Tag Archives: St Paul’s Cathedral

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

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796th Lord Mayor’s Show

Posted on November 9, 2011 by | 1 Comment

 In 1215 King John granted a Charter to the people of the (original) City of London allowing them to annually elect their own Mayor  in return for the City’s support in various baronial feuds, but he required that the new Mayor present himself to the Sovereign and swear loyalty to the Crown.

The modern Lord Mayor’s procession is a direct descendant of that first journey to Westminster.

Today’s Shows are a wonderful mixture of past, present & future with today’s businesses, Livery Companies, charities, Her Majesty’s Forces, the City Police and Londoners from all walks of life coming together to enjoy a splendid celebration of the City’s tradition and future.

The procession starts at 11am and covers three miles from Mansion House to the Royal Courts of Justice. There, the Lord Mayor takes an oath of allegiance to the sovereign before the procession returns to Mansion House via Victoria Embankment.

This is definitely a family event – kids and parents alike will love the procession, which this year comprises around 6,000 participants, 200 vehicles, 20 carriages (including the 254-year-old gold Lord Mayor’s State Coach), 70 floats, 150 horses & 20 marching bands.

The fun day reaches a dazzling finale with a spectacular fireworks display over the Thames at 5pm  between Waterloo Bridge and Blackfriars Bridge.

The Lord Mayor’s Show is free to attend.

The Lord Mayor’s Show is going ahead as usual this year, with small alterations to the route to accommodate the protest camp at St Paul’s Cathedral.

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A Busman’s Holiday to Cambridge

Posted on October 31, 2011 by | Comments Off

I am looking forward to a day-off from formal guiding when I take some visitors from the USA on a day-trip around some of my old haunts in Cambridge.  A great perk is that I have recently discovered that my newly acquired CamCard gives me free access to all sorts of places.

Our first stop will be for coffee at my old college Newnham (still one of only 3 of the 31 colleges that does not admit men), followed by a visit to Sir Christopher Wren (architect of St Paul’s Cathedral)’s glorious Wren Library in Trinity College.

Apparently my family has some (obscure) ancestral link with Trinity man Sir Isaac Newton - there is certainly a facial resemblance between the statue in Trinity College Chapel and my father.  The mathematical genes definitely skipped a generation with me, fortunately reappearing in my son, so all has not been lost on that front!

Then, depending on the weather, a stroll along The Backs or a ‘scenic drive’  past some Cambridge ‘TVP’s’ (Blue Badge Guiding habits die hard!) to Kings Parade for lunch and memories of the filming of David Puttnam’s multi-Academy Award winning Chariots of Fire which starred several friends among the extras. 

During filming, in my capacity as ‘assistant hanger-on’ to a friend who was helping with locations and extras, I was able to watch from behind camera and dine (and then swim in a local hotel’s pool!) with some of the (gorgeous in the eyes of a 21 year old) cast and crew…I still have the film crew/stars ‘team photo’ taken outside the Senate House in which I perch precariously on a bench high up in the back row.

We are then planning to visit Kings College Chapel – surely one of the most breathtaking interiors in the world  – where, in my student days I was lucky enough to win a balloted ticket for a Christmas choral service with the world famous Kings College choir.

Hopefully we will also have time (and enough daylight!) to drive back via the moving American War Cemetery at Madingley just a few days before Remembrance Day.

 

It will be a nostalgic trip – let’s hope the sun shines so we see Cambridge at its best – although a bone-chilling penetrating easterly wind was all part of the experience of life in Cambridge…

 

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