Calling Southern England tour alums

Ask and ye shall receive, my friend!

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/tours/tour-report-villages-of-southern-england-5-21-6-2-18

We went out to Canterbury the day before the tour started. We'd been in London for 5 days so no jet lag. We walked along the Stour that afternoon for quite a distance. I think there were some gardens along as well. We went to the ruins of St Augustine's Abbey which had an interesting VC. I think it might have had Virtual Reality but that was in 2018 so obviously am not sure what they've got now. In that area is also St Martin's Church. My brother and I also went out early to bird along the Stour and could hardly make any headway as there were so many local dog-walkers out who wanted to stop and talk then give us advice, lol. I do not remember what we did the day the tour started and I just looked back at my photos and apparently nothing was photo-worthy, lol. We did roam around the streets/lanes. I think the other 2 gals probably shopped since I'd not left them time to shop in London.

I'd wanted to go to the Battle of Britain Museum in nearby Hawkinge but they were closed on the day we could do it so will pick it up another time.

Ah! And you answered so quickly! Thanks Pam. I was thinking of going to the Roman museum there in Canterbury and try to see either Sissinghurst castle/gardens or Leeds Castle.
I will enjoy reading your report again.

We spent an additional two days in Canterbury before the tour. It’s a wonderful place to just wander. We took a lovely boat ride on the Stour River, took a short walk around and into the Cathedral, yes, you will do this with the tour, too. The tour hotel is actually within the walls. We walked outside the walls to find the interesting St Augustine’s Abbey and the lovely St Martin’s Church with its cemetery. These buildings collectively are a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We also had a short tour with a docent of the church right on the Main Street of town. I’m sorry, I apparently didn’t make a note of the name. We also spent time in the interesting Roman Museum. Oh yes, and my sister got a haircut-an adventure in itself! We also did a little shopping. There are some cute shops in town, This tour is awesome and the gardens should be beautiful when you are there. It was Fall when we went and they were slightly past their full glory.

Thanks, Andi, for sharing this. I thought Canterbury might be a good place to relax, see a few sights and wander. It will be a welcome break before the tour. I am looking forward to seeing the flowers in bloom, I’ve heard the bluebells are lovely in spring.

prior to your trip you can look up what's playing at the Theatre Royal Bath and decide if you want to go to any shows while you're in town. They have a tower tour of Bath Abbey that goes onto the roof that we enjoyed. We stayed after the tour and took the rail line to nearby Bristol, another town worth visiting.

Thanks, John, I will look at the Theater Royal Bath. I went to a play in Bath 10 years ago when I was in Bath, really enjoyable.
I also liked the Bath Abbey.

We took this tour in 2017, and are glad that we spent extra time in Bath after the tour ended. The Best of England tour starts in Bath, so I guess I understand why the Villages of South England tour does not spend more time there. On the morning after the tour we joined the free Bath walking tour. These tours are operated by volunteers, and are very informative. Lunch was at Tagine Zhor, and excellent Moroccan restaurant. We were so full that we skipped dinner. In the afternoon we went to the Roman baths, which was fascinating. The Roman baths have some audio-visual effects that reminded us of the ones used at the Mary Rose exhibit in Portsmouth. We spent a couple of hours at the Roman baths and wished we had more time.
Sunday was a museum day. The Holburne Museum had an impressive special exhibit of the Bruegel dynasty. The Victoria Art Gallery had a nice selection of paintings covering a wide span of history. Dinner was at Sally Lunn's, which included a brief tour of the medieval kitchen below the current street level.
On Monday, we took a day trip to Oxford. I had not been there since studying there in 1972, and discovered many changes in the town (but not the colleges, of course). There is much more commercial development and many more tourists. We met people from Bulgaria, Argentina and Russia. After a pint at the Eagle and Chlld, we returned to Bath.

In Bath, take tea at The Pump Room. A tad on the pricey side, but not too bad. It's a really neat treat.

Bob,
Thanks for sharing information about the Holburne Museum, I will be sure to look it up. I am staying 2 days after the tour and will join the free Bath Walking tour. I plan to see a play at the Theater Royal, I enjoyed one the last time I was in Bath. There’s quite a lot to do.

TC,
Yes, I plan to have tea in the Pump Room which I enjoyed on my last visit. So very English!

One thing I will miss is the Costume museum which I heard was taken over by the National Trust.