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UPMINSTER U3A

Coach Trips

2019

https://u3asites.org.uk/Upminster/home

UPMINSTER U3A COACH TRIPS FOR 2019

C O N T E N T S

1 Destinations and Dates

DATE LOCATION PAGEMonday 25th February Bletchley Park 3Wednesday 27th March Portsmouth Historic Naval Dockyards 4Tuesday 30thApril Arundel Castle 5Wednesday 22nd May Oxford City and optional Bicester Shopping Village 6Wednesday 26th June France - Boulogne Day Trip 7Tuesday 30th July Medway River Cruise and Allington Castle 8Friday 30th August Woburn Abbey and Safari Park 9Friday 27th September Stowe House and Gardens 10Thursday 31st October Blenheim Palace and Gardens 11Monday 28th November Cadbury World 12

2 How to Book

1. Please use the forms provided for each of the events –these forms provide the contact and payment details for each event and are not interchangeable with other dates. Cheques to be made payable to Upminster U3A. Please put the date of the event on the reverse of the cheque. If you do not have email please include a stamped addressed envelope for confirmation and travel information.

2. Payment can be left in the Coach Trip box at the Monthly members meeting or sent to the organiser’s address. Please see the booking form for information.

3 Terms and Conditions

1. Booking is not confirmed until we have received the completed form and the appropriate payment. The final date for booking is given in the individual booking forms. Once you have booked and paid, your money can only be refunded if your ticket can be re-sold.

2. Each trip is subject to final confirmation by the organiser. If too few people have booked by the closing date to cover our costs we may cancel. In the event of cancellation for this reason any money you have paid will be refunded in full.

3. All times of travel are subject to traffic and local conditions. We cannot be responsible for any loss or inconvenience arising from any delay or cancellation.

4. UU3A members have priority booking for all trips, followed by members of other U3As. Guests may be invited at the discretion of the organiser close to the date of the visit.

Contact for further information Beryl – [email protected] Chris – [email protected] Julia – [email protected] Lesley – [email protected] Pamela – [email protected]

SEE SEPARATE BOOKING FORMSTHE PAYMENT DETALS VARY FOR EACH TRIP – PLEASE USE THE INDIVDUAL FORM

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mailto:[email protected]






BLETCHLEY PARK Monday 25 February 2019

Cost: £26.00

Our 2018 visit was so popular we have been asked to repeat it for 2019.

Bletchley Park was the central site for British code-breakers during World War II. It housed the Government Code and Cypher School (GC&CS) which regularly penetrated the secret communications of the Axis powers – most importantly the German Enigma and Lorenz cyphers. The official historian of World War II British Intelligence has written that the “Ultra” intelligence produced at Bletchley shortened the war by two to four years and that, without it, the outcome of the war would have been uncertain.

Bletchley Park is a Victorian estate close to Milton Keynes and most of the war-time buildings are stillthere; available to be explored. There are many different exhibitions on different parts of the site. You can wander round on your own or join a onehour guided tour to help you get your bearings ortake a multi-media guide once you get to the site. If you have a smartphone you can download a multi-media guide before you leave home.

The recreations and exhibitions in the original buildings are evocative and very absorbing.

The site is large and there is a lot of walking between buildings so you will need sturdy footwear. Sharp-heeled shoes (defined as heels that will fit on a postage stamp) are not permitted because of the damage they do to the historic floors. All the paths are wheelchair accessible and wheelchairs can be borrowed at the site if needed.

There is a coffee shop and a café where you can buy snacks or hot or cold meals and there are also picnic tables if you fancy a bracing open-air feast.

The cost of £26.00 includes transportation and driver tip plus your admission ticket for the site

The last date for booking is Friday 8th February 2019

Trip organiser is Lesley Elias

Journey time each way approx: 1.5 hours

Please see the booking form for payment details.

(This trip information was circulated earlier in the year)

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PORTSMOUTH HISTORIC DOCKYARD Wednesday 27 March 2019

Cost: £45.00

Portsmouth dockyard is home to Henry VIII’s flagship Mary Rose, HMS Victory, from which Admiral Nelson commanded the great victory at Trafalgar, and ground-breaking battleship HMS Warrior. The yard is also home to a high-tech interactive attraction focusing on today’s Fleet, and the Museum of the Royal Navy.

Our tour includes transportation and driver tip plus your admission to the site and entry to all of the free attractions plus a tour of the Mary Rose and admission to any two other chargeable attractions of your choice. There is not likely to be time to see more than this.

Attractions include:

- HMS Victory - the world’s most celebrated warship.- HMS Warrior 1860 - the world’s first iron-hulled, armoured warship that never fired a

shot in anger.- 36 Hours - Jutland 1916 - the battle that won the war.- National Museum of the Royal Navy - Britain’s only museum dedicated to the Royal

Navy.N.B. Includes a new yet-to-be decided on free exhibition.

- Action Stations - release your inner ninja on the new Ninja Force assault course.- HMS M.33 - the only surviving ship from the

WW1 Gallipoli campaign.- Harbour Tours (subject to availability and

prevailing weather conditions).- Boathouse 4 (Free exhibit) - rope-making and

forgotten crafts exhibition.- Dockyard Apprentice (Free exhibit).-There are several cafes and two restaurants.

We will leave Upminster at 9 a.m. and plan to leave Portsmouth at 16.00.Journey time each way approx: 2.5 hours

The last date for booking is Sunday 1 March 2019

Trip organiser is Chris Slade

Please see the booking form for payment details(This trip information was circulated earlier in the year)

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ARUNDEL CASTLE Tuesday 30 April 2019

Cost: £32.00

Set high on a hill in West Sussex, Arundel castle commands the landscape with magnificent views across the South Downs and the River Arun. It is one of the longest inhabited country houses in England. Many of the original features such as the crenulated Norman keep, gatehouse and barbican survive. Between the 1870s and 1900 the house was almost completely rebuilt and the magnificent architecture in Gothic style is considered to be one of the great works of Victorian England.

Enjoy the grandeur of the finely preserved interior with its fascinating furniture, tapestries and rare collections of paintings by renowned artists including Van Dyck, Gainsborough and Canaletto. Stroll through the tranquil grounds where you will discover the different themed gardens.

At the edge of the site is the Arundel Museum which tells the story of the town from pre-Roman times to the present day.

The castle has a licensed restaurant and a coffee shop but the town is next door so there is no shortage of places to eat and drink.

The cost of £32.00 includes transportation and driver tip plus your admission tickets to the castle and the museum.

We will leave Upminster at 09.00 and leave Arundel for the return trip at 16.00.Journey time each way approx: 1 hr 50 mins.

The last date for booking is Friday 12 April 2019

Trip organiser is Julia Deverill

Please see the booking form for payment details

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OXFORD CITY WITH BICESTER VILLAGE SHOPPING OPTION Wednesday 22 May 2019

Cost: £17.00 for coach Plus £11.00 for tour if booked

Optional Activities that can be pre-booked:

Guided tour of Christ Church College - £11

11.00 Guided tour for 1 hour then free to stay as longas wanted visiting the college to see things in moredepth afterwards (limited to 25 people)

Shopping in Bicester – no charge for pick-up

There are buses and trains from the centre of Oxfordwhich go right in to the Bicester shopping village. The bus journey is free with your Freedom Pass and takes about 30 minutes and the train costs £3.20 and takes 14 minutes. If you plan to go to Bicester you need to let us know as our coach will then pick you up there at 17.00.

Things you could do during your visit after the tour or if you don’t join the tour

Just wander about this very beautiful city and enjoy the sights and atmosphere Book yourself a 2 hour walking tour for either 11.00 or 14.00 for £14.99 Take an open top bus tour – hop-on-hop-off -19 stops (£13) Visit the Ashmolean Museum – World famous art and archaeology collection – free

admission and free afternoon tours Enjoy a 40 minute boat trip to Iffley Lock - £8.00 See the world-famous Old Bodleian Library on your own or join a guided tour on the day Botanic Gardens - £3.00 admission. Drop-in tours at 14.30 for extra £2.50 Pitt Rivers Museum – archaeological and ethnographic objects – free admission – free

highlights tours 14.30 – 15.15 Guided tour of castle and prison -£9.75 Free self-guided Inspector Morse city trail (we can give you a guide and map if you are

interested) Other Museums : Musical instruments, Natural History, History of Science etc

We will leave Upminster at 08.30 and leave Oxford 16.30 to travel home via Bicester

Journey time approx: 2 hours each way

Last date for booking is Wednesday 8th May 2019

Trip organiser is Beryl Patient


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BOULOGNE FRANCE Wednesday 26 June 2019

Cost: £38.00(for all travel and driver gratuities)

Our first excursion beyond our shores is a visit to Boulogne with boat trips there and back plus a short visit to Cite Europe on the way home. It will be a very long day but, so close to the longest day of the year, it will be light and hopefully warm and there won’t be too much time sitting on the coach in any leg of the journey. We are trying to organise a group booking for a typical French meal in the old town as an optional add-on. Details and costing will be made available as soon as possible.

The ‘Centre Ville’ of Boulogne is a bustling mixture of shops, restaurants and cafés, bisected by pedestrian streets and with the cobbled square surveyed by the ancient Church of St Nicolas. Above the modern town lies the ‘old town’, the administrative and religious centre, dominated by the belfry and dome of the Cathedral. Around the square where the Town Hall stands there is also a variety of shops and many restaurants. Vast ramparts built at the beginning of the 13th century on the foundations of the Gallo-Roman walls surround this part of town. From the walkways there is an amazing view of the old port.

Things to do Walk round old town on hill top (unmissable if you haven’t done it) Nausicaaquarium Castle Museum La Maison de la Beuriere – old fisherman’s house with museum - €3 The Belfry – free The Annunciates – built on site of medieval almshouses, now a library – free admission

to gardens and cloisters Basilica – 19th century with some much older parts, fabulous crypt

We will leave Upminster at 07.30 and travel to Dover for our ferry crossing to Calais then continue on our coach to Boulogne. After time for lunch and exploration we will get the coach to Cite Europe for an hour or so of shopping or an early supper before returning to Calais for our 19.55 ferry sailing back to Dover. We should arrive back in Upminster about 22.00.

You will need a valid passport for this trip.

Last date for booking is Wednesday 12th June 2019

Organiser: Pamela Freer


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MEDWAY CRUISE AND ALLINGTON CASTLE Tuesday 30 July 2019

Cost: £42.00

This is a new trip on a boat called The Kentish Lady. The cruise starts in Maidstone and we sail down the Medway River to the castle. There is a guided tour of Allington Castle, led by staff from the castle. After the castle tour the boat returns to Maidstone. The total cruise time including the castle visit is 2.5 hours from 1:30 – 4pm. This cruse enables you to visit the castle which cannot be visited any other way. It is a leisurely way to spend a summer afternoon.

Allington Castle is possibly Kent’s best kept secret. The 13th century medieval castle has an impressive Great Hall and beautiful courtyards. It nestles in 42 acres of beautiful gardens next to the river. This privately-owned estate with Italian gardens, lavender walk, parterre, courtyard & formal ponds is surrounded by a moat and fronted by two lakes, is really an incredible place to visit.

The Kentish Lady departs from the mooring adjacent to the Archbishops’ Palace in the centre of Maidstone. On the way to the castle there is a commentary to increase our knowledge and enjoyment of the surroundings. On the return trip we will be served tea, coffee and cakes before we get back to the mooring in Maidstone.

We will leave Upminster at 11.00. This will leave us about 1.5 hours to have lunch and see a bit of Maidstone before we get on the boat. We will leave Maidstone for our return to Upminster at about 16.45. The journey time each way is approximately 1 hour.

Last date for booking is Tuesday 16th July 2019

Organiser: Beryl Patient

The cost includes the return coach journey, driver tip, the return river cruise, entrance and tour of Allington Castle, tea/coffee and cake on board.

** Please note: This excursion involves steps, slopes, uneven and grassed areas which may not be suitable for those with reduced mobility **


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WOBURN ABBEY AND SAFARI PARK Friday 30 August 2019

Cost: £43.00

This will be a combined trip to Woburn Abbey, the family home of the Duke and Duchess of Bedford, and the adjoining Woburn Safari Park. This will be your last chance to visit for a while as the property is closing the next day for a two year restoration.

The Abbey has been in the Russell family since the mid 16th century and contains a wonderful art collection (including the largest private collection of Canaletto’s Venetian views) fine furniture, porcelain and silver. The house is surrounded by 28 acres of gardens which are free for us to explore as part of our visit.

After we have visited the house and gardens we will havetime for lunch. You can either take a picnic or make use ofthe tea room which offers light meals such as soup and bakedpotatoes or full meals.

We will then be taken to the Safari Park. There, our coach driver will drive us round for about an hour through all the various enclosures then, while he has a break, we will be able to spend time on a ‘foot safari’ to get up close to creatures ranging from elephants to sea lions.

We will leave Upminster at 09.00 and leave Woburn at 16.45 which should get us back to Upminster by 18.15, traffic permitting.

The cost of £43.00 includes transportation and driver tip plus admission to house, gardens and safari park.

Last date for booking is Wednesday 14th August 2019

Organiser: Pamela Freer


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STOWE HOUSE AND GARDENS Friday 27 September 2019

Cost: £33.00 non NT members and NT members £21.00

Stowe HouseIf you had power and riches, how would you use them? In the eighteenth century, the powerful Temple-Grenville family chose to create an idyllic landscape filled with temples. Amidst these large gardens, they built the most lavish temple of all, Stowe House. This temple was so grand that even Queen Victoria was bewildered by its interiors.

Gardens The Grecian Valley is great for a circular walk, with lots of benches along the way. You can spot a wide range of flowers and seasonal interest in the shrubbery. Some of the best-loved and most iconic temples and monuments can be found in the Eastern Gardens. Don’t miss the Gothic Temple, the Temple of Friendship and the Palladian bridge. At the South Vista you will undoubtedly be stunned by the classic view of Stowe – take in the symmetry of the House, the Lake Pavilions and the majestic Corinthian Arch

N.B. The more energetic visitors can walk down Bell Gate Drive to the garden's entrance, whilst less able visitors can catch a lift to the garden entrance on a mobility buggy driven by N T volunteers. It is also possible to hire mobility buggies for a suggested donation of £10 for up to two hours. There are uneven and varying terrains at Stowe - but, for ease, certain routes are recommended and it is suggested that good walking shoes should be worn.

There is a cafeteria and a National Trust shop where everyone in a coach group will receive a 10% discount.

We will leave Upminster at 09.30. and plan to leave for our return journey at 15.30.Journey time each way is approximately 2 hours.

The cost includes transportation, driver gratuity and admission tickets for the site and house tours. There is an additional charge of £1.00 for an optional guided tour of the garden.

Last date for booking is Sunday 1 September

Organiser: Chris Slade


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BLENHEIM PALACE Thursday 31 October 2019

Cost: £34.50

Receive a warm welcome into the home of the12th Duke and Duchess of Marlborough and the birthplace of Sir Winston Churchill. Wonder at this masterpiece of 18th century Baroque architecture and explore the World Heritage Site with over 2000 acres of ‘Capability’ Brown landscaped parkland and formal Gardens. The formal gardens at Blenheim include the Water Terraces, Rose Garden, Secret Garden, Churchill Memorial Garden and The Duke’s Italian Garden. A short miniature train ride* from the Palace is the Pleasure Gardens, with a Butterfly House.

Inside the palace many of the state rooms are open to visit and there are free guided tours that you can join. There is also an exhibition on the life and events of the Marlborough family over the past three centuries and a separate exhibition on the lives of Winston Churchill and his ancestor the 1st Duke of Marlborough for whom the house was built. An exhibition of Victorian art includes works by such masters as J M W Turner and James McNeill Whistler.

A gift shop and an assortment of cafes and restaurants offering everything from a grand meal to a quick snack complete the offering for a great day out.

*Small additional charge applies of 50p per single journey. Trains leave every 30 mins.

There are many self guided trails around the Park and Formal Gardens.

The cost covers the return coach journey, admission fees to palace and gardens and driver tip.

We will leave Upminster at 09.00 and leave Blenheim at 15.30 or 16.00 depending on the weather - for our return journey. The journey time is approximately 2 hours each way.

Last date for booking is Wednesday 16th October 2019

Organiser: Julia Deverill


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CADBURY WORLD AND BOURNVILLE VILLAGE Thursday 28 November 2019

Cost: £47.50

Take a trip down memory lane with this tour especially for adults and combine an informative talk about the Bournville Village and the Cadbury family, with a fully guided tour around Cadbury World. Enjoy a fascinating tour of Bournville Village on board our coach with a member of the heritage team as our guide. Discover the Cadbury brothers' vision of a 'Factory in a Garden' and view examples of beautiful architecture, the unique village green and pretty tree-lined streets, before taking a guided tour of the Cadbury World exhibition:

The tour includes the following elements:

The Cadbury Story –Enjoy a sequence of special effects cinema presentations in themed auditoriums.Manufacturing - See how Cadbury's most popular products are made at interactive video stations.Chocolate Making - Watch chocolatiers demonstrate traditional chocolate making skills, and choose a treat to add to a pot of warm liquid chocolate.Advertising Avenue - Reminisce over Cadbury adverts from the past 100 years and rediscover your old favourites.Bournville Experience - Visit the Cadbury heritage centre which focuses on the Quaker ethics of the Cadbury family and how Bournville was created.Cream tea - Enjoy scones and sandwiches served in the themed Cadbury Café with a tea or coffee.The World's Biggest Cadbury Shop - Stock up on favourite treats and exclusive handmade items. Plus every visitor receives a complimentary bar of Bournville dark chocolate on departure.

The cost covers the return coach trip and driver tip, entrance to the venue and tours and exhibitions as outlined above plus a cream tea.

We will leave Upminster at 10.00 to get us there in time for a quick lunch (not included) before the tour and we will leave Cadbury World at 17.00 for our return trip. The journey time each way is approximately 2 hrs 50 mins.

Last date for booking is Tuesday 19th November 2019

The organiser is Lesley Elias


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