Discover Historic Beauty and Christian Faith on Tour of England
Our tour of England begins late Thursday morning when we meet our guide, an expert in Anglican heritage. We board our private motor coach for a panoramic overview of central London with ample photo stops along the way. We will get the big picture of this great city and then, in the late afternoon, we arrive at our hotel. Tonight, we enjoy an early dinner on our tour of England, do some outdoor walking, and have a good night of rest at our comfortable hotel. The following day, we start with a guided visit to the iconic Westminster Abbey followed by a walking tour of historic sites in the city. We will see many things on our tour of England, too numerous to list, but we’ll pay particular attention to those sites that tell the story of Christianity in England and the Anglican Church at the time of the Reformation. Late in the afternoon, we visit the inspiring St. Paul’s Cathedral for a tour and Choral Evensong. In the evening, we enjoy a dinner and concert in a venue such as St. Martins in the Fields, a well-known Anglican landmark building.
After breakfast the following day, we begin our tour of England with a full-day excursion to Canterbury, where we include visits to Canterbury Cathedral, St. Augustine’s Abbey and the ancient parish church of St. Martin. The town of Canterbury is quaint but it belies the grandiose cathedral, the Mother church of the Anglican Communion and the seat of the Archbishop of Canterbury. The Canterbury Cathedral is the epicenter of the Anglican Church; its history begins here. In 595, St. Augustine (of Canterbury) brought the Gospel to the British Isles. Tonight we will enjoy dinner at a local London pub/restaurant and overnight again in London.
Head North to Cambridge
During our tour of England, we begin Sunday morning with a drive north to Cambridge. We visit famous King’s College Chapel where we will attend a special church service. A walking tour of the city will take us past Trinity College (founded by Henry VIII), The Round Church and Holy Trinity Church from which generations of missionaries were sent. The story of Charles Simeon and the modern Christian missionary movement will inspire us all. Then we are off to Ely Cathedral in the afternoon. We see it from a distance. It rises out of the flat lands like a ship in the distant horizon. It is massive and impressive with one of the longest naves in England. The west tower is well over 20 stories tall. We will be, as they say in England, “gobsmacked!”
Visit Norwich, York, Newcastle, Oxford and London
The next day, we begin our tour of England with a visit to the majestic 900-year-old Norwich Cathedral. It towers above the city and tells the story of the Church in England through the Middle Ages. Next we continue our journey to York, where we continue with a visit to York Minster followed by dinner and overnight. The very fact of these cathedrals is an engineering marvel. We will see it firsthand! After breakfast, we continue our tour of England north for our visit to Durham Cathedral, one of the finest examples of Norman architecture in England. This church is a treasure-trove of Anglican Church history. The stories of Cuthbert, Oswald, and the Venerable Bede all come to life at Durham. Next, we cross to Lindisfarne for our included visit to Lindisfarne Priory. We will then have our dinner and overnight in the Newcastle upon Tyne area. After breakfast, we make our way south for our visit to the spectacular Fountains Abbey. The story of this Cistercian Monastery (closed by Henry VIII) tells the tale of the Reformation tensions within Anglicanism. Afterwards, we continue south for Oxford, where we visit Magdalene College. Tonight we enjoy dinner in the popular Eagle and Child Pub, made famous by C.S. Lewis, Tolkien, and the Inklings. After breakfast, we begin with a visit to Christ Church College and spend time at Martyr’s Square. Here we learn of the courageous leadership taken by the Anglican Reformation martyrs Latimer, Ridley and Cranmer. Their story will bring all the pieces of our tour into focus. We will see Oxford in its beauty and then head to London to arrive early enough for free time. We will enjoy a farewell river cruise and dinner together on board one of London’s Thames Cruisers.