A new tour with a distinctly floral twist, our visit to Harrogate coincides with the RHS Harrogate Flower Show. After a day at the North's most famous flower show, we sample two great steam railways in the red rose and white rose counties, plus UNESCO World Heritage Saltaire. We hope you'll agree that we've coming up smelling of roses!
DEPARTS
Thursday 25 April 2019
Thursday 12 September 2019
TOUR HIGHLIGHTS
Stay at Bradfords historic railway hotel, the Midland Hotel
Enjoy Harrogates RHS Flower Show
Step back in time on the Keighley & Worth Valley Steam Railway
Take in the beautifully preserved Saltaire village and Salts Mills Hockney collection
Steam through the Irwell Valley on the East Lancashire Railway
Also included in your Tour Fare:
Dinner every evening
Rail travel & seat reservations from your Home Station to Tour Base (Standard or First Class)
Services of experienced Railtrail Tour Manager
Hotel Porterage
DAY 1
Arriving in Bradford we transfer to the historic Midland Hotel at Bradford Forster Square, built by the Midland Railway company in the late 19th century.
DDAY 2
Our first excursion takes us on the Harrogate Line to Harrogate, known as 'the English Spa'. We transfer first to the Great Yorkshire Showground to visit the Harrogate Flower Show, the North's top gardening event, with floral displays galore and superb exhibitions. After a little free time back in Harrogate itself, our round trip returns to Bradford for dinner.
B, DDAY 3
Today we venture across the Pennines to the red rose county. In Manchester we take the tram to Bury for a return steam journey on the East Lancashire Railway, a beautifully preserved heritage line through the Irwell Valley linking Bury with Rawtenstall. Back in Bury you have the opportunity to visit its Transport Museum before heading back to the white rose county. Back in Yorkshire, it might be worth keeping today's Lancashire excursion secret!
B, DDAY 4
A busy day exploring Yorkshire awaits, as we take the local rail network to Keighley. Here we board the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway for a scenic steam hauled journey through the countryside made familiar through the film, the Railway Children. Returning along the line to Keighley, we head next to Saltaire, the beautifully preserved Victorian model village created by industrialist Sir Titus Salt to house the workers at his local mill. Designated a UNESCO World Heritage site, the village's mill has now been converted into a shopping and arts space, with regular exhibitions of local artist David Hockney.
B, DDAY 5
We bid farewell to new found friends and make our way home.
B=Breakfast, D=Dinner
HOTEL
The Midland Hotel, Bradford
Built between 1885 and 1890 by the Midland Railway Company, the Midland Hotel was a showpiece for the railway company's northern operations, with some of the finest Victorian interiors in the city. The Midland has hosted many Prime Ministers, plus famous entertainers like Laurel & Hardy, George Formby, the Beatles and the Rolling Stones. In 1905 the Shakespearean actor Sir Henry Irving died on the hotel staircase following his appearance at the Theatre Royal, to be attended by his manager, Bram Stoker! Today sees a hotel that has undergone a transformation, with investment to all areas of the building, restoring it to its original greatness.
FARES
Fare Region | First | Standard | RC (-) |
London: Kings Cross | £600 | £535 | -£10 |
Greater London | £640 | £555 | -£10 |
South of England | £650 | £560 | -£15 |
East Anglia | £665 | £565 | -£15 |
South West | £700 | £585 | -£20 |
Heart of England | £645 | £555 | -£10 |
Midlands | £585 | £515 | -£10 |
Yorkshire | N/A | £495 | -£5 |
North East | £565 | £525 | -£10 |
North West | N/A | £500 | -£5 |
South Wales | £660 | £550 | -£10 |
North Wales | N/A | £535 | -£10 |
Scotland | £605 | £535 | -£10 |
Join & Leave at Hotel £445
Single Room Supplement £85
4 nights bed, breakfast & Table dHôte evening meal
Rail travel & seat reservations from your Home Station to Tour Base (Standard or First Class)
Rail & coach travel, with transfers as described
All excursions and admissions as detailed
Services of experienced Railtrail Tour Manager
Hotel Porterage
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