Day 2 Monday 10 May 2010 Marrakech
On arrival in the late afternoon in Marrakech, we will be transferred by private coach to our hotel. Marrakech was founded in 1106AD by the Almoravids from the Sahara. The city sits between the Sahara, the Atlas and the Anti Atlas Mountains. It was the hub of a grand empire in the eleventh and twelfth centuries. The tour manager will meet tour members wishing to dine with the group in the lobby to suggest restaurants for dinner.

Day 3 Tuesday 11 May 2010 Marrakech
This morning we enjoy a sightseeing tour of the historic city of Marrakech. We explore the Medina above which rises the minaret of the Koutoubia Mosque. We stop at the Place Jemaa el-Fna. For centuries this unique and extraordinary square has been the nerve centre of Marrakech. It is an irregular space, where a large market is held in the mornings. The market sells medicinal plants, freshly squeezed orange juice and all kinds of nuts and confectionery. In the afternoon we visit Jardins de Menara, a welcome haven of coolness and shade, this imperial garden covers ninety hectares. Enclosed with pise walls it is filled mostly with olive and fruit trees. In the twelfth century an enormous pool was dug in the centre of the garden to serve as a reservoir for the Almohad Sultans. In the nineteenth century, the garden was refurbished and the pavilion built.

Day 4 Wednesday 12 May 2010 Marrakech
This morning is free for exploring the souks or local museums. The souks in Marrakech are among the most fascinating in the world. Arranged according to the individual nature of the goods on offer, they are laid out in the narrow streets stretching out from Place Jemaa el-Fna. This afternoon we will visit the gardens of La Mamounia Hotel. The gardens were originally a gift to Prince Moulay Mamoun from his father Sultan Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah, ruler of Marrakech in the eighteenth century. Gnarled olive trees planted two centuries ago still line the avenue leading to a small but perfectly proportioned pavilion. The gardens near the hotel are formal with roses and massed annuals in beds edged with evergreens beneath swaying palm trees. We will enjoy afternoon tea at the hotel.

Day 5 Thursday 13 May 2010 Marrakech
This morning we visit Riad Enija. The literal translation of riad is garden. Old style Moroccan houses that have a patio or courtyard are called riads. This two hundred year old house was dilapidated when it was discovered by the owners and restored. As in all Islamic courtyards the plants play an important role. Washingtona and phoenix palms provide shade and texture and beautiful faience mosaics cover the walls and columns creating a restful atmosphere. This afternoon we visit Le Jardin Majorelle, created in the 1920s and 1930s by the French painter Jacques Majorelle. Enclosed by high walls, long narrow water channels are linked to a square pool. From the hot, sunlit street you enter a world of bubbling fountains and luxuriant growth. Dramatic plantings of palms and dragon trees cast shadows over bamboo and bananas fronds. The house and garden was bought by Yves Saint-Laurent and skilfully restored.

Day 6 Friday 14 May 2010 Nice
This morning will be free for last minute exploration of Marrakech. We fly to Marseilles early afternoon. We will transfer to Nice, where we stay overnight to await the arrival of the rest of the group.

2010 Garden Tour to FRANCE, SPAIN, ENGLAND and SCOTLAND

Day 1 Friday 14 May 2010 In flight
Our holiday begins with our flight from Australia today to Nice, France.

Day 2 Saturday 15 May 2010 Nice
On arrival in Nice we will be met by a private coach and travel to our hotel where we have time to freshen up before enjoying a sightseeing tour with a local guide of the main sights of the French Riviera. We will explore Nice’s narrow picturesque streets and drive along the Corniche road. We have spectacular views of the ocean and cliffs on our way to Monte Carlo, which is famous for its casino and Royal Family. We will visit the Japanese garden in Monaco. It was created by Yasuo Beppu and opened in 1994. It is convincingly made according to the canons of Japanese aesthetics and superbly maintained. The central feature is a long irregular shaped lake. The tour manager will meet tour members in the lobby to suggest restaurants for dinner.

Day 3 Sunday 16 May 2010 Nice
We will visit Les Colombieres this morning. This garden was laid out by Ferdinand Bac between 1918 and 1927. There are many features taken from classical mythology. Bac preferred native trees, he admired cypresses and the garden contains the oldest carob tree in France. This afternoon Jane will lead the group on our visit to the Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild. The garden was laid out at the beginning of the twentieth century by Baroness Ephrussi de Rothschild, a member of the wealthy Rothschild family. The garden has been developed as a series of compartments representing different architectural and planting styles. The garden is the ultimate in manicured French exotic style. Tonight we will enjoy an included dinner so tour members can get to know each other.

Day 4 Monday 17 May 2010 Nice
We will travel to La Serre de la Madone this morning. This famous garden was designed by Lawrence Johnston during the interwar years, after he had developed well known Hidcote in England. In the afternoon we cross the Italian border to visit La Mortola, the flagship of Riviera gardens founded in 1864. Rows of terraces have been established to display the plants collected from all over the world by Thomas and Daniel Hanbury. The evening will be free to explore the many charming restaurants in Nice.

Day 5 Tuesday 18 May 2010 Nice
This morning we will have free time for individual exploration. This afternoon we travel to the attractive villages in the hills behind Nice. We visit Chateau de Gourdon and its garden. The gardens were designed by Le Notre on three levels above a high precipice. We will see a box parterre, a medieval apothecaries gaden and an Italian garden. We visit St Paul de Vence a charming hilltop fortified village filled with art galleries, boutiques and sidewalk cafés.

Day 6 Wednesday 19 May 2010 Aix en Provence
Today we travel to Cannes. Cannes spreads out between the Suquet Heights and Le Croisette Point on the shore of La Napoule and owes its popularity to the beauty of its setting. We will drive along the Boulevard de la Croisette, where we see attractive gardens on one side and the splendid sandy beach on the other. We continue to Aix en Provence. The tour manager will meet group members to suggest dinner venues.

Day 7 Thursday 20 May 2010 Aix en Provence
This morning we have a sightseeing tour of Aix en Provence, the old capital of Provence. We tour the old town with its attractive eighteen and nineteen centuries squares, many of them have gorgeous fountains in their centre. We will also see sites associated with the post-impressionist artist Paul Cezanne who hailed from the town. In the afternoon, we travel to the Bambouseraie, a unique bamboo forest. The garden was started by Eugene Mazel in the middle of the nineteenth century. He spent so much on the watering systems for the garden that he died a ruined man. There is a surprisingly wide variety of bamboo with their coloured stems –glaucous green, emerald, yellow and black are among the interesting species.

Day 8 Friday 21 May 2010 Aix en Provence
This morning is free for individual exploration. Our coach will travel to Chateau Val Joanis for lunch and a wine tasting. This nineteenth century style garden, was created by Mrs Cecile Chancel from 1978, together with landscape architect Tobbie Loup de Viane. Terraces were designed to resemble a French garden of the eighteenth century, combining both ornamental plants and a selection of vegetables and fruits. It features rose trees, a wonderful herb garden and gorgeous rose arbours.

Day 9 Saturday 22 May 2010 Montpellier
This morning we travel to visit a private garden designed by noted young French designers Arnaud Maurieres and Eric Ossart. The garden was influenced by the spirit of Islamic paradise gardens. It has an oasis like quality with lush plantings, scented flowers, pools and rills. We continue to visit Pont du Gard, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. The aqueduct is part of a system, which brought spring water from a catchment area near Uzes to Nimes: it was built in the first century AD and in spite of its two thousand years, it is in good condition. We continue to Montpellier for our overnight stay. Montpellier was an inland port by the eleventh century. The tour manager will meet those wishing to dine with the group in the lobby.

Day 10 Sunday 23 May 2010 Barcelona
This morning we travel to Spain, via the Costa Brava to visit the Jardi Botanic Mar I Murtra, which was created by Karl Faust to preserve the indigenous character of the coastal Mediterranean flora. He created several different gardens to house the plants he collected from all over the world. Mar I Murtra is now divided into tropical, temperate and Mediterranean garden areas. This afternoon we will travel to visit Santa Clothilde, a large property built on the site of an old vineyard. It was begun in the 1920s by the late Marquis of Roviralta as an Italianate garden in the Renaissance style, where the symmetry of paths, planting and focal points define the garden.

Day 11 Monday 24 May 2010 Barcelona
Barcelona is the capital of Catalonia and the second largest city in Spain. It has a population close to two million people and is the most cosmopolitan of all Spanish cities. It is a Mediterranean metropolis, a major port, a centre for modern art and a city that lives life to the full. We will explore the medieval Gothic quarter and the modernist Eixample district. We will see the historic cathedral and the beautiful streets in the Gothic quarter and examples of Gaudi’s stunning architecture, including the famous Sagrada Familia. We will visit Parc Guell, which is a combination of architectural and landscape features with mature and natural looking plantings. The park was commissioned by Count Eusebi Guell in the 1890s. By 1914 Antoni Gaudi had completed the famous features that are most enjoyed by the park’s visitors today. Among them is the grand iron-balustrade entrance, with its mosaic tile work on the walls and the imposing staircase dragon. Jane will make sure that you get the most out of this unique garden. The tour manager will recommend a good restaurant to soak up a little of the atmosphere of this historic city.

Day 12 Tuesday 25 May 2010 Barcelona
This morning we will have free for independent activity. This afternoon we will travel north-west of the city to visit Parc del Laberint, which is a superb example of a restored eighteenth century neo-classical garden. The most exciting part of the garden is the maze, which consists of seven hundred and fifty metres of Italian cypresses clipped into linear and curved shapes. There are intricate water courses, woodland and formal gardens.

Day 13 Wednesday 26 May 2010 London
We travel to Barcelona airport for our flight to London this morning. On arrival we will have a city tour escorted by a local guide. Some of the great sights include Buckingham Palace, Whitehall, Trafalgar Square, the Palace of Westminister, St Paul’s Cathedral and the Tower of London. The tour manager will meet those wishing to dine with the group in the lobby to suggest restaurants for dinner.

Day 14 Thursday 27 May 2010 London
The highlight of our time in London will be an escorted visit to the famous Chelsea Flower Show. Chelsea is the main event in the English horticultural calendar and boasts fine displays of flowers, plants, trees and interesting garden layouts. Jane will ensure that you explore all areas of this wonderful show. We will return to our hotel early afternoon. On the way, we will stop at Harrods for those who would like to have time to shop. The rest of the day will be free for independent activity.

Day 15 Friday 28 May 2010 Perth
This morning we fly to Edinburgh. We will drive across the Firth of Forth north to Perth, the attractive town and capital of medieval Scotland. It is located on the river Tay and has been a transport hub for road and rail for over a century. This afternoon we visit Glendoick Gardens, owned and developed by the Cox family over three generations. The garden comprises one of the most comprehensive collections of rhododendrons in the world. Many of the species were collected by the family in south east Asia. They are enhanced by an under storey of perennials, including meconopsis. The tour manager will meet those wishing to dine with the group in the lobby.

Day 16 Saturday 29 May 2010 Perth
We visit Branklyn Garden this morning. John and Dorothy Renton created this garden from 1922. The main interest of the garden is its alpine plants and its magnificent rock garden. Local granite was used in the design of the rock garden. It continues to be an outstanding plantsman’s garden. In the afternoon we visit Dunbeath Castle located on a cliff top. Its outstanding position and the quality and design of its garden make this an exceptional garden. The layout of the garden is traditional with a water feature with cupola and a laburnum pergola across the width of the garden. The plant supports and border backdrops are all designed using the same metal work, giving the garden structure, height and unity.

Day 17 Sunday 30 May 2010 Glasgow
We have the morning free for individual exploration before we travel south-west to Glasgow. We stop at Dun Ard, an exceptionally well planned organic garden, incorporating many of the elements of contemporary horticultural design. We will see a potager, a rose parterre, a bulb meadow, a still pool enclosed by a beech hedge, a bog garden and a formal pleached hornbeam avenue. The tour manager will meet those wishing to dine with the group in the lobby.

Day 18 Monday 31 May 2010 Glasgow
Glasgow has become a major cultural hub as the largest city in Scotland. Glasgow has been recognised as the European City of Culture in 1990 and as the British City of Architecture and Design 1999. This morning we enjoy a sightseeing tour of Glasgow with a local guide. We visit Glasgow Cathedral, which is the only medieval cathedral to escape the destruction of the Reformation. We see George Square with several statues of famous Victorian figures. We visit Pollock House Gardens, where there is a formal terrace of box parterres and lovely borders near the water and nineteenth century woodland gardens. The Burrell collection located in the gardens, features thousands of art works from Scotland and abroad. In the afternoon we visit Linn Botanic Gardens. The gardens developed since 1971 by Mr Taggart, have extensive water gardens, informal ponds and fountains and the glen has a tumbling waterfall with abundant water. This garden features thousands of unusual, exotic and rare plants.

Day 19 Tuesday 1 June 2010 Glasgow
Today we travel to the Peninsula of Stranraer, which is the most westerly point of Scotland and has a remarkably mild climate for its northern latitude, because of the Gulf Stream. This morning we visit Castle Kennedy and Lochinch Gardens, which are set on a peninsula between two lochs. These gardens, originally laid out in 1730, are well known for the variety of tender trees and species of rhododendrons. This afternoon we visit Logan Botanic Gardens. The exceptionally mild climate allows the creation of a formal garden in the Mediterranean style. Logan has a fascinating collection of rare and unusual sub-tropical plants. We return to Glasgow for a farewell dinner.

Day 20 Wednesday 2 June 2010 In flight
This morning will be free for individual exploration. Early afternoon we transfer the group to the airport for their flight to Australia.

Day 21 Thursday 3 June 2010 In flight

Day 22 Friday 4 June 2010 Australia
The group arrives in Australia and tour arrangements conclude.