Visit Old Historical South in Style
Where?
Charleston – Beaufort –
Savannah – Asheville
What?
Plantations – Gardens –
Scenic Drives – Great Food
When?
April 24 — 30, 2016
Day 1: Travel Day. Travel in luxury and style as we take off from Kentucky on a fantastic tour of some lovely old cites of the south.
Day 2: Today we’re in Charleston, S.C. to visit Drayton Hall, the only plantation house on the Ashley River to survive the Revolutionary & Civil Wars intact. Its Georgian-Palladian architecture represents the oldest surviving example of its kind in the American South. Enjoy lunch & shopping at the old City Market in downtown Charleston. This afternoon we meet our local guide for a tour of historic Charleston. See preserved and restored homes, visit the Battery, with some of the settlement’s earliest fortifications, and see St. Michael’s Episcopal Church, with a graveyard dating back to 1752.
Day 3: While we’re in Charleston, we’ll tour the grounds of Middleton Plantation, where you’ll marvel at the oldest landscaped grounds in the nation. The plantation’s owner, Henry Middleton, president of the First Continental Congress, kept one hundred slaves working for ten years to complete these immaculate grounds and house. This afternoon we will visit Magnolia Plantation & Gardens.
Day 4: As we depart Charleston, we’ll enjoy a scenic drive through towering live oaks and Spanish moss on our way to Beaufort, S.C., located in the heart of the Carolina lowcountry midway between Charleston and Savannah. Here we’ll take a carriage ride allowing our certified professional guide to share many historic facts of Beaufort, which was settled in 1711. Dozens of movies, including Forest Gump and The Big Chill, have been filmed here.
Day 5: Today we explore Savannah, Georgia. We’ll take an informative trolley tour of Savannah, seeing the major attractions such as the Juliette Gordon Lowe House, the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist, the Cotton Exchange and the historic riverfront. A lunch of hearty home-cooking served in an atmosphere of true Southern hospitality is included at The Lady & Sons, a favorite in Savannah. This afternoon, we catch a glimpse of Savannah the way General Edward Oglethorpe saw it in 1733 aboard the Savannah River Queen.
Day 6: No journey back home would be complete without a stop at the Biltmore Estate, in Ashville, N.C. Vanderbilt’s 250-room French Renaissance chateau is a true marvel, the largest undertaking in residential architecture. Get a close look at original art by Pierre-Auguste Renoir and John Singer Sargent. Marvel at magnificent 16th century tapestries, a library with 10,000 volumes, a banquet hall with a 70-foot ceiling, 65 fireplaces, an indoor pool, and a bowling alley. Almost all of the priceless objects you see throughout the house are from George and Edith Vanderbilt’s original collection. Stroll acres of formal and informal gardens designed by America’s foremost landscape architect, Frederick Law Olmsted. From the beauty of the Italian Garden to the breathtaking trees in America’s first managed forest, Biltmore’s lush landscape is a living tribute to Olmsted’s genius. Horticultural experts continually work to preserve the original vision for the gardens and grounds, including the rose garden which features more than 250 varieties. “You haven’t seen Biltmore until you’ve seen it in the spring. Our gardens come to life with wave after wave of gorgeous blooms. This year, in addition to majestic sweeps of flowers coloring acres of gardens, America’s largest home embraces this season of new beginnings with the special exhibition Fashionable Romance: Wedding Gowns in Film.
Day 7: Travel day as we make our way back home with new friends and precious memories.
Cost: $985 per person double occupancy, Triple $925, Single $1165.
Includes Motor-Coach Transportation, Six Nights Lodging, Admissions, Five group meals plus Breakfast at hotels.