Travel committee

E V E N T S
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T R I P S …

S O M E
R E M I N D E R S

COACH TRIPS - PICK UP POINTS
Our coach trip outings usually offer 3 pick-up points:
* Towcester: Brackley Road Cemetery
* Moulton: Bus stop outside 76 Overstone Road
* Kettering: Cornmarket Hall, London Road
The timing and order of the pick-ups will vary depending on
where the coach is heading.
You can choose the point that suits you best.
All timings will be confirmed on booking

Wednesday 11 September 2024 VISIT TO LINCOLN
We enjoyed a very jovial time on the Lincoln trip seeing so much history. The cathedral is magnificent, along with the Bishop's Palace and some even found the shops!

Wednesday 20 March 2024 LONDON WALKING TOUR: Islington Area Ian guided us on a walk in an area that has a wealth of heritage and history. The tour started from St Pancras, and finished at The Angel, Islington, (originally a Toll House). Ian talked us through the history of the area: from the materials supplied by the Northamptonshire brickyards, through the descent into some of the worst slums in the east-end, and regeneration in the 20th century.

24.03 Group on London Walk

In early October 2023, the 2023 WI 4-day break was enjoyed by members in Bradford - an interesting experience in contrasts.

A Holiday in Bradford – an interesting experience in contrasts.
Our four-day holiday started with a visit to Harewood House, the elegant beautifully appointed home of the Earl and Countess of Harewood. A short ride from there we descended into Bradford to The Midland Hotel – an hotel that until as late as the 1970s was the place to stay in Bradford and it still is a very pleasant stay, one where we were made very welcome.
The next day we started with a guided tour, using the coach, of Bradford and were told of and saw the history of the development of all the woollen mills that made Bradford one of the richest cities in Europe.

We travelled on to The Piece Hall in Halifax, and learnt of the history of the woollen industry that preceded the industrial revolution. The Piece Hall is a large three-story market surrounding a very large cobbled courtyard. The rooms were designed to hold the “pieces” – the lengths of woven cloth, produced by individual weavers in their own homes, for sale in the Hall. Halifax and Bradford are around 8 miles apart – you would have thought they were worlds apart; both places seeped in the history of woollen weaving, two completely different atmospheres.
The following day was another of day of contrasts. We went first to the home of Elizabeth Gaskell (author of Cranford and other books). She was married to a Unitarian Minister and both were prominent in the early, very genteel Victorian upper-middle class society. Via a guided coach tour of Manchester, we went to Salford Quays and an exhibition of the works of L S. Lowry. As well as becoming a renowned artist Lowry was a rent collector in the poorer areas of Manchester and was the son of working-class parents. He was born into the late Victorian era and lived through two world wars. The contrast between his life and that of Elizabeth Gaskell was a vibrant lesson in the social history of the Victorian, and subsequent, eras.
Our final day gave another lesson in social history, an example of early social engineering. We visited Saltaire. The village built by Josiah Salt to house his workers in far better conditions than those in which they had been living in Bradford. But in doing so he also provided himself with a captive workforce. The new, tenanted housing, was far enough away that those who lived in them could not readily gain employment elsewhere. In exercising this philanthropic gesture, Mr Salt gained a guaranteed workforce – something none of his competitors had.
As ever Lisa, Avalon Tours, had organised an excellent holiday and in the company of other members, and a sprinkling of husbands, a very good time was enjoyed by all.
Ann Thorington Welford WI

September 2023 saw us enjoying time in the beautiful Cathedral at Ely, on one of the hottest days of the year.
23.09 On the coach