18th September 2018
Whether your ideal festive season is spent in the city enjoying the twinkling lights and warm welcome of luxury hotels and apartments, or if you prefer an escape to the country, in a stately Christmas castle, a homely lodge or a secluded family stay, Dream Escape have the perfect programme.
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Enjoy the hustle and bustle of the city at Christmas, enjoying shops and shows and unique guided experiences to inspire and entertain. Indulge in private foodie tours, skating under the stars or soaking up the atmosphere at the Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park or Edinburgh’s festive Christmas markets. Shop for gifts in iconic stores, maybe enjoying a behind the scenes tour or a visit to Santa! Enjoy a Christmas pantomime, West End show or wander along London’s South Bank to the newest extravaganza, ‘Circus 1903’, promising the thrills and daredevil entertainment of a turn of the century circus. Pay a visit to one of England’s finest palaces for a truly magical experience, with light trails through festive gardens, tree canopies drenched in seasonal colour and the beautiful formal gardens lit up with snowflakes, baubles and twinkling lights.
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We have the most exquisite private properties, perfectly decorated to welcome you to a Christmas ‘home from home.’ With the luxury of a Butler, maybe an in-house cinema, Santa visiting on a sleigh and wonderful activities, all age groups will be engaged and entertained. Ranger guided walks and hiking in the beautiful Scottish Highlands, star gazing, falconry, treasure hunts, warm welcoming open fires, whisky tastings and mulled wine, will all mean a marvellous and memorable holiday.
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Stay in one of Ireland’s most magical castles for a fairy-tale Christmas. Perfect for a family or group of friends, it comes with exclusive use of all the facilities and the Duke’s personal Butler. Enjoy seasonal activities, hang homemade stockings from the magnificent chimneys, indulge in banquets fit for royalty and take walks in the grounds learning of the history and heritage of this magnificent estate. Admire soaring Christmas trees, carol singing under the stars and roaring log fires topped off with a true Irish welcome. For the more sporting, a private house on a world class golf course may hit the mark. With the opportunity to tee off from your doorstep, take lessons with the Pro and enjoy the property’s private cinema, pool, chef, private falconry and archery. Everyone is certain to leave refreshed and revitalised.
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Click below for our Festive itineraries:
An Exclusive Emerald Isle Christmas
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In London (Chinese Edition) - Autumn Issue 2018 London for kids - Jo Caird "For real adren...
“Winds in the east, there’s a mist coming in, like something is brewin’ and ’bout to begin” – yes Mary Poppins Returns!
Emily Blunt looked “practically perfect in every way” as she walked down the blue, yes blue, carpet at the British premiere of Mary Poppins Returns at the Royal Albert Hall, London last night. We loyal Mary Poppins fans at Dream Escape will have to be patient until 21st December when the movie will be released in British cinemas.
To quell their impatience members of the Dream Escape Marketing, Planning and Guiding Teams recently enjoyed the Mary Poppins Afternoon Tea at the Aqua Shard in Southwark. Inspired by the original P. L. Travers books the afternoon tea is a homage to the famous nanny. We sampled mini crumpets, Mary Poppins favourites, as well as scones from a carpet bag. Mary Poppins very own edible hat with a black cherry tree lane mousse covered in dark chocolate with an edible flower brim and a black cherry on top. To complete the magical experience raspberry candyfloss, what could be better! A bit more than “a spoonful of sugar” but it did all “go down, in the most delightful way!”
Fizz, Bang, Pop! Ahead of the opening of the film Harvey Nichols, London has transformed their flagship store into a marvellous “supercalifragilisticexpialidocious” wonderland where you can stroll down Cherry Tree Lane as well as see 4 of the original costumes!
Keep an eye open at the start of 2019 for Dream Escape’s very special ideas for a Mary Poppins themed tour of London. Mary Poppins herself will guide you round the city and you can do a bit of set-jetting seeing some of the film locations - The Tower of London, St Paul's Cathedral, the Victoria memorial in front of Buckingham Palace and the Royal Exchange.
“Sincerely” Dream Escape.
“Oh, the places you’ll go.” (Dr Seuss) when you travel with Dream Escape in Scotland, England, Wales and Ireland.
Dream Escape, with the help of your Travel Advisor, will help you plan a tailor-made holiday that will give you unforgettable memories that will last you a lifetime. Behind the scenes private visits and experiential activities of your choice are what we excel at.
Castles, palaces, royalty, historic houses, glorious gardens, glens, dales, history, genealogy, architecture, geology, mountains, hiking, farm visits, culinary delights, set jetting and so much more. Explore, Dream, Discover.
These are our #TopNine #TopNine2018 most liked pictures on Instagram during 2018.
Dream Escape recently had the rare privilege and pleasure of a private, out of season tour of the medieval Upper Library of Merton College, Oxford which is home to the world’s oldest, continuously functioning library for university academics and students. A college scholar led us through the fascinating history of this architectural gem from 1276 until the present day. Manuscripts chain-clipped to the bookshelves and 18th century globes are not something we see in libraries of the 21st century.
We walked in the footsteps of many famous scholars including Walter de Merton (Founder), John Wycliffe, Sir Thomas Bodley (founder of Bodleian Library), John Bainbridge (astronomer), Max Beerbohm, Lord Randolph Churchill, Frederick Soddy, Sir Roger Bannister, T.S. Eliot, Kris Kristofferson, Airey Naeve, J. R. R. Tolkien, HIH Naruhito, Crown Prince of Japan and many more.
When J.R.R.Tolkien was Professor of English Language at Merton College he would write at an old stone table in the college garden where perhaps he took inspiration for The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings!
A small group of Canadian Travel Advisors, on an Educational Visit to London with Dream Escape recently, enjoyed a private pre-opening tour of The Houses of Parliament in London.
The UK Parliament Guide brought the history of the various Chambers to life and we heard stories of momentous occurrences in British history as well as treachery, treason and gunpowder plots!
Visits to the House of Commons and The House of Lords gave us an insight into modern day politics and current affairs.
‘New Dawn’ is a permanent contemporary light sculpture and the contemporary sculpture ‘House of Doors’ Exhibition has just closed - both relate to the issues of women’s equality in voting and other matters.
Dream Escape’s Business Development Ireland and Creative Planner, Emer Mortell ☘️, has been in Las Vegas this past week representing Dream Escape at Signature Travel Network’s 2018 Annual Conference. This years conference title was “As Unique As You”.
Emer caught up with old friends and very quickly made new ones. We send our warmest greetings to all our friends at Signature Travel Network. #signet #dreamescape.
