Summer 2022

Well, it’s been a long couple of years due to Covid with no trips possible, and I apologise for being ‘quiet’ for so long, but it seems everything is back up and running again in England so I am contemplating a summer trip.

I know quite a few have contacted me previously to see if the trips were available and unfortunately I had to say “no”: even if we could get flights organised, few of the wonderful events we normally schedule were open for business. This has now, at last, changed.

The good news is currently costs (flights and hotels) seem to be quite a bit down on previous years, but I’m sure this wont last with fuel and food prices escalating. I am currently talking to hotels, car hire, airlines and events to see what they can do for us.

So, if you, (and all your friends!) would like to visit England this summer, please let me know ASAP. Contact details are on my site: robertwakeling@aol.com. Please don’t hesitate to give me a call so we can chat about what’s possible.

I look forward to talking to you soon.

Robert

2019 summer trips

Now that Christmas is behind us and the New Year just a few days away I am preparing for our 2019 summer trips.

As usual we will be offering a two week (or longer) stay in Colchester, England with all the daytime and evening events that everyone has loved for the past 9 years. Do take a few minutes and look at my website (robertwakeling.com) to see a typical itinerary plus many photos and reviews from past trips.

We now have a choice of hotels to meet every taste and budget, and I will be happy to discuss options with all that are interested.

As always, the trips will be ‘bespoke’ allowing me to tailor each trip to your individual requirements and accommodate just about any special requests, including arrival and departure dates (usually around July / August), accommodation, restaurants and of course itinerary, both daytime and evening. (our evening entertainment itinerary is justly famous and all inclusive)

Anyone interested in possibly joining us this summer, or if you just have questions, please do drop me an email (robertwakeling@aol.com) or do call me on 405 707 0759…I will look forward to hearing from you!

I will post more information as I get things organised.

Happy travels!

Robert

Preparing for 2018 already!

A big "thank you" to all who came with us this year from both groups: we had a great time and were, as usual, lucky with the weather, although sitting outside on the lawns of Kings College, Cambridge watching the Shakespeare on a beautiful summers evening with 40 degree temperatures was unexpected! 

A special treat this year was having my Daughter take us all out on her canal boat. Traveling from Kings Cross to Little Venice through the very center of London was simply spectacular, and allowed us all to see a part of London hidden to most. From the Hyenas and aviary through Regents Park, the amazing palatial homes and gardens,  to negotiating the narrow canals with the many bridges and tunnels, and of course taking on four or five locks which everyone enjoyed help navigate: Quite the experience and definitely one of the high lights of the trip!

I am in the process of posting quite a few new pictures to our gallery, so please do take a look. A big thank you to Jim Stark who was with us the entire four weeks (!) and supplied many of the great photos.

I'm already busy with next year with two trips to England, one trip to the cote d'Azure during the summer, plus a trip to Scotland during the fall to experience the stunning autumnal colours: this is truly one of the most spectacular and beautiful places in the world.

I have one England trip full already, plus the others with some places still available; so please don't wait too long to let me know if you are interested in any of them...time really does fly!

We also have exciting news regarding hotels, with now a choice of three, each within a few minutes walk of each other but all very different and allowing options with respect to amenities, quality and price. Talking to the owners I have managed to secure some excellent prices and some spectacular rooms.

Again, a big "thank you" to everyone for making this years trips so much fun, and to all prospective participants in the future...don't put it off any longer: Life is much too short!

Robert

New trips in 2018!

I have been busy organising this years trips...both of our 2017 summer trips to England have been fully sold out for months and we'll be leaving in just 7 weeks! I don't think we have ever had such a full itinerary, and I have groups staying from one week, two weeks and even nearly 4 weeks...without a single duplicate event throughout...hence my being busy! 

Next years trips to both Scotland and England are already filling up, so please don't delay in letting me know if you are interested so we can get together and discuss your requirements.

Big News: I have also now added a trip to the French Riviera, the beautiful 'Cote d'Azur' to our trips for 2018. Dates are yet to be confirmed but will probably be slightly out of peak season to avoid the crowds and the worst of the heat, I'm thinking perhaps September; do let me know what you think? We will be flying into Nice and staying around the Antibes area. Originally a sleepy little fishing village, centrally situated with easy access for day trips to all the places you've only dreamed of visiting: Marseille, Saint Tropez, Cannes, Juan Les Pins and of course Monaco. We will also visit some of the most spectacular scenery you will ever see in the picturesque mountaintop villages like Eze.

A short drive into Italy (the border is only about 25 miles away) to explore the beautiful rustic Italian villages, countryside and of course savor the wonderful Italian food and wine ...for those inclined! . This is sure to be popular so please let me know as soon as possible if you are interested in coming. As usual I will be limiting the trip to around 8 people and I already have people wanting to go.

I will be adding more details to the website as we get them organised over the next few weeks.

I would also like to thank the guys at Stillwater Living; Ammie and Jefferson, for a great article about myself and our trips (http://stillwaterliving.com/bespoke-travel-with-a-renaissance-man/) with great words and pictures explaining what we get up to: do have a look if you've not done so already...well worth a read with great pictures!

Robert

Scotland

Just back from 10 days in the north of England and Scotland and totally exhausted!

As was expected the weather played a big role with the first couple of days seeing snow and a cold seemingly made worse by the 'English damp'! The scenery though was, as always, spectacular: snow covered moors dotted with beautiful old farmhouses with their old hand built, dry stacked stone walls and an abundance of sheep...

Arriving at Edinburgh saw a slight improvement in temperatures and the sun arrived...what a difference it can make! Scotland, and Edinburgh in general, is one of my favorite places, though It's been quite some time since my last visit but a few hours walking around the old city reinforced its position as a 'must visit' destination. The combination of historic castle always dominating, with historic buildings and traditional shopping along the Royal Mile, counterbalanced by the up market and specialty shops on Princess, Rose and George streets make for great days of exploration. Add in the traditional Scottish hospitality with some amazing food being enjoyed and everyone was having a great time! Grilled Orkney kipper with poached eggs were my favorite breakfast, or how about Haggis and chips for lunch in a traditional old pub on Rose street in the heart of the city? 

A drive through the mountains of the Trossachs National Park and Loch Lomond, to the port at Oban; sitting on the front watching the ferries in and out to the Isle of Mull. The spectacular scenery made for a wonderful day of stunning  scenery and indulgence in some amazing local home made foods.

A beautiful drive through Stirling to Deanston distillery in Doune, where Daniela did a wonderful job of taking us around the entire distillery and explaining how their single malt whisky is made....this is a must do tour, culminating in a generous tasting and what a revelation...so different to run of the mill whisky's....and I fell in love with an aged 20 year portwood finished single malt ...so just had to treat myself to a bottle! Something to share with a few special friends at home and a reminder of wonderful Scotland!

Just a couple of the many highlights of our 10 days spent in one of the most spectacular destinations in the world....do let me know when you are ready to come with us next time!

I just have a couple of spaces on the first England trip in July: don't leave it too long if you are considering coming along!

Robert

Wonderful single malts...

Off to Scotland

I hope everyone had a great Christmas and New Year; it all seemed to pass so quickly here!

The summer trips to both England and Scotland are filling up, but I do have a few places still open, so do let me know if interested.

Due to a number of requests I have included some car oriented days out for the earlier July England trip, including a tour of the Jaguar factory with lunch, which is also where the Spitfires were made during the war. We will also spend a day at the 'Silverstone Classic', including VIP full access paddock passes etc...this is a real treat, and various other events for those that are interested. Of course we will do all the normal things as well, so a full busy trip! Do let me know as soon as possible if you would like a place on this one.

As you can see from above, I am very happy to customise the trips and include anything (well, almost anything!) that will make the trip special for you.

I am about to leave (just three weeks today!) on a short trip to Scotland, and am looking forward to seeing some of the most beautiful places in the world, as well as enjoy some of the best food: Scotland really is one of my favorite places anywhere. I'm also hoping to spend some time taking photographs: i'll be sure to add any good ones to the gallery. 

The exchange rate for Great British Pounds is awesome at the moment, so every dollar will go a long way and does make the overall cost of the trips even better value.

Many thanks to all that have contacted me; I look forward to meeting more new faces soon.

Robert

Almost done...

So, after an incredibly steep learning curve, here is the new web site! A big thanks must go out to Mark Morgan, without whose substantial help It would never have gotten off the ground.

Please bear with us as we get the last parts 'honed' but at least we are now on the map!

robertwakeling.com

Please take a few minutes, have a look through the site and see what we've been doing over the past 7 years. Take a look at some of the pictures and how we're trying to make each trip even better for the future.

We now have three trips planned for 2017, and with people already interested I'm very much looking forward to meeting you all and getting things arranged; do take a look at the 'Trips' page to see whats coming up. On top of our normal trips offered in the past to England, we now have a trip to England and Scotland optimised to see the most beautiful parts of my home country, and encourage some photography. Help with both the technical and artistic aspects of taking awesome pictures will be available, so whether you are a cell phone user or have the latest DSLR, I can promise a trip to remember. 

One quick word about costs: with fluctuating flight prices, hotel costs, fuel prices etc, not to mention the ups and downs of currency exchange, it is almost impossible to offer exact prices, and as such they are all subject to change. Having said that, I have been doing this now for seven years and have never been more than about $100 out, so I'll try to keep up the good work.

Please do not hesitate to contact me if I can help in any way with planing your upcoming trips. I look forward to seeing you soon!

Robert