Tag Archives: South East Tour Guides

Thanksgiving greetings to all our American friends!

Posted on November 22, 2012 by | Comments Off

Thanksgiving Greetings from Kent, also known as ‘The Garden of England’ to all our friends and clients across the USA.

Here are some pictures of some of the wonderful Kentish Harvest: apples, hops and grapes from The Garden of England!

Kent is home to Canterbury Cathedral; The White Cliffs of Dover; Chartwell, home of Sir Winston Churchill; Hever Castle, home to King Henry VIII’s second wife Anne Boleyn and Vita Sackville West’s Sissinghurst Gardens, to name just a few of our beautiful and historic county’s ‘must see’ sights.

Check out our website to plan your guided visit to the beautiful South East of England and all its historic treasures.


Comments Off

Posted in Home, Family & Fun, International Links, Kent

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Fourth of July greetings to all our American friends!

Posted on July 4, 2012 by | Comments Off

Fourth of July Greetings from Kent, The Garden of England to all our friends and clients across the United States of America.

Based in Kent, England, South East Tour Guides look forward to welcoming you to our own very special part of the UK during our 2012 Diamond Jubilee and London Olympic Games year.

Kent is home to Canterbury Cathedral; The White Cliffs of Dover; Chartwell, home of Sir Winston Churchill; Hever Castle, home to King Henry VIII’s second wife Anne Boleyn and Vita Sackville West’s Sissinghurst Gardens, to name just a few of our beautiful and historic county’s ‘must see’ sights.

Check out our website to plan your guided visit to the beautiful South East of England and all its historic treasures.

    


Comments Off

Posted in Home, Family & Fun, International Links, Kent, Royal Family

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

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


Blue Badge tourist guide

Comments Off

Posted in Events

Tagged , , , , , , , , ,

Christmas is Coming…and we’re going local in Penshurst

Posted on December 3, 2011 by | Comments Off

It’s that exciting day again – the first Saturday of the month – so I am dashing off to a great favourite of South East Tour Guides, Penshurst Farmers’ Market, which showcases so much wonderful local produce (we really are spoilt here in the Garden of England).  Earlier in the year it was Asparagus Day that got me setting my alarm clock early (for a weekend).  Today I’m off to the Christmas Farmers’ Market. 

According to Benjamin Dent, chairman of Kent Farmers’ Market Association, with 43 stalls it’s going to be the largest Farmers’ Market held at Penshurst Place since they began in 2005. I am looking forward to a Christmas tipple of mulled wine or local ale with the odd mince pie (or one of those divine hot dogs)while enjoying the Penshurst Choral Society singing carols, and the Penshurst Village Morris Dancers.     

Christmas Tree in the Baron's Hall at Penshurst Place

Yesterday I bought some Christmas goodies at Penshurst’s first Village Christmas Gift Market (still on today so not too late to pick up a Christmassy bargain), having already started my Christmas shopping in Penshurst Place’s own very festive Gift Shop a couple of weeks ago. 
 
I understand Father Christmas is also visiting Penshurst Place this weekend, but sadly at 18 and 20 I can no longer persuade my children to come along.
 
Tomorrow evening, however I’m off to Penshurst Church to really get into the festive spirit with a Choral Christmas Concert by the Penshurst Choral Society.  I’m hoping to pick up some tips for our three evenings of Carol Singing around the lanes (and pubs) of the Chiddingstones later in the month. 
 

          

Comments Off

Posted in Events, Home, Family & Fun, Kent, Local Visits

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , ,

Thanksgiving Greetings to our American Kentish Friends!

Posted on November 24, 2011 by | Comments Off

Thanksgiving Holiday Greetings from Kent, The Garden of England to all our Kentish friends across the United States of America in Kent County, Rhode Island; Kent County, Delaware; Kent County, Maryland; Kent County, Texas; Kent County, Michigan and Kent County, Virginia. 

Based in Kent, England, South East Tour Guides look forward to welcoming you to our own very special County of Kent (The former Anglo Saxon Kingdom of Kent)  in the UK.  

Kent is home to Canterbury Cathedral; The White Cliffs of Dover; Chartwell, home of Sir Winston Churchill; Hever Castle, home to King Henry VIII’s second wife Anne Boleyn and Vita Sackville West’s Sissinghurst Gardens, to name just a few of our beautiful and historic county’s ‘must see’ sights.

Check out our website for more information on Kent or to plan your visit to The Garden of England, and we’d love to hear about the Kent where you live!

Kent fact of the day: The River Kent is nowhere near Kent, England.  It is some 300 miles to the north-west of The UK in Cumbria.

 

 

          

Comments Off

Posted in Home, Family & Fun, International Links, Kent, Royal Family

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Doorstep Explorers visit Cranbrook ‘Capital of the Weald’

Posted on November 18, 2011 by | Comments Off

After my recent trips to far-flung corners of the South East, and even up to Cambridge, it was nice to explore rather more local sights yesterday when I took a very enthusiastic group around the beautiful Kentish Wealden town of Cranbrook. 

 

Although everyone in the 25-strong group was fairly local, many having driven through and past Cranbrook for years, nobody had ever taken the time to walked around this ‘Historic Market Town’ at a leisurely pace exploring its remarkable history.

We met up at the spectacular Union Windmill – the tallest working smock mill in the country.  I arrived ahead of the group to be greeted by the volunteers from the Cranbrook Windmill Association with apologies for the weather.  Until that moment I had been thankful for a lovely sunny autumnal morning without so much as a hint of a chilly breeze – but this of course was the problem: no wind = no grinding of flour. 

This was, however, but a minor hitch in an absolutely fascinating tour up all seven floors of this masterpiece of engineering, built in 1815 by a Mrs Dobell for one of her sons in her own back garden!  Our group included engineers, architects and keen bread makers, as well as those of us who particularly enjoyed the spectacular views and photo opportunities across Cranbrook’s medieval streets and red-tiled roofs from the vertiginous walkway just below the Mill’s rotating cap.

Descending The Hill from the Mill, and crossing the Crane-Brook we saw magnificent timbered and tiled clothiers’ houses prompting stories about the history of the woollen broadcloth trade that was the foundation of Cranbrook’s prosperity from the 14th to the 17th Century. 

Diverting via the narrow Twitten where a Hatter’s Factory once produced fashionable beaverskin hats (it is said that the use of mercury to treat the pelts gave rise to the expression ‘Mad as a Hatter’!) we paused for coffee at the George Hotel and imagined the visit of Queen Elizabeth I to that very spot during her Royal Progress though Kent in 1573, possibly inspecting the valuable broadcloths stretched to dry from the iron tenterhooks that are still visible on some of the beams.

Following a visit to St. Dunstan’s Church. often called ‘The Cathedral of the Weald’, on account of its size and grandeur, with its rare total immersion font, stunning perpendicular gothic nave (all financed by those wealthy clothiers) and fascinating memorials, we walked round to Cranbrook Museum – a real hidden gem located in a 15th Century farmhouse.  With its focus on local  life through the ages this had something of interest to everyone among its wide ranging collections.  Once again the hospitable people of Cranbrook – this time the local History Society – had opened the museum especially for our visit.

Then it was time for lunch and an opportunity to reflect on the new places,people and events the group had found out about right on their own doorstep.  Before we parted it was agreed that this should be the first of South East Tour Guides’ local ‘Exploring Wealden Towns and Villages’ series to help  members of the group discover more about some of the other fascinating places in the Weald of Kent. 

Next request is Tenterden!

       

Comments Off

Posted in Kent, Local Visits

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Royal Visit to Margate’s Turner Contemporary

Posted on November 11, 2011 by | 1 Comment

Her Majesty the Queen and HRH The Duke of Edinburgh are visiting Margate’s Turner Contemporary Gallery today.

The visit caps a hugely successful opening seven months for Turner Contemporary which has already received over 300,000 visits, double the annual forecast, and is on course to finish the year as one of the South East’s biggest tourist attractions.

The gallery has already established an international profile, attracting visitors from across the UK and beyond to this historic Kent seaside town, putting it firmly back on the map and bringing significant economic benefits to local businesses.

On Sunday, Turner Contemporary won two prestigious British Guild of Travel Writers’ awards, the Globe Award for an outstanding tourism project and the Best UK Tourism Project.  This follows the award of The Best use of Arts and Culture in Regeneration at The Regeneration & Renewal Awards 2011 and the Condé Nast Readers Choice Award for Innovation and Design.  In the summer, the Times named Margate and Turner Contemporary as the top UK destination for “Cool Culture”.

On her visit to the gallery, Her Majesty The Queen will meet with key members of staff and will be introduced to artist Tracey Emin and architect Sir David Chipperfield, as well as hearing from local school children and participants from a number of community projects run by the gallery.

“The visit of Her Majesty the Queen and HRH The Duke of Edinburgh to Turner Contemporary is not just a great moment for Margate but a major acknowledgement for British contemporary art. And it’s so exciting – Margate’s on the map again.” Tracey Emin, artist.

The Royal visitors will be given a tour of the current exhibition, Nothing in the World But Youth, containing works and themes of since the recent riots and discussions around Youth in society.

They will also be able to enjoy Rodin’s  iconic sculpture The Kiss, on display outside London for only the third time ever.

 

 

This is the first time since 1993 that Her Majesty has visited Margate. Before visiting Turner Contemporary the Queen will tour the Old Town and meet local businesses to see for herself the impact of the gallery and to learn about future plans for the town.  (Information on Royal Visit courtesy of Turner Contemporary.)

See also our May 7th blog: “I never knew Margate was like this…” about South East Tour Guides’ first visit to Turner Margate.

        

→ 1 Comment

Posted in Events, Kent, Royal Family

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The 2012 Olympics – less than a year to go!

Posted on July 29, 2011 by | Comments Off

It has been such an exciting week with the countdown to the 2012 London Olympics really underway.  

A fascinating documentary on TV the other night showed just what an extraordinary feat getting the Olympic Park to its ‘ready to be trialled’ state has been.  I had not appreciated quite how much emphasis has been put on trying to minimise the carbon footprint of the whole building process with the use of railways and revived canals for transport, on-site reuse of 90% of demolished building materials and re-design of key elements of the major stadia to minimise use of steel.

I found the programme’s description of the engineering behind Zaha Hadid’s Aquatics Centre’s ‘wave’ roof, (shortlisted for the RIBA Stirling Prize) which spans more than two football pitches supported only by a slim wall at one end and two columns at the other, quite amazing.   Although there has been some criticism of the two temporary seating stacks on either side, these are necessary for spectator capacity during the games and will be removed after the Games when the Wave Roof will be revealed in all its glory as part of the all important legacy of the 2012  Games.

The striking design of the Olympic medals was released this week as well.  To quote the official press release: “The medals’ circular form is a metaphor for the world. The front of the medal always depicts the same imagery at the summer Games – the Greek Goddess of Victory, Nike, stepping out of the depiction of the Parthenon to arrive in the Host City.
 
The design for the reverse features five symbolic elements:

  • The curved background implies a bowl similar to the design of an amphitheatre.
  • The core emblem is an architectural expression, a metaphor for the modern City, and is deliberately jewel-like.  
  • The grid suggests both a pulling together and a sense of outreach – an image of radiating energy that represents the athletes’ efforts. 
  • The River Thames in the background is a symbol for London and also suggests a fluttering baroque ribbon, adding a sense of celebration. 
  • The square is the final balancing motif of the design, opposing the overall circularity of the design, emphasising its focus on the centre and reinforcing the sense of ‘place’ as in a map inset.”

At South East Tour Guides we will be spending the time between now and the Olympic Games Opening Ceremony on 27 July 2012 putting everything in place to ensure that clients who base themselves in the South East, within easy reach of the Olympic venues, to have the most memorable stay possible. Watch this space over the coming months for more about our plans.

               

Comments Off

Posted in 2012 Olympics, Events

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

A memorable evening in Rochester Cathedral – celebration and just the one minor technical hitch

Posted on May 13, 2011 by | 3 Comments

We had a truly memorable evening in Rochester Cathedral last night.  In a special ceremony following choral evensong, the Class of 2011 South East Blue Badge Guides were presented with our hard-earned blue badges by Her Grace The Duchess of Norfolk in the presence of the Dean of the Cathedral, Isabel Moore President of The Institute of Tourist Guides and Amanda Cottrell OBE, Chairman of Visit Kent.

I am proud to announce that in addition to receiving her badge my South East Tour Guides colleague Dawn Blee was declared Guide of the Year :) .

From my point of view a slight technical hitch in the proceedings occurred when my guest called me shortly before we were due to depart for the ceremony to tell me that he had been detained on a First Great Western train and was now en route to Rochester from Chiddingstone Causeway via Reading and Taunton – in that order…

To cut a long story short – he was helping our university-bound daughter load her not inconsiderable amounts of luggage onto an Exeter bound train at Reading Station when, apparently in an effort to make up a 3 minute delay out of London, an over zealous guard pressed the shut and lock doors button slightly early – an action that it would seem cannot be reversed ‘under any circumstances’.  Next stop Taunton - 2 hours away.

In the couple of minutes he had to wait for the return trip to Reading my husband says Taunton Station seemed to be a perfectly pleasant place, just not where he wanted to be. Fortunately no one on either train risked trying to extract a fare from him and he did not get a parking ticket at Reading despite the 4 hour delay.

Meanwhile back at Rochester I was able to enjoy the reception laid on in the Cathedral basking in the reflected glory of Dawn’s prize and am proud to wake up today as a fully badged member of the Blue Badge Tourist Guide community.

PS  – Forgot to mention – yesterday was also my wedding anniversary…

→ 3 Comments

Posted in Bringing in the Business, Events

Tagged , , , , , , , ,