This holiday visits some of the well-known places of the North West such as Liverpool, Chester, Wigan Pier with a cruise on the Leeds to Liverpool Canal, the Anderton Boat Lift and RHS Garden Bridgewater, the stunning new RHS garden in the heart of the Northwest.

Your holiday itinerary:
Thursday: With suitable refreshment stops along with a lunch stop in Bakewell, famous for its pudding, and scenic drive through the Peak District, we aim to be at our hotel in the Cheshire village of Stretton late afternoon.
Friday: A short hop to Wigan Pier this morning, to enjoy a friendly and informative 2-hour barge cruise along the Leeds to Liverpool Canal. Enjoy the alternative view of the geography, wildlife and heritage of the Industrial Revolution and environs of Wigan, Leigh and the Douglas Valley. On then to the highlight of the holiday for some, the new and spectacular 154-acre RHS Garden Bridgewater. This is the RHS’s fifth garden and its first in an urban area. Built on the former grounds of Worsley New Hall, itself home to glorious formal landscaped gardens in its day. Bringing the area back to life was one of the largest gardening projects in Europe. Visitors will be able to discover a host of gardens including the 11-acre Weston Walled Garden, believed to be the largest publicly accessible working walled garden in the UK.
Saturday: Travel to Northwich for a ride on the magnificent Anderton Boat Lift, one of only two working boat lifts in the UK and is affectionately known as the Cathedral of the Canals. Originally built in 1875 to lift boats and barges 50ft from the River Weaver Navigation to the Trent & Mersey Canal. We board the Edwin Clark boat and enjoy the unique experience of being transported between the two waterways on an hour-long cruise with an informative and lively commentary. A comprehensive visitor centre lets you find out how the lift works and why it was so important. There is a coffee shop offering hot and cold drinks, snacks, cakes, sandwiches and jacket potatoes, along with a gift shop. This afternoon we visit the charming heritage city of Chester with its city walls, the largest Roman Amphitheatre in the country, a 1,000-year-old cathedral as well as the 700-year-old Rows galleries where shopping is a double delight.
Sunday: Liverpool is today’s destination for a tour of the Anglican Cathedral. This incredible feat of architectural achievement is the largest cathedral in the UK and it is thought that St. Paul’s Cathedral could actually fit inside. After the tour we take you to iconic Royal Abert Dock where you can advantage of the impressive retail and leisure offerings as well as having the opportunity to visit world class museums such as Tate Liverpool, the Maritime Museum where you can learn about the port of Liverpool and the awarding winning The Beatles Story, the world’s largest permanent exhibition purely devoted to the lives and times of The Beatles. From here you can take a ferry’cross the Mersey for the best views of Liverpool’s waterfront or see some of Liverpool’s most famous landmarks from an open top bus (entrances not included).
Monday: Today we must say a fond farewell to the North West and make our way home. We pause for lunch and spend some time at the National Memorial Arboretum. This is the national site of remembrance, featuring 25,000 trees and a large collection of nearly 400 memorials. This 150-acre site is a living growing tribute to those who have served and continue to serve our country. With a further refreshment stop, we aim to be back in Essex late afternoon/early evening

Important Information:

Please read the itinerary carefully before deciding if this tour will be suitable for you:
1) Single Supplement – £136pp (max 5)
2) Depending on services being held at the Cathedral in Liverpool, the tour of the Cathedral may be replaced with a guided city tour.