Gardens of Norfolk

'The Norfolk Collection'

Rich Gardens & Wide Skies

featuring

East Ruston Manor & Sandringham

13th - 17th September, 2009

Titchwell ManorHotel

Tour Leader: Sarah Cook

Norfolk is a rural county with beautiful protected coastlines, pretty villages, churches, windmills, & wetlands. The small, historic medieval city of Norwich lies at its heart and is where we start and finish the tour. This is a good growing county with an abundance of pretty stalls set up outside cottages selling surplus produce. We take you to some outstanding private gardens, including the East Ruston Manor & Corpusty Mill. There are several great houses with fine gardens in this historically important area, including Sandringham & Blickling Hall. We include a refreshing visit to Pensthorpe Reserve where you will see a fine example of the work of Piet Oudolf in the magnificent setting of wetlands & reed beds. .We have selected a small hotel on the North coast with uninterrupted views across the wild marshes to the sea and an RSPB reserve. The Titchwell Manor Hotel has earned two AA Rosettes for its excellent food. The rooms are simple, fresh & comfortable. The tour will be hosted by Sarah Cook, previous head gardener of Sissinghurst Castle Gardens, a charming and knowledgeable guide.

ITINERARY

Day 1: Sunday 13th September
The tour will start in Norwich train station at 11.45 AM. Please note that there is a direct train from London arriving at 11.29 AM. Those preferring to travel by car can park at Titchwell Manor and we will provide a transfer service departing at 10.30 AM. The first visit is to The Plantation Garden a recently restored 19th C. garden established in an old chalk quarry. Lunch together in a local restaurant is followed by a visit to the wonderful Exotic Garden created by artist, Will Giles. A passionate gardener since childhood, Will is forever pushing the boundaries to create his concept of exotica in an urban setting. Drive to Titchwell Manor Hotel in time to settle in before an evening meal together.

Day 2: Monday 14th September
A morning visit to Pensthorpe to see the Piet Oudolf garden with voluptuous cushions of colour merging with swathes of reeds, luminous water & flashes of bird life as well as the Wave Garden designed by Julie Tolls. Then a private visit to Houghton Hall and its compartmentalised walled garden. Lunch is included and there will be time to visit the house, after which we visit the Royal Gardens at Sandringham.

Day 3: Tuesday 15th September
Start the day with the private garden of Corpusty Mill, a complex series of interlinking contrasting spaces overflowing with fine plants, then to the splendidly floriferous The Old Cottage Garden with a simple buffet lunch included. In the afternoon we visit the restored 18thC. kitchen gardens at Felbrigg Hall.

Day 4: Wednesday 16th September
We travel across to the East Coast of Norfolk to East Ruston Old Vicarage Garden, one of the most remarkable and enjoyable contemporary gardens. A special private guided tour with one of the owners is followed by lunch. Later in the afternoon, we visit Blickling Hall for a guided tour with the head gardener.

Day 5: Thursday 17th September
Today, a leisurely morning walk with an expert guide to see the coastal salt marsh plants and wildlife in The Titchwell Marsh RSPB Nature Reserve, passing by the reed beds & shallow lagoons to the sandy beach. Following an early light lunch at the hotel, we return to Norwich Railway Station for 14.30 PM. (Trains leave every half hour for London).

The tour price is £1340.00 per person and includes buffet breakfast accommodation, 4 evening meals at the hotel with wine, & 5 lunches.

A single supplement of £250.00 per person is levied by the hotel.

For those planning to drive direct to the hotel on the first day, there will be an additional charge for transfers from The Titchwell Manor Hotel to Norwich of £15.00 per person.

Please note that the tour starts and finishes in Norwich and that you must arrange your own transport to and from the rail station or hotel starting points. Please do not hesitate to contact the Boxwood Office if you have any queries.

In compliance with the EC directive to the travel industry, for tours not including flights, we issue Financial Failure Insurance Certificates to protect your payments to us until tour completion.