Mine’s a Pint of Old Speckled Hen – Paull Tickner’s guide to the historic coaching inns of Britain

Crackling log fires, beautifully restored rooms, comfy beds, old oak fireplaces, real ales served at the right temperature (well for us Brits at least!), outstanding value for money menus and the chance to rub shoulders with the locals……….what better Britain experience could there be for your clients?

Welcome to the amazing world of authentic 16^th to 18^th century coaching inns in the UK, the perfect base for travel less, see more, hub and spoke style UK tours, imaginatively put together by us at British Heritage Tours, a Chester, England based Britain specialist and TravelMole partner.

My very special selection this month is drawn from an eye-catching portfolio of Old English Inns properties which belong to Greene King, one of the country’s leading brewers who since 1700, yes I said 1700 – not long really – have been perfecting their brewing art on the same site in the Suffolk cathedral city of Bury St Edmunds.

Their famous cask beers include the award winning Greene King IPA (Gold Award winner in the Campaign for Real Ale Champion Beer of Britain award in 2004), Abbot Ale, Ruddle’s Country and of course the classic ‘Old Speckled Hen’.

In total, Old English Inns have 80 incredible properties scattered throughout the very best areas of Britain for your clients to visit, including ancient Wiltshire, the Cotswolds, undiscovered Royal Northamptonshire and of course the East of England.   Let me take you on a quick tour of some of them.

Heading down the M4 from Heathrow or also Gatwick, the historic market town of Marlborough is a great centre for a variety of memorable visits.  The Castle and Ball, right on the town’s long market square, occupies a site on which an inn has been located since the 15^th century.  

 On its doorstep you have Avebury Stone Circle, which actually predates Stonehenge, the very mysterious Silbury Hill and for those interested in more recent history, your clients can unravel the myths and legends of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table at Glastonbury Abbey.

For those fascinated by the Holy Grail, don’t miss a jewel of a garden nestling around the Chalice Well, one of Britain’s oldest Holy Wells.

The 16^th century Hunters Hall, just 5 miles west of Tetbury is the perfect base for visits to some of the stunning gardens in this sleepy corner of the Cotswolds. The unique Painswick Rococo Garden also springs to mind as does Rodmarton Manor, the supreme example of the Cotswolds Arts and Crafts movement.

A tour of the nearby Hook Norton Brewery comes highly commended and for a day of retail therapy, discovering Roman Britain and some sheer luxury your clients can indulgence in the new Thermae Spa, the city of Bath is not far away.

If equestrianism is your clients’ thing though, a programme would work very well for the annual (May) Badminton Horse Trials.

Turning east is the Red Lion in Adderbury, overlooking the old village green – a former coaching inn with old oak decoration and stone chimneys.  The bar has a list of the Inn’s landlords dating back to before the Civil War when it was a Royalist armed hostelry.

Also for theatre lovers within easy striking distance is Stratford upon Avon where they’re staging the Complete Works of Shakespeare until 23 April 2007. Due south, families will enjoy the Harry Potter and Alice in Wonderland tour of Christ Church, Oxford.

Oundle, just west of Peterborough is the location of the Talbot, where the ghost of Mary Queen of Scots is said to haunt this inn, largely because the oak staircase and other parts of the building were brought from the ruins of Fotheringay Castle, where down these steps that she walked to her execution!

The Talbot is very well placed for the other major equestrian event, Three Day Event each September at Burghley.  Also just down the road are some stunning gardens which are missed by most people as they hurtle up or down the M1 motorway and Althorp, the resting place for Diana, Princess of Wales is nearby and open between 1 July and 30 August.

Swinging round to East Anglia, the incredibly picturesque White Hart at Coggeshall, dates back to 1420 and fine half timbered Bull at Long Melford, both giving a truly memorable experience of what it’s like to stay in a very stylishly refurbished coaching inn.  Atmosphere, comfort, outstanding menus and a breakfast that will fill your clients for the rest of the day, these are their hallmarks.

Within a 30 mile radius of these are some astonishing things to see like the Anglo-Saxon burial site at Sutton Hoo, the re-creation of a typical village at West Stow and re-enactments of Elizabethan life at Kentwell Hall. Also, for Dick Francis fans, a day at Newmarket is not to be missed.

Finally, before returning to Heathrow or Gatwick, I suggest that you stay at the Kings Arms, an elegant Georgian coaching inn at Westerham, Kent to see the great castles at Hever and Leeds and follow in Churchill’s footsteps at Chartwell and into the WWII tunnels in the White Cliffs of Dover.   This inn also works for those with a mind for a game of Pooh Sticks in the Ashdown Forest or for a closer look at the Hastings (1066 and all that) locations used in the hugely popular Foyle’s War.

These “home from home” coaching inns offer a very friendly and extremely relaxed atmosphere and warm and welcoming English hospitality, at its best in unique settings oozing with history!

To turn this and other Old English Inns based properties into tailor made tours for your clients and suggestions about how you can go about marketing and selling them why not email me at [email protected].

I look forward to welcoming you and your clients to Britain.

Paull