England photos courtesy of Visit Britain
Tours include a stop at Highclere Castle, known to fans as the home of the Earl of Grantham and his aristocratic family. Here, you’ll get the opportunity to rub elbows with real-life royalty during an exclusive Champagne reception with the Earl and Countess of Carnarvon. gram on all 15 ships in its fleet. The program features a dance competition where you can bring a little more motion to the ocean. Here, passengers get the chance to compete in a dance-off of sorts that ends with 15 guests—one representing each ship in the Holland America Line fleet—receiving a free cruise and a chance to compete for a Mirror Ball Trophy on the “Dancing with the Stars: At Sea” Champions Cruise on the ms Nieuw Amsterdam, which sets sail on January 12, 2014. Don’t look for TV judges Len Goodman, Carrie Ann Inaba and Bruno Tonioli to be doing the scoring; instead senior ship officers, professional dancers and other members of the cruise staff, as well as fellow passengers, will decide who stays and who gets the boot. Prices for the “DWTS”-themed cruises start at $649 for an interior stateroom and go up to $3,899 for a Neptune Suite. For more information, call Holland America Line at 877-932-4259 or visit hollandamerica.com.
“DOWNTON ABBEY” TOUR LONDON, ENGLAND Americans are obsessed with all things British, from the royal family to “Downton Abbey,” the huge hit TV drama series (which airs in more than 100 countries, including on PBS and BBC America in the United States). As the show continues to build a cult following around the globe, businesses from clothing designers to airline executives are looking to capitalize on all things Brit-related. And you can count Virgin Vacations among them. Earlier this year, the company launched a special seven-day “Down-
ton Abbey” vacation package, which quickly sold out. But don’t get your bloomers in a knot. Virgin Vacations just as quickly put together two additional fully escorted “London with Downton Abbey” independent vacation packages, according to Linda Kundell, a company spokeswoman. They are scheduled for September 16 and October 31, 2013. The tours include a stop at Highclere Castle, known to fans as the home of the Earl of Grantham and his aristocratic family. Here, you’ll get the opportunity to rub elbows with real-life royalty during an exclusive two-and-a-half hour benefit Champagne reception with the Earl and Countess of Carnarvon. The castle has been in the Carnarvon family since 1679 and word has it that Julian Fellowes, who created “Downton Abbey,” is friends with the countess and had her castle in mind when he wrote the script. Visitors also tour the Victorian castle’s public rooms, including the main hall, library, sitting rooms and 1,000 acres of spectacular gardens, all of which appear in the TV series. The weeklong trip also includes a full-day tour of Stonehenge, as well as a vintage Harrods Open-Top Bus Tour and Tower of London excursion. You’ll also get to see Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, the London Eye, Westminster Abbey, Downing Street, Trafalgar Square, Nelson’s Column, Hyde Park, the Houses of Parliament, Oxford, Christ Church and the Royal Albert Hall, and more. You might even get to see the changing of the guard. For anglophiles, this trip may be as close to experiencing the royal treatment as it gets. Prices from Miami start at $2,415.
FROM THE TOP: Highclere Castle (home to the “Downton Abbey” Crawley family); Buckingham Palace in London; London’s Big Ben
For more information, call Virgin Vacations at 888-937-8474 or visit virginvacations.com. O
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