Harewood and Harrogate
Harrogate has been a tourist destination since the 18th century. It was a very popular with English and European nobility during Victorian and Edwardian times, due to the medicinal properties of the water. Harrogate today is a pleasant spa town with grand buildings and pleasant parks. Designed by architects John Carr and Robert Adam, Harewood House was built between 1759 and 1771 for wealthy plantation owner Edwin Lascelles. Nothing was too good for Lascelles, who commissioned the finest craftsmen of the day and employed Lancelot ‘Capability’ Brown to landscape his 1,000-acre grounds. A popular filming location, the house welcomed actors including Maggie Smith and Hugh Bonneville when the house was transformed into the set of Downton Abbey.
Settle to Carlisle Railway
We take in the most spectacular train journey on a main line railway in the whole of England – the famous Settle to Carlisle line. Towering viaducts, bridges, long deep tunnels and lovingly kept station gardens all help to make this one of the best loved lines in the country. We travel along the whole line through majestic scenery to Carlisle, returning by coach.
Yorkshire Dales drive
A full day exploring the Yorkshire Dales, where we enjoy a visit to the pretty Wharfedale market town of Grassington. Later we travel via Kettlewell, the location used to represent the village of ‘Knapely’ in the 2003 film ‘Calendar Girls’. We break for lunch in Hawes and return via Ribbledale, where we have a photo stop at the magnificent Ribbelehead Viaduct.