54406LNO
Warwick Castle Visit & Lunch
Blenheim Palace Visit
· Blenheim Palace to be paid by cash.
· An earlier lunch works best at Warwick Castle.
· Warwick Castle opens at 10 a.m. Coach Park opens from 9.30 a.m.
· Remember to reconfirm the visit to Blenheim Palace.
Route –
Warwick Castle
This is a superb visit – so much to see and do and you should try to maximize your time here. If you have a booked time at Blenheim however you will probably be looking to depart between 12.30 – 13.00.
Set down in coach park. Arrange time/place for departure. Assemble group in group-holding area outside the courtyard whilst you pay & collect individual tickets and maps. Once through the turn-styles, walk group down the hill and into the main courtyard. Point out the various exhibitions and attractions.
Currently the attractions within the castle are:
1. The Time Tower
2. The Castle Dungeon (£9 optional extra)
3. Tower and Ramparts
4. Grounds and Gardens
5. Secrets and Scandals of the Royal Weekend Party
6. The Princess Tower (free but timed entrance, aimed at 3-8 years)
7. The Grand Interiors
8. The Kingmaker
Add on tickets may be purchased, if so inclined, from the tent in the central courtyard. It is best to check all these details before the beginning of your tour so that group leader can be informed. www.warwick-castle.com
Dungeon ticket is timed admission. If purchasing on the day be aware there may not be slots available that suit you visit time. Also Warwick website states Dungeon walk through takes 50 minutes.
Restaurants are opposite ticket desk and in the undercroft – nice food, but pricey.
Sandwich and BBQ stalls (burgers etc) in castle grounds during summer.
Blenheim Palace
The main coach entrance is on the A4095, just beyond Woodstock. Woodstock has Royal Associations since Saxon times and was a Royalist base during the Civil War.
Coaches are allowed to pull up next to ticket booth. Give out individual tickets. As you walk towards main courtyard you will the pass restaurant, shop and toilets. Blenheim has one of the finest mazes in Britain, in the shape of a cannon complete with cannon balls. Designed in celebration of the Battle of Bleinham.
If you have a tour, with the exhibitions and grounds to explore afterwards, you have to allow at least two hours, but remember you will have to deal with London traffic.
Architect- Sir John Vanburgh (the playwright). Built for John Churchill, Duke of Marlborough. A Gift from Queen Anne and a grateful nation after the Battle of Blenheim. The only Palace in England built specifically for non Royal use. Landscaped Park – Launcelot ‘Capability’ Brown.
Coach exit from the Palace brings you into the village of Bladon. (If you have a group who have expressed an interest in Winston Churchill, you may wish to visit his burial plot in the village churchyard. Coach drop off bay marked on road. Coach turns around and picks up on opposite side of the road. Warn passengers of traffic. Opposite White House Pub is a public footpath which leads to Churchyard. Family plot is next to the church. Recently rededicated and family connections to Churchill marked on other graves.)