Britain Sampler (GE)

9 Day Tour from London to London

2025 Tour Details View 2024 Tour Details »

Even if you’re not bold enough to try bubble and squeak, haggis and tatties, or cockles and laverbread, you’ll still enjoy this perfect sampling of England, Scotland, and Wales. Our most popular tour of Britain, this tri-country introductory vacation has something for everyone. History buffs will treasure prehistoric Stonehenge, the Roman ruins of Bath and the medieval cities and towns such as York and Ludlow. Music lovers will cherish the music-festival town of Llangollen and The Beatles’ home city of Liverpool. Literary fans will relish the countryside homes of William Shakespeare and Sir Walter Scott. And beer and whisky connoisseurs will delight in the dimly lit pubs from London to Edinburgh and back where if you just can’t bring yourself to taste the black pudding, there’s always delicious fish and chips!

Small-Group Discovery Dates Available

Select Globus 2021 Europe tours are limited to an average of just 24 guests per tour. There’s always room to roam with extra space between you and other travelers—while still getting up close and personal to the experiences you’ve been dreaming of. Small-Group Discoveries include all the features of a traditional Globus European tour, complete with expert Tour Director, Driver, and Local Guides who ensure that your health and safety is our top priority. A Small-Group Discovery Europe vacation is the perfectly sized tour—without the crowds.

Departure 19 June: due to closure, Stonehenge visit replaced by Salisbury Cathedral visit.

Dates & Prices Book Online

800.268.3636

Photo Highlights

Meals

Meals & Itinerary

Full English breakfast daily; 2 three-course dinners

Itinerary

Day 1 ARRIVE IN LONDON, ENGLAND

Welcome to London! Uniformed Globus Hosts will be waiting to welcome you. Free time this afternoon.

LONDON-PHONE-BOOTH.jpg

Day 2 LONDON

The Royal Treatment LONDON Morning sightseeing with a Local Guide includes sights of the Houses of Parliament, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, Whitehall, Prime Minister’s Downing Street residence, Piccadilly Circus, Buckingham Palace, and a visit to St. Paul’s Cathedral. Free time this afternoon.

TOUR HIGHLIGHT
HISTORIC SITES See the legendary landmarks of England’s historic capital city. Walk where voices have rung out for centuries in Parliament Square and where chimes rise high above you with the ringing of Big Ben’s quarter bells. See Westminster Abbey, where royal coronations, weddings, and funerals have made history.

LONDON-BIG-BEN.jpg

Breakfast

Day 3 LONDON–STONEHENGE–BATH

Ancient Stones & Spa Days LONDON Meet your Tour Director and travel companions at 8 am before departing for Stonehenge.
STONEHENGE Visit the prehistoric monument. (Departure 19 June: due to closure, Stonehenge visit replaced by Salisbury Cathedral visit).
BATH Visit the excavations of the Roman Baths. Free time the remainder of the day.
125 mi / 201 km

TOUR HIGHLIGHT
CULTURAL GEMS The traditions of one ancient Roman ritual are in full flow in Bath. Amid the remarkable Roman and Georgian architecture and the best-preserved Roman Baths of this UNESCO World Heritage Site, a good spa day is never hard to find in one of the “Best Spa Towns in Europe.” The city of Bath sits above geothermal springs that bubble up from the limestone below. Bath also turns up the heat with some of Britain's grandest Georgian buildings, a mecca for elite 18th-century society.

STONEHENGE.jpg

Breakfast

Dinner

Day 4 BATH–LUDLOW–LLANGOLLEN, WALES–LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND

Welsh Country Beauties LUDLOW Visit the historic market town.
LLANGOLLEN Visit the picturesque town.
LIVERPOOL Free time the remainder of the day.
204 mi / 335 km

TOUR HIGHLIGHT
CULTURE & TRADITION Explore the charming medieval town of Ludlow on the River Teme. Noteworthy buildings include Ludlow Castle and the impressive St. Laurence’s church. With nearly 500 buildings on the Historic England list, Ludlow’s medieval and Tudor-style half-timbered architecture inspired poet laureate Sir John Betjeman to call it "the loveliest town in England."

LUDLOW.jpg

Breakfast

Day 5 LIVERPOOL–GRASMERE–GRETNA GREEN, SCOTLAND–EDINBURGH

Sonnets, Sweets & Scottish Blacksmiths LAKE DISTRICT Take a scenic drive.
GRASMERE Visit Wordsworth’s beloved village. Sample the original Grasmere gingerbread.
GRETNA GREEN See where a Scottish blacksmith performed weddings for eloping young couples.
EDINBURGH Free time this evening.
237 mi / 390 km

LOCAL FAVORITE
TIMELESS TRADITIONS Sweeten the day with classic gingerbread in Grasmere baked following an 1854 recipe invented by Sarah Nelson, the Victorian cook who invented the world famous cross between cake and biscuit.

LAKE-DISTRICT.jpg

Breakfast

Day 6 EDINBURGH

Crown Jewels & Castle Views EDINBURGH Morning city sightseeing with a Local Guide includes the New Town, the Old Town, and a visit to Edinburgh Castle to see Scotland’s Crown Jewels. Free time this afternoon.
THE ROYAL EDINBURGH MILITARY TATTOO Attend the world-renowned Tattoo performance. (Departures July 28 through August 18 only).

TOUR HIGHLIGHT
MUSIC & MASTERPIECES Ascend to Castle Rock to explore Edinburgh Castle, one of the most important historical strongholds in the Kingdom of Scotland, with a 1,100-year history as "the most besieged place in Great Britain". Here, you’ll find the royal regalia and Scotland’s Crown Jewels. The Castle forms the background of the Tattoo, an extravaganza of bagpipes and drums performed en masse in August each year.

EDINBURGH-BAGPIPER.jpg

Breakfast

Day 7 EDINBURGH–ABBOTSFORD–JEDBURGH–YORK, ENGLAND

Augustine’s Monks & Medieval Markets ABBOTSFORD Take a guided tour of Sir Walter Scott’s Abbotsford House.
JEDBURGH Take photos of the Augustinian abbey ruins.
YORK See York Minster on a guided walk through The Shambles.
202 mi / 325 km

LOCAL FAVORITE
HISTORIC SPOT While strolling the cobblestones of York’s Shambles, it’s easy to imagine the medieval butcher shops and boisterous crowds bartering for beef and bones outside the 14th-century timber-framed windows. The Shambles is one of the best-preserved medieval shopping streets in Europe, said to have been the inspiration behind Harry Potter’s Diagon Alley, and today is a vibrant gathering place with cheerful cafés and quirky boutiques brimming with the sweet aromas of chocolate, pastries, and pies.

YORK-SHAMBLES.jpg

Breakfast

Dinner

Day 8 YORK–STRATFORD-UPON-AVON–LONDON

Mr. & Mrs. Shakespeare STRATFORD-UPON-AVON See Anne Hathaway’s Cottage. Visit Shakespeare’s Birthplace.
256 mi / 411 km

TOUR HIGHLIGHT
A LEGEND SLEPT HERE Ah, young love! Even more true, as Shakespeare’s fiancée was eight years his senior. See Anne Hathaway's Cottage, the family home where the bard’s wife-to-be was born and courted by young Will. Built more than 500 years ago, much of the original structure remains. Visit Shakespeare’s Birthplace and family home in the heart of Stratford-upon-Avon. Hear tales about his family life, marriage, and children with a close look at fascinating artifacts in a world-class collection assembled by the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust.

STRATFORD-UPON-AVON-SHAKESPEARS-BIRTHPLACE.jpg

Breakfast

Day 9 LONDON

Safe travels until we meet again! Your vacation ends with breakfast this morning.

LONDON-TOWER-BRIDGE.jpg

Breakfast

Tour Director

With GLOBUS, there’s no better way to get to know your destination than through the eyes of a Tour Director. We’d like you to meet one of our Tour Directors, who average over a decade of experience and are representative of the type of expert that will be with you on your vacation.

KAELEIGH CAMPBELL

Escorting tours for more than 5 years

“People often ask me how a Canadian ended up leading tours of the UK and Ireland. But with a British history degree, and a huge passion for the literature, culture, and history of the region, I really couldn't imagine a more perfect job. I get to introduce other travellers to a region I'm proud to call my second home, and that makes for an immensely satisfying day of work, every day.”

Accommodations

Optional Excursions

No matter what you’re into: food, wine, history, art, music or anything else, we give you the freedom to personalize your vacation with optional excursions that speak to your interests.

When you book your excursions with us, you can be assured that every optional excursion that we offer coordinates with the free time that you'll have in your destination, so you'll never have conflicts between included and optional activities. Our team of travel experts carefully selects each optional excursion that we offer to ensure that you receive the highest quality at a great value. Our tried-and-true partners have a finger on the pulse of the city in which they operate so they deliver the very best experiences. We offer experiences you cannot create on your own and because you’re booking with us, we coordinate all your transportation and timing needs.

The following optional excursions are examples only for this vacation. These may or may not be offered, and availability is subject to days of operation and seasonality. Please select a departure date to view optional excursions and pricing for a specific date (due to currency fluctuation, pricing shown is subject to change until purchased). Optional excursions are available for purchase on our MyGlobus site 90 days prior to the tour start date.

Price Ranges

$ ($50 CAD and under)
$$ ($51 - $100 CAD)
$$$ ($101 - $150 CAD)
$$$$ (Over $150)

Liverpool

Edinburgh

Liverpool

Liverpool City Tour

This private guided tour is an entertaining introduction to Liverpool, featuring the city's glorious maritime past, the cathedral, historic civic buildings, and sites made famous by the Beatles!

Price Range: $

Edinburgh

Scottish Evening

No trip to Scotland is complete without an authentic Scottish evening filled with traditional food, drinks, singers, dancers, bagpipes, and, of course, the unforgettable Ceremony of the Haggis!

Price Range: $$$$

Royal Yacht Britannia and Dinner

Discover what life was like on board Her Majesty's floating residence during an exciting visit of the Royal Yacht Britannia, followed by dinner with wine at an excellent local restaurant!

Price Range: $$$

Private Touring

Private Touring: Globus European Private Touring enables you to experience all of the attractions, sights and highlights of your selected Globus tour as a private experience - delivered just for you and your traveling party. With Private Touring, you'll have your own dedicated Tour Director, your own private transportation and driver, and your own professional local guides. All with greater flexibility in pace and your experience.

For your selected tour, there will be additional per-person cost for the size of your party - from 1 to 24. This additional supplement is reduced with each traveler you add to your party.

Here's a sample of the additional cost:

6 guests in a party: $3,108*
18 guests in a party: $747*

Contact Globus or your preferred travel agent for pricing for your specific party size as well as any other information on Globus Private Touring.

* Supplement pricing is per person (CA) and will be added to the standard published price for your given departure date and is based on availability. Supplement price is valid for 2020 and 2021 travel years. Occasionally some included and optional activities & excursions may be operated with other guests. Additional restrictions may apply. Not applicable for custom groups. No Group allowances or promotions are available on Private Touring. Published itineraries only. Note that blackout dates may exist where the Private Touring option is not available.

The “Starting at” or listed price is based on the lowest price available to book. Price is per person based on twin occupancy and any applicable port charges, non-commissionable taxes and fees and intra-vacation flight are included in the price shown. Any included overnight stay in Canada, applicable GST/HST is also included in the price shown. International airfare, however, is not included. If price is crossed out, the new price shown includes a limited time promotional offer(s). Please review current promotions or deals for additional information.

View Ebrochure | Sign Up for Travel Deals