Tony Russell is one of Brightwaters long standing and most popular tour managers. His experience began in Snowdonia in the late 1970’s as part of the forestry commission and continued over the following decades culminating in his appointment as Head Forester at Westonbirt Arboretum. Tony is one of the country’s leading authorities on trees and shrubs and in recent years has presented many gardening and horticultural programs, written articles for magazines and newspapers as well as writing and publishing almost 20 books.

Tony has lead tours all over the whole from his ‘back garden’ in Wales to sailing the Canary Islands and from the zen gardens of Japan to the manicured gardens of Italy. We asked Tony to reflect on his time leading Brightwater tours over the years and here is what he had to say:

Yes, my first UK based tour for Brightwater was in the summer of 2003. It was a tour of Cotswold Gardens and I was still in charge of Westonbirt at the time so, amongst other Cotswold gardens, I led the group around ‘my own patch’, which was pretty special.

Soon after I met with Graeme Mitchell and he asked if I would like to lead Brightwater’s tour to Japan that same autumn, I said yes, and before I knew it I was on a plane bound for Osaka!

There have been so many memorable moments on Brightwater tours, many of them associated with the lovely people I have had the privilege to travel with. However, one moment that sticks in my mind was when I was leading a tour to see the gardens of India. We had spent a week visiting gardens down on the plains around Delhi and Agra and then travelled on the ‘toy train’ up to the Shimla. It was dark when we arrived and so I was not able to see the surrounding landscape until the following morning. When I awoke I opened the curtains of the lodge we were staying in and there were the snow-clad Himalayas rolling northwards into the distance. Truly amazing!

Of course the gardens are always wonderful to see, however my favourite thing is meeting and spending time with Brightwater’s clients that I have the honour of leading on tour. We always have a great time together and I have made so many good friends over the years.

This is a really difficult question to answer, as there are so many wonderful gardens in the world that I have visited for Brightwater over the years. However, in Britain there is nothing quite like leading a garden tour around my favourite gardens in Snowdonia. I have been living here now for 12 years and I never tire of these amazing gardens located between the mountains and the sea.

I think it’s the care and attention that Brightwater put into planning the itineraries. There is always plenty for people to see and enjoy, but it never feels like I’m having to rush the group from one garden to the next. Brightwater tours are always relaxed affairs, unlike some other tour companies who try to cram too much in.

In the UK, I would love to lead a Brightwater tour through the gardens of the Lake District. There are so many beautiful gardens in Cumbria and all are surrounded by wonderful countryside. Overseas, I think I would like to go back to India again. It is truly an astonishing country, so vibrant and colourful and the gardens are truly amazing.