Day 1 Morning departure for the journey north to the county of Lancashire and to the hotel in Clayton Le Moors for a four night stay.
Day 2 This morning you will visit Samlesbury Hall, a fabulous half- timbered black and white medieval house built in 1325. With turbulent tales of its Catholic families, witches and the haunting of Lady Dorothy (and other ghost stories). In the afternoon you will travel to Riley Green Marina to embark upon a narrow boat cruise along the Leeds Liverpool Canal. During the cruise you will enjoy a Lancashire cream tea.
Day 3 Today you will visit Gawthorpe Hall, affectionately referred to as the ‘Downton of the North’. The modest hall houses the North West’s largest collection of portraits on loan from the National Portrait Gallery and has associations with the writings of Charlotte Brontèˆ and the family.
Day 4 Travel to Bury where you will visit the Transport Museum or look around the town before boarding the East Lancashire Railway for a journey to Rawtenstall, one of the best preserved mill towns in the country and second largest heritage station on the East Lancashire Railway. Take a stroll into the town centre and you will be surrounded by industrial heritage, cobbled streets and historic architecture. Time for lunch before travelling to Helmshore Mills Textile Museum. Nestled in a stunning rural location, the museum consists of two historic working mills: Higher Mill, a wool-fulling mill, and Whitaker Mill, a cotton mill. Explore the site to learn about an industry that shaped local Lancashire lives and the industrial heritage of Britain.
Day 5 After breakfast, depart the hotel and commence the homeward journey