Tour-Smart Limited

Celebrate Spring’s Arrival at The Swan at Lavenham
Dinner B&B £120pppn (April-June)
Including Cream Tea and Visit to Gainsborough’s House


The Swan Hotel, Lavenham
(Photo compliments of BBC Suffolk)

 

Celebrate the long awaited arrival of spring with a special break at the iconic 15th century Swan at Lavenham in the heart of Suffolk. The beautiful, half-timbered hotel is offering a night’s dinner B&B staying in a Classic room from £120per person to include a Swan cream tea on arrival and complimentary visit to Gainsborough’s House at nearby Sudbury.

Based on two sharing, this offer is available Sundays to Fridays throughout April, May and June 2012, but excludes Bank Holidays. The three course dinner is from the house menu in the hotel’s beautiful beamed AA two rosette Gallery Restaurant.

Steeped in centuries of history, the half-timbered Swan Hotel brings together a picture perfect exterior with oak beamed interiors, open fires and cosy nooks, which blend effortlessly with rich furnishings and contemporary styling to create a timeless elegance. The 45 charming bedrooms and suites have all the little luxuries you would expect from a 4 star hotel, each different from the next.

To book call The Swan at Lavenham on 01787 247477 quoting Spring Offer, www.theswanatlavenham.co.uk.

Stay the Easter weekend and enjoy four nights of luxury for the price of three at the iconic, 15th century Swan Hotel at Lavenham. They are offering a full Suffolk breakfast and three-course dinner in the elegant AA two rosette Gallery Restaurant every evening from £750 per couple staying in a charming Classic room from Friday 6th until Monday 9th April; upgrades to feature rooms and suites available for a supplement.

Editors Note

Many years ago I spent my honeymoon at this wonderfully romantic hotel, steeped in history and nestling in one of the most picturesque villages in the U.K. The whole area warrants a visit and the Swan Hotel is a great base from which to explore the lush green countryside and historic towns and villages of Suffolk.



Update - February 2012

On 23rd February Bletchley Park will release four first day covers celebrating Alan Turing’s centenary year. Each will carry a 1st class Royal Mail “Turing Bombe” stamp cancelled with a unique first day of issue postmark. The intention is to restrict the issue to just 500 of each. Produced in association with the Alan Turing Centenary Year Committee and Bletchley Park Post Office, proceeds will go towards supporting the preservation of Bletchley Park. Similar stamp and envelope combinations from Bletchley Park Post Office have fetched several times their original issue price. So at £9.99 each these little pieces of art and history could be a good investment. 

The first design is by Rebecca Peacock of Firecatcher Design and the theme is Turing’s work on the mathematics of patterns. It was Turing’s genius for mathematics that made his work so vital to Bletchley Park and the development of modern computing.

Turing's Hut
 

The other three are original paintings by artist Steve Williams who has donated his work to Bletchley Park. They depict three buildings at Bletchley Park associated with Alan Turing. These are the cottage and hut where he worked and the room that housed the Bombe machines.

The Bombe Room
 

The stamp features a rebuilt Turing Bombe. The first day of issue postmark is a facsimile of one of the Bombe’s 108 drums that replicated the workings of 36 Enigma machines.

Turing's Cottage
 

A dedicated team spent 15 years rebuilding the working Turing Bombe that is now on display at Bletchley Park. A marvel of electro-mechanical engineering used to crack the enigma code that is now essential viewing for visitors. Bletchley Park Post Office was once the code breakers’ undercover mail room then a sub post office when Bletchley Park became a GPO training centre. Its re-creation of a 1940’s post office is a popular attraction. The first day covers and special stamps it began issuing in 1994 are sought after by collectors from around the world. More information can be obtained on the issue through www.bletchleycovers.com or calling 0044 (0)1908 363489

Click on this link  'THE SECRETS OF BLETCHLEY' for the full story

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SHEARINGS INCREASES CHOICE FOR UK HOLIDAYMAKERS WITH NEW SEVEN-DAY BREAKS

Shearings Holidays has reintroduced its popular seven-day spring breaks across its portfolio of Bay and Coast & Country Hotels.

 Departing in April and May, the breaks include return coach travel, half-board accommodation, evening entertainment and two sightseeing excursions. Selected breaks also include drinks at the hotel’s bar from 7.30pm-10.30pm every evening.

Caroline Brown, commercial director for Shearings, said: “We’re always listening to feedback from customers to help us improve their holiday experience, which is why we’ve reintroduced our popular seven-day spring breaks.

“While customers prefer shorter durations throughout the winter season, the milder climate of spring means they’re looking to spend longer away.

“These breaks complement our five-day programme, offering a more relaxed, flexible alternative with more time for customers to explore and enjoy their chosen resort. And as they’re just outside peak summer season they’re ideal for agents to sell to customers who are concerned about cost.”

Destinations on offer include the Scottish Highlands, Whitby, Windermere, Llandudno, Bournemouth and Torquay.

Caroline added: “Customers can travel further afield on these longer duration holidays, giving them more destinations to choose from.”

Shearings’ seven-day spring breaks start from just £189 per person.

For more details or to book your Spring Break visit www.shearings.com

Southampton City Art Gallery is exploring the weird and wonderful world of Roland Penrose and British surrealism in a major free entry exhibition running from 9 February until 13 May, which will examine British surrealism from its origins to the present day and will bring together over one hundred significant artworks.

Southampton City Art Gallery
 

The exhibition will focus on the huge influence of the artist, historian and poet Sir Roland Penrose (1900-1984). Penrose was largely responsible for establishing the English surrealist movement, through his coordinating role in the International Surrealist Exhibition of 1936. The exhibition proved a popular attraction; a new awareness of the subconscious and its irresistible disruptive force had been unleashed. Roland Penrose went on to co-found the Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA) in London and remained it’s guiding force for 30 years.

The gallery is open daily from 10.00hrs until 17.00hrs. For further information call 023 8083 2277 or visit website www.southampton.gov.uk/art.

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