Castles and Coasts

Cornwall and Wales

The south of England and Wales offer unique, secluded escapes for travelers seeking luxury, crashing surf, and history. This coast and castle itinerary takes you through the battlemented heartland of this beautiful countryside. Arriving in London via Heathrow Airport, you'll avoid the congestion of the city by picking up your Mercedes C150 and driving straight south to Amberley Castle in Sussex, one of the oldest inhabited fortresses in Europe. Dating from the early 1100s, the curtain wall of this castle contains beautiful gardens and a number of more recent buildings in which lovely quarters are set.

In the evenings, you'll dine in...

the great hall and enjoy traditional music and a roaring fire. During the day, you have plenty of time for daytrips into London - leaving your car behind, as you can actually catch a train in from the village nearby - or to other historic castles in the south.

Your second set of nights
will be at...

the Hotel Tresanton, a seaside hotel overlooking the beautiful Cornwall coast, a long but pretty coastal drive from Amberley in Sussex. At Tresanton, you'll enjoy fine dining, spa treatments, and sailing if in season. You can shop in picturesque St. Mawes village, and walk the rocky beaches outside of town, looking for shells and pirate treasure from the many offshore shipwrecks. You'll also be perfectly situated for exploring Dartmoor National Park and the medieval ruins of the southwestern countryside, and after your final breakfast at Tresanton, your drive to Wales will take you right past Stonehenge, for a lesson on a much different period of British history.

Driving through Bath and Bristol on your way north, you'll explore Roman ruins and seaside shops before bridging the sea channel to Wales and completing an afternoon drive in the Black Mountains, where you'll stay at an evocative Edwardian manor named Llangoed Hall.

A heaven for salmon fishers, lovers of literature...

Tintern Abbey is a stone's throw away - and for castle fanatics, Llangoed is in its own right a destination, housing a major collection of British art, one of the finest restaurants in Wales, and grounds which slope gently down to the River Wye. You'll have three days to explore the crags and valleys of Wales, discovering castles, warmth, and friendship before taking a 1st class train back to London from Cardiff for your flight home.

Who will enjoy this trip:

Lovers of coasts and castles, who want to combine their history lesson with relaxing on beaches and in seaside gardens. Admirers of great coastal and mountain driving. Those who want to see backcountry Britain in a shorter stay.

Who should avoid this trip:

Those who want to focus on big cities, and who wish to keep driving to a minimum. Travelers needing to travel to the British Isles in October-April, as these destinations shut down for late fall and winter.