Dorset Gardens Tour
This is a 2 day (3 night) accompanied tour of four beautiful gardens in Dorset, England, including visits to some places of interest en route. It can be combined with our Thomas Hardy tour to make a memorable 5 night holiday.
About the walk/tour
Please have a look at the calendar of all our scheduled walking holidays and heritage & garden tours, so that you can choose the check-in date that suits you the best.
Our Dorset Gardens tour is the complete opposite of a mass tourist coach trip. It is a much more flexible, personalised itinerary for individuals or very small groups, who want not only to visit a number of stunning gardens but also to discover a particularly scenic, unspoilt and little known part of rural England, accompanied by a local person who is not a horticulturalist but who is passionate about the area. It could equally well be described as an English countryside tour that includes four exceptional gardens.
In addition to visiting the gardens, time will be allowed for three quite easy optional walks, each of around 2 miles, in beautiful Dorset countryside to or from some of the gardens. Those who opt out of these walks will be taken in our vehicle to see some of the most beautiful villages in the area.
An attraction of our Garden tour is the drive each day along small lanes through gorgeous landscapes and picturesque villages, including a stop at an attractive pub in the middle of the day. There should also be enough time for a Dorset “cream tea” or just a cuppa in the late afternoon.
Accommodation and services
Depending on the accommodation option that you choose, you will stay in a B&B, inn or hotel that is situated in an attractive village or small town in the area. You will be collected each morning in the Footscape vehicle and driven to a selection of the gardens and other sites of interest during the two days, returning in the late afternoon. Entrance fees for the gardens are included in the tour cost.
Tour Highlights
- Athelhampton House and Gardens
- Mapperton Gardens
- Abbotsbury Sub-Tropical Gardens
- Minterne Gardens
- Bennetts Water Gardens
- Kingston Lacy Gardens (House optional)
- Knoll Gardens
- The iron age hill fort of Eggardon
- The beautiful village of Cerne Abbas, with its chalk giant
- The historic market town of Wimborne Minster.
Rates
Currency ConverterAll prices are per person per night and in £ sterling
3 nights = Dorset Gardens Tour
5 nights = Dorset Gardens & Thomas Hardy Tour
| Duration | Accom. option | Double / twin room | Single room |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 nights (combined tour) | A2 | £110 | £150 |
| A1 | £145 | £185 | |
| 3 nights | A2 | £115 | £155 |
| A1 | £150 | £195 | |
| A2 a comfortable B&B; or simple village inn | |||
| A1 a good hotel, luxury inn or equivalent | |||
| Occasionally we may propose accommodation with a standard and price between A1 & A2. | |||
| 10% 10% discount for groups of 3 or more. For very large groups (10+), please contact us. | |||
| We can sometimes offer family rooms with special prices for children. Please give us details on the enquiry form. | |||
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A delightful walking trip through Dorset. The itinerary and lodgings that you organized were all first-rate; we followed the directions easily .... through lovely areas of still-rural Dorset. We have enjoyed telling our friends about staying in 16th century inns that had gourmet food. ”
— Charlotte Rea, USA