The Best of England's Christian Heritage Day 1 - (Sat.) Board your overnight transatlantic flight. Day 2 - Arrive in London, England - (Sun.) Check into your hotel. The rest of the day is free for you to relax or start exploring the lively British capital. At 6 pm, meet your Tour Director and traveling companions for a welcome dinner at the hotel. (D) Day 3 – London - (Mon.) A full day of sightseeing with a Local Guide includes WESTMINSTER ABBEY. Also visit WESLEY’S HOUSE AND CHAPEL, BUNHILL FIELDS CEMETERY (resting place to many well-known Christians, including author John Bunyan who wrote the beautiful Christian allegory The Pilgrim’s Progress), and ST. PAUL’S CATHEDRAL in the City of London. (B) Day 4 - London. Canterbury Excursion - (Tue.) Depart this morning for a drive southeast into Kent, the “Garden of England,” for a visit to CANTERBURY CATHEDRAL, England’s Mother Church, where you hear about Thomas à Becket and the Black Prince. On your return to London, visit SPURGEON’S METROPOLITAN TABERNACLE. Charles Haddon Spurgeon was an influential Baptist pastor born in Essex, England. He founded an orphanage still in existence today. In addition, he befriended and supported James Hudson Taylor, who founded the China Inland Mission in 1865. (B) Day 5 - London–Oxford - (Wed.) Travel to Oxford, the “City of the Dreaming Spires.” Join a Local Guide as you visit magnificent CHRIST CHURCH COLLEGE and CATHEDRAL. Your Tour Director will then take you on a walking tour of Oxford to see Lincoln College, where John Wesley founded the Holy Club, nicknamed “Society of Methodists.” George Whitfield, whose preaching in America was a significant part of the Great Awakening revivals, was also a member of the Holy Club. Some free time to explore the city and perhaps visit the Eagle & Child pub that was frequented by C.S. Lewis and his friends, including J.R.R. Tolkien, for their literary club known as “the Inklings.” After a lunch break, continue your walking tour of Oxford, visiting MAGDALEN COLLEGE, where Lewis was elected a fellow in 1925. At the Kilns, former home of Lewis, pause for photographs before visiting HOLY TRINITY CHURCH in Headington Quarry, where he is buried. (B,D) Day 7 - Oxford–Epworth–York - (Fri.) Head north to Epworth, birthplace of John and Charles Wesley. At the OLD RECTORY, visit their childhood home, which was built in 1709 by Samuel Wesley and is now a museum. Also visit the WESLEY MEMORIAL CHURCH, completed in 1889 as a memorial to the contribution made by John and Charles to world religion. Continue to York to see one of the most intact medieval walled cities in England. Follow your Tour Director through a maze of quaint streets, including the narrow Shambles. The walking tour ends with a visit to the stunning YORK MINSTER. (B,D) Day 8 - York–Lincoln–Cambridge–Milton Keynes - (Sat.) Visit LINCOLN CASTLE, where Samuel Wesley was imprisoned. In the venerable city of Cambridge, visit 500-year-old KING’S COLLEGE, including the CHAPEL with its marvelous fan-vaulted ceiling and stained-glass windows (visits are restricted during examinations). (B,D) |
