ANNE & ELIZABETH: MOTHER, DAUGHTER, TRAITORS, QUEENS
19-27 May 2025

BOOKING INFORMATION

For a summary outline of our tour itinerary, see below.
If you have any questions or encounter difficulties, don’t hesitate to contact us via the contact form here.

Ticket Price
£4,600 per person

Based on double occupancy.
(Double Room with Single Occupancy is priced at £5,350)

If you are a solo traveller but would be open to sharing a room with another traveller, please reach out to us to discuss.

Limited room upgrades are available for our stay at Hever Castle (see the gallery below for the rooms available).
If you are interested, please indicate this at checkout, and we will be in touch to discuss your wishes further.

Room Upgrade Options at Hever Castle

Anne and Elizabeth:
Mother, Daughter, Traitors, Queens

Tour Highlights

  • Two resident historians will guide you and answer your questions throughout the tour.
  • Follow the story of Anne Boleyn’s ascendancy, her relationship with her daughter, the future Elizabeth I, and their triumphs and tragedies as seen through the lens of the places where key events unfolded.
  • Visit ten pivotal locations associated with these game-changing sixteenth-century women.
  • Talks from celebrated experts such as Professor Simon Thurley CBE (architectural historian), Dr Elizabeth Norton (historian), Eleri Lynn and Claire Martin.
  • The opportunity to visit the county of Anne Boleyn’s birth and explore some Boleyn locations well off the usual tourist trail.
  • Luxury hotels, including two nights at Hever Castle.
  • Private, out-of-hours tour of Hever Castle and Hatfield House.
  • Dinner in the Great Hall at Hever, presided over by Henry VIII and accompanied by live Tudor music.
  • The opportunity to engage in Tudor pastimes, including archery and falconry, as well as enjoying an authentic Tudor feast during our Life at the Tudor Court day, held in a privately owned early sixteenth-century manor house in Norfolk
  • Luxury, air-conditioned coach transport throughout.
  • Breakfast and dinner are included on all days of the tour.

Overview of Your Tour Itinerary…

Day One: 19 May – Arrival and Travel to Norfolk

  • Pick up at a central London location and transfer to our stunning Elizabethan Revival Grade II listed hotel, Dunston Hall, in Norfolk, the county of Anne Boleyn’s birth.
  • Free time in the late afternoon to settle in, relax and enjoy the spa and the treatments on offer (the use of the spa is included in your ticket price, but treatments must be booked and paid for separately).
  • Meet for pre-dinner drinks and enjoy a short welcome talk by our resident historians, Sarah Morris (aka The Tudor Travel Guide) and Adam Pennington (The Tudor Chest), by dining privately in the hotel restaurant.

Day Two: 20 May – Live Like a Tudor Courtier

  • Travel to The Old Hall, Norfolk, to be greeted by our hosts, Brigitte and Tom Webster. Brigitte is one of the UK’s leading chefs of authentic Tudor cuisine, and the meticulous restoration of their early sixteenth-century home, including a Tudor garden, is a true portal for time travel!
  • We will enjoy a day of Tudor entertainment and feasting. Learn and be instructed in the sport of archery and the noble pastime of falconry.
  • In the afternoon, we will sit down to enjoy an authentic Tudor feast (with dishes known to have been served to Henry VIII while on progress in 1533). Brigitte will speak to us about preparing Tudor food, and signed copies of her book Eating with the Tudors will be available to buy. We are also honoured to be joined by Professor Simon Thurley, one of our time’s most revered architectural historians and author of Houses of Power: The Places that Shaped the Tudor World, who will talk about the Boleyn property portfolio.
  • After dinner, relax and enjoy a private lute concert as the sun sets over the Norfolk countryside.

Day Three: 21 May – Blickling Hall and Norwich Cathedral

  • After breakfast, travel to Blickling Hall, once the Boleyn family home and thought to be the birthplace of the Boleyn children, including Anne.
  • There will be a private tour of the house, and afterwards, we will stroll down to the local church to see the brasses commemorating some of Anne Boleyn’s forefathers. Along the way, we will be joined by Claire Martin, author of ‘Heirs of Ambition: The Making of the Boleyns‘, who will talk to us about the rise of the Boleyn family in the county where it all started.
  • After lunch, we will transfer to Norwich Cathedral to see the resting place of Anne Boleyn’s great-grandmother, Anne Hoo (who married Geoffrey Boleyn) and her grandfather, William. If there is time, Sarah will lead a short walk through Norwich’s old town before returning to Dunston Hall.
  • In the evening, we will head back to Norwich via private mini-bus to dine at The Rooftop Gardens, which has fantastic views across the city and to the cathedral.

Day Four: 22 May – Hever Castle

  • After breakfast, we will say goodbye to Dunston Hall and Norfolk and travel south into Kent, where we will check into our next hotel, the fabulous Astor Wing at Hever Castle. The Astor wing will be reserved exclusively for our use during our stay.
  • On the way, we will take a short detour deep into the heart of the Norfolk countryside to see a rare Boleyn treasure: the tympanum that fuses the heraldry of Elizabeth I with her mother’s white falcon badge.
  • Once at Hever, you will have time to relax and enjoy exploring the castle and grounds at your own pace. For those who wish, your guides will lead a walk up to St Peter’s Church to visit the graves of Sir Thomas Boleyn and his infant son, Henry.
  • In the early evening, we will reconvene for a private, guided tour of Hever Castle. This will be followed by a special dinner in the Great Hall, where Henry VIII will preside. Live Tudor music will accompany the dinner.
  • After dinner, author and historian Elizabeth Norton will discuss some of the Boleyn women whose stories and lives must have influenced the young Anne Boleyn.

Day Five: 23 May – Eltham Palace and The Tower of London

  • Our first port of call is Eltham Palace, which was used, among other things, as a royal nursery. We will see the Art Deco house, but most of our time will be spent lingering in the great hall and exploring the outside ruins of the royal lodgings. A private guided tour of the house will help us recreate the magnificent Tudor palace that once served as a nursery to the young Princess Elizabeth.
  • On our way to the Tower, we will take the Clipper (river boat) from Greenwich Pier (adjacent to the site of Greenwich Palace). Travelling the same way that Anne and Elizabeth would have moved between the royal palaces along the Thames, we will reflect on the contrasting ecstasy of Anne’s coronation pageant, which set out with the queen-to-be from Greenwich on 29 May 1533, against the agony of her last taste of freedom as she was escorted by barge to the Tower of London on 2 May 1536.
  • At the Tower, we will meet our Blue Badge Guide. Together, we will tour this historic building, exploring some of the critical spaces associated with Anne and Elizabeth’s stories.
  • At the end of the day, we return to enjoy our final night at Hever, including private dining in the Astor Wing.

Day Six: 24 May – Hatfield House

  • After breakfast, we check out of the Astor Wing and travel by mini-bus to the cradle of the Elizabeth age: Hatfield House.
  • Enjoy a private guided tour of Hatfield House and see some artefacts on display that are said to have belonged to Elizabeth I.
  • After lunch, visit the Old Palace and enjoy an up-close-and-personal audience with Elizabeth I. Listen as the ageing Queen recounts memories of her mother and time spent at Hatfield as a young princess.
  • There will be some free time in the afternoon to explore Hatfield at your leisure before we rejoin the mini-bus and head to our final accommodation: The Woodlands Hotel.
  • In the evening, we will meet for a leisurely dinner in the hotel and share stories of all we have seen.

Day Seven: 25 May – Hampton Court Palace

  • On day seven, we visit the greatest (and only surviving) palace of the Tudor age: Hampton Court. Alongside our Blue Badge Guide, we will explore the state apartments, recreating how they were used during the Tudor period, as well as highlighting some often overlooked features of the Tudor palace.
  • Following lunch, we will reconvene and visit The Royal School of Needlework, where Eleri Lynn will talk about Tudor fashion, how Anne lavished her daughter with expensive clothes to reinforce her exalted status and how both women became style icons of their time.
  • After this, there will be time to revisit the rest of the palace and gardens before enjoying an early bite to eat at a local restaurant before returning to the hotel for a free evening.

Day Eight: 26 May – Westminster Abbey and The National Portrait Gallery

  • On our final day, we meet with our Blue Badge Guide, who will co-host our exploration of Westminster Abbey. Along the way, we will focus on the ceremony of coronation. We will share tales of the coronations of both Anne and her shining legacy, Elizabeth I. We will also hear stories from your cohosts about the rediscovery of the burial vault of Henry VII and Elizabeth of York in the 1800s.
  • Visit the tombs of Anne of Cleves, Elizabeth I, Mary I, Edward VI, Mary, Queen of Scots and Margaret Beaufort.
  • Head up to the Jubilee Galleries to see artefacts belonging to the Tudor dynasty, including the funeral effigies of Elizabeth of York, Elizabeth I, Mary I and Margaret Beaufort’s Book of Hours.
  • There will be some free time to explore the abbey on your own.
  • In the afternoon, there will be the option to travel with your tour hosts to visit the newly refurbished National Portrait Gallery and its Tudor room, where you can see some of the finest surviving Tudor portraits, including those by the great Hans Holbein.
  • Meet for a farewell dinner in the hotel.

Day Nine: 27 May – Departure

  • Following breakfast at the hotel, we will say our final farewells.
MEET YOUR HOSTS

YOUR TOUR CO-HOSTS

Sarah

Morris

Founder of ‘The Tudor Travel Guide’ and ‘The Ultimate Guide to Exploring Tudor England’. Author of ‘In the Footsteps of Anne Boleyn’ and ‘In the Footsteps of the Six Wives of Henry VIII’.

Adam

Pennington

Founder of ‘The Tudor Chest’ blog and podcast, historian and author of ‘Henry VIII and the Plantagenet Poles – The Rise and Fall of a Dynasty’, coming summer 2024.

Guest Experts

Simon

Thurley

Professor Simon Thurley CBE is a historian, archaeologist and heritage champion. He is one of the most revered architectural historians of our time and the author of several superb books, including The Royal Palaces of Tudor England and Houses of Power.

Claire

Martin

Claire specialises in the late Medieval period. Her first book, Heirs of Ambition: The Making of the Boleyns, is the first in-depth look at the family of Anne Boleyn and their rise from Norfolk peasant farmers to one of England’s most prominent families.

Elizabeth

Norton

Dr Elizabeth Norton is a historian and author. She specialises in writing about the Queens of England and the Tudor period—her published works include The Boleyn Women and one of Sarah’s personal favourites, Anne Boleyn: In Her Own Words & the Words of Those Who Knew Her.

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Eleri

Lynn

Eleri Lynn is a fashion historian and author. She previously held the role of Curator of Collections at Historic Royal Palaces. She is the author of books such as Tudor Fashion and Tudor Textiles and was instrumental in the fabulous discovery of the Bacton Altar Cloth.

Lesley

Smith

Lesley Smith is an English scholar, historian, heritage publicist, and actress. She is the curator of Tutbury Castle and is perhaps best known for her stage performances as historical figures such as Mary, Queen of Scots, and Elizabeth I.

Kim

Dewdney

Kim is our resident Blue Badge Guide. She qualified as Guide of the Year in 2001 and has worked throughout London since then. Although she was not born in London, she fell in love with it 20 years ago and thinks it is the best city in the world!

Brigitte Webster
TudorExperience.com

Brigitte trained and served as a school teacher for 25 years. Her qualification was in history and cooking, a combination, which finally came together a few years ago in her new career as a culinary historian. She recently released her new book, Eating with the Tudors, a fabulous collection of authentic Tudor recipes. The Tudor and 17th Century Experience (TudorExperience.com) is a venture that finally allows her to share her passion for all things Tudor with a broader audience from their early sixteenth-century manor house in Norfolk.

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BOOKING – ANNE & ELIZABETH: MOTHER, DAUGHTER, TRAITORS, QUEENS