New for 2012
Self-guided walking tours
From only £450.00 per head (for 4-night, 3-day winter or spring break)
4 - 8 nights half-board, at 4 different, top quality hotels. 3 days walking in breathtaking scenery, both coastal and inland with detailed directions and information sheets. Your luggage is delivered each day, and will be awaiting your arrival each evening. Stay from 1 - 3 nights at each hotel to savour the different areas of the Island.
Hotels: The Moorings Hotel, Gorey; Chateau la Chaire Hotel, Rozel; Greenhills Country Hotel, St Peter; The Somerville Hotel, St Aubin.
What is included: Jersey airport or harbour transfers; bed, breakfast and evening meal each day, detailed maps and information sheets for the walks, luggage delivery. Just choose your dates, then contact us for details and prices.
The following itineraries are available for groups of four or more:
1. The hidden Gardens of Jersey
2 Days visiting four of Jersey's most beautiful gardens.
Four gardens will be visited over a two-day period in the company of Beth Lloyd of Jersey Heritage Holidays. When the owner of the property is not available, a local garden expert will join the tour.
Day One
Les Vaux, Rozel
Situated in its own steep-sided valley in Rozel, this beautiful informal garden has been developed by Lady Guthrie over the past 40 years. The water garden was constructed in 1971. A small stream runs through a series of pools at the foot of the granite wall to one side of the drive and is fed by natural drainage from the lakes above. . Les Vaux is a garden planted for all year round colour and effect. There are also many fine specimen trees from all over the world and several years ago, Lady Guthrie purchased the land at the head of the valley and developed it into what is now a wildlife haven. Finally, there are the peacocks, bantams and hens who inhabit the courtyards and garages, the life-size sculptures of animals and birds, and the handrails made from old fork and spade handles. All add up to the wonderful sense of fun incorporated into this stunning garden.
A lunch (at own expense) will be at a beach café
Grey Gables, St Brelade
This garden is a result of the owners’ careful planning over the past thirty years. It is set in seven and a half acres and has a mixture of formal garden and large area of natural wooded banks sloping towards the road. At the back of the house there is a lawn once used for croquet and beside a small pond is a beautiful bronze of Circe by Philip Jackson, who also created the group sculpture in Liberation Square. The rose garden includes many of David Austin’s New English varieties developed for their scent and resistance to disease. There is a well-established patio outside the conservatory and on the other side of this, an old greenhouse has been demolished to make way for an art room beyond which is the white garden recently opened up by the removal of an old hedge. In spite of continous hard work by three gardeners it is impossible to manicure a garden of this size, but much of its charm is in its naturalness.
Day Two
We start today’s tour with a visit to Le Noir Pré, if the wild orchids which can be found there from mid-May are in bloom. The rare Jersey wild orchid, the Spotted Orchid and the Southern Marsh Orchid grow abundantly in this field, which is owned by the National Trust for Jersey.
Creux Baillot Cottage garden, St Ouen
Set in a tranquil valley and accessed only by a small country lane. A garden created with a diverse collection of over 2,000 mainly herbaceous perennials from all over the world. Full of interesting features such as a bog garden viewed from an elevated wooden walkway and the attractive old granite cottage built into the side of the valley. The garden has been featured on a number of television programmes including BBC Gardener's World.
A lunch (at own expense) will be at a beach café.
Le Clos du Chemin, St Peter
This medium-sized garden is situated on a windswept hillside overlooking St Aubin’s Bay. The lawns, which sweep down from the terrace in front of the house are surrounded by wide herbaceous borders which are home to a variety of shrubs and trees, including some twenty magnolias. A small memorial garden can be found towards the bottom of the garden and adjacent are several beehives situated in the middle of a small wildflower patch where daffodils, bluebells and various other wild flowers bloom in succession. A dramatic end to any tour is in the formal Italian garden with its pond, a cunningly-positioned mirror and a recently-acquired and quite beautiful statue ‘Angels’.
This itinerary may be subject to change. If this is necessary, other equally delightful and interesting gardens will be substituted. Alternatives include La Maison des Près, St Peter, owned by Lord and Lady Brownlow or Domaine des Vaux, St Lawrence owned by Marcus and Anne Binney,
2. Liberation Tour
The Channel Islands were the only part of the British Isles to be occupied by the Germans during World War II. This very special holiday will take you right back to those times, with the chance to speak to a number of people who lived through the Occupation, an
opportunity to get behind the scenes and see things not normally open to the public and the chance to celebrate, with those who still remember the first Liberation Day – May 9th 1945.
In 2012 there are five tours in conjunction with Leger Battefield Holidays. To book click here.
3. SPRINGTIME IN JERSEY
This short break is designed to shake off the cobwebs of winter and enjoy Jersey at its most beautiful, and before most other holidaymakers have arrived. There will be moderate walks and sturdy shoes are recommended.
Day 1: morning ramble along north coast footpaths to enjoy spectacular views, historic sites and spring flowers. Afternoon stroll up Rozel Valley for a visit to the gardens of Les Vaux, the home of Lady Guthrie who will also show her dolls house collection to anybody interested.
Day 2: Morning visit to St Ouen’s Bay with Mike Stentiford MBE, best known as the Birdman of Jersey, but also the Vice-President of the National Trust for Jersey and extremely knowledgeable about all the Island’s flora and fauna.
Afternoon visit to Manor Farm, St Peter, home of the Classic Herd, where award-winning cheese, clotted cream and other dairy products are produced. Here you will be shown round by either Darren or Julia Quénault and will see the free-range pigs and piglets and the cows and calves as well as having a tour of the factory with a detailed explanation of the processes involved
Day 3: Historic walk round St Helier.
Lunch and afternoon at leisure.
4. Genuine Jersey
Jersey is justifiably proud of its farming and fishing heritage. It these short breaks you visit dairy farms and oyster beds as well as the multi-faceted La Mare, and the best of our arts and crafts. In the spring, there’s a chance to enjoy nature with the charismatic Mike Stentiford and in the autumn there’s a trip to the Lavender Farm.
Example itinerary
Day 1: Special guided tour and tasting at La Mare Vineyards led by Tim Crowley, Managing Director La Mare.followed by visit to their chocolate factory to meet the chocolatière. Afternoon visit to Manor Farm, home of the Classic Herd, where award-winning cheese, clotted cream and other dairy products are produced
Day 2: Wildlife walk in St Ouen’s Bay with naturalist Mike Stentiford MBE. Mike is affectionately known as Jersey’s birdman. He will give an introduction to Jersey’s fauna and flora in one of Jersey’s foremost beauty spots. A gentle walk with no hills – but sturdy shoes are recommended all day today.
Afternoon tour and tasting at Royal Bay Oysters. Again, wear appropriate footwear for the beach.
Day 3: Morning visit to Theresa Robinson Pottery. Theresa trained as aproduction potter, the primary focus being speed and accuracy in throwing a large number of pots. We move on to The Harbour Gallery, St Aubin which is Jersey’s largest exhibiting and selling gallery, with over eighty exhibiting artists and craft workers. Enjoy the exhibitions and browse at your own speed. Afternoon at leisure.
Contact: Email: Beth Lloyd or telephone 00 44 (0)1534 862099