Exclusive Escape to the Wye Valley 12Th - 15Th July 2021 (3 Nights)

Exclusive Escape to the Wye Valley 12th - 15th July 2021 (3 nights)

This exploration of the Wye Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty takes us to some superb private gardens hidden in the lush borderland of England and Wales. They range from a quintessential Arts & Crafts house to cottage gardens and historic estates. We enjoy schemes designed and planted by Tom Stuart-Smith, visit the home of Arne Maynard, and meet genuine plant experts and specialists. Monday 12th July 2021

Our tour commences at the Tudor Farmhouse Hotel in the village of Clearwell (with a transfer from Gloucester railway station available in the morning). We meet just before lunch in the hotel lobby and set off to visit our first garden,High Glanau - a true Arts & Crafts gem. This beautiful house was the home of Avray Tipping, garden designer and editor of Country Life Magazine in the 1920s. The current owners have restored the gardens to their 1920s glory and we are invited to have lunch with them in the house (included) before strolling through the gardens.

Later in the afternoon we take aprivate cruise along the River Wye near Symmonds Yat to enjoy the tranquil scenery. We return to the hotel for dinner (included). Tuesday 13th July 2021

Today we visit two gardens that have flourished under the creative eye of landscape designer Tom Stuart-Smith. We begin with a visit to a wonderful property that sits on a rise in the south Herefordshire countryside and gives wonderful views of the landscape beyond. The owner has created the garden during the last 21 years to maximise its setting. He has been helped by his friend Tom Stuart-Smith to develop certain areas. The result is a harmonious mixed palette of flowering perennials and grasses that flows through the gardens and blends with the landscape beyond.

We continue to a nearby 18th-century manor house, surrounded by a delightful garden. We have lunch (included) on arrival then stroll through the garden which is planted on two levels. This contemporary two-acre garden features mixed planting of perennials and grasses and was also designed by Tom Stuart-Smith, so expect drama, texture and colour. We return to the hotel where your evening is at leisure. Wednesday 14th July 2021

Wales beckons us as we cross over the border for our first garden visit of the day, Llanover House. This wonderful estate sits in the Usk Valley at the foot of the Black Mountains. The 18-acre, Grade II-listed garden, features a walled ‘round garden’, two arboreta and extensive herbaceous borders and lawns. The Rhyd-y-Meirch (Ford of the Stallions) stream flows the entire tel: 01423 396506 email: [email protected] www.sisley.co.uk 7 length of the garden, tumbling into ponds, over cascades and beneath flagstone bridges. We pause for a light lunch in the gardens (included).

In the afternoon we stop at the home of two self-confessed ‘plantaholics’ whose knowledge of botany and plant breeding is unsurpassed. We’ll see many exotic gems in their garden because there are more than 1000 cultivars, with many rarities, densely planted across 2 acres to generate an exuberant display through the seasons. We return to Tudor Farmhouse for dinner (included). Thursday 15th July 2021

This morning we head south to a most picturesque farmhouse that is the home of the renowned garden designer Arne Maynard. We have a guided tour of his gardens at Allt y Bela with the head gardener. These magical gardens incorporate formal topiary, dramatic earth sculpture and gentle native planting, which allows the garden to melt into the landscape with no boundaries at all.

We continue on to nearby Wyndcliffe Court for our final visit and lunch with the owner (included). The garden is in the ‘Italianate’ Arts & Crafts style dating from 1922 and is impres- sively unaltered. The gardens feature ancient, sculpted topiary, a sunken garden, walled gardens, greenhouses, ponds, and Photo credits: W. Collinson, P. Clay, Llanover House & High woodland. Afterwards we return to the Tudor Farmhouse and Glanau Gloucester railway station for your onward journeys.

OUR HOTEL: Tudor Farmhouse Hotel, Clearwell WHY CHOOSE SISLEY? Tudor Farmhouse is a 13th-century Established in 1992, Sisley Garden farmhouse that has been converted into a Tours is a family-run business offering stylish boutique hotel. It nestles in beautiful specialist garden tours to Britain’s countryside at the point where the Forest finest gardens and beyond. of Dean and the Wye Valley meet. The restaurant was described by Tatler Magazine Our Exclusive Escapes feature: as a ‘culinary oasis’ and is committed to excellent home-cooked food from locally • Small groups of 8-12 people. sourced, seasonal ingredients. • Access to the best private gardens https://tudorfarmhousehotel.co.uk/ in the UK, ranging from large TOUR PRICE: £2,100 per person (double/twin room share) country estates to small cottage Single supplement (solo occupancy of a double room) £270. gardens, most of which are rarely open to the public. PRICE INCLUDES: 3 nights accommodation at the Tudor Farmhouse; breakfast • Tours and time to chat with daily; 4 lunches and 2 dinners (excludes drinks); all garden visits; deluxe coach the owners and head gardeners travel with professional driver; transfers from Gloucester railway station to the and enjoy their insight into the hotel on the first and last day of the tour; services of your tour director throughout; gardens. all tour gratuities. • ‘Out of hours’ access to notable gardens. BOOK YOUR TOUR: Please complete the booking form • Hand-picked boutique-style hotels. https://www.sisley.co.uk/exclusive-escapes-for-garden-lovers-booking-form/. A 10% deposit is required on booking and the balance is due 6 weeks prior to the • Excellent food, with breakfast, tour. dinner and/or lunch included every day. TOUR JOINING: Please see detailed tour joining information here. • Welcoming and experienced Sisley tour director to look after you. TERMS & CONDITIONS: This year our Exclusive Escapes are only open to • A comfortable coach with residents of the UK and, for everyone’s peace of mind, all participants must be fully professional driver throughout. vaccinated against Covid-19. Please see our T&C’s here. • Tours that are relaxed, personal Please don’t hesitate to contact us if you have any queries. We hope you will join us, and friendly with the utmost Fran Pride and Colette Walker, Directors. attention to detail.

8 tel: 01423 396506 email: [email protected] www.sisley.co.uk