each challenge graciously and patiently, presenting us with a wonderfully detailed final itinerary. We loved every moment of our trip and would highly recommend our travel company.