Day 1: Following your home taxi collection we travel to Scotland, arriving late afternoon at the Riverside Lodge Hotel, Irvine for our 4 night stay. Upon arrival, tea, coffee and biscuits will be served whilst your bags are taken to your room. Hotel entertainment will be provided on three evenings during your stay.
Day 2: Our day begins with a drive south along the Ayrshire coast through Troon to Ayr where we visit the Robert Burns Birthplace Museum. It houses a celebration of the early life and the enduring legacy of Scotland’s national poet and is home to 5,000 Burns artefacts, including his handwritten manuscripts.
After lunch we visit spectacular Culzean Castle and Country Park. The castle offers much of interest, with terraced gardens, woodland, ponds, wildlife garden, walled garden and deer park. The castle itself is perched on the Ayrshire cliffs. It was designed by Robert Adam in the late 18th century and is filled to the turrets with treasures that tell the stories of the people who lived here. Take a self guided tour and learn about the best features of the castle, including Adam's masterpiece, the oval staircase, as well as the fine collection of paintings and furniture. Culzean also has a strong link with President Eisenhower, as the top-floor apartment was presented to him for his lifetime in recognition of his role during World War II.
Day 3: A complete contrast today as we head into Glasgow and visit the superb Riverside Glasgow Transport Museum. This fascinating museum houses the city’s fabulous transport and technology collections, which have been gathered over the centuries and which reflect the important part Glasgow has played in the world through its contributions to heavy industries like shipbuilding, train manufacturing and engineering.
Afterwards, we travel a short distance out of the city to the Burrell Collection located in the heart of Pollock Country Park. This internationally renowned museum and gallery was officially reopened by King Charles in March 2022 after a six-year £68.25m refurbishment.
It houses over 9,000 objects from the personal collection of shipping merchant Sir William Burrell, and his wife Lady Constance which were gifted to the city of Glasgow in 1944
This remarkable collection will take you on a tour of 6,000 years of history, featuring people and places around the world. Through innovative and exciting displays and interpretation, the revitalised Burrell Collection will help connect you with the people who made many of the exquisite works and some of the people who have owned them down the generations.
The Collection holds treasures from all over the world. Highlights include one of the most significant collections of Chinese art in the UK and objects from ancient civilisations, including Roman sculpture and Egyptian pottery more than 2,000 years old. There are medieval treasures including stained glass, arms and armour and over 200 tapestries which rank amongst the finest tapestries anywhere in the world, as well as paintings by renowned 19th century French artists like Manet, Cézanne and Degas.
Day 4: Leaving the hotel we head across the Erskine Bridge and head along the north of the river to Helensburgh for a short break. From here we continue along Gare Loch and Loch Long to Arrochar and to Tarbet, on the banks of Loch Lomond. We stop at Lomond Shores complex with chance to obtain lunch and browse the shops before we leave for Balloch. Here we have a cruise on Loch Lomond where we will enjoy views of the magnificent Ben Lomond and pass a number of Loch Lomond's stately homes and castles. Later we make our way back over the bridge and return to our hotel.
Day 5: After breakfast we leave and begin our homeward journey making suitable stops en route. Upon arrival our taxi service will be waiting to return you home.
Holiday Information:
4 Nights Dinner, Bed & Breakfast (Dinner will be seated waiter service)
Price: £621pp
Single Supplement: £nil (Limited Availability)
Additional Singles Beyond Allocation From: £100 (Will be allocated a twin or double room for sole occupancy, depending on availability)
Insurance: £32pp (Price subject to change- Insurance not currently available for 2025)
Tour Reference: AWE4953
Deposit Required: £50pp
Balance Due: 8 weeks prior to departure