Walk in the footsteps of literary greats
Share
Go on a tour of the homes and haunts of some of England’s most celebrated authors, and visit the places that inspired their greatest works on these literary trails.
Jane Austen 200th Anniversary Tour, various locations
Throughout 2017
Join this celebratory tour that includes special 200th anniversary events and exhibitions, as well as locations around Hampshire, Winchester, Dorset and London that inspired Jane Austen's novels, all enhanced by Georgian-style afternoon teas and classic pub lunches.
Find out more about the Jane Austen 200th Anniversary Tour
CS Lewis and JRR Tolkien Tour, Oxford
One Saturday each month throughout 2017
Led by an expert guide, this specialist tour covers the regular haunts of the two most famous writers in the Inklings, Oxford’s legendary literary group.
Find out more about the CS Lewis and JRR Tolkien Tour
Discover England’s Jane Austen and Thomas Hardy tours, Southern England
Throughout 2017
Discover England Tours has dedicated two literary tours to Jane Austen and Thomas Hardy, both of which visit places that inspired these giants of English literature.
Find out more about the Discover England’s Jane Austen and Thomas Hardy tours
Sherlock Holmes 125th Anniversary Tour, various locations
Throughout 2017
This new anniversary tour, which marks the 125th anniversary of the first Sherlock Holmes publication, retraces Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's steps, visiting his favourite haunts in London and the South-East, plus the locations which inspired him when writing about the renowned detective.
Find out more about the Sherlock Holmes 125th Anniversary Tour
‘Tess's Journey’ walking tour, Dorset
Throughout 2017
Embark on this inn-to-inn style walking trip which enables guests to walk in the footsteps of one of the most well-known characters of Thomas Hardy's novels, Tess D'Urbervilles.
Find out more about the‘Tess's Journey’ walking tour
Somerset Knights Quest, South Somerset and Dorset
Throughout 2017
Enjoy the Somerset Knights Quest experience which offers peaceful trails across rural Somerset. Explore stunning castles, historic stone villages and a hill fort where legends of King Arthur and his knights resound.
Find out more about the Somerset Knights Quest
Canal boat holidays through Tolkien country, Worcester & Birmingham Canal
Throughout 2017
Climb aboard a narrow boat to explore some of the landscapes that inspired Tolkien’s masterpiece The Hobbit, which will be celebrating its 80th anniversary in 2017.
Find out more about and plan your visit
Beatrix Beyond Hill Top tour, Ambleside, Cumbria
April – October (every second Saturday)
This tour takes you beyond the familiar Hill Top setting of Beatrix Potter's 17th-century farmhouse, to see the whole of Beatrix Potter's legacy in the village of Near Sawrey.
Find more about the Beatrix Beyond Hill Top tour
The Hardy Way walking tour, Dorset/Wiltshire
1 April – 31 October 2017
Book yourself on this six-night self-guided holiday which follows the footsteps of Thomas Hardy’s characters through Hardy’s quintessential Wessex landscapes.
Find out more the Hardy Way walking tour
The Hound of the Baskervilles tour, Devon
Throughout 2017
Uncover the intriguing story behind The Hound of the Baskervilles, including the people, places and legends that inspired Sir Arthur Conan Doyle to write what many consider to be his most popular Sherlock novel.
Find out more about the Hound of the Baskervilles tour
Archaeologist Guided Tours of King Arthur’s Glastonbury, Stonehenge and Avebury
May – September (select dates)
Embark on this packed archaeological tour that takes in the iconic stone circles of Stonehenge and Avebury, and delves into the legend and archaeology of King Arthur’s Glastonbury.
Find out more about the Archaeologist Guided Tours of King Arthur’s Glastonbury
Row the Literary Thames tour, Oxford to London
3 September
What better way of illuminating England’s literary heroes than by rowing the river that inspired them? Row England will be running new, fully guided literary-themed rowing trips, where you’ll learn about Oxford’s literary links with authors such as Lewis Carroll, Mary Shelley and Kenneth Grahame.