NEW YORK
Monday, May 21
Depart from New York on an overnight flight to London.

LONDON
Tuesday, May 22
Arrive in London this morning and continue to the well-located Marriott  Park Lane, where we will spend two nights. In the evening gather at the hotel for our welcome dinner with introductory remarks by Alex Chisholm.

LONDON
Wednesday, May 23
This morning attend the Chelsea Flower Show (right), the world's supreme floral event. Our specially arranged visit is on Members' Day, when the exhibits are at their peak. You may wish to spend the afternoon at the show or visit your favorite places in the city. The evening is at leisure.

LONDON / BATH
Thursday, May 24
Depart this morning for Bath (left). En route, stop at West Green House, dating from the 18th century. We will have a private tour of the impressive series of walled gardens surrounding the house, as well as the ornamental kitchen garden. Following lunch continue to Bath, where we spend two nights at MacDonald Bath Spa Hotel, a Georgian mansion with seven acres of formal gardens. Dinner is at the hotel.

BATH
Friday, May 25
Visit Badminton House, a historic estate whose modern garden is the creation of English garden designer, the late Russell Page. Return to Bath and enjoy leisure time for lunch and to explore this famous spa town with its ancient Roman baths, medieval abbey and beautiful 18th-century architecture. Dinner is at leisure.

BATH / EXETER
Saturday, May 26
Depart Bath in the morning, arriving at the private terraced garden of Milton Lodge, with its outstanding views of Wells Cathedral and the Vale of Avalon. There will be leisure time for lunch and a stroll through the medieval streets of Wells. Continue to Exeter, arriving in the late afternoon for three nights at the Southgate Hotel. Dinner is at the hotel.

EXETER
Sunday, May 27
Today's visits include two British National Trust properties. Begin at Knightshayes Court (right), one of England's outstanding Victorian manor houses and gardens. In recent years, the gardens have been further developed to become a place of great beauty and interest. Enjoy a pub lunch in Drewsteighton and then see Castle Drogo (below), whose castle and gardens were designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens in 1929. Dinner is at the hotel.



EXETER
Monday, May 28
The focus this morning is Killerton House, built in 1778. The garden was created by John Veitch, one of the great nurserymen and landscape designers of his day. After lunch drive to Dartington Hall, the progressive school founded in the 1930s by Leonard Elmhirst and his American wife, Dorothy Whitney. Its outstanding gardens were designed in the 1950s by the American designers Beatrix Farrand and Percy Cane. The evening is at leisure to dine in one of Exeter's many restaurants.

EXETER / CORNWALL
Tuesday, May 29
A morning drive takes us to Cornwall in Britain's West country. Visit Ince Castle, where the extensive garden features woodland planning and a shell house on the shores of the River Lynher. Continue to Cotehele, one of the most intact medieval manor houses in England, now owned by the British National Trust. Our day concludes at Alverton Manor where we will spend three nights. Built more than 150 years ago, the manor sits on a hillside overlooking the cathedral city of Truro. Dinner is at the hotel.

CORNWALL
Wednesday, May 30
Spend the morning at the Lost Gardens of Heligan, formerly the Victorian estate of the Tremayne family. With towering rhododendron and magnolias, ornamental pools and an Italian garden, this is the site of Europe's largest garden restoration project. There will be time for lunch on your own before a visit to the Eden Project, a garden filled with waterfalls and tropical plants, and covered by a huge dome designed by architect Sir Nicolas Grimshaw. Dinner is at the hotel.

CORNWALL
Thursday, May 31
An exhilerating day begins with a helicopter flight to the Scilly Isles off the southwestern tip of Britain. The isle of Tresco is a subtropical paradise planted with exotic species and the location of one of Europe's  most renowned gardens, which has been in the Dorrien-Smith family for generations. Following a visit to Tresco Abbey (right), have lunch at the Island Hotel, with time to explore this charming auto-free island before the return flight to Truro. Our farewell dinner at the hotel highlights the evening.

CORNWALL / LONDON
Friday, June 1
Transfer to Newquay Airport for the flight to London to connect with flights home.


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Photo Credits: Chelsea Flower Show/© Jennifer Jacobs;
Bath, Knightshayes & Castle Drogo/© Lauree Feldman;
all others courtesy of Arrangements Abroad.