THE GREAT ESTATES, GARDENS,
ANTIQUES & ISLAND HIDEAWAYS TOUR NEW ENGLAND TUES MAY 12 – FRI MAY 22, 2015 Our exciting new GREAT ESTATES, GARDENS, ANTIQUES AND ISLAND HIDEAWAYS TOUR is tailor-made especially for those who love historic architecture, gracious mansions, exquisite antiques and gardens, and glamorous old estates. This is a really exciting new itinerary on our program that covers some of the design and garden world’s favourite East Coast USA destinations during the delightful spring season, sweeping from enchanting turn- of-the-century estates to exquisite private homes, and from irresistible antiques and garden fairs to inspirational out-of-the-way places. It also features some truly beautiful hotels, including the prettiest places to stay in Boston and Nantucket. We’re thrilled to be able to offer it, and we really hope you can join us! We’d love to have your company. Includes 10 nights staying in beautiful hotels, domestic flights, ferry transfers, luxury coach and driver, a welcome dinner, a farewell dinner, all garden entrance tickets, all guided tours, all talks by locals, all tips (a US custom), services of tour guides and many extra activities, such as bike riding in Nantucket and several day picnics. PRICE: Twin share AUD$6650. (Single AUD$8370) Contact: Reho Study Tours, 484 St Kilda Rd, Melbourne Vic 3004 Phone: (03) 9823 5288. Email: studytours@reho.com Website: www.rehostudytours. com.au ITINERARY Day One: Tues May 12 – WELCOME TO BOSTON! After we’ve all checked in to our beautiful hotel in Boston (one of the best in the city), we’ll do a leisurely familiarisation stroll around the city’s serenely beautiful central park, Boston Common. Then it’s our Welcome Dinner at a wonderful converted bank that’s now an elegant Boston restaurant with beautiful service and food. Day Two: Wed May 13 – BOSTON. Today we explore Boston's dignified and delightful architecture and leafy streetscapes. We’ll see the fascinating Isabel Stewart Gardner Museum, which is as much about landscaping as art, and afterwards do a walking tour of the city’s Downtown area. The late afternoon is free, and we’ll end the day with dinner in a North End eatery. Day Three: Thurs May 14 – ORCHARD HOUSE AND BRIMFIELD ANTIQUES FAIR Today we board our private coach for our ‘luxury road trip’. First stop is the literary landmark ‘Orchard House’; Louisa May Alcott’s family home where she wrote the classic novel Little Women. It’s a poignant, sentimental look at Alcott’s life, so similar to her books. Then it’s a short drive to the fabulous Brimfield Antiques Fair, the largest outdoor antiques fair in the world. We have the afternoon here to wander the fields full of marquees and vintage treasures. Then it’s a short drive to Lenox, where we’ll have dinner and stay overnight. Day Four: Fri May 15 – EDITH WHARTON’S ‘MOUNT’ ESTATE AND VENTFORT HALL The town of Lenox was once a social hub during the Gilded Age, with many Boston and New York millionaires building grand mansions as ‘weekenders’, Today we’ll see two: Edith Wharton’s The Mount and Ventfort Hall Museum of the Gilded Age. Day Five: Sat May 16 – TRADE SECRETS GARDEN FAIR AND LITCHFIELD VILLAGES. Today is a special treat for garden lovers! It’s the gardener’s ‘mecca’ – the annual, absolutely enchanting Trade Secrets Garden Fair, which is held in a tiny Connecticut village and attracts everyone from Martha Stewart to Carolyne Roehm (we may even see them). This part of Connecticut is famous for its rolling hills, quaint villages and magazine-worthy homes and garden. In the afternoon we’ll tour the countryside, including the picturesque village of New Preston, the former home of Bill Blass and now the scene of some of the prettiest stores in the area. Day Six: Sun May 17 – TRADE SECRETS OPEN GARDENS (INCLUDING BUNNY WILLIAMS' GARDEN). After checking out we return to Connecticut today for the second part of the Trade Secrets Garden Fair Weekend: the open gardens of four amazing properties, including Bunny Williams’ much-publicised home, immortalised in her bestselling book An Affair with a House. Day Seven: Mon May 18 – NEWPORT MANSIONS. After breakfast, it’s a short drive to our next stop: the glamorous waterfront city of Newport in Rhode Island. Those who love historic homes and Downton Abbey-style interiors will love these grand, Gilded Age mansions, which rate among some the most opulent in the world. Day Eight: Tues May 19 – MARTHA’S VINEYARD. Today’s destinations are the idyllic islands of Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket, the traditional summer retreats of US presidents and Hollywood celebrities. After a short ferry ride from Newport, we’ll land at Martha’s Vineyard first, where we’ll have a stopover of several hours to wander the colourful cottages of Vineyard Haven or visit Edgartown and its chic black and white houses. Then it’s another ferry to our home for the next few days – the sublime island of Nantucket. Day Nine: Tues May 20 – NANTUCKET. Regularly voted one of the most beautiful places in America, with its cobbled streets, grand old captain’s mansions, its charming harbour, and its pristine beaches, Nantucket is home to some of the richest people in the country, including US Secretary of State John Kerry and Google’s chairman Eric Schmidt (whose wife bought the bookshop to save it). This morning, a stylish Nantucket local will show us around for a few hours, and offer us insight into living on this legendary island. After a delicious lunch on the waterfront, we’ll hire bikes to see more of the village and surrounds. Day Ten: Wed May 21 – NANTUCKET. This morning we’re going to see inside one or two of Nantucket’s gorgeous seaside homes. Then the afternoon is free to have a long lunch, take a walk along the beaches and village streets, or go shopping (Nantucket’s stores are very chic). . For the last night of our tour, we’ll have our farewell dinner at one of Nantucket’s beautiful waterside restaurants or inns. Day Eleven: Thur May 22 – BOSTON. Our last day! After checking out, we catch a flight back to Boston today, where everyone can then go their own way. NOTE: This tour is designed to be packed with activities while still offering a leisurely and enjoyable pace. Most days are busy, but offer ample time for you to either wander on your own, rest in a sunny corner of a garden, go on a beach walk, or browse the shops and antique stalls. The itinerary covers some of the most beautiful scenery in New England, and we want you to have time to enjoy it. This is your holiday: we want it to be a trip to remember. There is some coach travel but we've tried to minimise distances between stops and configure the itinerary for ease of travel. We'll also have ample drinks and treats for the journey, and make regular stops. On the upside, could there be anything lovelier than being chauffeured around New England's sights and gardens in luxurious style? |
NEW ENGLAND HIGHLIGHTS
• A visit to author and designer Bunny Williams’ garden, immortalised in her bestselling book An Affair with a House. • Guided tours of several of Newport’s most spectacular Gilded Age mansions. • Guided tours of the homes of two legendary authors, Edith Wharton (The Age of Innocence) and Louisa May Alcott (Little Women), whose homes and gardens are as famous as their classic novels. • A morning at the hugely popular Trade Secrets Garden Fair (beloved by Martha Stewart, Carolyne Roehm, Oscar de la Renta and Bunny Williams; we may even see them there), followed by visits to four amazing country gardens. • Time to unwind on sublime Nantucket island and neighbouring Martha’s Vineyard, home to some of the most beautiful beach houses in the US. Go cycling, wander the villages and beaches, see the famous old captains’ mansions, or shop and dine on the elegant waterfronts. • An afternoon at the famous Brimfield Antiques Fair, the largest outdoor antiques fair in the world, and a mecca for both collectors and the window merchandisers of Ralph Lauren, Kate Spade, J Crew and others. • A day in beautiful Boston, with a visit to the lovely Isabel Stewart Gardner Museum, renowned for its horticulture as much as its art. Above: The view of Bunny Williams' famous garden from her conservatory and horticultural library, all of which are immortalised in her bestselling book An Affair With A House, plus Nantucket's stylish beaches.
Top (clockwise from top left): Our hotel on the island of Nantucket; some of the many charming beach houses set along Nantucket's wharf; Edith Wharton's estate 'The Mount'; Bunny Williams' bestselling book; our Nantucket hotel and Bunny Williams' pretty tulip parterre – just one part of her magnificent garden. |