Tag Archives: Hampton Court Palace

Pillow talk – Secrets of the Royal Bedchamber

Posted on March 27, 2013 by | Comments Off

Blue Badge London South East Tour GuidesA new temporary exhibition opens at Hampton Court Palace in the Baroque state apartments – the story of the State Beds -the rituals of the bedchamber, from morning levée to evening couchée.

Historic Royal Palaces’ exhibition curator, Sebastian Edwards, says: “ Far from being restful places of privacy, the state bedchamber was the seat of power – the equivalent of the modern day boardroom, from which the business of the Kingdom was conducted. Events which took place in and around these beds had enormous consequences for society, politics and history.

“Courtiers were knighted, wars were brokered, marriages consummated and mistresses wooed all in the shadow of the royal bed.”

Charles II  introduced the ceremonies which were to become a feature of the bedchamber for the next 100 years.  Courtiers embarked on a social climbing venture to get as close to the bedchamber as possible where, if they were deemed worthy, their Monarch would receive them. Just guess at the job  description of The Groom of the Stool!

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Posted in Blue Badge Tourist Guides, Events, Surrey

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Many Congratulations to all!

Posted on June 19, 2012 by | Comments Off

The Winners & Runners-Up in the 2012 Group Travel Awards have just been announced. South East Tour Guides are delighted to see so many companies that they already work with have been included – very well deserved to all and we look forward to continuing to do business together!

PLACES YOU VISIT – ATTRACTIONS AND DESTINATIONS

1a) Best Attraction for Group Visits: Long Visit (more than a two hour visit)
WINNER: Buckingham Palace, London
RUNNER-UP: The Tower of London
Mentioned:  Canterbury Cathedral
Dickens World, Kent

1b) Best Attraction for Group Visits: Short Visit (less than two hour visit)
WINNER: EDF Energy London Eye
RUNNER-UP: St Paul’s Cathedral, London
Mentioned:  The Household Calvary Museum, London
The Houses of Parliament, London
Windsor Castle, Berkshire

2) Best Animal or Sea Life Attraction
WINNER: Longleat Safari & Adventure Park, Wiltshire
RUNNER-UP: West Midland Safari & Leisure Park, Worcestershire 
Mentioned: SEA LIFE London Aquarium
3) Best Overseas Attraction for Groups

WINNER: Disneyland Paris, France
RUNNER-UP: Nausicaa, France
4) Best UK Destination for Groups
WINNER: London
RUNNER-UP: Manchester
Mentioned:  Canterbury  Salisbury

5) Best Overseas City or Country for Groups
WINNER: Germany
RUNNER-UP: Belgium

6) Best Shopping Venue for Groups
WINNER: Oswaldtwistle Mills, Lancashire
RUNNER-UP: The Trafford Centre, Manchester
Mentioned: Westfield Shopping Centre, London

7) Best Live Stage / Theatrical Performance
WINNER: War Horse
RUNNER-UP: Les Misérables
GHOST The Musical   Jersey Boys
Mamma Mia!    The Lion King   Wicked

8) Best Event for Groups
WINNER: Royal Ascot
RUNNER-UP: Thursford Christmas Spectacular, Norfolk
Mentioned:
Dickensian Christmas Festival, Rochester
Ideal Home Show, London
RHS Hampton Court Flower Show, London
9) Best Canal or Riverboat Operator for Groups
WINNER: French Brothers, Windsor
RUNNER-UP: City Cruises, London
Mentioned:  Bateaux London
 
10) Best Ocean Cruise Line Operator for Groups
WINNER: Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines
RUNNER-UP: Saga
Mentioned:  Cruise & Maritime Voyages
Cunard  MSC Cruises
Norwegian Cruise Line  P&O Cruises

 11) Best Specialist Cruise Line Operator for Groups

WINNER:Hurtigruten
RUNNER-UP: CroisiEurope

WHERE YOU STAY – ACCOMMODATION

12) Most Group-Friendly Hotel Chain or Group

WINNER: Daish’s Hotels
RUNNER-UP: Britannia Hotels
Best Western
Oceana Hotels & Leisure
Park Inn (Rezidor Hotel Group)
Puma Hotels Collection (formerly Barcélo UK)
Warner Leisure Hotels

13) Best Individual Hotel for Groups

WINNER: St Kilda Hotel, Llandudno
RUNNER-UP: The Rendezvous Hotel, Skipton
Mentioned: The Cumberland Hotel, Eastbourne
The Grand Burstin Hotel, Folkestone

 14) Best All-Inclusive Group Holiday Venue

WINNER: Potters Leisure Resort, Norfolk
RUNNER-UP: Cricket St Thomas Hotel, Somerset (Warner Leisure Hotels)
Mentioned: Butlins Bognor Regis, West Sussex

15) Best University Accommodation for Groups

WINNER: University of Kent
RUNNER-UP: St Aidan’s College at Durham University
Mentioned: Imperial College, London, Kings College, London

HOW YOU GET THERE – TRANSPORT

16a & 16b) Best Coach Operator
There are two awards in this category: Best Coach Operator: Small Fleet and Best Coach Operator: Large Fleet

16a) Best Coach Operator: Small Fleet

WINNER: Brighton & Hove Bus and Coach Company, East Sussex
RUNNER-UP: Chiltern Travel, Ilford
16b) Best Coach Operator: Large Fleet
WINNER: Edwards Coaches, Pontypridd
RUNNER-UP: Epsom Coaches, Surrey
Mentioned: Lucketts Travel, Fareham

17) Best Sea Crossing Operator for Groups

WINNER: Stena Line
RUNNER-UP: Eurotunnel
Condor Ferries,  Eurostar
Irish Ferries,  P&O Ferries
Red Funnel

18 ) Best Airline for Groups

WINNER: Jet2.com
RUNNER-UP: Flybe
British Airways   easyJet
Emirates              Lufthansa
Virgin Atlantic  Singapore Airlines

HELP & ASSISTANCE – GROUP FACILITIES & INFORMATION

19) Best Company or Venue Offering Guided Tours
WINNER: City & Village Tours
RUNNER-UP: Houses of Parliament, London
BBC Television Centre Tour, London
Hampton Court Palace, Surrey
Highclere Castle, Berkshire
Royal Opera House London
Royal Shakespeare Company, Stratford-upon-Avon

20) Best Provision of Disabled Facilities

WINNER: Legoland, Windsor
RUNNER-UP: Warwick Castle
Arundel Castle, West Sussex
Cadogan Hall, London
Warner Leisure Hotels

21) Best Group Catering Facilities

WINNER: Planet Hollywood, London
RUNNER-UP: Central Hall Westminster, London
Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire
Denbies Wine Estate, Surrey
Rainforest Café, London
Shaka Zulu, London
The Orangery at Kew Palace, London

22) Best Information Product for Groups website or printed

WINNER: English Heritage Group Visits Guide 2011/12
RUNNER-UP: The National Trust Groups Guide 2011
Encore Advance Groups Bookings Brochure
Historic Royal Palaces http://www.hrp.org.uk
Just for Groups http://www.justforgroups.co.uk
Leeds Castle http://www.leeds-castle.com
Merlin Groups http://www.merlingroups.co.uk (formerly http://www.groupfundays.co.uk)

23) Best Group Ticketing Agency

WINNER: Encore Tickets 
RUNNER-UP: Group Line 
ATG Tickets
Delfont Mackintosh Theatres Groups
See Groups
The Ticket Factory
Ticketmaster Groups

24a and 24b) Best Group Tour Operator
There are two awards in this category reflecting the number of groups carried by each company (not the size of the company):
Best Group Tour Operator: Small Carrier and Best Group Tour Operator: Large Carrier

24a) Best Group Tour Operator: Small Carrier

WINNER: Tailored Travel RUNNER-UP: Diamond Holidays, Leicestershire
23b) Best Group Tour Operator: Large Carrier
WINNER: Airedale Tours, West Yorkshire
RUNNER-UP: InterChoice, Wolverhampton
Mentioned:
JAG Travel, Surrey
Saga, Kent
The Travel Adventure, East Sussex

Best Overall Group Supplier
Airedale Tours

Outstanding Contribution to Group Travel by an Individual
Steve Plummer

Editor’s Award for Innovation in Tourism
CHOCOLATE – York’s Sweet Story

The Little Treasures Award

Museum of Brands, Packaging and Advertising


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Girls keep smiling in the rain at Hampton Court Palace

Posted on April 26, 2012 by | Comments Off

Yesterday I spent a lovely (if slightly damp) day guiding a group of friends who had booked a tour around Hampton Court Palace for a birthday celebration. Despite the torrential rain I talked to smiling faces and we managed to see everything on our itinerary, bumping into various Tudor courtiers en route around King Henry VIII’s Apartments.

One of the highlights was probably the wonderful new temporary exhibition ‘The Wild, the Beautiful and the Damned’. Featuring fabulous portraits of King Charles II’s mistresses, including both Sir Peter Lely’s famous ‘Windsor Beauties’ and Sir Godfrey Kneller’s ‘Hampton Court Beauties’ the exhibition also features paintings on loan from ‘our locals’ Knole House and Penshurst Place, all displayed together for the first time in Queen Mary’s State Apartments – well worth a visit.

As we headed to the Tiltyard for lunch an almighty crack of thunder set off the piercing fire alarm and the restaurant had to close temporarily. Undeterred we retreated to the very atmospheric Privy Kitchen cafe in the centre of the Palace for warming soup before setting off under large umbrellas to walk briskly (sadly not a day to potter) around Hampton Court’s beautiful historic gardens where not even the leaden skies could dull the magnificent colours of the displays of thousands of tulips.

Back at the Tiltyard we were given reviving complimentary cups of tea by the manageress who remembered us from the fire alarm incident – great PR!

Everyone agreed that it was certainly a memorable day for the birthday girl with rain, thunder and lightning adding to the atmosphere and drama of this most special of Historic Royal Palaces.

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Posted in Bringing in the Business, Events, Home, Family & Fun

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An Italian Passion for Mazes and Royalty

Posted on March 11, 2012 by | Comments Off

Ciao Dear Readers!

I have just returned after a lovely stay in Italy, based in Milan (no – before you ask inexplicably I was neither in nor at Milan Fashion Week).  I was visiting the now very grown up children, with their own children, who I looked after as an au-pair several decades ago, while brushing up my Italian skills with a whole week of speaking no English whatsoever.  I even got through Gone with The Wind in Italian.  A long film at the best of times , but with Italian style frequent advert breaks….

I practised my vocabulary by telling anyone who would listen all about my job as a South East England Blue Badge Guide and the many fascinating places they would be able to visit should they drop into Kent sometime.

I obviously made a strong impression since, as I write, I am dimly aware of a flurry of flight bookings and am braced for an impending influx of my Italian friends requiring a very personal guided tour of South East England.

 

First off – the nine year old son of my one time ‘ littlest Italian bambino’ (now 6 foot 2..)  is obsessed with mazes and he may now be arriving ‘in famiglia’ in August to check out those near where I live at Hever Castle, and an easy outing away at Hampton Court Palace and Leeds Castle.

Meanwhile the fascination with all things to do with our Royal Family among people without their own continues.   While in Italy I was cross- examined on every detail of The Royal Wedding, the changes to the Royal Succession, the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and the – in their opinion – ‘new improved’ Prince Harry (who during my visit was ‘beating’ Usain Bolt in the 100  metres in Jamaica so was hot news).

The teenage daughters of ‘my little Italian charge now mother of two’ are therefore planning their visit for a personalised guided tour of Windsor Castle, and in particular the Queen’s Dolls House.  No doubt they will also expect the odd trip to Harrods and Buckingham Palace thrown in as well – anywhere they may dream of catching a glimpse of a member of the Royal Family and in  particular the aforementioned eligible Prince.

Kensington Palace which re-opens in just a couple of weeks on 26 March after extensive re-furbishment will obviously be a must for them and it will give me an excuse to visit it too, although I may not be able to organise tea with the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.

These visits from Italy may clash with the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations and/or The Olympic Games at a time when we Blue Badge Guides are likely to be busier than ever – but there will always be time for my Italian family.

This coming week Dawn and I are briefly abandoning our guiding duties to do a course specifically on guiding at the 2012 Olympic Venues.  We will therefore be able to take my Italians for a Blue Badge Guide experience of the Olympic Park too.  Although possibly not while Usain Bolt is running the 100 metres for real, no doubt with Prince Harry watching – sadly I’m not going to be able to get them tickets for that!

Alla prossima volta

  

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Posted in 2012 Olympics, Home, Family & Fun, International Links, Local Visits, Royal Family

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