Durham and Beamish

After breakfast this morning, we depart for a full day exploring the university city of Durham. The city is positively packed with all manner of historical buildings including the Norman Durham Castle and Romanesque Durham Cathedral. A leisurely walk north of the Castle is where you can find the 13^th century Crook Hall one of the oldest inhabited houses in Durham and its beautiful surrounding gardens. For the botanists among us, Durham University offers a Botanic Garden with woodland and tropical plants. All of these attractions can be explored at your leisure before we reconvene later in the afternoon and return to the hotel. (No entrance fee included)

Today you may wish to join the optional excursion to the Beamish Living Museum which gives a wonderful insight into the industrial heritage in the North of England. We meet costumed characters from the 1820’s at Pockerley Old and New Hall, a late 19^th century colliery which showcases the prosperous period of the miners in the northeast and we can also experience both rural and urban life as it was in the 1950’s. There is certainly much to explore and we have a full day to enjoy everything Beamish has to offer.

After breakfast we head to the coastal town of Whitby, which aside from being a popular seaside resort is also famous for its connection to Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Captain Cook, the famous explorer was a former resident of this charming town during his apprenticeship. We have a visit to the HM Bark Endeavour Experience, where we learn about the ship that was commissioned in the late 18^th-century by the Royal Navy to undertake a voyage of scientific discovery, which was captained by Lieutenant James Cook. We can explore exhibitions packed with interactive displays on this fantastic, recreated vessel which has been renovated to look ship shape. We enjoy a scenic drive along the coast back to our hotel.

After breakfast we return to our original pick-up points.