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Monthly Archives: June 2010

The Dorchester’s Wimbledon-inspired afternoon tea and picnic menu

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Posted by Paul on June 11, 2010 – 4:58 pm
Filed under Accommodation, Eating & Drinking

As tennis takes centre stage in the coming weeks, The Dorchester will serve a Wimbledon-inspired Afternoon Tea on The Promenade with a selection of tennis-inspired pastries including the citrus court, raspberry drop and coconut smash. Alternatively guests can make the most of the English sunshine with a luxury Picnic Hamper filled with indulgent goodies and presented in a beautiful wicker hamper that is theirs to keep.

As well as the tennis-inspired pastries, the Wimbledon Afternoon Tea includes a glass of champagne, traditional strawberries & cream, delicious finger sandwiches and homemade scones. Taking place throughout Wimbledon from 21st June to 4th July 2010 the tea is priced at £48 per person.

For picnic-goers and those attending London’s summer activities such as Wimbledon or Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre, Luxury Picnic Hampers are available for delivery within London. Priced from £150 based on two people sharing with delivery charge based on postcode.

Father’s Day in Pembrokeshire

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Posted by Paul on June 11, 2010 – 3:59 pm
Filed under Accommodation

Does your Dad deserve a treat this father’s day then celebrate this special day in style with Coastal Cottages of Pembrokeshire and give him a day to remember. There is a wide range of activities to be explored at the Ivy Tower Village. The site offers the use of a heated indoor swimming pool, sauna, fully equipped gym, children’s play area, crazy golf course and a tennis court all included in the price of your accommodation. So why not challenge your dad to an action packed day to celebrate and then a nice meal in the local village pub to end the day.

Weavers cottage is set in the popular Ivy Tower Village and over looks the pretty green in the centre. Furnished in a modern style with leather sofas in the open plan living space, makes a comfortable retreat and an excellent base to explore Pembrokeshire and the many attractions which you will find in the surrounding area.

A 7 night stay in Weavers cottage is a special price of just £486 with a saving of £208 for up to 6 people and your dog can come along and have a break too!

Enjoy a cupcake masterclass at The Howard

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Posted by Paul on June 10, 2010 – 4:00 pm
Filed under Accommodation, Eating & Drinking, Events

Why not indulge your sweet tooth with a cupcake master class at The Howard this summer. One of Edinburgh’s finest hotels, The Howard has teamed up with Lizzie’s Tea Party to host a master class in the art of cup cake decoration.

This one off exclusive event will take place on Saturday 26th June 2010 at The Howard, in Edinburgh’s New Town. You will learn the essential skills to make your cupcakes look, as well as taste delicious. The art of sugar craft will be demonstrated allowing you to produce tasty sugar flowers and tiny roses. By the end of the afternoon you will be an expert in producing beautifully piped icing swirls, leaving you with four magnificently decorated cupcakes to take home for friends and family to try, or maybe you’ll just want to have them all to yourself!!

The Cupcake Master Class begins at 3.30pm on the 26th June and is priced at £18.00 per person. The afternoon includes a glass of bubbly on arrival, the 1 hour master class, a selection of teas plus one of Lizzie’s delicious cupcakes, and of course your own decorated cupcakes to take home.

Great value 4-star Summer sunshine breaks in Guernsey

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Posted by Paul on June 10, 2010 – 8:01 am
Filed under Accommodation

Great value “Summer Sunshine” Breaks are available this July and August at Guernsey’s newest four-star hotel, the St Pierre Park.

Set in acres of beautiful parkland and gardens on the outskirts of Guernsey’s capital St Peter Port, the iconic St Pierre Park Hotel has just been awarded a 4-star rating by the AA. Over the years, the hotel has welcomed many famous people, including travel presenter Alan Whicker, author Jack Higgins, sports celebrities Martin Johnson and Henry Cooper, pop star Elton John, and international royalty, including Princess Caroline of Monaco.

The hotel is an ideal destination for Summer Breaks and holidays for families and couples who don’t wish to risk travel delays in Europe or the poor exchange rate with the Euro. The “Summer Sunshine” Breaks offer four nights for the price of three during July and August, include dinner, bed and breakfast, and are priced at £124 per room per night B&B or £168 per room per night DBB, based on double occupancy. The fourth night is free.

One of the UK’s most colourful traditions

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Posted by Paul on June 10, 2010 – 7:07 am
Filed under Attractions, Events

Visit Derbyshire up until the beginning of September and there’s a chance to not only see, but actually join-in, one of the UK’s most colourful traditions – a custom so old that its roots are lost in the past. It is practiced in around 80 villages, frequently involves almost the whole population of the area and can take up to 10 days to perform.

So, what is this ancient well-kept tradition? The clue is in the name because it’s the peculiar art of Well Dressing – and today it is still unique to Derbyshire.

Believed to have been practised in this part of the country since the days of the Ancient Britons, who devised it as a means of giving thanks for their natural supplies of fresh water, a succession of different villages dress their wells between the end of May and early September.

The art and mystery of well-dressing is, at its simplest, the tradition of decorating springs and wells with decorative pictures made only from ‘natural’ materials, such as flower petals, stems, leaves, berries, grasses, lichens, mosses, bark, cones, fruit, vegetables, wool, and peat. And as well as ceremonies across the Peak District itself, the tradition also spreads in to the towns and villages of The Peak District’s Historic Border Country.

Stretching from the Elizabethan splendour at Hardwick Hall past the dramatic hillside ruin of Sutton Scarsdale Hall to the fairytale heights of Bolsover Castle and centred around the market town of Chesterfield, the Historic Border Country is where The Peak District meets Robin Hood Country.

From Tissington – where wells may well have been dressed in since 1349 after the village survived an outbreak of the Black Death – well dressings continue throughout the summer at villages across that area including Holymoorside, Cutthorpe, Holmesfield, Barlborough, Elmton and Barlow.

Today it has become such a popular attraction that special leaflets and a website (see link above) now list all of the dates and venues where it is still practiced, highlighting not only the well-dressings themselves, but also details of more than 50 ‘in the making’ – places where visitors can both watch the skilful art and, in many cases, actually ‘have a go’ themselves. The process itself all starts with a wooden board that’s thrown into the local river to soak for a few days. This is then filled with soft, wet clay before being transformed by locals into a colourful work of art – often depicting a religious, or topical, scene. No two designs are ever the same; and dressing a well can take a team of villagers up to a week to complete.

Father’s Day fun at The SEA LIFE London Aquarium

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Posted by Paul on June 9, 2010 – 7:02 pm
Filed under Attractions, Events

The SEA LIFE London Aquarium is celebrating the big Daddies of the ocean this Father’s Day and guests can come face to fin with some of the sea’s most fascinating fathers. Discover the marine daddies with a difference, including the seahorse and pipefish papas who carry the babies instead of the mummies, as well as the male Cardinalfish who incubate eggs in their mouth before spitting them out to hatch! And human Dads can lead the family to solve the clues in a fact finder puzzle trail and get a special medal as reward.

Plus, meet some of the aquarium’s biggest Daddies when you visit the impressive Pacific Wreck display to discover practical parenting, shark style with the aquarium’s 12 fearsome species, then step into the rainforest to learn how snap happy crocodiles make gentle parents, despite their formidable reputation.

There’s also plenty of interaction, with talks, feeds, and the Eco Pirates on the Good Ship SOS. Walk under an awesome underwater glass tunnel, see one of Europe’s largest collection of Cownose rays and dare to conquer a nerve testing Shark Walk finale. With so much to see The SEA LIFE London Aquarium is fun for all the family and the perfect Father’s Day treat.

Situated on the banks of the River Thames at County Hall, SEA LIFE London Aquarium tickets are £17.50 for adults, £12.50 for children with family tickets and special behind the scenes packages also available.

Is your name James? There’s free Champagne if it is…

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Posted by Paul on June 9, 2010 – 5:17 pm
Filed under Eating & Drinking

St James’s Hotel and Club, luxury 60 room town house hotel located in a quiet cul-de-sac near London’s bustling Piccadilly, is offering anyone named James lunching in the hotel’s Bar and Bistro or fine dining restaurant, Seven Park Place, a complimentary glass of Champagne for the entire week in the run up to St James’s Day on 25th July 2010!

It’s simple: any James booking lunch under their name and showing proof of ID on arrival from Monday 19th – Sunday 25th July will be entitled to enjoy a free glass of Champagne with their meal!

Surfing, sea views, seasonal ales and soccer

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Posted by Paul on June 9, 2010 – 5:13 pm
Filed under Accommodation, Events

Where else can you combine surfing, sea views, seasonal ales and soccer on the big screen with Summer availability?!

Introducing the Oystercatcher apartments owned by St Austell brewery and overlooking the beach at yuppy Polzeath in Cornwall.  Stay at one of six apartments above the Oystercatchers Bar overlooking the sandy surfing beach at Polzeath in Cornwall and combine surf, sea views, seasonal ales and soccer on the big screen with feature beers from St Austell brewery including Liquid Sunshine and the ward winning Tribute. Cornish Horizons are offering seven nights at The Oystercatcher Apartments in June and July from £325 for 2 people. Cornish Horizons are also giving away a FREE Cornwall Tourist Pass for up to five people with every booking for discounts on a wide range of attractions across Cornwall.

The National Forest’s One Oak Project

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Posted by Paul on June 9, 2010 – 4:57 pm
Filed under Attractions, Events

The One Oak Project returns to the National Forest Wood Fair on August Bank Holiday Monday 30th August 2010 – but with a new twist.

Last year the project demonstrated the range of everyday products that could be made out of one oak tree by local craftsmen and women. Visitors to the National Forest Wood Fair were invited to find 20 different items around the showground made from the single tree.

At this year’s Wood Fair you will be able to see – during the day itself – how timber from another oak tree is transformed to create a scene from Goldilocks and the Three Bears.

Early visitors to the show will be able to see the scene constructed from scratch as Ed and Jim Crane (from Timber Framing & Conservation) set to work on building the Bear’s timber frame cottage. Timber Framing & Conservation is a Leicestershire firm that specialises in English oak timber framing and undertakes conservation projects, using traditional methods of construction.

Once the framework is in place, cladding and oak floorboards will be assembled and the Bears’ furniture added during the day; all made from the single oak tree. The scene will finally be complete with the arrival of the Daddy, Mummy and Baby Bear, one of which will have been created by a chainsaw carver at the show.

Visitors will be able to talk to the expert craftspeople as they work and Goldilocks herself will be at hand to chat with the children. So get the date in the diary – the weather won’t be too hot, nor too cold, but just right!

Eat! NewcastleGateshead

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Posted by Paul on June 9, 2010 – 4:48 pm
Filed under Eating & Drinking, Events

Eat! NewcastleGateshead gets off to a big start this Saturday (12th June 2010). What better way to kick off the annual food and drink festival than with a free weekend of mini festivals and events taking place throughout NewcastleGateshead. Taste, sniff, watch, discover and enjoy all the culinary delights the North East has to offer.

Start your day at the Food Adventure Playground (Newcastle Civic Centre) where the whole family can enjoy the fun and funky side of food. Work up an appetite playing the Stock Pot Game or give your brain a workout on Tunaversity Challenge. With lots of edible prizes to be won, this is one time when you won’t get told off for playing with your food!

If you’d prefer a more relaxing start to your Eat! adventure, then make your first stop at the Fairtrade Fête (Newcastle Civic Centre Gardens). Imagine all the fun of a village fête , right in the heart of the city centre. Guess the weight of the Fairtrade cake, topple the Fairtrade coconut and enjoy delicious Fairtrade tea and treats.

If all this fun has worked up a thirst then look no further than the Whisky and Wine Festivals (Newcastle Civic Centre Banqueting Hall). The Whisky Festival (Sat 12 June only) brings together experts from across the country as they share their wit and wisdom and more than a few wee drams of the legendary tipple. (Entry is £18 to this event.)

If Whisky is not your drink of choice then pop along to the Wine Festival (Sun 13 June only) and put your wine tasting skills to the test with more than 80 different types to sample. The biggest wine fair in the North East, expect products from the region’s leading independent and award-winning wine merchants and if you think you have what it takes to play ‘Guess the Wine’, you could win some big prizes. (Entry is £20 or £30 for two people.)

The Big EAT! continues on Northumberland Street and Grainger Street with the mouth-watering Food Heroes Tasting Market. Bringing together 60 of the region’s finest food producers, including national award-winners, this is an unmissable opportunity to browse, shop and most importantly, taste, some of the best food the region has to offer. Take your pick from organic beef, goats cheese, oysters, handmade chocolate, smoked salmon, summer fruits and walnut butter, to name but a few.

If you have a sweet-tooth then don’t forget to visit the Cupcake Festival (Princess Square). With England playing its first game in the South African World Cup on Sat 12 June, place your bets in the World Cupcake Sweetstake. With 32 plates of cupcakes in World Cup football strip colours, who will get your wager?