Spring Bulletin 2019 by ACE Cultural Tours

SPRING BULLETIN Featuring 2020 Tour Releases

ACE CULTURAL TOURS Cambridge, England

Bayon temple at Angkor

INTRO D UCTI O N

Cover image: The story of Joseph, detail from the Gates of Paradise by Lorenzo Ghiberti (1425â&#x20AC;&#x201C;52)

elcome to the ACE Cultural Tours Spring Bulletin. We are delighted to present a collection of early release 2020 tours, including our popular cruises on the Douro River and along the Lycian coast, as well as brand new departures to Kazakhstan and Borneo. In Kazakhstan, Steve Mastin will be our guide as we explore both the history and landscape of the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s largest landlocked country. Our itinerary will include visits to the sweeping Charyn Canyon and the archaeologically significant Tamgaly World Heritage site, as well as to the cosmopolitan centres of Almaty and Astana, the latter featuring several striking architectural works by Sir Norman Foster. Borneo is home to some of the oldest and most diverse rainforest landscapes on earth. Ornithologist and ecologist Marcus Kohler will introduce us to protected wildlife centres including Kinabalu National Park, home to the highest mountain in the Malay Peninsula, and the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre. We will also have the opportunity to explore the incredibly rich diversity of Danum Valley and the Kinabatangan River. Our 2020 schedule also features departures closer to home, with UK tours focusing on the wildlife of Suffolk and Somerset, and European destinations including Venice, Salzburg and Crete. Please contact the ACE office to secure your place for 2020 on 01223 841055.

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

CON T ENT S Kazakhstan: From the Silk Road to Sir Norman Foster

4-5

Borneo 6-7 Syracuse 8 Lycian Cruise Douro River Cruise

9 10-11

Cuba 12-13 Orthodox Christmas in Moscow

The Holy Land

Ethiopia 16-17 Cambodia & Laos

18-19

Mozart Festival in Salzburg

Wildlife of Suffolk: Minsmere & Orford Ness

Pompeii with Herculaneum

Art Treasures of Dresden

Somerset Levels in Winter

Cambridge Churches, College Chapels & Organs

Early Christian & Medieval Rome

Art on the Côte d’Azur

Roman & Byzantine Ravenna

Venice: The Triumph of Light & Colour

Vasari: Father of Art History

Beethoven in Bonn: Cycle of Symphonies

Japan in Springtime: Art, Temples & Gardens

32-33

Uzbekistan: Cities of the Silk Road

34-35

Chinese Civilisation

36-37

Art Treasures of St Petersburg

Aquileia: City of Antiquity

Riviera di Levante: From Genoa to Pisa

Art in Berlin

Jazz: From New Orleans to Memphis

42-43

Athens, Delphi & the Peloponnese

Crete: Birds, Flowers & Minoans

Albania: From the Illyrians to the Ottomans

Cornwall: St Ives & the Newlyn School of Painters

Isles of Scilly

Churches of Norfolk: An Appointment with Angels

West Japan & the Inland Sea: Art & Pilgrimage

50-51

Cyclades: Ancient Islands of the Aegean 2019 Late Availability

52 53-55

2020 Schedule 56

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

Catherine’s Palace

KAZAKHSTAN

K A Z A K HSTAN: FRO M THE SI LK ROAD TO S I R NORM AN FO STER JUNE 1–15, 2020

Charyn Canyon

• Trace the span of Kazakhstan’s history from Bronze Age carvings to futuristic city landmarks Explore Silk Road connections at the UNESCO site of Turkistan, home to a famous Timurid Imperial mausoleum Discover Kazakhstan’s remarkable landscape and geology, including the awe-inspiring ‘Valley of the Castles’ at Charyn Canyon

• •

Tour Director Steve Mastin, MA, PGCE, FHA, studied history and classics before working as a schoolteacher for 17 years. A fellow of the Historical Association, Steve is a regular speaker at history conferences both in the UK and overseas. He has travelled widely, and spent seven years living and working in Kazakhstan. Steve will lead us through three key stages of Kazakhstan’s evolution: its ancient history, its more recent Soviet-era past, and its vision for the future – mirroring our journey from Almaty and Shymkent to the modern capital.

vast country harbouring immense cultural wealth, Kazakhstan is a land of crystal lakes and soaring mountains, ancient Silk Road monuments and 20th century cathedrals. To visit is to experience a staggeringly rich geological landscape, some of the most stunning scenery in the world, and a historical and cultural heritage that stretches from the Bronze Age petroglyphs at Tamgaly, through the Timurid mausoleum at Turkistan, to Sir Norman Foster’s futuristic creations in Astana. Our tour makes the most of these cultural and historical layers, balancing city-based visits with excursions into the countryside to discover ancient archaeological sites and places of stunning natural beauty. We will begin in Kazakhstan’s historical former capital of Almaty, its name famously meaning ‘father of apples’; indeed the domestic apple’s wild ancestor, ‘Malus Sieversii’, continues to grow on the slopes of the nearby Tien Shan mountains. After familiarising ourselves with aspects of Kazakhstan’s history and geology, including its religious culture, we will make

an excursion to one of its most magnificent and remote sites: often considered as impressive as the Grand Canyon, Charyn Canyon’s array of rare and characterful formations is a testament to millennia of wind and water erosion. Tour Director Steve Mastin says: “I discovered Kazakhstan ten years ago when I helped to train teachers in Astana. They came from all over the country and their stories of the history of their land increased my fascination to explore beyond the impressive capital city. The vast unending steppes, the canyons, lakes and mountains make this a land of remarkable natural beauty. The Bronze Age remains, ancient cities built along the Silk Road, the reminders of the Soviet oppression, and the modern architecture of Sir Norman Foster combine to make this a land full of cultural and historical feasts. A people descended from Genghis Khan, Kazakhstan is both Western and Eastern with a yearning for tradition and modernity.”

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

KAZAKHSTAN

Almaty Following further explorations within Almaty – including a visit to the Green Bazaar, overflowing with diverse produce from across Asia – we will make a further excursion to one of the country’s five UNESCO World Heritage sites, the archaeological landscape of Tamgaly. This remarkable place is home to 5000 ancient rock carvings (or petroglyphs), the majority dating from the Bronze Age. Leaving Almaty behind, we will fly to the southern city of Shymkent, originally founded as a caravanserai connected with a nearby Silk Road settlement. From here we will discover Kazakhstan’s trading heritage with a visit to Turkistan, home to the 14th century mausoleum of Khoja Ahmed Yasawi, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the best preserved monuments from the Timurid Empire. Our final journey will transport us forward in time to Kazakhstan’s strikingly modern capital of Astana, site of several astonishing buildings by Sir Norman Foster, including his pyramid-shaped Palace of Peace and Reconciliation. As in Almaty, we will seek to understand the religious history and culture of Kazakhstan with visits to the city’s cathedral and mosque, Please note this tour will involve a significant amount of walking, frequently over uneven ground, particularly at Tamgaly and Charyn Canyon. Many of Kazakhstan’s most important sites are spread out from one another and participants should expect some long overland journeys by coach in addition to two internal flights. Some visits will involve heights, including the Baiterek Tower in Astana.

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

while also tracing its extensive history at the brand new National Museum, which houses exhibits from ancient ornaments (including the armour belonging to Kazakhstan’s mysterious ‘golden man’) to artwork and ethnographic artefacts. The country’s recent history as part of the Soviet Union will also be explored through a visit to Alzhir Memorial Museum,

formerly a labour camp for women and children whose lives are both documented and commemorated at the site. Tour Director Steve Mastin is delighted to be taking a return trip to Kazakhstan this April to conduct further research for this tour. As a result, some minor adjustments may be made to the below itinerary to enhance our group’s experience.

ITINERARY Day 1 Depart London Heathrow 2125 via Astana. Day 2 Arrive Alamty 1130. Transfer to Mercure Hotel Almaty City Centre, for two nights. Afternoon visit to the Museum of the Arts of the Republic of Kazakhstan followed by welcome and introduction. Day 3 Morning lecture followed by visits in Almaty (Kazakhstan’s former capital): Ascension Cathedral, WWII Memorial, Museum of Musical Instruments, Central Mosque, and Geological Museum. Day 4 Two day excursion from Almaty: Charyn Canyon National Park via Issyk Museum (site of the discovery of the ‘Golden Man’, whose remains are now displayed in Astana) and Turgen Gorge (beautiful waterfalls). Overnight in yurts at Charyn Canyon. Day 5 Return to Almaty via Lake Issyk (stunning scenery), and transfer to Mercure Hotel Almaty City Centre for three nights. Day 6 Further visits in Almaty: Green Bazaar and Apple Monument followed by Central State Museum of Kazakhstan. Day 7 Whole day excursion to UNESCO site of Tamgaly, archaeological lanscape in the Chu-Ili Mountains, site of 5000 Bronze Age petroglyphs. Day 8 Transfer by air to Shymkent and continue to the Rixos Hotel, Shymkent, for overnight. Afternoon visit to ruins of the ancient Silk Road city of Sayram (subject to confirmation). Evening lecture. Day 9 Transfer to UNESCO World Heritage site of Turkistan, via Otrar (ancient Silk Road city, now in ruins) and Arystan Bab Mausoleum. Overnight Hotel Khanaka, Turkistan. Day 10 Whole day exploring the UNESCO site of Turkistan, including the Mausoleum of Khoja Ahmed Yasawi, erected by Timur. Return to Shymkent for overnight at Rixos Hotel.

Day 11 Transfer by air to Astana and continue to Best Western Plus Astana Hotel for four nights. Orientation walk followed by cruise through central Astana (Kazakhstan’s modern capital, now known as Nur-Sultan in honour of its former president). Day 12 Cultural visits in Astana including National Museum of Kazakhstan (extensive new museum complex with spaces dedicated to history, ethnography, art and more), Hazret Sultan Mosque and Assumption Cathedral. Day 13 Morning lecture followed by excursion to Alzhir Memorial Museum. Free afternoon. Day 14 Architecture of Astana, including Palace of Peace and Reconciliation (famous pyramid shape, designed by Sir Norman Foster) and Nazarbayev Centre. Day 15 Morning visit to Khan Shatyr, the enormous entertainment centre designed by Sir Norman Foster. Depart Astana 1440, arriving London Heathrow 1645.

Cost of £3545 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, breakfast, ten lunches (one packed), thirteen dinners with water & tea, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: travel insurance, double room for single use supplement £365. TOUR CODE: KAZA20 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

BORNEO

BOR N EO SEPTEMBER 20 – OCTOBER 3, 2020

• Step into one of the most stunning

wildlife areas of the world, resplendent with a huge variety of flora and fauna, from forest kingfishers and flying squirrels to proboscis monkey and orangutan Explore the rich history and culture of Borneo, including a visit to the magnificent ‘floating’ mosque of Kota Kinabalu Learn more about the importance of conservation on this unique island, and discover how our rainforest lodges are taking measures to limit their mark on the landscape

• •

orneo, the world’s third-largest island, belongs politically to Malaysia, Brunei and Indonesia; yet its landscape is all its own, containing an extraordinary level of biodiversity that natural historians have admired and loved for generations. Home to one of the oldest rainforests on earth – a “hazy-green blanket of jungle” – it was here that Sir David Attenborough witnessed his first wild orangutan, and he has since fought to preserve Borneo’s remarkable habitats. This new ACE tour has been specially designed to introduce travellers to the uniqueness of Borneo. Following a stay at the five-star Shangri-La Tanjung Aru Resort & Spa in Kota Kinabalu, we will move on to a series of beautiful lodges set deep within Borneo’s majestic rainforest. We begin at the Nepenthes Lodge, based in the World Heritage site of Kinabalu National Park surrounding Malaysia’s highest mountain, Mount Kinabalu. Populated by an aweinspiring array of flora and fauna – much of which is endemic to Borneo – the park provides the ideal introduction to the wildlife of our tour. From here we will make the journey via Poring Hot Spring This tour will be led by Marcus Kohler, BA, an ecologist and ornitholgist. Formerly of BirdLife International, Marcus now works as an international wildlife consultant, supporting conservation projects as well as leading wildlife tours across the world. A seasoned ACE Tour Director, Marcus is delighted to be bringing his expertise leading group tours to Borneo to ACE’s first tour to the island in 2020.

Proboscis monkey with its canopy walkway and the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre to the Kinabatangan River. Perched on stilts amid raised wooden walkways, our riverside accommodation is the Sukau Rainforest Lodge, which has long been listed among National Geographic’s Unique Lodges of the World. Not only does it maintain an ecologically forward, sustainable relationship with its jungle surroundings – reducing light and sound pollution – but also draws on strong connections with local village communities, who staff and maintain the site. From here we will take several cruises along the life-sustaining river, where mammals including orangutans, pygmy elephants and proboscis monkey gather, and discover the secrets of the nocturnal jungle on a series of night-time cruises and guided walks. The Danum Valley Conservation Area is Sabah’s largest protected lowland rainforest, home to more than 340 species of bird, 124 species of mammal and 200 species of plants per hectare. Here, the Borneo Rainforest Lodge, winner of multiple awards for luxury and ecotourism, will welcome us for the concluding segment of our tour, offering a gateway onto the rainforest and allowing us to explore this remarkable, pristine jungle landscape on foot and on a night drive.

This tour will include several walks, some of a strenuous nature, as well as a number of treetop canopy walkways (which can be made optional). Conditions will often be humid, and participants should have a good overall level of fitness. The natural world is never far away, and our accommodation has been chosen to truly make the most of our environment. Day and night time excursions will provide opportunities to spot a rich variety of birdlife including rhinoceros hornbill, helmeted hornbill, black-and-yellow broadbill, forest kingfisher, orange-backed woodpecker and endemic species such as Whitehead’s trogon and Whitehead’s hornbill. We are likely to catch sight of proboscis monkey, flying squirrel, and the wide-eyed tarsier, and hope to glimpse leopard cat, marbled cat, and perhaps even the rare clouded leopard. At the Gomantong Caves we will linger at dusk to experience the famous ‘bat exodus’ – a soaring cloud pursued across the sky by raptors – while the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre will allow us to witness these magnificent ‘great apes’ during feeding time. We will also visit a project dedicated to the world’s smallest bear, the sunbear.

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

BORNEO

Mount Kinabalu Complementing our experience of the wildlife – which forms the major part of our tour – we will seek to understand more about Borneo’s wider cultural and historical heritage. Visits will include Kota Kinabalu’s famous ‘floating’ mosque and serene Pu Toh Tze Temple, and at the nearby town of

Kundasang we will walk the paths of four gardens dedicated to those who lost their lives here during the Second World War, including American and British servicemen as well as the civilians of Borneo. Please note that weather patterns and other local conditions are likely to affect

the precise nature of our itinerary and we cannot guarantee the availability of all the wildlife mentioned. Please note that international travel between the UK and Kota Kinabalu is not included in the price of this tour.

ITINERARY Day 1 Tour assembles and afternoon at Shangri-La Tanjung Aru Resort & Spa, Kota Kinabalu for overnight. Welcome and introduction. Day 2 Morning visits in Kota Kinabalu including Sabah State Museum, City ‘floating’ Mosque, Pu Toh Tze Temple and Kota Kinabalu Wetland Centre. Afternoon: transfer to UNESCO site of biodiversity, Kinabalu National Park, and check in to Nepenthes Lodge for three nights. Evening walk. Day 3 Whole day in Kinabalu National Park: Timpohon Gate (observation deck) followed by walks looking out for flora and fauna including endemic birdlife such as Whitehead’s broadbill and Rajah Brooke’s birdwing (butterfly). Day 4 Early morning bird walk followed by visit to town of Kundasang for War Memorial Park (beautiful gardens commemorating Australian and British servicemen and civilians of Borneo) followed by further explorations within Kinabalu National Park. Day 5 Depart by coach for Poring Hot Spring (canopy walkway) then continue to Sepilok Nature Resort, Sandakan, for two nights. Evening walk at nearby Rainforest Discovery Centre, looking out for nocturnal wildlife.

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

Day 6 Morning: Rainforest Discovery Centre for canopy walk and botanical garden, followed by Sun Bear Conservation Centre (world’s smallest bear). Afternoon: Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre (including afternoon feeding). Day 7 Morning: visit to Sepilok orangutan nursery. Afternoon: depart for Gomantong Cave (wild orangutans, languars and other wildlife) including dusk exodus of over two million bats pursued by raptors. Continue to Sukau Rainforest Lodge for three nights. Day 8 Early morning cruise up the Kinabatangan river. Morning exploration of the rainforest along the Kinabatangan River, including the migratory path of Borneo pygmy elephants (subject to local conditions), looking out for a variety of local flora and fauna. Afternoon river cruise. Day 9 Morning, afternoon and evening cruises along the Kinabatangan River. Day 10 Transfer via Lahad Datu to Borneo Rainforest Lodge for three nights, Danum Valley, the largest protected area of lowland dipterocarp rainforest in Sabah. Afternoon jungle walk, including canopy walkway for views over the rainforest. Evening: night drive looking out for nocturnal wildlife. Day 11 Whole day exploring Danum Valley Conservation Area,

including walk with local botanist Anthea Philips, to see how Danum Valley became one of the richest conservation areas in the world. Evening: night walk looking out for nocturnal wildlife. Day 12 Whole day exploring Danum Valley, including special conservation session involving the creation of ‘mudballs’. Evening: night walk. Day 13 Transfer to Lahad Datu for flight to Kota Kinabalu. Continue to Shangri-La Tanjung Aru Resort & Spa for overnight. Day 14 Tour disperses.

Cost of £5595 includes: accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, full board (except lunch in Kota Kinabalu on day 2) with water & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: return travel, travel insurance, camera fees, single supplement £590. TOUR CODE: BORN20 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

ITALY

SY R ACU S E OCTOBER 1–8, 2020

• Explore the breadth of Syracuse’s

heritage, from classical archaeology to Baroque architecture Visit a range of archaeological parks and sites, including the Neapolis Archaeological Park with its Greek theatre, Roman amphitheatre and famous ancient cave, the Latomia del Paradiso Take in the atmospheric and extensive Catacombs of San Giovanni

•

he city of Syracuse is a true urban palimpsest, telling a story of classical supremacy – having once been the largest city in the ancient world, surpassing Athens and Corinth – and fascinating later history. During a week exploring its ancient Greek ruins, Baroque squares and honeycoloured architecture, we will soak up these layers of history, forming a well-rounded understanding of Syracuse across time. The small island of Ortigia is the historical heart of Syracuse. Our tour begins with an exploration of its landmarks, including the ancient Greek Temple of Apollo and the Baroque Chiesa di Santa Lucia alla Badia, dedicated to the city’s patron saint and home to Caravaggio’s Burial of St Lucy. The Fountain of Arethusa was referenced by Virgil, and has since featured in several literary works, including Wordsworth’s The Prelude. Our tour balances city-based visits against longer day excursions to Noto and Ragusa. Exemplifying the many layers of history and culture to be found in the area, Noto is a Baroque town built after the 1693 earthquake, and we will enjoy a leisurely morning of exploration taking in its splendid architecture. The fascinating hilltop town of Ragusa also enjoys Baroque Tour Director Christopher Wellington, MA, graduated in history from Cambridge University, but has spent most of his career working in Italy, where he lives with his family in Piacenza. A recognised guide in Emilia Romagna, Christopher’s professional interests include not only history and the Church but also art and architecture, especially of the Middle Ages. Having lived in Italy so long, he is particularly informed on many aspects of Italian life from the early times until today, and the myriad connections between history, art, and ways of life.

Noto Cathedral buildings, as well as an archaeological museum. A rich array of archaeological remains forms an important part of Syracuse’s material heritage, and our tour will include several visits to these sites. The Neapolis Archaeological Park contains a beautiful Greek theatre settled into the hillside. We will also explore the Museo Archeologico Regionale Paolo Orsi, one of the principal archaeological museums in Europe. Please note that while we will endeavour to deliver the below itinerary in full, some elements may be subject to confirmation. We will stay throughout at the five-star Grand Hotel Ortigia, built in the 19th century, and located close to the Temple of Apollo.

Syracuse is one in a series of more gently paced tours, created specially by ACE for those who prefer a more laid-back, less physically demanding itinerary while retaining the same high level of academic content. Walking distances are typically shorter, visits are more relaxed, and time is dedicated to the gradual appreciation of, and explorations within, our immediate surroundings. Hotels will usually be situated in central locations to allow for ease of access to major amenities; while group members are regularly encouraged to enjoy each location in their own way and at their own pace.

ITINERARY Day 1 Morning departure from London Gatwick to Catania. Transfer to Grand Hotel Ortigia for seven nights. Welcome and introduction. Day 2 Visits in Ortigia including the cathedral, Chiesa di Santa Lucia alla Badia (site of Caravaggio’s Burial of St Lucy), Fountain of Arethusa and Temple of Apollo. Day 3 Excursion to Noto to explore its beautiful monuments and splendid Baroque architecture. Return to Syracuse via the Roman Villa at Tellaro. Day 4 Morning visit to Castello Eurialo (subject to confirmation) followed by a free afternoon and evening lecture. Day 5 Morning: Neapolis Archaeological Park including the Greek theatre, latomie (famous quarries now turned into gardens) and Roman amphitheatre. Afternoon visit to Catacombs of San Giovanni. Free evening. Day 6 Morning: Castello Maniace and Art Gallery Ortigia di Cetty Midolo. Afternoon: Museo Archeologico Regionale Palo Orsi. Evening lecture.

Day 7 Excursion to Ragusa to explore sites including the churches of San Giorgio and San Giuseppe, followed by Ragusa Archaeological Museum. Day 8 Lunchtime departure from Catania to Gatwick.

Cost of £2495 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, breakfast, six dinners with wine, water & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: travel insurance, double room for single use supplement £395. TOUR CODE: SYRA20 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

TURKEY

LY C I A N CRU ISE APRIL 27 – MAY 11, 2020

• Explore ancient cities containing

fascinating classical remains on a voyage around the coast of southwest Turkey Journey inland to discover further ancient sites, including the beautifully located town of Pinara with tombs cut into the rock face Cruise down the Loryma Pensinsula, where mountain tops are guarded by impressive fortresses of the Hellenistic age

• •

any of the most striking cities in the Greek and Roman world are found along the coast of south-west Turkey, where the towering limestone cliffs and lofty mountain ranges have changed little since classical times. The armies of Alexander, the emperors of Rome and the traders of Byzantium all brought untold wealth to these rugged shores. One of the most thrilling ways to experience the bygone cities of Lycia and south-eastern Caria is as the ancients saw them: by sea. At Gemiler, the vestiges of the once-thriving monastic community conjure up the majesty of high Byzantium at the time of Justinian. Participants should have a good overall level of fitness. Many of the archaeological sites visited will involve optional short but steep ascents, often on broken paths, with the longest taking about 30 minutes to complete. On occasion participants should be comfortable climbing in and out of a small dinghy via a stepladder.

The luxury air-conditioned MS Kurt K has eight cabins, all with en-suite facilities, and a spacious deck. It is a traditional Turkish gulet, a two-masted wooden vessel typically seen along the coastline of Turkey.

This cruise will be led by Andrew Wilson, BA, BD, FSAScot, a specialist in archaeology and ancient history. Andrew studied archaeology then theology before working overseas as an archaeologist, and has led many tours for ACE throughout the Greco-Roman world and also in Britain.

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

Bodrum One of the most fascinating aspects of our cruise will be the opportunity to spot ruins beneath the clear waters of the eastern Mediterranean: the remains of Aperlae and the Byzantine town of Tersane, for example, are clearly visible to the naked eye. The cruise along the Bay of Fethiye to the ancient hilltop settlement of Lydae

is always inspiring. At the extreme end of the Marmaris peninsula we will drop anchor at Knidos, one of Asia Minor’s most dramatically-sited cities. Our journey ends in ancient Halicarnassus, site of the famous mausoleum built in honour of King Mausolus c 350 BC.

ITINERARY Day 1 Depart London Gatwick 1515 on British Airways, arriving Dalaman 2120. Transfer to MS Kurt K for 14 nights. Overnight at Göcek. Day 2 Morning cruise to island of Gemiler: ruined churches, vaulted processional way, large ecclesiastical complex. Overnight at Gemiler. Day 3 Cruise westwards to pretty village of Kas (ancient Antiphellos): well-preserved Hellenistic theatre, tombs. Overnight at Kas. Day 4 Sail via Uluburun along coast and into bay of Kekova to small Turkish village of Kaleköy (ancient Simena): dramatic citadel with Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman remains, haunting Lycian necropolis. Overnight at Gokkaya Liman. Day 5 Sail to Myra then ancient town of Teimussa. Overnight in Kekova area. Day 6 Cruise along mountainous shores of Lycian coast to tiny harbour of Kalkan then by minibus to Letoon, Xanthos. Overnight at Kalkan. Day 7 Travel inland to ancient Pinara in Esençay Valley. Hellenistic theatre, rock-cut tombs) and Tlos. Two nights in bay of Fethiye. Day 8 Ancient site of Telmessos: recently-excavated theatre, magnificent tomb of Amyntas. Day 9 Morning sail to Agalimani: walk through pine forest to remains of ancient Lydae. Overnight at Agalimani.

Day 10 Morning cruise followed by transfer to small boat for visit to site of ancient Caunos. Overnight in bay near Caunos. Day 11 Cruise along peninsula to Loryma: Hellenistic fort. Overnight in Loryma. Day 12 Cruise to Knidos: temple of Apollo Karneios, temple of Aphrodite Euploia, Doric portico, early Byzantine churches, harbour theatre. Overnight in ancient harbour of Knidos. Day 13 Cruise to Bay of Bodrum. Overnight in Bay of Bodrum. Day 14 Sail to Bodrum (ancient Halicarnassus): Mausoleum, Bodrum Museum of Underwater Archaeology. Overnight at Bodrum. Day 15 Depart Bodrum 1410 on Easyjet, arriving Gatwick 1620.

Cost of £3295 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded cabin, full board with water, tea & coffee, shore excursions & admissions, crew gratuities. Not included: visa, travel insurance, cabin for single use supplement £1285. TOUR CODE: LYCI20 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

PORTUGAL

D OU RO RIV ER CRUISE O N T H E ROYAL B ARG E MAY 22–29, 2020

Porto

• Sail aboard the Spirit of Chartwell, formerly Her Majesty’s Royal Barge, as it cruises along the ‘River of Gold’ Take in the vineyards and historical towns of Portugal’s northern valleys Learn about the history of port, Oporto and the Douro Valley

• •

eginning our tour with an exploration of the old town of Oporto, we cast off for our voyage eastwards. Along the way, we will explore one of Europe’s most handsome Renaissance cities, Salamanca, and pay a visit to the 18th century Mateus Palace. Our tour will also embrace some lesser-known delights, including Pinhão, strikingly situated at the confluence of the Douro and Pinhão Rivers, and the medieval hilltop town of Figueira de Castelo Rodrigo. During an excursion to the pilgrimage town of Lamego, where Baroque mansions and churches grace the skyline, we will enter one of the country’s most majestic shrines – Our Lady of Cures – acclaimed for its monumental Baroque staircase.

Our Tour Director, Martin Symington, BA, is a travel journalist who contributes to The Times and Wanderlust, and is the author of Dorling Kindersley’s guidebook to Portugal. Martin was born and raised in the region, and is a port expert. He will deliver talks on port, Oporto and the Douro Valley, as well as on Portugal in general and the country’s history. Continuing into Spain, we will explore Salamanca, famous for its honey-coloured buildings, ancient university, 18th century Plaza Mayor, and twin cathedrals, perched high above the River Tormes. The city has passed through the conquering hands of Carthaginians, Romans and Moors, a fact that is evident from its mix of architecture.

Upon our return to Oporto, we will visit the historical Factory House of the British Association, and tour Graham’s Port Lodge – owned by the Symington Family Estates – to discover and taste some of their fine vintage. Please note that while we will endeavour to deliver the below itinerary in full, some visits may be subject to change.

“Superb and privileged” “Both the local guides and the tour guide were knowledgeable and helpful on providing background and history of the region and country” – ACE customers on a previous Douro River Cruise

Overall, this tour is not especially strenuous, and participants can easily opt out of the more difficult elements.

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

PORTUGAL

Douro River

The Spirit of Chartwell Refurbished for use by Her Majesty the Queen and Prince Philip during the Diamond Jubilee celebrations in 2012, the Spirit of Chartwell is the flagship vessel on the River Douro. This royal river barge, now based in Portugal, offers a spacious and sumptuous design with the finest interior furnishings. The vessel is fully equipped with a restaurant, piano bar, observation deck, and 14 comfortable outsidefacing cabins, each with private facilities. Professional and highly attentive crew members provide unequalled service during this calm passage through the Douro River Valley.

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

ITINERARY Day 1 Depart London Gatwick 1150 on TAP Portugal, arriving Oporto 1400. Walking tour of Oporto. Embark Spirit of Chartwell for seven nights. Overnight Oporto. Day 2 Cruise up the river through the Douro Valley to Entre-osRios. Continue to Régua for the Douro Museum and overnight stay. Evening lecture: Douro River & the Region. Day 3 Lamego (pilgrimage town): museum, Sanctuário Nossa Senhora dos Remédios (Shrine of Our Lady of Remedies). Cruise to the riverside town of Pinhão for walking tour and overnight stay. Evening lecture: Port. Day 4 Sail past rolling hills and terraced vineyards to Barca d’Alva (on the Spanish border). Afternoon excursion to the medieval Figueira de Castelo Rodrigo. Evening lecture: Portugal’s History followed by Captain’s dinner on board. Overnight Barca d’Alva. Day 5 Whole day excursion to Salamanca (UNESCO World Heritage site): Plaza Mayor, Casa de las Conchas (Gothic building dating from 1493), Salamanca University, New Cathedral (16th–18th century). Overnight Pocinho. Day 6 Morning cruise to Régua. Visit to Mateus Palace (beautiful gardens, chapel and winery). Evening lecture: Portugal in the 20th Century. Overnight Porto Antigo.

Day 7 Morning cruise down river to Oporto (UNESCO World Heritage site): visit to the historical Factory House of the British Association and visit to Graham’s Port Lodge (Symington Family Estates). Overnight Oporto. Day 8 Disembark Spirit of Chartwell. Some free time in Oporto and Vila Nova de Gaia. Depart Oporto 1755, arriving Gatwick 2005.

Cost of £3150 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded cabin, full board with unlimited wine, beer, soft drinks, tea & coffee with lunch & dinner, shore excursions & admissions, crew gratuities. Not included: travel insurance, supplement for the Royal Suite £125, cabin for single use supplement £1750. TOUR CODES: DRRB20 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

CUBA

CUBA JANUARY 12–24, 2020

Havana

• Explore the cultural heritage of Cuba, from the art and architecture of Havana to the natural beauty of the Viñales Valley Discover Cuba’s varied colonial history, including the lasting influences of both Spanish and French occupation Visit the Cueva de los Portales, Che Guevara’s headquarters during the Cuban Missile Crisis

• •

ur unique cultural circuit of Cuba begins in Havana, glamorous and ramshackle in equal measure – a city where, according to Graham Greene, “anything is possible”. Founded and fortified by the Spanish in the early sixteenth century, the Cuban capital rose to prominence as one of the largest settlements in the Spanish empire. Over recent years, with the help of UNESCO, the Cuban capital has begun to recapture its former glory. As well as admiring the city’s Baroque and neoclassical monuments and its old This tour will be led by Peter Higginson, PhD, expert in art history and consultant lecturer at Christie’s in London. Peter is a frequent visitor to Cuba, and will be accompanied by a local guide and interpreter.

squares, we will visit important sites such as the Museum of the Revolution, occupying the former presidential palace. Cienfuegos, ‘the southern pearl’, is situated on Cuba’s Caribbean coast and once lay at the heart of the sugar cane, tobacco and coffee trade. Colonised both by the Spanish and French, Ciengfuegos’s UNESCO-designated buildings include the neoclassical Catedral de la Purísma Concepción. The World Heritage city of Trinidad, squeezed between the wooded Sierra del Escambray and the Caribbean, is a maze of colonial mansions, cobbled streets and handsome squares, notably the neoBaroque Plaza Mayor. The university town of Santa Clara pays homage to one of the great heroes of the Cuban revolution, Che Guevara. We will spend time in the beautiful Viñales Valley in the eastern tobacco-

growing part of the island, renowned for its bizarre limestone hillocks and magnificent scenery. We will also follow in the footsteps of Ernest Hemingway, retracing his life at Finca La Vigía, the airy white villa where he lived from 1939 until 1960, and now the Museo Hemingway. In Old Havana we will drop in at the Hotel Ambos Mundos, where Hemingway wrote the first chapters of For Whom the Bell Tolls. We hope to enhance our stay in Havana further with a visit to the famous National Ballet School of Havana, and talks by guest speakers on the restoration of the old city, the performing arts and the contemporary Cuban art scene. We begin our tour in Havana with three nights at the Iberostar Parque Central, located in the heart of the city. We will then continue to Trinidad, where the group

Please note that this tour requires a good level of fitness as the itinerary is full and includes a significant amount of walking, including over cobbled streets and in parks and countryside where the ground may be uneven.

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

CUBA

Viñales Countryside

will stay at Hostal Lola, a casa particular – a traditional family-run guesthouse that offers the unique experience of staying with local residents in colonial buildings.

We will then return to the Iberostar Parque Central in Havana, before spending the final two nights of the tour at the Hotel Central Viñales.

Please note that while we will endeavour to deliver the below itinerary in full, some elements may be subject to confirmation.

ITINERARY Day 1 Depart London Gatwick 1200 on Virgin Atlantic, arriving Havana 1710. Transfer to Iberostar Parque Central for three nights.

Day 6 Morning: nature walk in Park El Cubano in the Sierra del Escambray with a naturalist guide. Free afternoon.

Day 2 Morning lecture: Cuban Architecture followed by visit to Museum of Rum and guided walk around Old Havana to include the Plaza San Francisco, Plaza de Armas, site of the Palace of the Captains General (former seat of Spanish governors) and cathedral. Afternoon: American taxi tour of the city, including Malecón promenade, ending at the Hotel Nacional. Free evening.

Day 7 Depart by coach via pretty town of Sancti Spíritus to Santa Clara (monument dedicated to Che Guevara). Return to Havana for three nights at Iberostar Parque Central. Free evening.

Day 3 Morning lecture: Cuban Art followed by visit to Museum of the Revolution (former palace of President Batista). Afternoon: Cuban art collection in the National Museum of Fine Arts. Day 4 Depart for Cienfuegos via the Bay of Pigs. Afternoon walking tour of Cienfuegos to include Parque José Martí, neoclassical Catedral de la Purísma Concepcíon and Tomás Terry Theatre (subject to restoration). Continue to Trinidad for three nights at Casa Hostal Lola. Day 5 Walking tour of old colonial town of Trinidad to include Museo Histórico Municipal (Casa Canteros), cathedral and 19th century Plaza Mayor. Visit to the restored sugar mill on ManacaIznaga estate with optional visit to craft market.

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

Day 8 Morning lecture: Writing in Cuba – Graham Greene and Ernest Hemingway followed by morning in Old Havana with private on-site talk and guided tour by a specialist from the Historiador de la Ciudad de La Habana (organisation devoted to the restoration of Old Havana). Continue to fishing village of Cojimar. Afternoon excursion to small town of San Francisco de Paula to visit Finca La Vigía, home to Ernest Hemingway between 1939 and 1960. Brief visit to room 511 at Hotel Ambos Mundos (which Hemingway regularly booked in the 1930s) before early evening guest talk on Cuban performing arts. Day 9 Morning: privileged visit to the famous National Ballet School. Afternoon: talk on the contemporary Cuban art scene followed by optional visit to an artist’s studio. Free evening. Day 10 Morning: brief stop to visit Plaza de la Revolución and Memorial to José Martí en route to Pinar del Río. Visit to Orquideario (orchid garden with over 700 species) before

continuing to Viñales with visit en route to the Cueva de los Portales (headquarters of the Western army during the Cuban Missile Crisis). Visit to the mogotes viewpoint near Horizontes las Jazmines. Two nights at Hotel Central Viñales. Day 11 Morning: Palacio Guasch and Teatro Milanes. Afternoon: Héctor Luis Prieto tobacco plantation and Cuevas del Indio. Day 12 Morning walking tour in the mogotes countryside area. Continue to Havana for 1620 departure. Day 13 Arrive Gatwick 0620. Cost of £4295 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, breakfast, four lunches, eight dinners with water, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: visa, travel insurance, double room for single use supplement £400. TOUR CODE: CUBA20 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

RUSSIA

ORTHODOX CHRISTMAS IN MOSCOW JANUARY 5–11, 2020

• Explore the historical and

architectural evolution of Russia’s capital against a backdrop of seasonal festivities Discover a selection of beautiful monasteries, including the UNESCOlisted Trinity-Sergius Lavra Monastery in Sergiev Posad Enjoy the sights, sounds and tastes of Orthodox Christmastide during Moscow’s Winter Festival

• •

nion-shaped spires glitter beneath swirling snow, tinged by the glow of vast, illuminated palaces and sweeping, lamp-lined streets. The picture is both familiar and enchanting, a perfect image of Moscow’s distinctive cityscape during Russian Christmastide, a period known as Svyatki (January 7–19). Yet our tour, far from absorbing the atmosphere alone, will delve deeply into Moscow’s rich architecture and multilayered history. In particular, we will explore the prominence of Moscow as both a political and religious centre, two characteristics that are fundamentally linked both to one another and to the city’s compelling architectural heritage. An early exploration of the Kremlin – Moscow’s ‘fortress within a city’ and today a vast complex of cathedrals, palaces and towers – will include a visit to the Armoury. Meanwhile, just across Krasnaya Square, the warren of Kitay-gorod – historically a centre for trade and prestigious building works – conceals a hidden architectural gem: the Church of the Trinity in Nikitniki. Moscow’s charming Zamoskvorechye district is one of its least changed, retaining much of its pre-revolutionary character and atmosphere. Today it is home to several historical buildings, including the 17th century Church of St Gregory of Neocaesarea, a brilliant ochre structure with bold, contrasting decoration. Monasteries were established in Moscow from the 12th century, later forming a This tour will be led by Alex Koller, PhD, an art historian who has been leading tours since 1998. An accomplished linguist, Alex’s guiding experience ranges from Eastern Europe, Russia and the Himalayas to Japan and Southeast Asia.

Cathedral of Christ the Saviour on the Moskva River chain around the city to protect it from hostile forces. We will dedicate a day to exploring some of these fine monastic structures, including Andronikov Monastery on the bank of the Yauza River, which contains some of Moscow’s earliest buildings and houses a beautiful collection of Russian iconography and early art. Festive treats are woven around our cultural visits, including a sleigh ride. As Moscow’s famous Winter Festival begins, Revolution Square is transformed into a wonderland of lights, crafts and clothes (including handmade valenki, Russia’s

traditional winter footwear), vying for our attention with traditional performances and an enticing array of food and drink. Meanwhile, Poklonnaya Hill, historically of strategic importance, hosts a sparkling ice sculpture exhibition. We will stay in the heart of Moscow at the five-star Hotel National, a luxurious establishment first opened in 1903. Please note that we will be exploring the city on foot, and a good level of fitness is required for this tour.

ITINERARY Day 1 Depart London Heathrow 1040 on Aeroflot, arriving Moscow 1740. Transfer to Hotel National, Moscow, for six nights. Evening introductory lecture: The History & Urban Development of Moscow. Day 2 Morning: Kremlin (Armoury and cathedrals). Afternoon: exploration of Red Square with visit to St Basil’s Cathedral, Kitaygorod district with Church of the Trinity in Nikitniki (exterior). Day 3 Orthodox Christmas Day Monasteries of Moscow: Krutitskoe Podvorye Estate, Novospassky (including Christmas Day liturgy), Spaso-Andronikov (Andrei Rublev icon museum), Old Believers’ settlement at Rogozhsky Poselok, Pokrovsky Monastery (relics of St Matrona). Day 4 Coach tour of Moscow including Novodevichy (‘New Maidens’) Convent, Sparrows’ Hill, Leo Tolstoy House-Museum and Church of St Nicholas in Khamovniki. Afternoon: Pokrovskaya Church, Fili and exhibition of ice sculptures on Poklonnaya Hill. Evening lecture: Russian Art at the Tretyakov Gallery. Day 5 Historical Zamoskvorechye district (Church of St Gregory Neocaesarea, Marfo-Mariinsky Convent) followed by Tretyakov Gallery. Afternoon: Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts (largest museum of European art in Moscow with archaeological collection

including ‘Priam’s Treasure’) and Cathedral of Christ the Saviour (tallest Orthodox Christian church in the world). Free evening. Day 6 Morning: Kolomenskoye Historical and Architectural Museum followed by sleigh ride and visits to House of Peter the Great and Church of Our Lady of Kazan. Afternoon monastery visits: Danilov (headquarters of the Russian Orthodox Church) and Donskoy. Day 7 Excursion by coach to Sergiev Posad (ancient Golden Ring town, site of the UNESCO-listed Trinity-Sergius Lavra Monastery). Depart Moscow 1950, arriving Heathrow 2105. Cost of £2395 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing an inner view studio twin or double bedded room, breakfast, two lunches, five dinners with water & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: visa, travel insurance, double room for single use supplement £295. TOUR CODE: OCMO20 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

ISRAEL

THE HOLY LAND JANUARY 16–23, 2020

Dome of the Rock

• Delve into layers of history at

Bethlehem, Caesarea, and the archaeologically astonishing fortress of Masada – built by Herod the Great Explore the landscape of the New Testament in Galilee, rich in ancient and Byzantine remains Trace the evolution of Jerusalem, from ancient times until the present day

• •

“T

he view of Jerusalem is the history of the world; it is more, it is the history of heaven and earth”, wrote Benjamin Disraeli in 1847. We will explore Jerusalem from the Early Iron Age (David and Solomon) through the rise of Judaism to the Roman period (Herod, Pontius Pilate and, of course, Christ). We will then examine the Islamic conquest, the Crusades and finally the region’s post-1948 history. Visits will include the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, and the Shrine of the Book – the repository for the Dead Sea Scrolls. A morning excursion to Bethlehem, traditional site of Jesus’s birth as first identified by Constantine and Helena, reveals Tour Director Andrew Wilson, BA, BD, FSAScot, studied archaeology then theology before working overseas as an archaeologist, specialising in Roman frontier systems and Byzantine mosaics. Andrew first excavated in Israel as a student in the 1970s and continued his research there in the 1980s. A longstanding ACE Tour Director, he has led multiple tours to the Holy Land.

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

architecture tracing back to Justinian in the 6th century. Leaving Jerusalem behind, our itinerary will investigate Caesarea, the capital of Palestine under the Romans, and Beit She’an, the only one of the Decapolis trading cities situated to the west of the River Jordan. The rugged natural fortress of Masada, built by Herod the Great in the Judean Desert overlooking the Dead Sea, is the quintessential symbol of Herodian control

and Jewish resistance. It is also a site of huge archaeological significance as the camps, fortifications and siege works are perhaps the most imposing to be found anywhere in the Roman world. The final attraction of our tour to the Holy Land will be the chance to familiarise ourselves with an entirely different landscape – Galilee – where we will devote our attention to historical sites associated with the New Testament, including Tabgha and Capernaum with their very early Byzantine foundations. Our hotel in Jerusalem will be the wellappointed Mount Zion, located beside St Andrew’s Church. In Tiberias our base will be the magnificent Scots Hotel (where our Tour Director lived as a volunteer archaeologist many years ago) with its kilted staff and ceilidh bar.

Please note there is some demanding walking around the sites. In particular, the day excursion into the Old Town of Jerusalem includes walking for long periods, over cobbled streets, uneven surfaces, and up steps. Participants should feel comfortable with these conditions and possess a good level of overall fitness. Please note that Masada is accessed via a ski-style chair lift.

ITINERARY Day 1 Depart Heathrow 0805, arriving Tel Aviv 1450. Transfer to Mount Zion Hotel, Jerusalem for four nights.

followed by some free time in Tiberias. Evening talk: The Quest for the Historical Jesus.

Day 2 Morning talk: Jerusalem. Visits in the Old City: Mount of Olives, Dominus Flevit Church (built by Franciscans in 1954), Church of All Nations, Garden of Gethsemane and Lion’s Gate. Afternoon: walking tour of Via Dolorosa including St Anne’s Church (beautiful 12th century Crusader church) and Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Evening talk followed by ‘Shabbat of a Lifetime’ dinner.

Day 7 Visits around Sea of Galilee: St Peter’s Primacy (Franciscan chapel on shores of Galilee), Capernaum (Jesus’s ‘own town’), Church of Beatitudes (built on traditional site of Sermon on the Mount), Tabgha (traditional site of the feeding of the five thousand and post-resurrection appearance of Jesus in Christianity), the so-called Jesus Boat at Ginosar, Hamat Tiberias (3rd–5th century synagogue, beautiful mosaics).

Day 3 Morning visits in Bethlehem: Manger Square, Church of the Nativity, Shepherds’ Fields. Afternoon: Israel Museum (including Shrine of the Book, home of Dead Sea Scrolls). Evening talk: The Dead Sea Scrolls. Day 4 Further visits in the Old City: Jaffa Gate (16th century Ottoman gate), Tower of David, Jewish Quarter (including Cardo and Herodian Quarter) and Temple Mount (time permitting). Afternoon: Yad Vashem Museum (memorial to the Holocaust). Evening talk: The Romans in Palestine. Day 5 Dead Sea: Masada (Herod the Great’s rock fortress) and Qumran (site of discovery of Dead Sea Scrolls), then to Tiberias (capital of Galilee) for three nights at Scots Hotel. Evening talk: Bronze and Iron Age in Israel. Day 6 Morning: Beit Alfa and Beit She’an (important Decapolis City). Afternoon: Tel Megiddo (site of battle of Armageddon)

Day 8 Caesarea (hippodrome, amphitheatre, port, fascinating Crusader fortifications). Continue to Tel Aviv for 1640 departure, arriving Heathrow 2000. Cost of £2795 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, breakfast, dinner with water & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: travel insurance, double room for single use supplement £625. TOUR CODE: HOLA20 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

ETHIOPIA

ET H I OPIA JANUARY 15–29, 2020

Simien Mountains

• Journey to the roof of Africa to

discover a country of ancient history and diverse landscapes Explore prehistoric archaeology, dramatic mountain vistas, lakeside monasteries and a wealth of birdlife Visit the rock-hewn churches of Lalibela – the ‘eighth wonder of the world’ – and experience Timkat Festival celebrations in Axum

• •

n the roof of Africa, source of the Blue Nile, lies an ancient country whose Orthodox church plays a guiding role in the second oldest Christian nation in the world. The church exhibits colourful ceremonies and traditions influenced by Judaism as well as historical links with Islam. Exploring this distinctive history, our tour will reveal the country’s wonderful architectural tradition of rockhewn churches, not least some lesserknown sites in the north east as well the extraordinary ‘New Jerusalem’ carved out of the hillside at Lalibela. While the wonders of Lalibela perhaps form the pinnacle of our wide-ranging tour, the rich history, culture and landscape of Ethiopia will captivate us across several other centres. Within the dramatic highland landscapes of northern Ethiopia lies a fascinating array of monuments, many of them UNESCO World Heritage sites. The giant stelae – spectacular monolithic obelisks – royal tombs and palace remains at Axum speak of a once powerful kingdom, which stretched from

Southern Arabia to Meroe in northern Sudan; in the third century it was considered one of the four great empires of the world, alongside Rome, Persia and China. Tour Director Rev John Binns, PhD, has researched and lectured in a variety of Eastern Orthodox countries, including Russia, Israel/ Palestine and Serbia. He is Visiting Professor at the Institute of Orthodox Christian Studies in Cambridge and a Research Associate at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London. He has visited Ethiopia many times, and his publications include The Orthodox Church of Ethiopia: A History (I B Tauris, London 2016) and An Introduction to the Orthodox Christian Churches (Cambridge University Press, 2002). He is also chair of trustees of Partners for Change Ethiopia, a community development agency based in Addis Ababa, with a UK office in Cambridge. John says: “Our journey is a full and wide ranging introduction to the landscapes, buildings and culture of this beautiful and extraordinary country. We will visit the historical towns of Axum and Gondar; go by boat to some of the medieval monasteries on Lake Tana; enjoy the most spectacular mountain range of the Simiens; and a special feature will be to visit some of the most interesting and less often visited rock churches of the north east as well as the churches of Lalibela. Ethiopia is a fast developing and vibrant nation whose people are warm and welcoming, and it is they above all who will make our visit a wonderful and unforgettable experience.”

The Axumites adopted Christianity in 333 AD, and the Ark of the Covenant is claimed to be one of the many treasures housed in the compound of the Church of St Mary of Zion. While in Axum we will experience Ethiopia’s celebration of Epiphany, the festival of Timkat, which delights and enchants with its spectacular processions, songs, dancing and worship. Equally absorbing is the diverse landscape surrounding these cultural sites. Within the dramatic mountainous region

Please note this tour includes several long journeys (two of up to eight hours), taking full advantage of this country’s stunning natural environment. Our route passes through highland areas at altitudes of up to 11000 ft – Addis Ababa itself is 7200 ft above sea level – and while the elevation makes for a generally very agreeable climate a good level of fitness is required throughout. Travellers should be prepared for a lower overall standard of accommodation than we would expect in Western Europe, however the welcome is warm and genuine, and we will be continually immersed in the cultural richness of this remarkable country. While we will endeavour to deliver our itinerary in full, local conditions can sometimes be unpredictable and so certain elements – including our accommodation – may be subject to change closer to departure.

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

ETHIOPIA

Rock-hewn Church, Lalibela

of the Simiens, we will discover unusual Afro-alpine vegetation and glimpses of rare mammals together with many unusual birds. In contrast, where the headwaters of the Blue Nile gather near Bahir Dar,

shimmering Lake Tana provides island homes for churches dating back to the 14th century, many adorned with magnificent wall paintings. In Addis Ababa, the cosmopolitan capital

and administrative centre of the African Union, we will visit the National Museum of Ethiopia, home to the skeleton of 3.2 million year old ‘Lucy’, one of our earliest bipedal ancestors.

ITINERARY Day 1 Depart Heathrow 2015 on Ethiopian Airlines for overnight flight. Day 2 Arrive Addis Ababa 0650 and check in to Hotel Celeste for overnight. Free morning followed by afternoon visits to the cathedral and National Museum of Ethiopia (archaeological collections, Sabean artefacts, skeleton of 3.2 million year old ‘Lucy’). Day 3 Morning: depart Addis Ababa Airport on Ethiopian Airlines for Mekelle. Afternoon visits to rock churches of Adi Qosho Medhane Alem and Petros Paulos. Continue to Gheralta Lodge, Hawzen, for two nights. Evening lecture: Introduction to the Church and its Architecture. Day 4 Rock churches of the spectacular Gheralta region, including Wukro, Abreha we Atsbeha, Debre Tsion Abraham and Dugem Selassie. Day 5 Journey to Yeha for Temple of the Moon and archaeological excavations. Continue to Axum, passing by Adwa (scene of 1896 victory over Italian invasion) en route. Two nights at Yared Hotel, Axum. Our stay in Axum coincides with Timkat, Ethiopia’s annual celebration of Epiphany. Day 6 Morning visits in Axum: Stelae Park, Church of Mary of Zion and Chapel of the Ark of the Covenant. Afternoon: archaeological sites including tombs of Caleb and Gebre Meskal followed by Queen of Sheba’s Palace (ruins). Evening lecture: Axum and the Ethiopian Kingdom.

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

Day 7 Depart for the Simien Mountains and check in to the Limalimo Lodge for two nights. Our journey today will take between seven and eight hours, including some stops, and offers views across Ethiopia’s stunning natural landscape. Day 8 Whole day exploration of the Simien Mountains National Park (spectacular region known as ‘the chess pieces of the gods’; Gelada baboons, found only in Ethiopia). Day 9 Transfer to Gondar for overnight at Goha Hotel. Afternoon visits to the castle complex (includes 17th century castle of Emperor Fasilides), Church of Debre Birhan Selassie (remarkable Ethiopian artwork) and Fasilides’s Bath (royal retreat used for ceremonial purposes). Day 10 Morning: depart Gondar on Ethiopian Airlines for Lalibela. Afternoon visits to north-west cluster of churches (Mariam, Medhane Alem, Danagel, Mesqal, Golgota, Mikael) followed by evening lecture: The History and Architecture of Lalibela. Two nights at Sora Lodge Hotel, Lalibela. Day 11 Morning visits to south-east cluster of churches (Gabriel, Emmanuel, Abba Libanos, Giyorgis) with opportunity to experience Sunday worship. Afternoon: Yemrehanna Christos. Day 12 Whole day journey by coach to Bahir Dar (scenic views) for overnight at Tana Hotel. Our journey will take between seven and eight hours, including stops, and will pass through Gashena, Nifas Mewcha and Debre Tabor.

Day 13 Excursion by boat crossing Lake Tana to visit the monasteries of Naga Selassie and Zege URA Kidane Mehret (spectacular wall paintings). Evening: depart Bahir Dar on Ethiopian Airlines, arriving Addis Ababa. Transfer to Hotel Celeste for overnight. Day 14 Morning: summary lecture followed by visit to Entoto Mariam Complex and Menelik’s Palace. Free time followed by farewell dinner and transfer to Addis Ababa Airport. Day 15 Depart Addis Ababa 0150, arriving Heathrow 0635.

Cost of £4995 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, full board with water & non-alcoholic drinks, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: visa, travel insurance, single room supplement £765. TOUR CODE: ETHI20 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

CAMBODIA & LAOS

C A M B O DIA & L AO S JANUARY 20 – FEBRUARY 2, 2020

Wat Si Saket

• Delve into the breathtaking temple complex of Angkor Wat, one of the world’s

largest religious monuments, whose rising galleries come alive with stunning basreliefs Experience the evocative atmosphere of UNESCO listed Ta Prohm alongside the ruins of Preah Khan, slowly being reclaimed by the jungle Discover Laos’ mysterious Plain of Jars, where hundreds of megalithic stone vessels lie scattered across the rolling landscape

• •

This tour will be led by archaeologist Moira Tait, MA, FRAS. After many years specialising in European prehistory, Moira excavated in Southeast Asia where she lived and worked. She has directed tours to France and Southeast Asia for 17 years. Moira says: “I’m delighted to be returning to Laos and Cambodia in 2020. After over 25 years of visiting these countries, I have seen many changes and developments, but both still possess their unique cultures, from the extraordinary architecture of their temples (sites of worship for over 1000 years!) to the rich and heartfelt practice of their religion, not to mention their pungent, spicy cuisines. My aim on this tour is to get you ‘under the skin’ of these incredible people, from prehistory to the present day, from the extraordinary god-kings of the past to the ordinary people today, and how politics and the striving for power, both past and modern, is still shaping these two amazing countries.”

he mighty Khmer Empire once ruled over vast swathes of what is now Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam. Its capital at Angkor was once the largest pre-industrial city in the world. On our journey through Laos and Cambodia, we will explore the history, religion, archaeology and culture of two countries whose major sites have long gripped the Western imagination, and a civilisation that was one of the greatest that the world has ever seen. We begin in Luang Prabang, the first capital of the ‘Land of a Million Elephants’, which preserves a fascinating fusion of traditional Lao architecture and European survivals. The city’s golden temples shelter barefoot, orange-robed monks, whilst its colonial mansions recall the lost era of l’Indochine française. We travel through beautiful mountain scenery to Xieng Khouang, a melting pot of Lao Loum, Tai Phuan and Hmong cultures, where we will encounter one of Asia’s most

puzzling archaeological conundrums, the Plain of Jars – hundreds of megalithic stone vessels, many weighing up to six tonnes, that lie in haphazard clusters across hills, forests and rice paddies. In Laos’ charming capital of Vientiane we gain insights into the country’s religious history. A sacred site since the 3rd century BC, Pha That Luang with its golden lotusbud spire and 30 surrounding stupas is seen by many as the national monument, while the 16th century temple of Wat Si Muang is a vibrant example of living Buddhist practice. Our first destination in Cambodia will Please note this tour covers a great deal of ground both in terms of cultural content and geography. While this will make for a deeply rewarding experience, participants should be prepared for lengthy journeys, often over bumpy ground, in addition to several internal flights. When visiting sites we will frequently be walking over uneven ground and pavements, and steep steps without handrails. Particularly in Cambodia, participants should feel comfortable standing in hot weather, walking through the forest and stepping over fallen stones at some temples.

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

CAMBODIA & LAOS

Silver Pagoda, Phnom Penh

be Phnom Penh, whose former splendour is clearly visible in the Silver Pagoda, the official temple of the king of Cambodia. Today it houses many national treasures including the 17th century baccarat crystal Buddha known as the Emerald Buddha of Cambodia, as well as a life-sized Buddha statue adorned with almost 10,000 diamonds. The huge complex of Angkor is one of

the world’s most memorable archaeological sites and a highlight of our tour. Sheltering the remains of different capitals of the Khmer Empire dating from the 9th century to the 15th, Angkor’s exquisitely carved bas-reliefs and lotus-bud towers stand testament to Khmer skill and ingenuity, whilst the jungle setting underlines the site’s mystical grandeur. We shall make an atmospheric dawn visit

to the magnificent Temple of Angkor Wat before spending the day on the Tonlé Sap Lake to glimpse daily life. We stay throughout in hotels of three and four-star quality. Please note that while we will endeavour to deliver the below itinerary in full, owing to local factors nearer the time, some visits may be subject to confirmation or reordering.

ITINERARY Day 1 Depart London Heathrow 1150 on Thai Airways. Day 2 Transfer via Bangkok, arriving Luang Prabang 1135. Continue to Villa Maydou Hotel, Luang Prabang, for three nights. Visits to Wat Visoun (oldest temple in Luang Prabang) and Wat Aham. Day 3 Luang Prabang: Mount Phousi (spectacular views of the city), Royal Palace Museum (treasures of Laos’s recent past) and 16th century Wat Xieng Thong. Day 4 Excursion to the sacred Buddha caves of Tham Ting and Tham Phoum. Return to Luang Prabang by boat along the Mekong. Day 5 Depart Luang Prabang through beautiful mountain scenery via Phoukoun to Xieng Khouang. Two nights at Vansana Plain of Jars Hotel, Phonsavan. Please note today’s journey takes approximately seven to eight hours. Day 6 Visit to the Mines Advisory Group, followed by Plain of Jars (megalithic archaeological site), Hmong settlements.

Day 7 Morning in Xieng Khouang (Sunday market, Mulberries organic silk project) then by air to Vientiane for two nights at Lao Plaza Hotel. Day 8 Vientiane: Wat Si Saket (over 10,000 Buddha images), Ho Pha Keo (built to house Emerald Buddha), Wat Si Muang (city’s foundation pillar), Pha That Luang stupa (Laos’s most revered Buddhist shrine), Patouxai (triumphal arch). Evening dance show. Day 9 By air to Phnom Penh. Afternoon: Royal Palace, Silver Pagoda. Overnight stay at Raffles Hotel Le Royal, Phnom Penh. Day 10 Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum (former S-21 prison under the Khmer Rouge), then by air to Siem Reap. Roluos Temples (ancient centre of Khmer civilisation): Preah Ko, Bakong, Lolei (time permitting). Three nights at Victoria Angkor Resort, Siem Reap. Day 11 Tour of the Bayon temple and visit to the West Gate of Angkor Thom. Afternoon excursion to Banteay Srei (10th century temple dedicated to Shiva with intricate red sandstone carvings). Day 12 Early morning excursion to Angkor Wat (breathtaking temple complex) followed by visit to floating village on Tonlé Sap

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

Lake (UNESCO Biosphere Reserve). Afternoon: Terrace of Elephants and Terrace of the Leper King. Day 13 Morning: Ta Prohm, Preah Khan, Neak Pean. Afternoon visit to Artisans d’Angkor and local market before evening departure from Siem Reap to Bangkok. Day 14 Depart Bangkok 0015, arriving Heathrow 0620.

Cost of £4295 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, breakfast, six lunches, eleven dinners with water & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: visas, travel insurance, double room for single use supplement £615. TOUR CODE: CALA20 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

AUSTRIA

MOZART FESTIVAL IN SALZB URG JANUARY 25–31, 2020

• Experience the best of the composer’s wind and brass works, featuring acclaimed French horn player Radek Baborák Sir András Schiff and Rolando Villazón present Le nozze di Figaro in Salzburg’s famous Felsenreitschule Make an excursion to the neoclassical Kaiservilla, once the summer residence of Emperor Franz Joseph I

• •

uilding on its remarkable legacy of performances over many years, the annual Mozart Festival returns for a celebration of the composer’s works for wind and brass and the personal connections that both inspired and brought these compositions to life. A highlight will be the commencement of a major series of Mozart symphonies and concertos from the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra and Daniel Barenboim. They are joined in our opening performance by acclaimed French horn player Radek Baborák for Mozart’s Horn Concerto No 3 in E flat major; and Baborák later takes to the conducting podium himself to present his own interpretation of a selection of quartets and quintets, featuring the wonderful Takács Quartet. Le nozze di Figaro is surely one of Mozart’s most beloved operas, and we will have the privilege of experiencing this in concert under the baton of Sir András Schiff, with a spectacular cast, adapted by Villazón for Salzburg’s expansive Felsenreitschule. Award-winning pianist and conductor Mitsuko Uchida, DBE, renowned for her interpretations of Mozart and Schubert, will continue her partnership with the Mahler Chamber Orchestra in a programme

“Mozart’s music is not only the wind surrounding us and driving us forward, it is also the treasure trove on the bed of the ocean.” – Rolando Villazón, Artistic Director

Tour Director John Bryden, MA, ARCM, ARCO is an organist and pianist who has performed internationally as a soloist, accompanist and chamber musician. Formerly a senior lecturer in music at Dartington College, John has also taught at St Mary’s Music School in Edinburgh.

Salzburg of concertos for piano and flute; while our fifth evening affords the opportunity to experience the sublime Concerto for flute, harp and orchestra, the only Mozart composition written specially for the harp. Uncovering Salzburg’s musical heritage, we will explore Mozart’s birthplace and Wohnhaus and enjoy a unique private tour of original manuscripts, guided by an archivist of the Mozarteum. Our tour

also includes a visit to the 17th century Residenz. We stay at the four-star Hotel Imlauer & Bräu Salzburg. Please note that the itinerary below represents a guide to what we hope to offer and some details may be changed nearer the time. Performances are subject to confirmation by the festival office and some visits are weather dependent.

ITINERARY Day 1 Depart London Gatwick 0925 on British Airways, arriving Salzburg 1220. Transfer to Hotel Imlauer & Bräu Salzburg for six nights. Short orientation walking tour. Evening concert at the Grosses Festspielhaus featuring Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra under Daniel Barenboim (conductor & piano) with Radek Baborák (horn): Mozart Symphony No 33 in B flat major, K 319, Horn Concerto No 3 in E flat major, K 447, Piano Concerto No 20 in D minor, K 466. Day 2 Morning lecture followed by guided walking tour of Salzburg to include Mozart’s birthplace, cathedral and Mozart’s Wohnhaus. Afternoon concert performance at the Felsenreitschule featuring Cappella Andrea Barca and Arnold Schoenberg Choir under Sir András Schiff (conductor, continuo) with soloists: Mozart The Marriage of Figaro. Day 3 Morning lecture followed by guided tour of the original archives in the Mozarteum’s Autograph Vault. Free time. Afternoon concert at the Stiftung Mozarteum featuring Mahler Chamber Orchestra with Mitsuko Uchida (conductor, piano) and soloists: Mozart Piano Concerto No 17 in G major, K 453, Flute Quartet No 1 in D major, K 285, Piano Concerto No 22 in E flat major, K 482. Day 4 Morning lecture followed by visit to Salzburg Residenz and free time (optional visit to Cathedral and Franciscan church). Evening concert at the Stiftung Mozarteum featuring L’Arpeggiata and Salzburg Bach Choir under Christina Pluhar (director) with Julia Lezhneva (soprano), Benedetta Mazzucato (mezzo), Topi Lehtipuu (tenor) and Dingle Yandell (bass): Mozart Vesperae solennes de Confessore (Solemn Vespers for a Confessor) for soloists, choir and organ, K 339; Handel ‘Ode auf St Caecilia’, HWV 76, arr. Mozart, K 592.

Day 5 Whole day excursion to the Salzkammergut area including private visit to the Kaiservilla (summer residence of Emperor Franz Joseph I) and visit to church in St Wolfgang. Evening concert at the Grosses Festspielhaus featuring the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra with Lahav Shani (conductor, pianist) and soloists: Mozart Concerto for flute, harp and orchestra in C major, K 299, Piano Concerto No 27 in B flat major, K 595, Symphony No 40 in G minor, K 550. Day 6 Morning lecture followed by late morning concert at the Stiftung Mozarteum featuring Andreas Ottensamer (clarinet), Thomas Riebl (viola), Radek Baborák (horn) and the Takács Quartet: Mozart String Quartet No 22 in B flat major, K 589, Horn Quintet in E flat major, K 407, String Quartet No 21 in D major, K 575, Clarinet Quintet in A major ‘Stadler Quintet’, K 581. Free afternoon with option to visit the Hohensalzburg Fortress via funicular (weather permitting) to enjoy beautiful views over Salzburg. Day 7 Depart Salzburg 1105, arriving Gatwick 1205. Cost of £2945 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, performances as described, breakfast, one lunch, five dinners with water & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: travel insurance, double room for single use supplement £295. TOUR CODE: MOZS20 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

UNITED KINGDOM

WILDLIFE OF SUFFOLK: MINSMERE & ORFORD NESS JANUARY 27–31, 2020

• Discover the internationally

important wetland reserves of the unspoilt Suffolk coast on this winter wildlife tour Highlights include Minsmere, one of the finest nature reserves in Europe, and the wild and remote shingle spit of Orford Ness Though our emphasis will be on bird-watching, we shall also examine the region’s ecology, including the disappearing cliffs of the coastal village of Dunwich

• •

t Minsmere we will investigate a wide variety of habitats including reedbeds with bearded tits and marsh harriers, and scrapes designed for avocet and bittern. As well as being one of the country’s premier bird-watching sites, the reserve is home to a huge diversity of other wildlife and, at dusk, there may even be the possibility of spotting otter and red deer. We will enjoy a boat trip down the River Ore to Havergate Island, one of the country’s major sites for breeding and wintering avocets, and cross by ferry to Orford Ness, the largest vegetated shingle spit in Europe. The Ness is also home to unique buildings associated with its former use as an Atomic Weapons Research Establishment, and we will explore these dramatic structures during a special tour. The base for our exploration of East

Group of common seals

Anglia’s bird-rich coast will be the threestar Thorpeness Hotel, set on a private country lane overlooking the lake known as Thorpeness Meare. This tour will be led by conservationist and environmental consultant Kevin Hand, MSc, MCIEEM. Kevin has a special interest in birds, mammals and ecotourism, and has led many projects linking nature and communities. He was a Director of the Tree Council and ran National Tree Week in the UK for 13 years, and is currently leading a project on eagles, vultures and other wildlife in Albania. In April 2017 he was appointed President of the Cambridge Natural History Society.

ITINERARY Day 1 Tour assembles 1600 at Ipswich Station then continues to Thorpeness for four nights at Thorpeness Hotel. Welcome and introductory talk. Day 2 Boat trip down River Ore to Havergate Island (wintering avocets, waders, common seals, possibility of short-eared owls). Afternoon at Staverton Thicks (ancient deer park with some of the finest old trees in Suffolk). Evening talk. Day 3 Dunwich Heath (disappearing cliffs, estuary) followed by Minsmere for shingle ridges and reed-beds (migrant waders, wintering wildfowl, bearded tits, roosting starlings). Afternoon: walk through woods, marshes and meadows (marsh and hen harrier, barn owl, goldeneye, Bewick’s swan), watch for red deer at dusk. Evening talk. Day 4 Whole day in Orford including ferry to Orford Ness (largest vegetated shingle spit in Europe, tour of AWRE ‘pagodas’). Evening talk. Day 5 Morning at North Warren Reserve (coastal waders, gulls, seabirds). Tour disperses 1300 at hotel and 1400 at Ipswich Station.

Cost of £1195 includes: accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, breakfast, one packed lunch, dinner with water & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: travel insurance, double room for single use supplement £175. TOUR CODE: WILS20

Barn owl

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

ITALY

POMPEII WITH HERCULANEUM JANUARY 31 – FEBRUARY 6, 2020

• This perennial favourite offers a

thought-provoking window onto Roman life in the company of archaeologist Andrew Wilson Discover Cumae, one of the most important Greek city-states in antiquity, alongside Pozzuoli with its impressive Roman amphitheatre The renowned Archaeological Museum in Naples supports our site visits with an unparalleled collection of artefacts

• •

“M

eanwhile on Mt Vesuvius broad sheets of fire and leaping flames blazed at several points, their bright glare emphasised by the darkness of night…” – so wrote Pliny of the sudden eruption of Vesuvius nearly 2000 years ago. Pompeii and Herculaneum, destroyed yet preserved by the volcanic catastrophe, offer unrivalled insights into day-to-day life in the Roman Empire. As well as investigating the ruins of Vesuvius’s twin victims, we will view the exceptional finds on display at the National Archaeological Museum in the ever-vibrant city of Naples. Paestum, “inexpressibly grand” according to Shelley, was founded c 600 BC by Greek colonists from Sybaris. Here we will pay particular attention to the Doric sanctuaries of Ceres, Hera and Neptune, which rank amongst the best-preserved Greek temples to be found anywhere in the ancient world. Our comprehensive tour in and around the Bay of Naples will take in a wide array of further ancient treasures, such as the vast villa complex at Oplontis. Adorned with sumptuous wall paintings that unveil the extravagant lifestyle enjoyed by the Roman elite, the villa is thought to have been Nero’s wedding present to his second wife, Poppaea. Cumae, one of the most important Greek city-states in antiquity, is also on our itinerary together with Italy’s Tour Director Andrew Wilson, BA, BD, FSAScot, studied archaeology then theology before working overseas as an archaeologist, specialising in Roman frontier systems and Byzantine mosaics. He has led many tours for ACE in the Greco-Roman world, and also several in Britain.

Pompeii with Vesuvius in the distance

third largest Roman amphitheatre at Pozzuoli. We will stay at the Hotel La Medusa, Castellammare di Stabia, an attractive fourstar establishment set in beautiful grounds. Please note that while we will endeavour to deliver the below itinerary in full, some visits may be subject to confirmation or reordering, as archaeological sites can close or change their opening times at short notice.

A good level of fitness is required for this tour, and participants should be aware that the terrain at the archaeological sites can be uneven, with few opportunities to sit down. Please note that the optional ascent up Vesuvius involves a steep walk of around 30 minutes.

ITINERARY Day 1 Depart London Gatwick 1430 on British Airways, arriving Naples 1805. Transfer to Hotel La Medusa, Castellammare di Stabia, for six nights. Short evening talk: Introduction to the Roman Bay of Naples. Day 2 Morning visit to Naples Archaeological Museum (artefacts from Vesuvian sites), followed by lunch on the slopes of Mt Vesuvius. Continue the ascent by coach, followed by optional ascent to the crater (weather permitting; must be done on foot). Evening talk: Events of 79 AD. Day 3 Whole day visit to Pompeii (forum, shopping macellum, Houses of the Faun and Venus, baths, theatres) including Villa of the Mysteries. Day 4 Herculaneum (panoramic villas, palaestra, baths, shops) followed by Villa of Oplontis (fine wall-paintings, huge piscina) and Villa Boscoreale. Evening talk: Greco-Roman Religion. Day 5 Cumae (cave of the Sibyl, acropolis), Pozzuoli (amphitheatre) and Stabiae Villa. Evening talk: Greek Colonisation.

Day 6 Whole day excursion to Paestum: Temples of Ceres, Hera and Neptune, museum (fine archaic reliefs and the famous Painted Tomb of the Diver). Day 7 Free time or self-guided visit to Pompeii. Depart Naples 1855, arriving Gatwick 2045.

Cost of £1795 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, breakfast, one lunch, dinner with wine, water & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: travel insurance, double room for single use supplement £245. TOUR CODE: POM120 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

GERMANY

ART TREASURES OF DRESDEN FEBRUARY 3–7, 2020

• Visit the city described as the

‘jewel box’ of Germany, discovering its wealth of cultural riches, from magnificent collections of porcelain to Old Master paintings Discover the treasures of the Historic Green Vault located at Dresden’s Royal Palace Enjoy an excursion to Meissen, a medieval medley of red-tiled roofs and stucco architecture, and go behind the scenes at the celebrated porcelain factory

• •

“T

here are unbelievable treasures of all kinds in this beautiful place,” wrote Goethe of Dresden, where the magnificent Baroque dome of the reconsecrated Frauenkirche, in which Bach and Wagner once performed, vies with Augustus the Strong’s Zwinger Palace as the city’s dominant landmark. Dresden’s Royal Palace, the former seat of the Saxon government, hosts the fabulous Green Vault treasure chamber. The gilded and mirrored Baroque chambers of the Historic Green Vault reveal items collected by Augustus the Strong between 1723 and 1730, including his exquisite ceremonial jewellery. The Zwinger is a vast complex of formal gardens, ornate fountains and grand pavilions. It is home to the Porcelain Room, which, flooded with natural light, displays the Dresden porcelain collection. We will also visit the Old Masters Picture Gallery, with works by Raphael (notably his Sistine Madonna), Botticelli, Velázquez, Dürer, Vermeer and Rembrandt. Meissen, a medieval hotch-potch of red-tiled roofs and stucco architecture, is Saxony’s oldest town. It was once home to the alchemist Johann Friedrich

This tour will be led by Lars Tharp, MA, FSA, an art historian, lecturer and broadcaster who is well known for his work on the BBC’s Antiques Roadshow. Lars is a ceramics specialist who has curated or overseen exhibitions at York Art Gallery and London’s Foundling Museum. He is the author of several works including Hogarth’s China, and has led tours to Dresden, Copenhagen and China.

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

Dresden Porcelain Collection, Zwinger Palace Böttger, who discovered the formula for creating white porcelain in 1708. Here we will tour the Gothic cathedral and visit the celebrated porcelain factory for a demonstration of the manufacturing processes and an opportunity to view an exhibition of their wares. “We couldn’t have had a better guide – informative, interesting and witty” “Lars is hugely knowledgeable and informative. His guided tour of the Zwinger was a masterclass” – ACE customers on previous Art Treasures of Dresden tours

Further highlights of our tour will include a guided visit to Charlottenburg Old Palace with its Porcelain Cabinet. Please note that while we will endeavour to deliver the below itinerary in full, some elements may be subject to confirmation, or may be reordered. Please note that this tour requires a good level of fitness, as some visits will be made on foot. Lifts are not always available at sites so participants must feel comfortable using stairs. Our visit to Meissen will involve navigating steep steps and cobbles that can be particularly challenging if wet.

ITINERARY Day 1 Depart London Heathrow 0855, arriving Berlin 1145. Transfer by coach to Dresden for four nights at Hyperion Dresden am Schloss. Afternoon visit to Royal Palace (New Green Vault and Historic Green Vault).

Day 5 Transfer to Berlin with visit en route to Charlottenburg Old Palace (Porcelain Cabinet). Depart Berlin 1940, arriving Heathrow 2035.

Day 2 Excursion to Meissen for visits to Albrechtsburg (castle), citadel cathedral and modern Meissen Factory (demonstration of manufacturing process, exhibition of wares and Meissen shop). Free evening.

Cost of £1685 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, breakfast, one lunch, three dinners with water & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: travel insurance, double room for single use supplement £150. TOUR CODE: ATDR20

Day 3 Morning lecture followed by visit to Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister (Old Master paintings). Afternoon: Jagdschloss Graupa (Wagner Experience). Day 4 Morning: Zwinger Porcelain Museum (located in the Zwinger Palace). Afternoon: visit to Panometer followed by walking tour including Frauenkirche (exterior).

BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

UNITED KINGDOM

SOMERSET LEVELS IN WINTER FEBRUARY 12–15, 2020

• Join the RSPB’s Peter Exley on this

winter wildlife tour to look out for Somerset’s growing flock of cranes, recently reintroduced after a 400year absence Visit key historical sites including Glastonbury Abbey, and keep an eye out for bitterns, barn owls and marsh harriers at one of the country’s most exciting and beautiful wildlife projects – the Avalon Marshes Explore one of the RSPB’s oldest and largest nature reserves at West Sedgemoor, walking along an ancient drove route to view the remarkable winter wildfowl roost

•

Somerset Levels with Glastonbury Tor in the distance

he Somerset Levels have had a colourful history: ‘the land of the summer people’ was once home to a Bronze Age population and it was here, in the house of a swineherd, that King Alfred sought refuge from marauding Vikings. Wildlife is now returning to England’s largest wetland in dramatic numbers – from the millions-strong murmuration of roosting starlings, to the growing flock of cranes recently reintroduced after a 400-year absence. As well as observing the region’s wildlife, our tour will investigate key historical sites such as Glastonbury Abbey, England’s oldest abbey, and Glastonbury Tor, reputed to be the birthplace of King Arthur.

This tour will be led by Peter Exley, BSc, an ecologist and ornithologist who has held posts with BirdLife International and the Albatross Task Force in South Africa. Now working for the RSPB, Peter has led and managed many ACE tours in the United Kingdom, Netherlands, Algarve, New England, Madeira, the Faroes and Shetland. Peter is delighted to be returning to Somerset for this long-standing ACE tour: “The Somerset Levels are one of our greatest historic and cultural landscapes, yet largely ignored by visitors. But they are rapidly and rightly becoming known as one of our country’s best wildlife destinations. And for me, it is the conflicted fusion of nature and people through history that makes this place truly unique and special, that draws me back again and again.”

RESPONSIBLE TOURISM ACE’s Somerset Levels tour contributes to the local economy during a quiet time of the year, using local cafés and guides and providing income to important conservation organisations in the area.

The Avalon Marshes host one of the country’s most exciting wildlife projects: over 3000 hectares of wetland habitats have been created from former peat workings, giving refuge to bitterns, barn owls and marsh harriers. Greylake, once a series of carrot fields, has been transformed into a wetland reserve teeming with wildlife, whilst West Sedgemoor is home to up to 100,000 ducks and waders during the winter. Our base will be the charming four-star Swan Hotel, ideally located in the historical city of Wells, a short distance from its beautiful cathedral. Please note that itinerary alterations during the tour are likely due to changeable

Walks are along mostly level tracks and paths, which can be muddy in places. These vary from half a mile to just under two miles (over two hours) on the final day, with some stops and occasional seats along the way. The optional climb up Glastonbury Tor is around 250-feet on a narrow paved path with multiple steps.

local weather conditions. Some details may be changed nearer the time, and we cannot guarantee the availability of all wildlife mentioned.

ITINERARY Day 1 Tour assembles 1500 at Swan Hotel, Wells, for three nights. Visit to Wells Cathedral followed by welcome and introductory lecture. Day 2 RSPB Ham Wall Nature Reserve: wetland and reed beds (bitterns, bearded tits, egrets, harriers) followed by Glastonbury Tribunal (15th century merchant’s house, containing the Glastonbury Lake Village Museum). Afternoon: Glastonbury Abbey, Glastonbury Tor (optional 250-foot climb to the summit). Day 3 RSPB West Sedgemoor (winter wildfowl roost, birds of prey) and look for the crane flock. Afternoon: Willows & Wetlands Visitor Centre (Somerset osier industry), Isle of Athelney (King Alfred’s hiding place), RSPB Greylake Reserve (swans, snipe, peregrines). Evening: Avalon Marshes (starling roost, birds of prey). Day 4 Shapwick Heath National Nature Reserve: pools, reed beds, wet woodlands (including site of Sweet Track Neolithic causeway) for winter wildlife (bitterns, harriers, waterfowl). Tour disperses 1230 at hotel.

Cost of £725 includes: accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, breakfast, dinner with water & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: travel insurance, double room for single use supplement £80. TOUR CODE: SOLE20 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

UNITED KINGDOM

CAMBRIDGE CHURCHES, COLLEGE CHAPELS & ORGANS FEBRUARY 21–23, 2020

King’s College Chapel

• Experience our Tour Director John

Bryden’s expert organ playing in the stunning surroundings of Cambridge’s famous chapels In the 250th year of Beethoven’s birth, travel to Stapleford Granary to hear a magnificent concert dedicated to the composer’s violin and piano sonatas Enjoy a performance of Schubert’s piano sonatas from distinguished pianist Imogen Cooper

•

ambridge, along with Oxford and Edinburgh, boasts more fine organs than any other city in the UK. On this musical exploration we will enjoy several recitals given by our Tour Director, John Bryden, at many of the university’s historical colleges. Our first afternoon will take us to Madingley Hall for a leisurely lunch, followed by a visit to Girton College Chapel with its four-manual-mechanical action organ by St Martin of Switzerland, installed in 2002. This will be paired with a visit to the innovative 20th century surroundings of Churchill College, whose chapel caused great controversy when first proposed. Eventually founded on the peripheries of the college’s grounds, the building is home to an impressively versatile organ by E J Johnson & Son, later overhauled by Norman Hall & Sons in 2000. The following morning

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

This tour will be led by international concert pianist and organist John Bryden, MA. John studied at Emmanuel College, Cambridge, and is an experienced classical music lecturer. will introduce us to the contrasting atmosphere of Magdalene College, site of the remarkable 17th century Pepys Library, which houses the famous writer’s original diaries alongside a host of collected books, manuscripts, documents and prints. We will also explore the wide-open courts of St Catharine’s, whose chapel contains a new 1978 organ built by E J Johnson behind the façade of its earlier 1895 instrument and incorporating many of the original stops. Today, and largely as a result of recent refurbishment, the organ truly sings within the chapel’s acoustics. No visit to Cambridge would be complete without a chance to sample its world celebrated choral tradition, and our tour will include a visit to King’s College to hear Choral Evensong. Meanwhile, Stapleford Granary, home to the ACE Foundation and ACE Cultural Tours, will be our venue for a beautiful concert of Schubert piano sonatas by Imogen Cooper, followed on our second evening by a concert dedicated to Beethoven’s piano and This tour is taken at a relaxed pace however please note that visits to some of the colleges will be taken on foot, and participants should be prepared for some busy areas with narrow pavements.

violin sonatas – a timely programme during the composer’s 250th anniversary year – performed by violinist Savitri Grier and pianist Richard Uttley. We will stay throughout at Cambridge’s DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel, which enjoys a riverside city centre location. As access to the colleges is subject to availability, we cannot confirm some visits until nearer the time.

ITINERARY Day 1 Assemble 1130 at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel, Cambridge, for two nights. Lunch at Madingley Hall followed by afternoon visits to Girton College and Churchill College, including organ recitals. Evening performance at Stapleford Granary featuring Imogen Cooper (piano): Schubert piano sonatas. Day 2 Visits including Magdalene College (Pepys Library & organ recital) and St Catharine’s College. Evening concert at Stapleford Granary featuring Savitri Grier (violin) and Richard Uttley (piano): Beethoven violin & piano sonatas. Day 3 Morning: choral service at King’s College Chapel. Tour disperses 1230 at hotel. Cost of £785 includes: accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, performances as described, breakfast, two lunches, one light supper with water & coffee (day 2), excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: travel insurance, double room for single use supplement £140. TOUR CODE: CCCO20 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

ITALY

EARLY CHRISTIAN & MEDIEVAL ROME FEBRUARY 24–29, 2020

This tour will be led by Andrew Wilson, BA, BD, FSAScot, a specialist in archaeology and ancient history. Andrew studied archaeology and theology before working overseas as an archaeologist with a particular interest in Roman frontier systems and Byzantine mosaics. He has led many tours for ACE in the GrecoRoman world, and is a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland and the Classical Association of Scotland. Andrew is also a member of the Hadrianic Society.

Basilica of Our Lady in Trastevere

• Study Rome’s churches and basilicas

in depth on an exploration of the development of early Christian art in Rome Spend time at the Vatican visiting St Peter’s Basilica and examining the papal tombs in the Necropolis See astonishing frescoes in situ, including at the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore

• •

race the development of early Christian art in the unique context of Rome, where it evolved from the fugitive imagery of a persecuted cult, into the triumphant representation of imperial piety. Highlights of our itinerary will include a visit to the excavated Necropolis under St Peter’s Basilica, with its 3rd century mosaic supposedly portraying Christ as the sun-god Apollo, and Santa Sabina, a fine example of an early Christian church in Rome. In the 4th century Church of Santa Costanza, originally built as a mausoleum, we will discover some of the most important early Christian art in the world.

The splendid mosaics, depicting scenes of grape harvesting and details of birds and foliage, aptly illustrate Constantine’s policy of adapting old pagan motifs to new, Christian purposes. We will examine a succession of popes responsible for some of the unique images of the Virgin Mary to be found in Rome, from Sixtus III, who built the immense basilica of Santa Maria

Maggiore, to Nicholas IV, who centuries later commissioned Torriti to produce the Coronation of the Virgin mosaic in its apse. Our investigation will also consider the development of the ‘Roman’ school, characterised by Pietro Cavallini, whose Last Judgment mural in Santa Cecilia in Trastevere is considered his masterwork. We will stay throughout in the three-star Albergo Santa Chiara, situated in the very heart of Rome. Please note that while we will endeavour to deliver the below itinerary in full, some sites in Rome are subject to last minute closures owing to local events, so some elements may be subject to change.

Please note that this tour has a full itinerary and involves extensive walking, including over many cobbled streets, so a good level of fitness is required. The coach may not be able to drop the group directly outside the hotel.

ITINERARY Day 1 Depart London Heathrow 1245, arriving Rome Fiumicino 1620. Transfer to Albergo Santa Chiara for five nights. Day 2 Morning talk: Early Christian Rome followed by visits to Santa Cecilia, San Crisogono (Paleochristian crypt), Basilica of Santa Maria in Trastevere. Afternoon: Santa Sabina (fine example of an early Christian church in Rome), Santa Maria in Cosmedin and San Giorgio in Velabro. Day 3 Morning: Santa Costanza and Sant’Agnese. Afternoon: Santa Maria Maggiore (nave and triumphal arch mosaics), Santa Pudenziana and Santa Prassede. Evening talk: The Development of Early Christian Art. Day 4 Morning: San Giovanni in Laterano, Sancta Sanctorum and Baptistery (early mosaics and frescoes) followed by some free time in the area of the Colosseum and Roman Forum. Afternoon: San Clemente and Santi Cosma e Damiano. Free evening. Day 5 Visits in the Vatican City: St Peter’s Basilica and Necropolis. Afternoon: Castel Sant’Angelo.

Day 6 Morning walking tour: Pantheon, Piazza Navona, Santa Maria sopra Minerva and Campo de’ Fiori. Depart Rome 1715, arriving Heathrow 1900.

Cost of £1845 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, breakfast, four dinners with wine, water & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: travel insurance, single superior room supplement £95, single standard room supplement £50. TOUR CODE: ECMR20 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

FRANCE

ART ON THE CÔTE D’AZUR MARCH 2–9, 2020

• Enjoy the rich art collections of the

Côte d’Azur in the landscape which inspired artists such as Monet and Bonnard Explore museums dedicated to artists including Matisse and Chagall Visit the Musée Renoir, located in the house created by the artist, where he spent the final decade of his life

• •

rom the late 19th century onwards, the vivid colours of the Côte d’Azur, not to mention the region’s enchanting architecture and the mildest of climates, captivated a succession of Europe’s leading artists. Monet painted some forty landscapes in Antibes, while Signac built a house in St Tropez, soon to be followed by his fellow ‘Fauves’, Bonnard and Chagall. Renoir was resident in Cagnes from 1907 until his death in 1919, and Picasso spent the last four decades of his life amidst the glorious Mediterranean landscape. During our week in Nice and its environs we will consider the lasting legacy of this panoply of brilliant artists, as well as architectural delights ranging from the Baroque to the Belle Epoque. A number of these artists have museums dedicated to them, amongst which are the Musée Matisse, Musée Renoir and Musée Chagall. The latter is home to the twelve great paintings that make up the Biblical Message, whilst the Musée Renoir offers an opportunity to visit the house of this great artist, a few months after the centenary of his death on December 3, 2019. Home to several paintings by the artist, the house also boasts beautiful views. The great strengths of the Musée de l’Annonciade in St Tropez are Signac and the neo-Impressionists, Bonnard and the Nabis, and Matisse and the Fauves. Meanwhile, above the walled village of St This tour will be led by Sarah Burles, MA, who studied History of Art at Cambridge before going on to a career in museum and gallery education. This included twelve years at the Fitzwilliam Museum as well as work in other Cambridge museums. Sarah has a passion and enthusiasm for making museums and their collections accessible as well as an interest in the lives of the collectors whose legacies have shaped the museums we see today.

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

Pastoral by Henri Matisse (1905) Paul de Vence (itself crowned by Rodin’s Thinker) lies the Fondation Maeght, its pine-wooded grounds adorned with work by Giacometti, Calder and Miró. The foundation possesses one of Europe’s most important collections of 20th century painting, drawing and sculpture: Bonnard, Braque, Chagall and Léger are all represented. We will stay throughout at the characterful Hotel Grimaldi, conveniently located in Nice.

Please note that while we will endeavour to deliver the below itinerary in full, some details may be subject to change.

A good level of fitness is required for this tour, as some visits will be made on foot and by boat. There is a steep walk from the square in Villefranchesur-Mer to the Cocteau church, which takes approximately 15 minutes.

ITINERARY Day 1 Depart London Heathrow 1155 on British Airways, arriving Nice 1505. Continue to Hotel Grimaldi for seven nights. Day 2 Morning lecture: The French Riviera: Art, Love & Life followed by walking tour of Nice. Afternoon: Musée des Beaux-Arts (Old Masters) and Musée d’Art Moderne et d’Art Contemporain. Day 3 Morning lecture: Matisse, Chagall & the Côte d’Azur followed by Musée Renoir. Afternoon: Musée Matisse and Musée Chagall (Biblical Message). Free evening. Day 4 Morning: Fondation Maeght (20th century art including Miró, Chagall, Matisse and Léger) and walk down the medieval Chemin Sainte-Claire to St Paul de Vence. Afternoon: Matisse’s celebrated Chapelle du Rosaire. Day 5 Menton: Salle des Mariages and Musée du Bastion. Afternoon: Eileen Gray House E1027 (icon of modernist architecture) and Villefranche-sur-Mer (Cocteau murals in fishermen’s chapel). Day 6 Morning: Musée National Fernand Léger in Biot. Afternoon in Antibes: Musée Picasso followed by Château Vallauris (Picasso collection and chapel). Free evening.

Day 7 By coach to St Tropez (favoured haunt of artists since the 1890s): walking tour of the old port, Musée de l’Annonciade (Bonnard, Malliol, Matisse and Signac) housed in former chapel of Pénitents Blancs. Return by boat and coach to Nice. Day 8 Some free time. Depart Nice 1555, arriving Heathrow 1705.

Cost of £2295 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a superior twin or double bedded room, breakfast, one lunch, five dinners with wine, water & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: travel insurance, classic double room for single use supplement £195, superior room for single use supplement £320. TOUR CODE: ARC120 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

ITALY

ROMAN & BYZANTINE RAVENNA MARCH 2–6, 2020

Detail of Basilica of Sant’Apollinare, Ravenna

• The ‘city of mosaics’ welcomes us for

a five-day tour brimming with some of the most impressive early Christian monuments in the world Stand opposite Ravenna’s earliest mosaics in the Mausoleum of Galla Placidia, including an intense portrayal of the martyrdom of St Lawrence The ancient port of Classe, founded by Augustus, awes us with its immense Basilica of Sant’Apollinare, shimmering with gold and turquoise

•

this opulent legacy lies the Basilica of San Vitale, begun during the Ostrogoths’ rule and finished under Justinian, where the

glittering mosaic portraiture of Justinian and his wife Theodora capture the essence of Byzantium: the emperor, set against a flat, gold background, is resplendent in imperial purple, a gold paten in his outstretched hand, a halo encircling his scintillating crown. The seemingly humble Mausoleum of Galla Placidia, erected a century before San Vitale, boasts Ravenna’s earliest mosaics, including a vivid portrayal of the martyrdom of St Lawrence as he approaches the red-hot grid-iron. Breathtaking, too, is the interior of the Basilica of Sant’Apollinare Nuovo, erected by Theodoric and later re-consecrated under Byzantine rule: the twin nave mosaics depict a sparkling ceremonial procession of martyrs and virgins, saints and angels. Just outside the ‘city of mosaics’ we will visit the ancient port of Classe, founded by Augustus, to view the huge Basilica of Sant’Apollinare with its exceptional mosaics rich in gold and turquoise. Accommodation is in Ravenna’s four-star Hotel Bisanzio, situated in a quiet area of the city just a few steps from San Vitale and the Mausoleum of Galla Placidia.

Most of our visits will be made on foot, and some involve standing for periods of time without an opportunity to sit down, so a good level of fitness is required for this tour.

•

oday a small, tranquil town of cobbled streets, Ravenna was once one of the Mediterranean’s most illustrious cities. The final capital of the Western Roman Empire, Ravenna served as the seat of Theodoric, King of the Ostrogoths, before the Byzantines transformed the city into one of Europe’s foremost centres of art and culture. Ravenna’s surviving collection of early Christian monuments and mosaics is without parallel in Christendom, a beguiling blend of Greco-Roman tradition and Christian iconography. At the heart of

ITINERARY Day 1 Depart London Heathrow 0840 on British Airways, arriving Bologna 1150. Transfer to Ravenna for four nights at Hotel Bisanzio. Day 2 Morning lecture followed by visits: 5th century Mausoleum of Galla Placidia (exceptional late antiquity mosaics), Basilica of San Vitale (famous mosaics of Justinian and Theodora), National Museum of Ravenna (archaeological objects from early Christian and Byzantine periods), cathedral, Neonian Baptistery (outstanding early Christian mosaics). Day 3 Morning lecture followed by Arian Baptistery (built by Theodoric), Church of San Giovanni Evangelista, Basilica of Sant’Apollinare Nuovo (splendid frieze of martyrs), 7th century Domus of the Stone Carpets (beautiful floor mosaics), return visit to Mausoleum of Galla Placidia. Day 4 Morning: excursion to 11th century Abbey of Pomposa (interior repainted in 14th century by Vitale de Bologna). Afternoon: Mausoleum of Theodoric and ancient port of Classe for Basilica of Sant’Apollinare (gold and turquoise mosaics) and museum.

Day 5 Transfer to Bologna for 1240 departure, arriving Heathrow 1405.

Cost of £1295 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, breakfast, one lunch, dinner with wine, water & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: travel insurance, single room supplement £95, double room for single use supplement £145. TOUR CODE: RAV120 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

ITALY

VENICE: THE TRIUMPH OF LIGHT & COLOUR MARCH 3–9, 2020

• Explore mosaics, monasteries and the magnificence of the golden ages of artistic production in Venice Visit the beautiful Ca’ Rezzonico, a museum of 18th century art and furniture housed in a palazzo overlooking the Grand Canal Enjoy a visit by private boat to the island of San Francesco del Deserto for a guided tour of the monastery

• •

his exploration of Venice, one Europe’s richest cultural cities, will take in a wonderful array of works of art and architecture, across palazzi, galleries and churches. Located in the middle of the Venetian Lagoon, the city today bears witness to its unique heritage as a major financial and maritime power in medieval and Renaissance times as the Republic of Venice. Setting our exploration in context, we will begin with a special tour of the chambers of the Doge’s Palace. The Galleria dell’Accademia, located in the Dorsoduro district, houses the largest single collection of Venetian art, and offers an opportunity to view a range of paintings showcasing the Venetian masters’ accomplished use of colour. Whilst the concept of ‘disegno’ underpinned the Florentines’ approach to art during the Please note that a good level of fitness is required for this tour, as many of our visits will be made on foot, and will involve navigating steps and bridges. A number of journeys will be made by boat, so participants must feel comfortable on water and when embarking and disembarking from boats, which may be rocking.

This tour will be led by Tom Abbott, BA, MA, an independent art and architectural historian associated with the Foundation of Prussian Palaces and Gardens. Tom is a proficient lecturer and tour leader, with extensive experience directing cultural and art tours in Europe including in Italy. His expertise ranges from the medieval to the modern, and he is particularly fascinated with the Baroque and Rococo.

Miracle of the Cross at the Bridge of S. Lorenzo by Gentile Bellini (1500) Renaissance, in Venice, ‘colore’ was key. The Scuola Grande di San Rocco contains superb decorative schemes by Tintoretto, a notable member of the Venetian school, and the Scuola di San Giorgio degli Schiavoni is home to an exquisite cycle by Carpaccio, a student of Gentile Bellini. We will also enjoy excursions by boat to the islands of Burano, San Francesco del Desert and Torcello: the latter is home to

ITINERARY Day 1 Depart London Gatwick 0835 on Easyjet, arriving Venice 1155. Transfer by water taxi to Hotel Ca’ dei Conti for six nights. Afternoon visits to Santa Maria Formosa and Fondazione Querini Stampalia. Day 2 Morning walking tour of San Marco area and Piazzetta (ceremonial gateway to Venice) followed by visits to Doge’s Palace and Museo di San Marco (famous bronze horses and Treasury). Afternoon: San Giorgio Maggiore for Palladio church (Tintoretto) followed by visit to San Zaccaria. Evening lecture. Day 3 Morning: Baroque Church of Santa Maria della Salute and Galleria dell’Accademia (largest single collection of Venetian art). Afternoon walking tour beginning at the Arsenale: Museo Storico Navale, Scuola di San Giorgio degli Shiavoni (paintings by Carpaccio), Dominican Church of Saints Giovanni & Paolo (San Zanipolo, fine altarpieces) and Santa Maria dei Miracoli (exquisite early Renaissance church). Evening lecture. Day 4 Morning: Gothic Ca’ d’Oro (Franchetti collection of paintings), Church of Santa Maria Assunta (known as I Gesuiti, with stunning Baroque interior), Gothic Church of Madonna del Orto. Afternoon: old Ghetto, coffee & cake at the Ca’ Sagredo (fully restored palace on the Grand Canal). Free evening. Day 5 Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari (Franciscan church, Titian

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

vivid Byzantine mosaics in the Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta. We will stay at the four-star Hotel Ca’ dei Conti. Please note that while we will endeavour to deliver the below itinerary in full, some elements may be subject to confirmation and visits may be reordered. Historical buildings in Italy sometimes undergo restoration at short notice.

and Bellini altarpieces), Scuola Grande di San Rocco (Tintoretto). Afternoon: Scuole Grande dei Carmini (Tiepolo frescoes) and Church of San Sebastiano (Veronese). Day 6 Island of San Francesco del Deserto (guided tour of Franciscan Monastery); island of Torcello (Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta with vivid Byzantine mosaics); island of Burano (San Martin Burano and Lace Museum). Evening: private visit to Basilica at San Marco (subject to confirmation). Day 7 Morning: Ca’ Rezzonico (beautiful museum of 18th century Venice). Transfer by water taxi to airport for 1615 flight, arriving Gatwick 1730. Cost of £2245 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, breakfast, five dinners with wine, water & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: travel insurance, double room for single use supplement £310. TOUR CODE: VENI20 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

ITALY

VASARI: FATHER OF ART HISTORY MARCH 3–10, 2020

• Discover the artists of Giorgio

Vasari’s The Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors and Architects on this art history tour of Florence Visit Vasari’s birthplace of Arezzo, where he spent the first sixteen years of his life Marvel at the paintings of Masaccio and Botticelli and sculptures by Donatello, Ghiberti and Michelangelo

• •

iorgio Vasari’s (1511–74) modern fame derives from his pioneering contribution to art history, The Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors and Architects, first published in Florence in 1550. Vasari moved to Florence as a young boy to study under Michelangelo, and it is in this most beautiful of cities, the cradle of the Renaissance, that we will scrutinise the art and architecture of Tuscany through the analytical eyes of Vasari. Vasari’s writing will be brought to life through the artistic treasures of Florence, viewed both in their original architectural settings and in great museums like the Bargello and Accademia. Florentine painting ranges from the devotional masterpieces of Fra Angelico to the pioneering works of Uccello, Masaccio and Botticelli. The Uffizi, designed by Vasari for the Grand Duke of Tuscany, offers a feast of religious and secular painting. In Prato, we will examine frescoes by Fra Filippo Lippi, who was closely studied by Vasari, and from Florence we will enjoy a day’s excursion to Arezzo, Vasari’s birthplace. Here, we will explore sites including the Casa Vasari – richly decorated with frescoes, which Vasari painted between 1542 and 1568, the house is a veritable celebration of Mannerist art – and the Church of San Francesco with Piero’s Legend of the True Cross. Our tour concludes with two nights in Pisa, where we will investigate the work This tour will be led by Alex Koller, PhD, an expert in art history and architecture. Alex has lived and studied in Vienna, Salzburg and Cambridge. In addition to his interest in art history, Alex is a linguist, numbering German, French, Italian and Russian amongst his languages. He has been leading tours since 1998.

The Story of Joseph panel on the Gates of Paradise by Lorenzo Ghiberti, Baptistery of St John, Florence of Pisano which, according to Vasari, anticipated Renaissance sculpture. We will stay firstly in historical Florence at the four-star Grand Hotel Cavour. In Pisa we will stay at the four-star Grand Hotel Duomo, ideally located for our visits. Please note that while we will endeavour to deliver the below itinerary in full, some elements may be subject to confirmation. Historical buildings in Italy sometimes undergo restoration at short notice, and

we cannot guarantee the availability of all artworks listed. Please be aware that the Vasari Corridor will be closed for restoration in 2020, and is therefore not included in our itinerary.

Many of the visits in Florence will be made on foot, so a good level of fitness is required for this tour.

ITINERARY Day 1 Depart London Heathrow on British Airways 1100, arriving Pisa 1415. Transfer via Prato (Cathedral with Fra Filippo Lippi frescoes, Santa Maria delle Carceri) to Florence for five nights at Grand Hotel Cavour. Day 2 Morning: Santa Croce (tombs of Michelangelo and Galileo) and Museo Nazionale del Bargello (Michelangelo, Donatello). Afternoon: Duomo (Brunelleschi’s dome and Giotto’s campanile), Baptistery (Ghiberti’s famous bronze doors) and Museo dell’Opera del Duomo (housing Duccio’s Maestà). Day 3 Whole day excursion to Arezzo: Vasari’s Abbey of Santissime Fiora e Lucilla, Museo Statale d’Arte Medievale e Moderna, Casa Vasari (decorated by Vasari), Church of San Francesco (Piero’s Legend of the True Cross), Duomo. Free evening in Florence. Day 4 Morning: Museo delle Cappelle Medicee, San Lorenzo (including sacristies), Laurentian Library, Museo di San Marco (Fra Angelico’s Annunciation). Afternoon: Brunelleschi’s Ospedale degli Innocenti, SS Annunziata, Galleria dell’Accademia (Michelangelo’s David and The Prisoners). Day 5 Morning: SS Trinita, Palazzo Rucellai (exterior only), guild church of Orsanmichele (sculptures by Ghiberti, Donatello and Verrocchio) and Santa Maria Novella. Afternoon: Santa Maria

del Carmine (including Cappella Brancacci with Masaccio’s masterpieces), Santo Spirito. Day 6 Morning: Uffizi Gallery and Casa Vasari. Afternoon: Galleria Palatina in the Pitti Palace and Boboli Gardens. Transfer to Pisa for two nights at Grand Hotel Duomo. Day 7 Visits in Pisa: Cathedral (Pisano pulpit), Baptistery and Camposanto (The Triumph of Death frescoes and antique sarcophagi), Vasari’s Piazza dei Cavalieri. Afternoon excursion to San Piero a Grado followed by some free time in Pisa. Day 8 Some free time. Depart Pisa 1515, arriving Heathrow 1640. Cost of £2345 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, breakfast, one lunch, six dinners with wine, water & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: travel insurance, double room for single use supplement £375. TOUR CODE: VASA20 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

GERMANY

BEETHOVEN IN BONN: A CYCLE OF SYMPHONIES MARCH 15–22, 2020

• Usher in the great composer’s 250th

This tour will be led by John Bryden, MA, ARCM, ARCO, a member of the Dartington Piano Duo who has given concerts from California to Kathmandu via Wigmore Hall. The Beethoven Festival has always been one of John’s most well-loved tours, and he is delighted to be returning with a group in this most special year: “For those of us who will be fortunate enough to attend the Beethoven Anniversary Festival in his birthplace – up will go our understanding of Beethoven! Not only will we hear all the composer’s symphonies in one week, but we will have the opportunity to hear from the wonderful MusicAeterna orchestra of Perm, a city described by our conductor Teodor Currentzis as an ideal ‘monastery’ or ‘laboratory’ for music making. Currentzis will have his musicians playing standing up, and I shall not be surprised if we too are standing up at the end!”

year with a remarkable ‘cycle of symphonies’, from his promising early works to rousing ninth symphony Widely-acclaimed conductor Teodor Currentzis will present each concert with his early music ensemble MusicAeterna Take in regional highlights including the magnificent cathedrals of Cologne and Aachen

• •

he history of the Bonn Beethovenfest stretches back to 1845 when the Rhineland town celebrated the 75th birthday of its most famous son with three days of unbroken festivities. In 2020 concert halls around the world will resound with the works of the great composer, whose 250th birthday falls in December, but Bonn is taking things one step further by presenting a full cycle of Beethoven’s symphonies. Not only will our tour encompass some of Beethoven’s most recognisable masterpieces – including his ‘Eroica’ (Symphony No 3), which strode boldly towards a new Romantic era, and his instantly familiar Fifth and Sixth Symphonies – but we will also witness his growth as a composer from his early works (Symphonies No 1 and 2) to his magnificent Ninth Symphony, composed just a few years before his death. Experiencing Beethoven’s symphonies in full will immerse us like no other festival in the vastness of his dynamic, emotional and expressive range, reflecting the transforming landscape of classical music at the turn of the 19th century and the nearunparalleled significance of the composer’s contribution to this world. Our concerts will be performed by early music ensemble MusicAeterna under the baton of their founder Teodor Currentzis, Artistic Director of Perm State Opera and Ballet Theatre, whose own approach to classical performance has itself been acclaimed for its charismatic – almost ‘revolutionary’ – style. MusicAeterna’s 2017 performance of ‘Eroica’ was lauded for its “irrepressible energy” which “created moments of extreme clarity”, and a 2018 appearance at the Proms garnered praise for “an intensity that makes the music seem

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

Beethoven Monument by Ernst Julius Hähnel, Münsterplatz in Bonn (1845) somehow Beethoven-plus; more Beethoven than ever before.” In addition to the festival programme, Tour Director John Bryden will enrich our experience with a number of special

recitals. We will enjoy day excursions to Cologne and Aachen. The tour will also feature an excursion from Bonn to Remagen. We will stay throughout at the four-star Hilton Bonn Hotel, overlooking the Rhine and a short stroll from the Beethoven-Haus.

ITINERARY Day 1 Depart London Gatwick 1135 on British Airways, arriving Cologne-Bonn 1400. Transfer to Hilton Bonn Hotel for seven nights. Free time followed by welcome and introduction. Evening concert at Opera Bonn featuring MusicAeterna (Perm Opera) under Teodor Currentzis: Beethoven Symphony No 1 in C major, Op 21, Symphony No 3 ‘Eroica’ in E flat major, Op 55. Day 2 Morning lecture followed by visit to the Beethovenhaus. Afternoon: orientation walking tour of Bonn, including sites associated with Beethoven. Evening concert at Opera Bonn featuring MusicAeterna (Perm Opera) under Teodor Currentzis: Beethoven Symhony No 2 in D major, Op 36, Symphony No 5 in C minor, Op 67. Day 3 Whole day excursion to Cologne: Gothic cathedral, Ludwig Museum (one of the world’s largest Picasso collections), WallrafRichartz-Museum (Old Masters). Free evening. Day 4 Morning lecture followed by guided tour of the SchumannHaus (including private recital by the Tour Director, subject to confirmation). Free time. Evening concert at Opera Bonn featuring MusicAeterna (Perm Opera) under Teodor Currentzis: Beethoven Symphony No 6 in F major, Op 68, Symphony No 4 in B flat major, Op 60. Day 5 Morning visit to the Bundeskunsthalle (Beethoven exhibition). Free afternoon. Evening concert at Opera Bonn featuring MusicAeterna (Perm Opera) under Teodor Currentzis: Beethoven Symphony No 8 in F major, Op 93, Symphony No 7 in A major, Op 92.

Day 6 Whole day excursion to Aachen: 14th century Rathaus (built on the site of Charlemagne’s Palace), Couven Museum, cathedral (including guided tour of the celebrated treasury and Charlemagne’s marble throne). Day 7 Morning lecture followed by excursion to Ramegan and Maria Laach (12th century Romanesque abbey church) including organ recital. Evening concert at Opera Bonn featuring MusicAeterna (Perm Opera) under Teodor Currentzis: Beethoven Symphony No 9 in D minor, Op 125. Day 8 Depart Cologne-Bonn 1210, arriving Gatwick 1235.

Cost of £2945 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, performances as described, breakfast, five lunches, three dinners (one light, day 2) with water & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: travel insurance, double room for single use supplement £350. TOUR CODE: BBO120 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

JAPAN

JAPA N IN SPRINGTI ME: ART, T EM PL ES & G AR D ENS MAY 17 – JUNE 2, 2020

Shirakawa-gō, Ōno District

• Be captivated by Kyoto’s Golden Pavilion, whose top floors shimmer with gold

leaf, and the Silver Pavilion, once the retirement villa of a 13th century shogun Absorb the enchanting atmosphere of mountain-based Takayama, a World Heritage site containing a beautifully preserved old town The historical city of Kanazawa welcomes us with its traditional samurai residences and enthralling museums

• •

ourney from Tokyo to Kyoto on this multi-layered tour, which looks behind the mask of contemporary Japan to uncover the nation’s artistic, religious and cultural heritage.

This tour will be led by Richard Farmer, BA, who read Religion at SOAS and has lived in Japan for the last ten years, where he works leading tours full-time. Richard’s principal area of interest is Japanese Buddhist art, particularly Edo period Zen ink painting, and the material and visual culture of the esoteric Shingo sect. He is also interested in the practice of Buddhist circulatory pilgrimage, is a keen collector of Japanese antiques, and has undertaken extended monastic training in the UK, Taiwan and Japan.

We will sample local cuisine as we traverse the varied geography of the country, taking part in a traditional tea ceremony and spending a night in a typical ryokan in the historical city of Takayama, located in the ‘Japanese Alps’. In Tokyo, meanwhile, we will delve into fascinating museums such as the Tokyo National Museum with its collections of calligraphy, woodblock prints and decorative arts, and stroll through the tranquil surroundings of the Meiji Shrine, dedicated to the Emperor Meiji and his consort. Our exploration of the country’s religious heritage and its impact on art and architecture will continue in Kamakura, Japan’s first feudal capital. Here, we will visit the Tsurugaoka Hachimangū shrine, and see the Great Buddha, cast in bronze in

“Richard Farmer is a gem. One of the best guides I have ever come across.” – ACE customer on 2018 Japan in Autumn: Art, Temples & Gardens tour

1252 and over 13 metres tall – one of the country’s most famous icons. During its imperial reign, Nara flourished, and today the ancient city’s monuments create a vivid picture of life in the 8th century. Here, we will visit the Hōryū-ji Temple, the oldest surviving temple in Japan. Kyoto, the imperial capital

Please note that a good level of fitness is required for this tour, as excursions will involve a substantial amount of walking. Participants must be prepared for uneven ground at historical sites. Our visit to Hikone Castle involves a steep climb to reach the castle, but those who prefer to opt out can spend time enjoying the gardens instead. We hope to enjoy temperate weather during this tour.

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

JAPAN

Tōdai-ji temple, Nara for over 1000 years, also has an unrivalled array of religious architecture including the imposing Nijō Castle. Whilst our tour is immersed in ancient culture, we will also take time to appreciate modern Japan, visiting the 21st century Museum of Contemporary Art and the DT Suzuki Museum in Kanazawa. We will observe how traditional craft-making skills

Tour Director Richard Farmer will also be leading a tour of West Japan and the Inland Sea in November 2020 – see p 50-51 for more details.

have survived through the centuries, with visits to workshops, including that of a

renowned potter who makes distinctive rustic Shigaraki ware. We will stay in Japanese and westernstyle hotels of a high level of quality and comfort. Some travel will be via Japan’s trains and public transport, one of the best-developed systems in the world. When travelling by train, our luggage will be forwarded separately.

ITINERARY Day 1 Depart London Heathrow 1530 on British Airways for overnight flight. Day 2 Arrive Tokyo Narita 1105 and transfer to central Tokyo for four nights at Asakusa View Hotel. Some free time and short walking tour of Asakusa. Day 3 Morning introductory lecture followed by visit to Tokyo National Museum (Japanese art and Gallery of Hōryū-ji Treasure). Afternoon walk through Ueno Park. Day 4 Whole day excursion to Kamakura: Engaku-ji, Great Buddha and Tsurugaoka Hachimangū Shrine. Free evening. Day 5 Morning: Meiji Shrine, Seitoku Memorial Picture Gallery (Meiji Emperor’s Memorial Museum). Afternoon: Ota Memorial Museum of Art. Free evening. Day 6 Transfer to Takayama (old town in mountainous countryside) by bullet train for overnight stay in Tanabe Ryokan (traditional inn with hot springs). Afternoon walking tour of Takayama including Jinya (Edo period). Day 7 Morning in Shirakawa-gō (World Heritage site) including gassho-zukuri farmhouses and museum. Afternoon: transfer to Kanazawa for three nights at Daiwa Roynet Hotel. Evening lecture: Kanazawa – From the Maeda Clan to Modern Art.

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

Day 8 Kanazawa: Kenroku-en Garden, Ishikawa Dentetsukan (with opportunity to see lacquerware crafts), 21st century Museum of Contemporary Art. Day 9 Further visits in Kanazawa including old streets of samurai residences, DT Suzuki Museum (commemorating the Zen master) and Yasue Gold Leaf Museum. Free evening. Day 10 Transfer by train to Kyoto for four nights at Royal Park Hotel. Visits to Golden Pavilion and the Ryōan-ji Zen Rock Garden followed by traditional Japanese dinner at Ganko Takasegawa. Day 11 Morning lecture: Kyoto – The Heartland of Japanese Culture followed by traditional tea ceremony. Afternoon: Nijō Castle and garden (Tokugawa Shogun’s residence in Kyoto). Free evening. Day 12 Morning excursion to 17th century Hikone Castle by Lake Biwa. Afternoon in Shigaraki: potter’s kiln and studio. Day 13 Further visits in Kyoto including Tō-ji Temple (9th century sculptural mandala), Fushimi Inari Shrine (torii gates), Sanjūsangen-dō (1001 Kannon statues), Ginkaku-ji (Silver Pavilion). Free evening. Day 14 Transfer via Uji Byōdō-in (Phoenix Hall) to Nara, the capital of Japan from 710 to 794, for two nights at Hotel Nikko. Afternoon:

Hōryū-ji Temple (c 670 AD) with important early Buddhist art treasures. Day 15 Morning lecture: Nara – The First Flourishing of Japanese Buddhism followed by visits to Kōfuku-ji Temple and Tōdai-ji Temple (Great Buddha). Some free time followed by free evening. Day 16 Transfer to Tokyo by bullet train for overnight stay at Shiba Park Hotel. Some free time. Day 17 Depart Tokyo Narita 1255, arriving Heathrow 1720.

Cost of £6295 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, breakfast, twelve lunches, nine dinners with water, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: travel insurance, single room supplement £860. TOUR CODE: JAPS20 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

UZBEKISTAN

UZ B E K ISTAN: C I T I E S OF T HE SILK ROAD MARCH 20–31, 2020 • SEPTEMBER 11–22, 2020

Shahi Zinda, Samarkand

• Journey to the heart of Central Asia to discover ancient history and culture Visit the Silk Road cities of Khiva, Bukhara and Samarkand Experience Samarkand’s famed Registan Square, bordered by elegant madrasas in shades of gold and turquoise

• •

This tour will be led by Tour Director Steve Mastin, MA, PGCE, FHA. Steve studied history and classics before working as a schoolteacher for 17 years, during which time he organised many trips to Italy, France and Germany. He has worked overseas training history teachers in Singapore, Australia and Kazakhstan. A committed advocate of the power of storytelling, Steve is passionate about bringing a life-long love of history to students of all ages. He is a Fellow of the Historical Association and is a regular speaker at history conferences both in the UK and overseas.

zbekistan has long been a prized territory: in the 4th century BC Alexander the Great married the daughter of a local chieftain, and in the 14th century Genghis Khan waged war over the region. It was Timur, better known to us as Tamerlane, who finally overpowered the Mongols and established Samarkand as the glittering capital of an empire encompassing much of Central Asia. Our tour begins in the modern capital, Tashkent, where the exhibits of the city’s museums will set our investigations in context. From there we head to the oasis town of Khiva – once the final stoppingpoint of caravan trains before they set out on the long journey across the desert for Persia. The inner citadel of Ichan Kala, surrounded by huge crenellated clay walls, was the first site in the country to be listed by UNESCO. Architectural highlights include the Juma Mosque, with its forest of carved wooden columns – the oldest of which date from the 10th century.

We shall traverse the Kyzylkum desert to Bukhara, a centre of culture and civilisation from the 6th century BC. The armies of Genghis Khan left little intact from the city’s earliest days, with a notable exception being the perfectly preserved 10th century Ismail Samani Mausoleum.

Statue of Timur, Shakhrisabz

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

UZBEKISTAN

Abdulaziz-Khan-Madrasa, Bukhara

Founded as early as the 7th century BC, the city of Samarkand is one of the oldest in all of Central Asia. Captured by Alexander the Great in 329 BC, it passed through the hands of successive civilisations before reaching its zenith as the capital of the Timurid Empire. The archaeological site of Afrasiab is preserved, along with astonishing frescoes bearing testimony to the vanished Sogdian

civilisation that dominated trade along the Silk Road for centuries. Although the city walls of Samarkand are gone, the medieval layout remains in the narrow streets and many traditional houses. A highlight of our visit here will be the awe-inspiring Registan, bordered on three sides by elaborate madrasas and one of the most important complexes of Islamic architecture in the world. Our journey will also include

Shakhrisabz, birthplace of Timur himself and recipient of his considerable architectural patronage. We will stay throughout at comfortable three or four-star hotels close to the key sites on our tour, and our visits will be complemented by regular talks given by our Tour Director. Please note that the below itinerary represents a guide to what we hope to offer, and some visits may be subject to change.

ITINERARY Day 1 Depart London Heathrow 2135 on Uzbekistan Airways. Day 2 Arrive Tashkent 0825 and transfer to hotel for overnight stay. Morning tour of the city: Independence Square, Amir Temur Park, Museum of Applied Art. Afternoon: Khast-i-Imam complex (group of mosques and madrasas dating from the 16th to 20th centuries). Day 3 Morning in Tashkent: State Museum of History of Uzbekistan (archaeological and ethnographical) followed by visit to Chorsu Bazaar. Afternoon: domestic flight to Urgench and transfer to city of Khiva for two nights. Day 4 Khiva: Ichan Kala (ancient citadel surrounded by crenellated clay walls), Juma mosque, Muhammad Amin-Khan madrasa, Kalta Minor minaret, Kunya Ark fortress. Day 5 Drive through the Kyzylkum desert, occasionally sighting the River Oxus (now the Amu-Darya) crossed by Alexander the Great in 329 BC. Three nights in Bukhara.

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

Day 6 Bukhara: Poi-Kalyan complex, Mir-i-Arab madrasa, Kalyan minaret, Ulugh Beg and Abdulaziz Khan madrasas. Afternoon: Lyabi-Hauz, madrasas and Ark Citadel. Day 7 Bukhara: Tchor Minor mosque, Sitorai Mokhi Khossa, BoloHauz mosque, 10th century Samanid mausoleum, Chashma-Ayub mausoleum (‘Job’s Spring’) and Ark Fortress. Day 8 Drive to Samarkand via Gijduvan (ceramic workshop, protected by UNESCO), Rabati Malik caravanserai and Sardoba, medieval water keeper. Three nights in Samarkand. Day 9 Samarkand: famed Registan Square with 15th and 17th century madrasas, Guri Amir mausoleum (burial place of Timur), Bibi Khanum mosque and colourful Siyob Bazaar. Day 10 Whole day excursion to Shakhrisabz, hometown of Timur: portal of Ak-Saray palace, Dor-us Saodat Memorial Complex, Dor-ut Tilavat Ensemble.

Day 11 Samarkand: Shakhi-Zinda tiled funerary complex, observatory built by Ulugh Beg. Afternoon at ancient site of Afrasiab (rare 7th century Sogdian fresco), before train transfer to Tashkent for overnight stay. Day 12 Free time in Tashkent. Depart Tashkent 1620, arriving Heathrow 2000. Cost of £2795 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, full board with water & tea, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: travel insurance, single room supplement £340. TOUR CODE: UZB120 / UZB220 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

CHINA

C H I N E SE CIV IL ISATIO N APRIL 11–28, 2020

Botanic garden, Suzhou

• Discover the history of over 5000 years of Chinese civilisation, exploring the

extraordinary traditional architecture, fine art, garden design, calligraphy and porcelain left by dynasties throughout the centuries Visit several of China’s ancient and modern capitals, including Xi’an, Luoyang, Hangzhou, Nanjing and Beijing Highlights will include the Great Wall, the Forbidden City and the Terracotta Army, as well as many lesser-known sites

• •

hile in English the term ‘civilisation’ denotes social organisation into cities, the Chinese term wen hua – which is usually translated as ‘civilisation’ – is strongly connected with the idea of a written culture. It is through the development of writing, and the pictograms which contain a wealth of layered meaning dating back thousands of years, that the world is understood. During our journey we will explore the early dynasties of China – once believed to be mythical. We will travel along the Yellow River Valley, often considered to be the cradle of Chinese civilisation, from Xi’an to Luoyang and Zhengzhou, all of

which enjoyed the status of capital city at different periods in Chinese history. From the early elaborate bronzes to the world of the modern Chinese artist, by way of architecture, sculpture, porcelain, garden design and the fast and furious martial arts of Shaolin monks, we will encounter the

April is a particularly pleasant time to visit China, with mild to warm temperatures, fresh air and the flowering of spring blooms. Our stay in Louyang will coincide with the annual Peony Festival.

This tour will be led by Elizabeth Morrell, BA, a sinologist and Chinese speaker who has been visiting China since 1976, when she studied modern Chinese literature at Fudan University in Shanghai. Elizabeth wrote one of the earliest guidebooks to China, published in 1984. many facets of Chinese art and creativity. Our tour will encompass traditional Chinese architecture with visits to the Qing dynasty Qiao Family Mansion (home to a

This tour has been designed to make the most of our stay in China and introduce travellers to the rich variety of sites and experiences at each of our stops. In line with this, travellers should be prepared for a considerable amount of walking, particularly as many of the historical sites are spread over extensive areas. There will be several early starts, and please note that certain sites can become crowded during busy periods.

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

CHINA

Terracotta warrior, Emperor fine collection of period furniture) and the walled city of Pingyao. Fine art in many forms will be represented in the rare Song dynasty sculptures at the Jinci Temple, the Tang Murals at the Shaanxi History Museum, and the painting and calligraphy collection at the Shanghai Museum, while

modern art is found at the 798 Art District in Beijing and the Zhejiang Art Museum in Hangzhou. Shanghai Museum and the Southern Song Dynasty Guan Kiln Museum at Hangzhou will introduce us to beautiful porcelain, while elegant Chinese garden design awaits us in Suzhou, where

the classical gardens are a UNESCO World Heritage site. Our journeys between cities will be undertaken using the extensive high-speed rail network. We will stay throughout in comfortable modern hotels; please note hotel details may be subject to adjustment.

ITINERARY Day 1 Depart London Heathrow 1430 on British Airways. Day 2 Arrive Beijing 0930 and transfer to the Bamboo Garden Hotel for three nights. Lunch with a Beijing family. Afternoon: Hutong area, Drum Tower. Evening introductory lecture. Day 3 Whole day excursion to the Great Wall at Mutianyu (fully restored according to the Ming design), returning via 798 Art District. Free evening. Day 4 Whole day excursion to Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City (imperial palace from the Ming dynasty) and Summer Palace (huge complex of gardens and lakes making up the royal park). Day 5 By high-speed train to Taiyuan (capital of Shaanxi Province). Afternoon: Jinci Temple (Song dynasty sculptures), Qing dynasty Qiao Family Mansion. Two nights at Yun Jin Cheng Hotel, Pingyao. Day 6 Pingyao old town (one of the few remaining walled cities in China, a banking centre in the 19th and early 20th centuries). Free evening. Day 7 By high-speed train to Xi’an (ancient imperial capital and eastern terminus of the Silk Road). Afternoon: Shaanxi History Museum (Tang murals). Two nights at Titan Times Hotel. Day 8 Whole day excursion to view Terracotta Army site outside Xi’an. Return via Small Wild Goose Pagoda, and Drum and Bell Towers. Free evening.

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

Day 9 By high-speed train to Luoyang. Afternoon: Longmen Buddhist Grottoes (UNESCO World Heritage site, comprising over 2300 caves and niches containing almost 110,000 stone carved Buddhas). Overnight stay at Hyatt Palace Hotel. Please note our stay here coincides with the Luoyang Peony Festival. Day 10 White Horse Temple (supposedly the first Buddhist temple in China) and Shaolin Temple (renowned for its martial arts). Continue for overnight stay at Crowne Plaza Hotel, Zhengzhou. Free evening. Day 11 By train to Nanjing on the Yangtze River. Afternoon: Sun Yat-Sen’s Mausoleum. Overnight stay at Holiday Inn. Free evening. Day 12 Nanjing for visits including Nanjing Museum, Confucius Temple and Zhonghua Gate (600 year old city fortifications also known as the Gate of China). By train to Suzhou for two nights at Scholars Hotel. Free evening. Day 13 Visits in Suzhou: Garden of the Humble Administrator (maze of pools, islands and temples), boat ride on the canal, silk reeling factory. Free evening. Day 14 Transfer to Hangzhou on West Lake: tea plantation, Zhejiang Art Museum. Two nights at Lakeview Hotel.

Day 15 By train to Hangzhou: Temple of Soul’s Retreat, boat ride on West Lake (Three Pools Reflecting the Moon, Bai and Su Causeways, Pavilion for Listening to Orioles), Southern Song Dynasty Guan Kiln Museum. Free evening. Day 16 By train to Shanghai: Yuyuan Garden, Shanghai Museum. Two nights at Jinjiang Hotel. Free evening. Day 17 Morning: Bund and Pudong areas. Free afternoon in Shanghai before farewell dinner at the Floating Restaurant. Day 18 Depart Pudong 1055, arriving Heathrow 1600.

Cost of £4995 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double-bedded room, breakfast, fifteen lunches, seven dinners with soft drinks, beer or Chinese tea, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: visa, travel insurance, single room supplement £870. TOUR CODE: CHIN20 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

RUSSIA

ART TREASURES OF ST PETERSBURG MARCH 23–30, 2020

• Enjoy extended visits to the world’s

largest collection of paintings at the Hermitage Museum – including a visit to the holdings of the State Depository Follow in the footsteps of the protagonists of Tolstoy’s War and Peace with visits to the aristocratic Catherine Palace and Yusupov Palace View the wealth of 18th century architecture, from Tsar Peter the Great’s modest log cabin to palaces

• •

eemingly impervious to the ravages of time, siege and communist levelling, St Petersburg retains much of its prerevolutionary magnificence. The focal point of our tour will be that museum without compare, the Hermitage, occupying six stately buildings on the banks of the River Neva. As well as reviewing the Hermitage’s unsurpassed collections of Old Master and 20th century canvases, we will venture deep inside the museum’s storage chambers, where we will admire a wealth of rarely-seen treasures, ranging from imperial wardrobes to regal carriages. A number of delights awaits us outside St Petersburg. Just south of the city lies Tsarskoe Selo (Pushkin), where the “Andrew Spira was such an illuminating lecturer – he has such a way of making connections and making you think about works you know well in a totally different way” “This was an outstanding tour for culture and history” – ACE customers on 2019 Art Treasures of St Petersburg tour with Andrew Spira

This tour will be led by art historian Andrew Spira, MA, who studied at the Courtauld Institute of Art and City University, London. For several years he was a specialist in Byzantine and Russian icons at the Temple Gallery, London, before working as a curator at the Victoria & Albert Museum. Andrew was subsequently Programme Director at Christie’s Education, and has been leading tours to cultural sites in Russia, Armenia, Georgia and all across Europe for over 20 years.

Hermitage Museum interior Catherine Palace was transformed into a Baroque masterpiece for the Empress Elizabeth by Rastrelli before being remodelled for Catherine the Great by Charles Cameron. Cameron also worked on Pavlovsk, just a few miles away, with its English Park and Temple of Friendship. Back in St Petersburg we will inspect the log cabin where Peter the Great lived whilst planning his embryonic capital, and the fortress where he is buried alongside his imperial successors.

We will stay throughout at the centrally located Hotel Angleterre, a short walk from the State Hermitage Museum.

Participants will require a good level of fitness for this tour. Please note that it may be snowy and therefore slippery underfoot. Most of the walking will be on level or slightly hilly ground.

ITINERARY Day 1 Depart London Heathrow 0920 on British Airways, arriving St Petersburg 1540. Transfer to Hotel Angleterre for seven nights.

Impressionist, Post-Impressionist, Picasso and Matisse collections in the General Staff Headquarters. Free evening.

Day 2 Morning lecture: Icons & the Sacred Art of Russia followed by orientation tour (St Nicholas’s Cathedral, Strelka, Peter & Paul Fortress and Nevsky Prospekt). Afternoon: Kazan Cathedral (exterior only) and Fabergé Museum.

Day 7 Morning: Menshikov Palace and Kunstkammer (Museum of Anthropology & Ethnology, founded by Peter the Great and housing a collection of curiosities). Afternoon: Yusupov Palace.

Day 3 Morning lecture: Russian Avant-Garde Art & the Revolution followed by first visit to the Hermitage: Gold Room, Italian paintings from Simone Martini to Bernardo Bellotto. Free evening. Day 4 Whole day excursion to two of the summer palaces: Catherine’s Palace and Pavlovsk (with its English Park). Return to St Petersburg via Chesma Church. Day 5 Morning lecture: Russia & the West followed by State Russian Museum (world-class collection of art housed in Mikhailovsky Palace). Afternoon: Log Cabin of Peter the Great and Depository of the State Hermitage Collection. Day 6 Whole day second visit to the Hermitage: Dutch and Flemish paintings from Robert Campin to Rembrandt followed by the

Day 8 Morning visit (to be confirmed). Depart St Petersburg 1645, arriving Heathrow 1725. Cost of £2675 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, breakfast, four lunches, five dinners with water & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: visa, travel insurance, double room for single use supplement £275. TOUR CODE: ATSP20 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

ITALY

AQUILEIA: CITY OF ANTIQUITY MARCH 23–28, 2020 • SEPTEMBER 21–26, 2020

• Visit the city’s remarkable cathedral

with its sequence of 4th century mosaics Journey across a beautiful lagoon to find the cobbled streets and courtyards of Grado, home to historical churches with 6th century mosaics Discover the Lombard Temple and medieval Duomo in Cividale, high above the Natisone River

•

quileia, once described by Emperor Justinian as “the greatest of all towns in the West”, is today a little known but important Roman city perched on the Adriatic coastline. As the ninth biggest city in the Roman Empire during the 1st century AD, Aquileia served as a crossroads, with a wide trading network between Rome and the East. From 182 BC, when it became a Roman colony amid the local Gallic peoples, until the arrival of Huns, Goths and Lombards in the late imperial and early medieval period, Aquileia was revered for its military and economic assets as well as its cultural and spiritual magnificence. Our tour takes in the tranquil cypress-lined forum and harbour, delights in themselves, but the city’s crowning glory is contained within its magnificent Basilica, a remarkable sequence of 4th century mosaics that provide some of the oldest and most illustrious PaleoChristian memoirs in Western Europe. Nearby, we journey across a picturesque ‘Venetian’ lagoon into the beautifully situated town of Grado, a maze of cobbled streets and courtyards with splendid mosaics from the 6th century located in two of its historical churches. Cividale is located high above the Natisone River, and although little remains of this important Roman town (its original name of Forum

This tour will be led by Andrew Wilson, BA, BD, FSAScot. Andrew studied archaeology then theology before working overseas as an archaeologist, specialising in Roman frontier systems and Byzantine mosaics. He has led many tours for ACE in the Greco-Roman world, and also several in Britain, with a particular emphasis on the archaeology of his native Scotland.

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

Detail of Trieste Cathedral

Iulii gives the modern region of Friuli its name), we will explore the fine medieval Duomo, whose foundations date back to the 8th century, and the lovely Lombard Temple from the same period. Our final excursion is to the enchanting seaport of Trieste. A cultural meeting-point throughout its history, today the city is the site of important Austro-Hungarian architecture alongside superb Byzantine

mosaics, a Roman theatre and the medieval Castello di San Giusto. The tour will be based at the Astoria Hotel in the city of Udine, where there is a superb Duomo, and two interesting art galleries, including a pictorial cycle by the Venetian artist Tiepolo. Please note that sites in Italy can close at short notice for restoration works, and so some adjustments may be made nearer the time.

ITINERARY Day 1 Depart London Gatwick 1235 on British Airways, arriving Venice 1540. Transfer to Udine in the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region for five nights at the Astoria Hotel. Day 2 Morning lecture. Whole day excursion exploring the ancient city of Aquileia including the Basilica di Santa Maria Assunta (mosaics depicting scenes of the prophet Jonah, gospels, apostles and portraits of patrons, 11th and 12th century Byzantine frescoes), followed by the Paleo-Christian Museum, Roman forum and Archaeological Museum. Day 3 Morning in Cividale: Duomo (originally an 8th century structure, rebuilt 15th century), Christian Museum, Lombard Temple (fine Byzantine frescoes and stucco decorations) and Archaeological Museum. Afternoon in Udine: Diocesan Museum (housed in the Patriarchal Palace) and Duomo. Day 4 Morning lecture followed by visits in Grado: Basilica of Sant’Euphemia, Santa Maria delle Grazie and old town. Return to Udine via Palmanova (late 16th century defences). Late afternoon visits to Piazza Libertà (15th century town hall and clock tower) and optional visit to Udine’s Civic Museums of History and Art (housed in the 16th century castle).

Day 5 Whole day excursion to Trieste via Miramare: walking tour of seafront and downtown Trieste (important Austro-Hungarian architecture, Roman Theatre), St Justus Cathedral (superb Byzantine mosaics) and medieval Castello di San Giusto. Day 6 Free time. Depart Venice 1630, arriving Gatwick 1730.

Cost of March tour: £1595 Cost of September tour: £1645 Cost includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, breakfast, dinner with wine, water & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: travel insurance, single room supplement £105 double room for single use supplement £165. TOUR CODE: AQU120/AQU220 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

ITALY

RIVIERA DI LEVANTE: FROM GENOA TO PISA MARCH 26 – APRIL 2, 2020

• Travel along the Riviera di Levante

tracing the artistic legacy of the Italian city-states from Genoa to Pisa Visit some of Italy’s most impressive architectural sites including Pisa’s Baptistery and Campo Santo Enjoy the picturesque towns and villages of the Italian coastline, including Portofino and Porto Venere on the Cinque Terre

• •

or centuries the maritime republics of Italy dominated the Mediterranean. These powerful city-states were fiercely competitive, and our tour will trace the history of their stormy rivalries as we make our way along the enchanting Riviera di Levante (‘coast of the rising sun’), travelling between Genoa and Pisa. Genoa was one of the longest-lived of the maritime republics, its independence lasting until the threshold of the modern era. Today, its historical heart preserves a fascinating labyrinth of medieval lanes and steps, studded with richly decorated churches and palaces, including the magnificent Cathedral of San Lorenzo. We will travel down the spectacular Ligurian coastline, where picturesque towns cling to hillsides and reside in narrow valleys where the mountains meet the sea. The area of the Cinque Terre is a UNESCO World Heritage site in recognition of its combination of scenic beauty and human endeavour, and we will journey along the coast discovering Portofino and Porto Venere.

This tour will be led by Christopher Wellington, MA, a graduate in history from Cambridge University. Christopher’s specialisms range from history and the Church through to the art and architecture of the Middle Ages. He has spent most of his career working in Italy, where he lives with his family in Piacenza, and is informed on the many aspects of Italian life and the ways in which they connect with the country’s history and art.

This tour is also running from September 12-19, 2019. Please see the ACE website or call the office for full details.

Church of St Peter, Portovenere The republic of Pisa fell to Genoa following the Battle of Meloria in 1284, but not before the city had developed one of the strongest architectural styles in Italy. Our visit here will explore the strong influence of classicism combined with medieval models, which culminated in the magnificent complex of the Piazza dei Miracoli surrounding the cathedral. Splendid works of art, such as the intricate Pisano pulpit, adorn these buildings. We will stay in Santa Margherita Ligure at the Hotel Continental overlooking the Gulf of Tigullio; in Porto Venere at the Hotel Paradiso; and in Pisa at the Hotel

Bologna, a short walk from the historical centre. Please note that this tour departs from London Gatwick airport and returns to London Heathrow airport. While we will endeavour to deliver the below itinerary, some elements may be subject to confirmation and some may be dependent on local weather conditions.

Please note that this tour requires a good level of fitness, as several visits will be made on foot and by boat.

ITINERARY Day 1 Depart London Gawick 0730 on British Airways, arriving Genoa 1030. Transfer to Santa Margherita Ligure for four nights at Hotel Continental. Evening introductory lecture. Day 2 Genoa: cathedral, old port, National Gallery of Palazzo Spinola, Palazzo San Giorgio, Santa Maria di Castello, Church of Gesù, Palazzo Ducale (exterior). Day 3 Morning: former abbey of La Cervara (beautiful Renaissance Italian-style gardens) followed by Portofino. By boat to San Fruttuoso (abbey founded in the 10th century – weather permitting). Evening lecture. Day 4 Excursions to Chiavari (12th century planned town founded by Genoese Republic) and the Basilica dei Fieschi (fine Romanesque-Gothic church erected by this important Genoese family). Afternoon: walking tour of Santa Margherita Ligure. Free evening. Day 5 By train to Monterosso al Mare with time to visit the town. Transfer by boat along the Cinque Terre to Porto Venere: Gothic Church of St Peter and Romanesque Church of St Lawrence (erected in 1098 by the Genoese) followed by some free time. Overnight stay at Hotel Paradiso.

Day 6 Morning: fortress town of Sarzana (cathedral) and ruined Roman city of Luna (Archaeological Museum). Continue via Carrara and Fantiscritti (Museo Walter Danesi) to Pisa for two nights at Hotel Bologna. Day 7 Pisa: Campo Santo, baptistery and cathedral. Some free time. Day 8 Depart Pisa 1515, arriving London Heathrow 1640.

Cost of £2295 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, breakfast, six dinners with wine, water & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: travel insurance, double room for single use supplement £275. TOUR CODE: RIVI20 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

GERMANY

ART IN BERLIN MARCH 30 – APRIL 5, 2020

• Discover Berlin’s rich art collections

and historical architecture Enjoy an extended visit exploring the collections of the Gemäldegalerie, part of the Kulturforum, comprising works of art from a range of time periods Visit the royal hunting lodge in the Grunewald – Berlin’s oldest existing palace building

•

erlin, once variously known as the ‘Athens of the North’ and the ‘Sparta of the North’, is rightly famed for the wealth of its art collections. These range from the Alte Nationalgalerie’s memorable array of nineteenth century German painting and sculpture, to the Gemäldegalerie’s absorbing assembly of thirteenth to eighteenth century paintings, and the more intimate Käthe Kollwitz Museum, the tranquil setting for a series of poignant drawings and sculptures by one of Berlin’s most gifted daughters. The Berggruen Collection, housed in magnificent buildings commissioned by King Wilhelm IV, houses riveting works by Picasso, Matisse and Giacometti. The Bode Museum, the ‘moated castle’ on the River Spree, proudly accommodates the world’s largest collection of ancient sculpture, whilst the Pergamon Museum presents a range of ancient treasures. On an excursion into the Grunewald Forest, we will discover Berlin’s oldest remaining palace. Commissioned in 1542 and idyllically situated on the banks of Lake Grunewald, the Jagdschloss was remodelled in a Baroque style in the eighteenth century and today houses paintings by Cranach. We will also explore Berlin’s architectural and historical highlights during a tour

This tour will be led by Tom Abbott, BA, MA, an independent art and architectural historian who has lived in Berlin for over twenty years. A proficient lecturer and tour leader, he has extensive experience running tours in Germany for groups including the Arts Society. His expertise ranges from the Baroque and Rococo, to German Romantic painting, landscape gardens, musical heritage and modern German history.

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

Bode Museum

“Tom is the most informative and entertaining guide we have had” “Tom Abbott is in a class of his own. A polymath, courteous, considerate and amusing” – ACE customers on 2019 Art in Berlin tour

taking in Potsdamer Platz, the Government Quarter around the Reichstag, and the Alexanderplatz, including the Fernsehturm and the Stalinist architecture of former East Berlin.

We will stay throughout at the threestar Hotel Albrechtshof, situated near the River Spree in the heart of Berlin’s theatre district. Please note while we will endeavour to deliver the below itinerary in full, some elements may be subject to confirmation. Please note that this tour will require a good level of fitness, as some visits will be made on foot. We will visit the dome and rooftop at the Reichstag, so participants must feel comfortable at height.

ITINERARY Day 1 Depart London Heathrow 1010 on British Airways, arriving Berlin 1305. Transfer to Hotel Albrechtshof for six nights. Orientation walking tour followed by introductory lecture. Day 2 Tour of Berlin by coach including East Side Gallery, French Quarter and Gendarmenmarkt, Alexanderplatz, Unter den Linden, Kreuzberg, Kurfürstendamm, the Embassy district, Potsdamer Platz, and the Government Quarter around the Reichstag. Afternoon ‘Kaffee und Kuchen’ at the Reichstag followed by exploration of the dome and rooftop. Evening lecture. Day 3 Extended visit to the Gemäldegalerie followed by optional walking tour of Potsdamer Platz and some free time. Day 4 Morning lecture followed by tour of the Alte Nationalgalerie. Afternoon: boat trip and visit to the Bode Museum. Free evening. Day 5 Morning: Pergamon Museum and Pergamon Pavilion. Afternoon: further visit on Museum Island.

Day 6 Morning excursion to the 16th century Jagdschloss Grunewald Afternoon: Käthe Kollwitz Museum. Day 7 Visits to Schloss Charlottenburg and Berggruen Museum. Depart Berlin 1635, arriving Heathrow 1730. Cost of £2045 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, breakfast, one light lunch, five dinners with water & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: travel insurance, double room for single use supplement £285. TOUR CODE: ABLN20 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

USA

JAZ Z : F ROM NEW O R LEANS TO ME M P HIS APRIL 6–17, 2020

Bourbon Street

• Delve into the rich sounds, sites and flavours of the ‘cradle of jazz’ – New Orleans • Trace the threads of US history and the evolution of musical genres as we progress along the Mississippi to Memphis Enjoy live music, complemented by relaxing daytime excursions in the cities and surrounding countryside

•

t was in spring 1718 that the French Mississippi Company founded a colony on the twin banks of the Mississippi River and called it La Nouvelle-Orléans. Over its subsequent three hundred years, New Orleans’ diverse communities gave rise to deeply distinctive musical and culinary traditions, and from its unique cultural blend emerged one of the world’s most recognisable, multifaceted and popular musical genres: jazz. Evolving towards the end of the 19th century from a mix of African, European, and wider musical influences (including marching brass bands), jazz is inextricably connected with the social, economic and political heritage of the Deep South. It provides our tour with a dynamic focal point for a voyage along the Mississippi that will chart not only transitions within

music but also within American society and culture. Led by one of ACE’s most experienced

Louis Armstrong

music specialists, we will explore the origins of jazz in its many forms, following in the footsteps of the enterprising musicians who got their early breaks in the city. While Louis Armstrong is the most widely known today, cornetist Buddy Bolden is credited with helping to advance New Orleans’ distinctive ragtime sound, King Oliver’s Creole Jazz Band created some of the very first great jazz recordings, and the arrangements of Jelly Roll Morton retain a near-unrivalled place in jazz history. From the leafy courtyards of the French Quarter, heavily influenced by Louisiana’s Spanish colonial past, to Jackson Square, site of the southern state’s purchase by the United States in 1803, we will seek to understand how and why jazz developed here, and what it meant for the growing popular musical traditions of the USA. Our stay in ‘The Big Easy’ will encompass several musical events: we will dine at the Palm Court Jazz Café, home to live Dixieland jazz, and take in the music of Snug Harbor alongside our hotel’s very own Jazz Playhouse. We also hope to offer visits to late night venues, including Preservation Hall, a cornerstone of live

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

USA jazz in New Orleans since its inception in the 1960s; while Tour Director Sandy Burnett will explore the distinctive features of jazz and blues music in a series of lectures, supplemented by a morning workshop. An excursion to the nearby Oak Alley Plantation will help to inform our understanding of the distinctive social and economic history of the region, complemented by a visit to the Museum of Rural Life in Louisiana’s capital, Baton Rouge; while the swampy landscape of the Bayou will welcome us for a relaxing riverboat trip. Later we will follow the path of the Mississippi northwards, tracing musical developments within the US at the towns of Leland and Clarksdale (site of the ‘Devil’s Crossroads’), and enrich our knowledge of the Deep South’s history at the civil war site at Vicksburg and Dockery Farms, a major site for the development of Delta blues. Reaching Memphis, our tour turns to the emergence of mid-20th century musical genres with visits to Elvis Presley’s home at

This tour will be led by Sandy Burnett, MA, a musician and broadcaster. Sandy spent a decade as one of the core team of presenters on BBC Radio 3, hosting dozens of live broadcasts from the BBC Proms and interviewing many of the world’s finest musicians. As a double bass player, Sandy has performed, toured and recorded with many of the finest musicians, artists and ensembles from Britain and beyond. He is the regular bass player for Blue Harlem, the Hep Chaps, the Tuxedo Jazz Orchestra and for the American singer/songwriter Gerard Kenny; he has a Sunday residency at Le Caprice in London’s West End, appears regularly at Ronnie Scott’s, and in 2016 his playing was featured in the National Theatre’s acclaimed revival of August Wilson’s play based around black American music-making in the 1920s, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom. Sandy says: “I can’t wait to lead this ACE Cultural Tours trip to the city where jazz began. Always a tricky term to define, jazz reflects a synthesis of various musical influences, and I’m looking forward to exploring both the heritage of this wonderful art form and hearing how it has evolved into the living, breathing form of entertainment that it is today. Jazz isn’t just historical – its style has always had something of the contemporary about it; and the same applies to Memphis, one of the first areas of the United States where black and white musicians could perform and record freely. Radio was king in 1950s Memphis, and it was the experience of growing up listening to bluegrass, country and western, rhythm and blues and gospel that shaped Elvis Presley into the legend he later became.”

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

Oak Alley plantation Graceland, the Stax Museum of American Soul Music and the legendary Beale Street – all against the backdrop of profound social change, illuminated by a visit to the National Civil Rights Museum. Late evenings are balanced by several leisurely mornings and free time to explore our surroundings independently, providing ample opportunities to sample the region’s world famous Creole and Cajun cuisine. We will stay in hotels of four or five-star quality in New Orleans and Memphis,

and comfortable hotels in Natchez and Clarksdale; more details will be released in spring 2019. Please note that the music featured on this tour may be adjusted once the full schedules for each venue are released. To enhance the tour experience, some itinerary details may be subject to change at the discretion of the Tour Director once our inaugural departure has returned in April 2019.

ITINERARY Day 1 Depart London Heathrow 1410 on British Airways, arriving New Orleans 1920. Transfer to the French Quarter, New Orleans, for six nights. Day 2 Introductory lecture followed by morning orientation walk of New Orleans including Jackson Square, St Louis Cathedral (founded in the 18th century) and Louis Armstrong Park. Free afternoon. Dinner at the Palm Court Jazz Café (live jazz in historical French Quarter surroundings). Day 3 Morning lecture followed by walking tour in the French Quarter (architecture reflecting Spanish colonial influences). Evening: late-night live music at Preservation Hall. Day 4 Free morning followed by afternoon excursion to Oak Alley Plantation (National Historic Landmark, named for its avenue of southern live oak trees) for guided tour. Evening: live music at the Jazz Playhouse, Royal Sonesta Hotel. Day 5 Daytime: Bayou riverboat excursion. Evening: dinner and live music at Snug Harbor (popular venue located behind a renovated 1800s storefront). Day 6 Morning: private jazz workshop with Tour Director and fellow musicians. Afternoon: New Orleans Museum of Art and sculpture garden. Day 7 Transfer to Natchez via Baton Rouge for Museum of Rural Life (artefacts and dwellings from 18th-19th century Louisiana) and St Francisville. Overnight in Natchez. Day 8 Transfer to Clarksdale via Vicksburg Civil War site (short guided tour), Leland (Highway 61 Blues Museum) and Dockery

Farms (cotton plantation, believed to be a major centre for the development of Delta blues). Continue to Clarksdale (site of the legendary ‘Devil’s Crossroads’) for overnight. Evening: live music at Ground Zero Blues Club. Day 9 Transfer to Memphis for visit to Graceland (mansion owned by Elvis Presley) and then continue to Memphis for two nights. Free evening. Day 10 Morning lecture followed by visits to National Civil Rights Museum and Stax Museum of American Soul Music. Farewell dinner and live music on Beale Street (Itta Bena and BB King’s). Day 11 Transfer to Memphis Airport for 1714 departure via Dallas Fort Worth. Day 12 Arrive Heathrow 1300.

Cost of £4765 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, breakfast, one lunch, seven dinners with water & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities for group services. Not included: ESTA, travel insurance, double room for single use supplement £780. TOUR CODE: NOME20 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

GREECE

ATHENS, DELPHI & THE PELOPONNESE APRIL 6–16, 2020

• Explore Greece’s classical archaeology, taking in ancient temples, palaces and fortresses Visit Delphi, located in striking surroundings beneath Mount Parnassus Discover the Acropolis of Athens and the Acropolis Museum, containing the enchanting caryatid sculptures

• •

ur journey across the Peloponnese embraces some of the most evocative names from ancient Greece: Olympia, birthplace of the Olympic Games; Mycenae, from where Agamemnon went to war against Troy; and, soaring above the Gulf of Corinth, Delphi, the ‘centre of the world’. Beginning at the Acropolis Museum in Athens we explore fascinating finds from over two thousand years of history, including the mesmerising caryatid statues, followed by a visit to the impressive Parthenon Gallery. Our visit to the Acropolis itself will take in the Propylaia – the monumental gateway – together with the Parthenon and the Erechtheion. The wealth of Corinth is epitomised by the Doric Temple of Apollo and the magnificent buildings of the Roman forum. In the sanctuary at Epidaurus, the most celebrated healing centre of the ancient world, we will experience the sanctuary of Asklepios, god of healing; the striking tholos; and the well-preserved theatre, renowned for its harmonious proportions and wonderful acoustics. Other visits include the Bronze Age site of Tiryns, a UNESCO World Heritage site and home to an evocative fortress, and Argos, one of the world’s oldest continuously inhabited cities. The astonishing Lion Gate at Mycenae is where, tracing the footsteps of Heinrich This tour will be led by Andrew Wilson, BA, BD, FSAScot, who studied archaeology then theology before working overseas as an archaeologist, specialising in Roman frontier systems and Byzantine mosaics. A member of the Society for Libyan Studies and the Society for the Promotion of Byzantine Studies, Andrew has led many tours for ACE in the GrecoRoman world as well as several in Britain, with a particular emphasis on the archaeology of his native Scotland.

Sanctuary of Athena, Delphi Schliemann, we will view the grave circle and the palace megaron. We will also explore Mystras, near Sparta, a former Frankish outpost, including the Palace of Despots, a rare example of Byzantine civic architecture, and numerous churches adorned with 14th and 15th century frescoes. The spectacular sanctuaries of Olympia and Delphi will certainly form highlights

of the tour, both sites holding central positions in the religious world of ancient Greece. The Archaeological Museum at Delphi holds some of the most magnificent artefacts from the Mediterranean world, including the bronze Charioteer of Delphi and the stone omphalos, or, ‘naval of the world’. We will stay throughout in hotels of three and four-star quality.

ITINERARY Day 1 Depart London Heathrow 0855, arriving Athens 1435. Transfer to Hotel Herodion for two nights. Welcome and introductory talk. Day 2 Whole day on foot visiting the Acropolis: Propylaia, Parthenon and Erechtheion. Afternoon: visits to the Agora and Acropolis Museum (Parthenon sculptures, Peplos Kore and caryatids). Evening talk: Athenian Religion.

Day 8 Messini (magnificent circuit of 4th century BC walls, sanctuary of Asklepios and stadium) then continue to Olympia for two nights at Hotel Olympion Asty. Evening talk: The Olympic Games. Day 9 Ancient Olympia (home of the Olympic Games): palaestra, Temple of Zeus, Temple of Hera, stadium, Archaeological Museum of Olympia. Some free time. Evening talk: The Oracle at Delphi.

Day 3 Morning: National Archaeological Museum. Depart for Nafplion visiting ancient Corinth (forum, Temple of Apollo, Archaeological Museum, South Stoa) en route. Transfer to Hotel Amalia, Nafplion, for three nights. Evening talk: Greek Theatre.

Day 10 Via Rio-Antirrio bridge to Delphi. Medieval port of Nafpaktos (Lepanto) and visits in Delphi: temples of Athena and Apollo, gymnasium, theatre and Archaeological Museum of Delphi. Overnight stay at Hotel Amalia Delphi.

Day 4 Epidaurus (theatre with its remarkable acoustics, sanctuary of Asklepios). Return to Nafplion for short walking tour of the town followed by visit to Palamidi fortress (time permitting). Evening talk: Homer and the Mycenaean Age.

Day 11 Further visits in Delphi (time permitting). Depart Athens 1830, arriving Heathrow 2035.

Day 5 Visit to Tiryns (Mycenaean fortress with cyclopean walls) followed by Argos (agora, bath complex, theatre). Continue to ancient Mycenae: Treasury of Atreus (beehive tomb), Lion Gate, grave circle, palace megaron and museum. Evening talk: The Byzantine Church. Day 6 Mystras: Palace of Despots, beautifully situated churches with 14th and 15th century frescoes. Continue to Pylos for two nights at Hotel Philip. Evening talk: Navarino Bay. Day 7 Nestor’s Palace at Pylos and Ottoman Neokastro fortress (dramatic views over Navarino Bay). Free afternoon in Pylos.

Cost of £2745 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, breakfast, dinner with wine, water & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: travel insurance, single room supplement £465. TOUR CODE: PELO20 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

GREECE

CRETE: BIRDS, FLOWERS & MINOANS APRIL 14–21, 2020

• Absorb captivating views across the

Cretan landscape from the beautiful Lassithi Plateau Explore the Minoan palace at Knossos in addition to the remains at Gournia and Malia Look out for waders, migrant pipits and larks in the coastal town of Elounda, followed by a nearby cliff walk where wild gladioli and endemic orchids grow above the sea

• •

ts mountains and gorges alive with wildlife, Crete possesses a magical quality that entrances every visitor. One of the most exceptional botanical areas in the Mediterranean, Crete boasts a superb flora containing at least 160 endemic species, including ebony, rock lettuce and birthwort. Myriad orchids grace archaeological sites, and fields sparkle with wild gladioli and irises. Crete is also well known for its fauna, from the kri-kri – the wild ancestor of the domestic goat – to the rare bearded vulture that haunts the island’s mountain passes. During our walks across the Cretan landscape we will enjoy breathtaking views, particularly at the Lassithi Plateau, a fertile mountain expanse where raptors glide in the valley below. At the head of the precipitous Samaria Gorge, where centuriesold cypresses stand sentinel, we will seek out mountain plants such as aubretia and yellow Star-of-Bethlehem.

Kri-kri

Tour Director Kevin Hand, MSc, MCIEEM, is a conservationist and environmental consultant with a special interest in birds, mammals and ecotourism. He has led many projects linking nature and communities, and recently led a team providing access to the British countryside for hard to reach groups. Kevin is currently leading a project on eagles, vultures and other wildlife in Albania. In April 2017 he was appointed President of the Cambridge Natural History Society. Although the emphasis of our programme will be on flowers and birds, there will also be a guided tour of the famous Minoan site of Knossos and

ITINERARY Day 1 Depart London Gatwick 0710 on Easyjet, arriving Heraklion 1310. Transfer to Agios Nikolaos for five nights at Hotel Miramare.

transfer for two nights at Neos Omalos Hotel in mountains of western Crete.

Day 2 Morning lecture followed by coastal town of Elounda (waders, migrant pipits, larks in former salt-pans) and peninsula of Spinalonga (sunken city of Olous) for cliff walk (wild gladioli, endemic orchids, birds of prey) followed by boat trip to Venetian island fortress of Spinalonga.

Day 7 Across Omalos plateau to Samaria Gorge, exploring littleknown paths, searching for mountain plants (endemic Cretan tulip, aubretia, yellow Star-of-Bethlehem, centuries-old cypresses), with possible sightings of bearded vulture and agrimi (wild goat).

Day 3 Minoan Palace of Malia (marsh shore with short turf covered in Cretan camomile and catch fly). Afternoon visit to the famous Minoan Palace at Knossos.   Day 4 Lassithi Plateau (large, fertile mountain plateau with panoramic views) for orchids, upland plants, fruit groves with optional visit to Dhiktean Cave (birthplace of Zeus). Day 5 Morning: ruins of Gournia (unusual Minoan town), rocky coastline in search of Cretan ebony. Afternoon: gigantic gorge mouth at Monastiraki (chough, Alpine swift). Bory’s Orchid

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

visits to the smaller remains at Gournia and Malia. The majestic Selinari Gorge, meanwhile, offers opportunities to visit an old chapel and newly founded monastery. Our tour to Crete coincides with Orthodox Easter, and we will take in local events and celebrations on the Friday, Saturday and Sunday of our stay. Our first five nights are spent at the Hotel Miramare, a small hotel close to the sea near Agios Nikolaos. In Omalos we stay at the Neos Omalos, a mountain resort hotel. Please note that while we will endeavour to deliver the below itinerary in full, some elements may be adjusted nearer the time owing to changing local conditions.

Day 6 Selinari Gorge (chapel, monastery and vulture colony), Rethymnon, Agia Lake (waders and migrant water-birds) then

Day 8 Depart Chania 1435, arriving Gatwick 1635. Cost of £1995 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, breakfast, dinner with wine, water & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: travel insurance, single room supplement £155. TOUR CODE: CRET20 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

ALBANIA

ALBANIA: FROM THE ILLYRIANS TO THE OTTOMANS APRIL 22 – MAY 1, 2020

• Travel the length of this mountainous country, discovering layers of historical wonders left behind by Illyrians and Greeks, Romans and Ottomans Explore the complex of Apollonia, once home to a famous school of oratory, and discover Virgil’s ‘Troy in miniature’ at Butrint Delve into the extensive archaeological remains at Antigonea, founded by King Pyrrhus of Epirus in honour of his wife

• •

aturally stunning, spanned by majestic mountains and dazzling coastlines, Albania is home to some of Europe’s most remarkable archaeological treasures. Warmed by the gentle sun of a Mediterranean spring, we will take a voyage into Albania’s absorbing heritage and discover its place in the annals of European history. Our journey begins in the bustling port city of Durrës. This multi-layered centre began life as a Greek colony known as Epidamnos, and its walls have since witnessed centuries of Albanian history. Durrës is also our base for an excursion north. Originally an Illyrian settlement, Shkodër is one of Albania’s oldest towns, and played an important part in the resistance to the Ottoman invasion. Moving south, we will journey on to Krujë, the city of George Kastrioti, or Skanderbeg, Albania’s national hero. Dramatically located against a mountainous backdrop, Krujë also boasts layers of history. It is paired in the afternoon with a visit to the city of a thousand windows: Berat, which houses a partially inhabited citadel alongside Tour Director Carolyn Perry was Manager of the Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, UCL, and has worked as a museum consultant with public and private collections. She frequently lectures on various aspects of the ancient Mediterranean and Islamic world and is a regular contributor to the British Museum’s public programme. She also has experience as a practical archaeologist and is Chair of the British Foundation for the Study of Arabia.

Gjirokastër Castle the Byzantine Church of St Mary and the Onufri Museum, home to an absorbing collection of icons. Two further UNESCO-listed sites are included on our journey: Gjirokastër, originally an Illyrian settlement and now an impressively preserved Ottoman town dominated by its pre-12th century castle; and the ancient city of Buthrotum (Butrint), described by Virgil as ‘Troy in miniature’ and boasting remains from both Epirote and Roman times.

A scenic drive through the ‘Albanian Riviera’ takes us via the intriguing castle at Porto Palermo to Fier. From here we make our final excursions to the ancient site of Apollonia, and to the Monastery of Ardenica. We stay throughout in comfortable hotels of three and four-star quality. Please note the below itinerary is a guide to what we hope to offer, and some details may be subject to adjustment.

ITINERARY Day 1 Depart London Gatwick 1650, arriving Tirana 2045. Transfer to Durrës for three nights. Day 2 Morning lecture: An Introduction to Albania and the Illyrians. Morning walking tour of Durrës, including forum and amphitheatre. Afternoon: archaeological museum. Day 3 Lezhë followed by Rozafa Castle and Shkodër. Evening lecture: Skanderbeg followed by free evening. Day 4 Morning visits in Krujë including Skanderbeg Museum, ethnographic museum and Ottoman bazaar. Afternoon in Berat including citadel, Church of St Mary and Onufri Museum (time permitting). Overnight in Berat. Day 5 Morning visits in Berat including Mangalemi quarters and Gorica Bridge, followed by archaeological site at Byllis. Continue to Gjirokaster for visits to castle and ethnographic museum. Overnight in Gjirokaster. Day 6 Antigonea followed by ‘Blue Eye’ cold water spring. Continue to Saranda for two nights. Evening lecture: The Greeks & Romans in Illyria. Day 7 Morning in Butrint: 4th century BC walls, sanctuary to Asklepios, theatre. Afternoon: Ksamil followed by free time in Saranda. Evening lecture: From the Byzantines to the Ottomans followed by free evening.

Day 8 Scenic drive through ‘Albanian Riviera’ to Porto Palermo Castle. Continue to Vlora for afternoon visits: Mosque of Sinan, Independence Square. Transfer to Fier for overnight stay. Evening lecture: The Long Road to Independence. Day 9 Morning: Apollonia Archaeological Park. Afternoon: Monastery of Ardenica. Continue to Tirana for overnight stay. Evening farewell lecture. Day 10 Morning visits in Tirana (time permitting) including Skanderbeg Square and National Museum of History. Depart Tirana 1300, arriving London Gatwick 1510. Cost of £2275 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, eight lunches (some packed), refreshments on arrival, six dinners with water, wine or beer & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: travel insurance, single room supplement £165. TOUR CODE: ALBN20 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

UNITED KINGDOM

CORNWALL: ST IVES & THE NEWLYN SCHOOL OF PAINTERS APRIL 27 – MAY 2, 2020

• Discover the works of the Newlyn

School, who were enchanted by Cornwall in the late 19th century Visit Tate St Ives, reopened in 2017 following a four-year refurbishment and extension Enjoy an afternoon at the romantically named and justly famous Lost Gardens of Heligan, rescued after decades of neglect

• •

he beauty of the countryside, the drama of the sea and the quality of the light attracted a succession of artists to the Cornish fishing towns of St Ives and Newlyn in the late 19th century. The painters (known as the Newlyn School), led by Stanhope Forbes, subscribed to the Impressionist doctrine of painting en plein air, with a particular emphasis on rural scenes and the life of local fishermen. Penlee House Gallery and Museum houses a large collection of paintings by the Newlyn School. In Truro, a predominantly Georgian town, we will visit John Loughborough Pearson’s controversial neo-Gothic cathedral, and tour the Royal Cornwall Museum, home to Cornish paintings by followers of the Newlyn School. Reopened in 2017 after a £20 million transformation, Tate St Ives hosts a rich collection of modern art in its dramatic seafront galleries, including pottery and stoneware by Bernard Leach and marine paintings by local artist Alfred Wallis. Barbara Hepworth is also represented at Tate St Ives: the tranquil garden that adjoins the house and studio where she lived from 1949 to 1975 provides the perfect setting for her sculptures.

Study for Breadwinners by Walter Langley

This tour will be led by Sarah Burles, MA, who studied History of Art at Cambridge University before going on to a career in museum and gallery education. This included 12 years at the Fitzwilliam Museum as well as work in other Cambridge museums, and Sarah has recently worked on the St Ives artists and their links to Kettle’s Yard. She is looking forward to running this popular ACE tour again in 2020.

By contrast, Pencarrow is an intimate Georgian country house begun by the prosperous banker Sir John Molesworth,

Day 1 Tour assembles 1730 at The Alverton Hotel, Truro for five nights. Evening lecture.

Hepworth Museum (bronze, stone and wood sculptures, paintings, drawings and archive material).

Day 2 Truro: neo-Gothic cathedral, Royal Cornwall Museum (Cornish art including the Newlyn School), Lost Gardens of Heligan (giant Himalayan rhododendrons, bamboos, ferns, palms).

Day 6 Tour disperses after breakfast.

Day 4 Morning: Newlyn (Cornwall’s largest fishing port) followed by Penzance for Penlee House Gallery and Museum. Afternoon: by ferry from Marazion to St Michael’s Mount (castle with fine collections of period furniture, paintings and portrait miniatures).

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

Please note that this tour requires a good level of fitness, and the visit to St Michael’s Mount involves travel by boat and a steep walk.

ITINERARY

Day 3 Morning: Lanhydrock (19th century stately home with wooded parkland bordering the River Fowey). Afternoon: Pencarrow (Georgian country house, exquisite furniture and carpets).

Truro harbour and cathedral

who was painted by Sir Joshua Reynolds. Further highlights of our tour will include visits to St Michael’s Mount and the 19th century country house at Lanhydrock. We will stay throughout at the four-star Alverton Hotel in Truro, with elegant and comfortable rooms housed in a Grade II listed building.

Day 5 St Ives: Bernard Leach Pottery, Tate St Ives (including works by Patrick Heron, Alfred Wallis and Naum Gabo) and Barbara

Cost of £1325 includes: accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, breakfast, dinner with water & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: travel insurance, double room for single use supplement £275, single room supplement £195. TOUR CODE: SINP20 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

UNITED KINGDOM

ISLES OF SCILLY MAY 12–19, 2020

• Explore the botanical and

ornithological highlights of the tranquil Isles of Scilly in the company of expert ecologists Visit the famous sub-tropical gardens of Tresco, home to a rich diversity of exotic plants Take in archaeological sites, wetland birdlife and maritime-influenced vegetation

• •

ore peaceful and relaxed than mainland Britain, Scilly embraces five inhabited islands and dozens of rocky outcrops, rich in sea birds. The archipelago’s location and singular maritime micro-climate endows this Atlantic haven with great botanical and ornithological interest; with over 350 days of the year warm enough for plant growth, flora from the Canaries, South Africa, South America, Australia and New Zealand flourish across the islands, and a unique list of migratory birds find a feeding refuge on the last outpost of south western Britain. We will take in the islands’ spring highlights, with a particular focus upon their flora, in the company of ecologists Peter Exley and Diana Ward. On coastal This tour will be led by Peter Exley, BSc, and Diana Ward, MSc, CBiol, MCIEEM. Peter is an ecologist and ornithologist who works for the RSPB, and has previously held posts with BirdLife International and the Albatross Task Force in South Africa. Diana is an ecologist and wildlife specialist: her company, Ward Ecology Ltd, carried out ecological assessment work, and she has worked for many years on Sites of Special Scientific Interest and river restoration projects.

Porthcressa beach, St Mary’s

paths and nature trails, we will discover the exotic vegetation that makes these islands the subject of such great botanical interest. A particular highlight will be Bryher, the smallest community on the Isles of Scilly: the west and north coasts are wild and rugged with superb coastal vegetation and wind-pruned ‘waves’ of heather; the east, sheltered and mild, flourishes with exotic vegetation. We stay at the three-star St Mary’s Hall Hotel on St Mary’s, an elegant townhouse originally built for an Italian noble family. Please note the itinerary below represents a guide to what we hope to offer, and will be flexible to allow for tides, weather conditions and local reports of bird arrivals. Travel to and from St Mary’s is not included in the cost of this tour. Participants must be able to walk for a minimum of four miles over uneven ground, and a good level of fitness is required for this tour.

ITINERARY Day 1 Assemble 1800 at St Mary’s Hall Hotel and check in for seven nights. Welcome and introduction. Day 2 By ferry across St Mary’s Sound to St Agnes (superb maritime heath) and Gugh (spectacular coastline walks). Day 3 Walk (wetland birdlife and coastal vegetation) to Bant’s Carn (Bronze Age burial chamber), Halangy Down (Iron Age settlement), Holy Vale, Higher Moors, Porth Hellick Down (Bronze Age grave and burial chamber). Return along coastal path over Salakee Down to Old Town and church. Day 4 By charter boat to Western Rocks (seals, coastal birds) and Samson (largest of uninhabited isles with abandoned village) – sea and weather conditions permitting. Day 5 By ferry to Bryher: superb coastal vegetation (search for rare dwarf pansies) and heather moorland on Shipman Head Down with visits to prehistoric entrance graves and promontory fort. Day 6 Morning: excursion by ferry to Tresco Abbey Garden (subtropical gardens). Afternoon free in St Mary’s or optional walk on Castle Down, Tresco. Day 7 By charter boat to Eastern Isles (cobble bars linking small isles, undisturbed coastal and heath vegetation, seals, birds) with visit (sea conditions dependent) to island of St Helen’s: remains of St Elid’s hermitage (8th century chapel), 18th century Pest House. Day 8 Tour disperses after breakfast. Cost of £1995 includes: accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, breakfast, dinner with water & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: return travel, travel insurance, double room for single use supplement £145. TOUR CODE: ISCY20

Razorbill

BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

UNITED KINGDOM

CHURCHES OF NORFOLK: AN APPOINTMENT WITH ANGELS MAY 19–22, 2020

• View the remarkable ‘Danse Macabre’

“A well-paced tour with constant delights in unlikely places”

panels of a surviving medieval rood screen, at St Mary in Sparham St Botolph’s in Trunch offers a beautiful 15th century hammerbeam roof alongside fine medieval misericords and a stunning font canopy Appreciate the stained glass at Bale alongside fascinating murals at Wickhampton and Hemblington

“Very enjoyable, well organised, excellent lectures and accommodation”

•

“Imogen was excellent. Knowledgeable in depth and breadth” – ACE customers on previous Churches of Norfolk tours

•

of the four churches which stood at the great harbour mouth of Blakeney Haven. Particular highlights will be those treasures that elucidate the rich pre-Reformation sacramental life of England’s parish churches, such as the splendid rood screens at Cawston and at Ranworth, where the 26 painted saints panels represent one of the great survivals of English medieval art. We stay throughout at the historical four-star Maids Head Hotel in the centre of Norwich.

round one thousand medieval churches once stood in Norfolk, and over six hundred and fifty remain – the largest concentration anywhere in the world. Rising above the gently rolling landscape, they survive from the time when East Anglia was the economic heartland of late medieval England, prospering from the wool trade, the wealth of its great landed families, and its thriving coastal port. John Betjeman famously mused that “lovers of Norfolk churches can never agree which is the best and I think one is either a Salle or a Cawston man”. These churches represent two of Norfolk’s most spectacularly vast church buildings, but our exploration of the religious architecture, art and iconography of the Middle Ages will also encompass some smaller and lesser-known examples, many housing unexpected treasures. We shall delve into the various media for church art, from misericords and woodcarving to wonderful stained glass at Bale, and fascinating murals at Wickhampton and Hemblington. St Botolph’s in Trunch presents a stunning collection of features from its beautiful 15th century hammerbeam roof to its Tour Director Imogen Corrigan, BA, is a medieval historian. Following almost 20 years in the army, from which she retired in the rank of Major, Imogen obtained a first-class degree in Anglo-Saxon and Medieval History from the University of Kent and has been studying and lecturing ever since. She is currently pursuing further research with the University of Birmingham. Imogen’s new book, Stone on Stone: The Men who Built the Cathedrals, was released in 2019.

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

Norwich Cathedral

superb oak font canopy, one of only four of its kind in England. Also included will be the much-maligned doodling of the medieval graffiti artist, as seen at St Margaret’s in Cley, the grandest

Please note that on this tour, some of the sites visited will contain uneven flooring, steps, ramps and dimly lit interiors. Our hotel, the Maids Head, is one of the oldest and most characterful in Norwich. Accordingly, it does contain some areas of uneven flooring as well as several staircases, although some of the rooms are accessible by lift.

ITINERARY Day 1 Assemble 1330 at the Maids Head Hotel, Norwich, for three nights. Welcome followed by free time to visit Norwich Cathedral including an introduction to the cloisters. Evening lecture: The Signs of the Times. Day 2 St Peter and St Paul’s Church, Knapton (extraordinary doublehammerbeam roof, rafters filled with angels); St Botolph’s Church, Trunch (14th century chancel, fine medieval misericords and stunning oak font canopy); Holt; St Margaret’s Church, Cley (medieval ship graffiti); All Saints’ Church, Bale (superb stained glass). Day 3 Morning lecture: The Dregs of the People Remain – Black Death and its Aftermath. All Saints’ Church, Weston Longville (mural and Apostles’ Creed screen); All Saints’ Church, Mattishall (beautiful 15th century painted rood screen dado); St Mary’s Church, Sparham (remarkable surviving ‘Danse Macabre’ rood screen portion); St Peter and St Paul’s Church, Salle (magnificent wool church); St Agnes’s Church, Cawston (fine 15th century rood screen).

Day 4 All Saints’ Church, Hemblington (best surviving mural of St Christopher); St Helen’s Church, Ranworth (exquisite screen); St Edmund’s Church, Acle (plague inscription); St Andrew’s Church, Wickhampton (14th century murals). Tour disperses 1530 at Norwich Station followed by 1545 at hotel. Cost of £875 includes: accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, breakfast, dinner with water & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: travel insurance, double room for single use supplement £150. TOUR CODE: CHN120 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

JAPAN

W E S T JAPAN & THE I NLAND SEA: ART & PIL GRIMA G E NOVEMBER 1–14, 2020

Himeji Castle

• Visit the UNESCO-designated

Itsukushima Shrine on Miyajama Island, admiring its floating gate and the hundreds of wild deer that roam the area Journey to the tiny Chikubishima Island in the middle of Japan’s largest freshwater lake, one of the three main sites in Japan where Benzaiten, goddess of knowledge, is worshipped Cross the Inland Sea to Naoshima, the internationally famous ‘art island’

•

his brand new tour will focus on art in Japan from pre-modern to contemporary times, particularly in relation to the country’s religious landscape. Visits to castles, hot spring towns, strolling gardens and the pottery village of Imbe will provide insights into the history and culture of this fascinating and beautiful region of coastal Japan. During visits to Buddhist temples and Shinto shrines, we will explore the combinatory practice and material culture of these two religious traditions, the effects of which can be seen in the present day. These are typified by the Zen-inspired architectural style of Tadao Ando on the art island of Naoshima, and the Buddhistinfluenced works of contemporary artist Koji Kinutani. Our tour begins in Kyoto, where we will explore Myoshin-ji Temple, founded as a palace for Emperor Hanazono and the headquarters of the largest sect of Rinzai Zen in Japan, as well as Horin-ji, a serene and little-known temple dedicated to Bodhidharma, the founder of Zen Buddhism. Mii-dera is the head temple of the Jimon sect of Tendai Buddhism. One of the four largest temple complexes in Japan, its main

hall is a designated National Treasure and former stronghold of the sohei ‘warrior monks’. We will journey by bullet train and coach to Shinsho-ji, a Zen monastic complex in forested environs combining seventeenth century temple buildings with modern architecture and Kohtei, a contemporary art installation. Within the grounds can be found an art museum housing one of Japan’s largest collections of works by Hakuin Ekaku, one of the most prolific Edo period Zen ink-painting artists. We will also have the opportunity to experience instruction in zazen meditation and have

Please note this tour will require a good level of fitness, as it includes a substantial amount of walking. A number of sites in our itinerary involve navigating series of steps as the only means of access, however these will be climbed at a relaxed pace. We will travel by private coach and public transport, including bullet trains and ferries. Please note that the keep of Matsuyama Castle is accessed via a skistyle chairlift.

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

JAPAN a lunch of udon noodles in a monastic setting. We will explore more recent history with a visit to the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park, marking the hypocentre of the atomic bomb of 1945, viewing memorials and the museum. From Hiroshima we will visit the sacred island of Miyajima, visiting the Itsukushima Shrine and the ‘floating’ gate, one of the ‘three great views of Japan’ surrounded by roaming deer, as well as the Daisho-in Temple, dedicated to a plethora of esoteric deities. Through visits to Konpira-san, a shrine dedicated to the god of seafaring, and Zenstu-ji, birthplace of Kukai – the founder of the esoteric Shingon school of Buddhism – we will explore the practice of pilgrimage in Japan from the Edo period to the present day. Our tour continues to Takamatsu, home to Ritsurin-koen, one of the most famous historical strolling gardens in Japan, with tea-houses scattered around the grounds. We will also visit Kanamaruza, one of the oldest surviving kabuki theatres in Japan, enjoying a backstage tour to learn more about this classical Japanese dance-drama. A day excursion to Naoshima, the ‘art island’, will include visits to the world famous Benesse House Museum, featuring contemporary art by Japanese and international artists, and the subterranean Chichu Museum, housing works by Monet, Walter De Maria and James Turrell. Architect Tadao Ando designed both museums.

Itsukushima Floating Torii Gate

Further highlights of our tour will include a visit to Kurashiki, with its historical ‘Bikan’ quarter containing beautifully preserved Edo period buildings surrounding the willow-lined canal, and to Imbe, the locus of Bizen-ware pottery and one of the ‘six ancient kilns of Japan’. Here, we will see traditional and contemporary

examples of local ash-glazed ceramics, and visit one of the area’s kilns to learn about the production of Bizen-ware. While we will endeavour to deliver the below itinerary in full, some details may be subject to confirmation. Please note that participants’ luggage will be forwarded separately on some occasions.

ITINERARY Day 1 Depart London Heathrow 1330 on British Airways. Day 2 Arrive Kansai International 1000 and transfer by coach to Kyoto for three nights. Free time followed by introductory lecture: Kyoto – The Heartland of Japanese Culture. Day 3 Morning: Myoshin-ji Temple (Taizo-in subtemple with 20th century pond garden) and Horin-ji (Daruma-dera). Afternoon: Nijojo (UNESCO World Heritage site and palatial Kyoto residence of the Tokugawa shoguns during the Edo period). Day 4 Excursion by coach and boat to Chikubushima on Lake Biwa. Continue to Otsu city via Umikidi ‘floating’ temple hall at Mangetsu-ji (time permitting). Afternoon: Mii-dera (head temple of the Jimon sect of Tendai Buddhism) and Otsu-e no Mise (the only shop still producing Otsu-e, a simple style of Edo period folk art featuring comical demons). Evening lecture: Japanese Buddhist Art – From A to Zen followed by free evening. Day 5 By bullet train to Fukuyama and coach to Shinsho-ji (temple buildings and art museum – visit subject to confirmation). Afternoon: continue by coach to Hiroshima for two nights. Evening visit to Okonomi-mura to taste Hiroshima’s most famous dish, Okonomivaki. Day 6 Morning excursion by train and ferry to Miyajima (sacred island off the coast of Hiroshima) for visits to Itsukushima Shrine and Daisho-in Temple and some free time. Afternoon: Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park and Peace Memorial Museum. Free evening. Day 7 By coach and superjet ferry to Matsuyama for Dogo Onsen

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

(opportunity to experience one of the oldest hot springs in Japan housed in a Meiji Period building – please note there are some restoration works ongoing but baths will still be accessible). Afternoon: Matsuyama Castle (one of only 12 castles in Japan remaining from the Edo period). Evening lecture: Going Around – The History & Practice of Pilgrimage in Japan. Overnight in Matsuyama. Day 8 Morning: Zentsu-ji (one of the most important temples on the Shikoku 88-temple pilgrimage route). Continue to Kotohira (pilgrimage town) for afternoon visit to Kanamaruza (backstage tour of the kabuki theatre) followed by optional ascent of Konpirasan (785 steps to the Kotohira-gu shrine complex enshrining the Shinto god of seafaring – a fascinating example of the pre-modern combinatory practice of Shinto and Buddhism). Continue to Takamatsu for three nights. Day 9 Visits in Takamatsu: Ritsurin-koen (famous historical strolling gardens with tea-houses in the grounds), Yashima (site of a famous battle between the Minamoto and Taira clans in the 12th century), Yashima-ji (one of the 88 Shikoku pilgrimage temples). Afternoon: Shikoku-Mura (open air museum with traditional buildings). Day 10 Whole day excursion by coach and ferry to Naoshima for visits to Benesse House Museum (contemporary art) and Chichu Museum (Monet, Walter De Maria and James Turrell) and Art House Project properties (contemporary art installations – time permitting). Free evening.

Day 11 Kurashiki: ‘Bikan’ historical quarter, Ohara Museum (Japan’s first museum of Western art featuring works by Picasso, Gauguin, Rodin and Kandinsky) and some free time. Afternoon: Korakuen (regarded as one of Japan’s three best landscape gardens). Three nights in Okayama. Day 12 Excursion by train to Imbe (Bizen Pottery Museum and visit to kiln), Amatsu Shrine. Day 13 Morning: Himeji Castle (widely regarded as the finest castle in Japan, said to resemble a white egret in flight) with opportunity to visit the adjacent Koko-en (nine small interconnected gardens of different styles, built in the late 20th century). Afternoon: Koji Kinutani Tenku Art Museum (opened in 2016, showcasing mix of Western and Japanese influences on contemporary Kansai region artist Kinutani Koji). Day 14 Transfer to Kansai International for 1130 departure, arriving Heathrow 1550.

Full details, including the cost, will be released later in 2019. Please contact the ACE office now to register your interest. TOUR CODE: WJIS20 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

GREECE

CYCLADES: ANCIENT ISLANDS OF THE AEGEAN MAY 20–30, 2020

• Sail to six of the ancient Cycladic

islands on this tour through the Aegean: Tinos, Paros, Naxos, Delos, Mykonos and Santorini Tread the paths of ancient towns made famous in Greek mythology and discover their wealth of Mycenaean, classical and Byzantine archaeological remains Highlights include Delos, a UNESCO World Heritage site boasting exceptionally extensive archaeological remains, and the ruined Bronze Age city of Akrotiri, preserved under volcanic ash

•

he Cycladic Islands, scattered across the Aegean south-east of Athens, are the timeless repository of countless myths. Over the course of our tour we sail to six of these ancient islands, taking a broad approach as we immerse ourselves in the history and character of this special region. Today the Cyclades, inhabited since Neolithic times, preserve numerous Mycenaean and classical remains, Byzantine castles and Venetian fortifications – not to mention a series of beautiful churches, such as Tinos’s Panagia Evangelistria – one of Greece’s most important pilgrimage destinations. As much of the travel on this tour involves ferries, participants should be comfortable wheeling luggage up boarding ramps. Some of the archaeological visits will require a good level of fitness as we will be walking over uneven ground. At Delos, there will be an optional short ascent up a steep and poorly maintained pathway to visit the upper part of the island’s impressive remains.

This tour will be led by Andrew Wilson, BA, BD, FSAScot, who studied archaeology then theology before working overseas as an archaeologist, specialising in Roman frontier systems and Byzantine mosaics. Andrew has led many tours for ACE in the Greco-Roman world.

Apollo Temple, Naxos Delos, the sacred centre of the Cyclades, once attracted pilgrims from all over Greece, and its wealth is reflected in the grandeur of its extensive archaeological remains. The history of Naxos, the largest and most fertile of the Cyclades, stretches back to 2700 BC. Paros’s elegant Byzantine cathedral, Panagia Ekatontapiliani, is one of Greece’s most important Christian monuments, and the Archaeological Museum shelters a fragment of the famous marble Parian Chronicle.

The volcanic landscape of Santorini, with its immense crater, is a wonder to behold, and the picturesque town of Oia offers stunning views over the caldera. We stay throughout in hotels of three and four-star quality. Please note that while we will endeavour to deliver the below itinerary in full, precise arrangements are dependent on ferry schedules which are influenced by weather conditions, and therefore some elements may be subject to change.

ITINERARY Day 1 Depart Gatwick 0800 on Easyjet, arriving Mykonos 1350. Depart by boat for two nights on Tinos. Welcome and introduction.

Day 8 Further visits in Naxos: Venetian Quarter, museums and Catholic Cathedral. Some free time.

Day 2 Whole day in Tinos: 4th century BC Temple of Poseidon at Kionia, Archaeological Museum and marble Church of Panagia Evangelistria, Pyrgos and Volax. Evening talk: Greek Religion.

Day 9 Morning: Sanctuary of Dionysus at Yria, followed by Sanctuary of Demeter at Giroula. Afternoon: transfer by ferry to Santorini for two nights. Some free time to explore Fira, Santorini’s dramatic cliff-top capital. Evening talk: Atlantis.

Day 3 Sail to Paros for afternoon visits to typical Aegean villages of Prodromos and Lefkés. Evening talk: Cycladic Art. Two nights on Paros. Day 4 Visits by boat to small islands of Antiparos and Despotiko. Day 5 Morning in Parikia: Byzantine church of Panagia Ekatontapiliani, Archaeological Museum and Venetian Fortress. Depart by boat to Naxos for four nights on Naxos. Visits to Temple of Apollo and Grotta archaeological site. Evening talk: Delos. Day 6 Whole day cruise to Delos (birthplace of Apollo and Artemis): Sacred Harbour, Agora of the Competialists, Sacred Way, House of the Naxians, Avenue of the Lions; followed by Mykonos: handsome Cycladic architecture, chapels and churches. Day 7 Whole day in Naxos: 7th century Kouros statue at Melanes, Halki, tasting session at Kitro distillery, Panagia Drossiani monastery.

Day 10 Akrotiri, Panagia Episkopi and Museum of Prehistoric Thera. Afternoon in Oia. Day 11 Depart Santorini 1500, arriving Gatwick 1650. Cost of £2995 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, breakfast, dinner with wine, water & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: travel insurance, single room supplement £495. TOUR CODE: CYCL20 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

LATE AVAILABILITY

KARELIA & ARCHANGEL: ARCHITECTURE OF NORTHERN RUSSIA AUGUST 10–22, 2019

or centuries the far-flung lands of Karelia and Archangel served as a refuge for hermits who later established great monastic communities. Common to the whole area is an outstanding natural beauty, from the forest tracts of Archangel to the lakes and islands of Karelia. The city of Archangel was founded by Ivan the Terrible. Here, we will visit Gostinyi Dvor (Merchants’ Yard) and the Fine Arts Museum, and take in some of the city’s churches. We will also visit the open air Museum of Wooden Architecture at Malye Karely. Our journey through the Republic of Karelia will introduce participants to many

Arts, with its collection of 17th and 18th century icons. Accommodation will vary in standard from the traditional wooden construction of the Solovoki Hotel in the Solovetsky Islands to three and four-star hotels in Archangel and St Petersburg. Please see the ACE website for further information, please note that some details may be subject to change.

Kizhi Pogost Tour Director Alex Koller, PhD, is an expert in art history and architecture who has studied in Vienna, Salzburg and Cambridge. He has been leading tours since 1998, and his experience ranges from Eastern Europe, Russia and the Himalayas to Japan and southeast Asia.

unexpected communities, not least the ancient monastery on the island of Valaam and the old town of Sortavala on the shores of Lake Ladoga. We will also enjoy a visit to the Republic of Karelia’s Museum of Fine

Cost of £3785 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, breakfast, four lunches, dinner with water & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: visa, travel insurance, single room supplement £445, optional boat trip to Muksalma Island. TOUR CODE: KARE19 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

S WE DI S H PAL ACES & C ASTLES JULY 7–13, 2019

rom a base in Stockholm, this tour will explore Sweden’s rich collection of architectural delights, spanning the period from the 16th century through to the early 19th century. Highlights will include Gustav Vasa’s great moated castle of Gripsholm; the Skokloster, with its extraordinarily well-preserved 17th century interiors; the Baroque royal palace at Drottningholm, where we will also see the enchanting Chinese Palace and the celebrated court theatre; and the exquisite neoclassical interiors in Sweden’s own Gustavian style, particularly those at Gustav III’s Haga Pavilion and Tullgarn Palace. Our itinerary also includes a number of private visits, notably to Tureholm with its remarkable range of Baroque and Rococo interiors, and Elghammar, designed by Catherine the Great’s court

This tour will be led by Roger White, MA, FSA, architectural and garden historian, former secretary of the Georgian Group and Garden History Society.

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

Drottningholm Palace architect Quarenghi for a retired Swedish ambassador to St Petersburg. We will also spend time in the cathedral and university city of Uppsala, visiting the amazing ‘Kunstkabinett’ in the Gustavianum and the garden created by the great botanist Linnaeus. We stay throughout at the Victory Hotel, located on Gamla Stan. Please see the ACE website for further information, please note that some details may be subject to change.

Cost of £2545 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, breakfast, five lunches, four dinners with water & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: travel insurance, single room supplement £260, small double room for single use supplement £420. TOUR CODE: SWPC19 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

LATE AVAILABILITY

ANCIENT SICILY SEPTEMBER 16–25, 2019

entire Greek world, while the highlights of Syracuse include the vast Archaeological Park and the island of Ortygia. The Roman Villa del Casale at Piazza Armerina contains some of the finest mosaics in existence, with remarkable depictions of mythological figures and ancient life. We will stay in hotels of four-star standard throughout the tour. Please see the ACE website for further information, please note that some details may be subject to change.

ur circuit of historical Sicily, starting in the heart of Palermo, travels via Agrigento and Syracuse to Taormina – Goethe’s “patch of paradise”, characterised by idyllic coastal vistas. As well as absorbing the monumental magnificence of Sicily’s classical heritage, we will examine later cultural influences, from the extraordinary Arabo-Norman architecture of Palermo to the UNESCOlisted Norman-Byzantine cathedral of Monreale, built by William II. Palermo, like Monreale, reveals a fusion of Islamic, Byzantine, Norman and Romanesque traditions. The city’s

This tour will be led by Philip Kenrick, MA, DPhil, an archaeologist who read Classics at Balliol College, Oxford, where he also gained his doctorate. Philip has worked on excavations near Agrigento in Sicily, and on other sites in Italy, Turkey and Jordan. Philip is a specialist in Roman pottery and has written archaeological guidebooks on Libya and Algeria.

Amphitheatre at Taormina Palatine Chapel in the Palazzo dei Normanni is distinguished, above all, by its overwhelming Byzantine mosaics. The Temple of Olympian Zeus at Agrigento was amongst the largest in the

Cost of £2745 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, breakfast, two lunches, seven dinners with wine, water & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: travel insurance, double room for single use supplement £445. TOUR CODE: ANS219 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

B U LGARIAN M ONASTERI ES SEPTEMBER 23 – OCTOBER 7, 2019

arpeted in thick forest and studded with snow-capped peaks, Bulgaria’s natural landscape is only surpassed by the wealth of its cultural inheritance. Our circuit will include a number of UNESCO World Heritage sites, from the Madara Horseman, an 8th century rock relief carved into a towering cliff, to the 3rd century Thracian tomb of Sveshtari which boasts a fascinating collection of halfhuman, half-plant caryatids. Our cultural tour encompasses Bulgaria’s flamboyantly decorated monasteries, the symbolic strongholds of the nation’s values and traditions. Bachkovo, surrounded by the Rhodope Mountains, is distinguished by a two-storeyed ossuary adorned with

Alexander Nevsky cathedral in Sofia

This tour will be led by Alex Koller, PhD, lecturer in art history and architecture. Born in Vienna, Alex has lived and studied in Salzburg, Vienna and Cambridge and has travelled extensively in Bulgaria, developing his specialism in Slavonic studies.

intricate murals, unique in the entire eastern Orthodox world. Ivanovo is an extensive complex of rock-hewn churches, chapels, monasteries and cells first dug out by hermits in the 12th century. At the beginning and end of our tour we stay at the five-star Grand Hotel in Sofia’s city centre. Elsewhere we stay in hotels of three and four-star quality. Please see the ACE website for further information, please note that some details may be subject to change.

Cost of £2495 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, breakfast, four lunches, twelve dinners with water & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: travel insurance, single room supplement £295. TOUR CODE: BLGM19 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

LATE AVAILABILITY

CHURCHES & MONASTERIES OF ARMENIA & GEORGIA SEPTEMBER 7–20, 2019

oth Armenia and Georgia played important roles in trade and commerce between the Middle East and central Europe from medieval times onwards, and similarities in Byzantine and Islamic architectural forms will provoke the eye on this tour of their churches and monasteries. The cathedral at Svetitskhoveli, built in the 11th century, is reputed to be the burial site of Christ’s mantle, whilst the Byzantine monasteries of Haghpat and Sanahin in the Tumanian region represent the highest flowering of Armenian religious architecture. We will visit Jvari Church, a masterpiece of the early medieval period,

Yerevan’s Matenadaran Institute, one of the world’s finest museums of ancient manuscripts; and Lake Sevan, amongst the continent’s largest – and most impressive – mountain lakes. We stay at the best available hotels in Yerevan, Dilijan, Dzoraget, Tbilisi and Kazbegi. Please see the ACE website for further information, please note that some details may be subject to change.

Tbilisi at sunset This tour will be led by Alex Koller, PhD, expert in art history and architecture. Alex has lived and studied in Salzburg, Vienna and Cambridge. In addition to his interest in art history, Alex is a linguist, numbering German, French, Italian and Russian amongst his languages.

and the rock-hewn monastery of Geghard, encircled by towering cliffs at the entrance to the Azat Valley. Our itinerary also includes visits to the splendid icons in the treasury of Tbilisi;

Cost of £3365 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, breakfast, nine lunches, ten dinners with water, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: travel insurance, single room supplement £715. TOUR CODE: CAUC19 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

T H E COL D WAR I N BERLIN SEPTEMBER 11–16, 2019

019 marks the 30th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. Before 1989, states, societies, communities and individuals across the globe had felt the effects of the Cold War for nearly 45 years. But it was in Berlin where the conflict was most sharply in focus. We begin our tour by considering the start of the Cold War at Karlshorst, in the building where the Germans surrendered to the Soviets in May 1945, and by walking through the colossal Soviet memorial in Treptower Park. In East Berlin, the population was brought under the pernicious control of This tour will be led by John Greenacre, PhD, who joined the British Army during the last throes of the Cold War. Having gained a PhD in history from the University of Leeds, John left the Army to pursue an academic career, and is now a published author as well as an established lecturer and speaker on a variety of 20th century historical subjects. He frequently guides tour groups in Berlin and across Europe.

ACE CULTURAL TOURS

in Hohenschönhausen. We will also undertake a walking tour to get a feel for how East Berliners lived, worked and socialised under the communist regime. We will stay in the heart of East Berlin, at the four-star Park Inn by Radisson Berlin Alexanderplatz Hotel. Please see the ACE website for further information, please note that some details may be subject to change.

Checkpoint Charlie the state security system of the German Democratic Republic (GDR), the Stasi. We will spend a day in the hands of the Stasi, on guided tours of the organisation’s headquarters and the dreaded Stasi prison

Cost of £1745 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, breakfast, two lunches, four dinners with water & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities. Not included: travel insurance, double room for single use supplement £220. TOUR CODE: CWBL19 BOOK NOW: 01223 841055 sales@aceculturaltours.co.uk

AC E Tours in 2020 We are pleased to introduce a preview of our full 2020 tours programme. To find out more about any of the tours listed to register your interest, please contact the ACE office on 01223 841055. Please note this list is likely to be subject to adjustment. Villas & Gardens of the Italian Lakes

JANUARY

APRIL

Orthodox Christmas in Moscow

Athens, Delphi & the Peloponnese

Wildlife & Walking in Extremadura

The Holy Land

Crete: Birds, Flowers & Minoans

Mahler Festival in Amsterdam

Ethiopia

Chinese Civilisation

Mallorca

Cuba

Festival de Pâques in Aix-en-Provence

Albi & the Languedoc

Valletta International Baroque Festival

The Dordogne

*Japan in Springtime: Art, Temples & Gardens

Mozart Festival in Salzburg

Jazz: From New Orleans to Memphis

Wildlife of the Suffolk Coast: Minsmere & Orford Ness

Flemish Painting: From van Eyck to Rubens

JUNE

Pompeii with Herculaneum

Leipzig at Easter Bologna, Mantua & Parma

*Cambodia & Laos

Provence River Cruise Glasgow: Patrons, Art & Innovation

FEBRUARY

Northern Greece Aldeburgh Festival Bach Festival in Leipzig Donegal & Tory Island Baltic States

Bath Bachfest

Shakespeare at Stratford

Elgar, Birmingham & Worcester

*Cornwall: St Ives & the Newlyn School of Painters

Early Christian & Medieval Rome

*Camino de Santiago: Pilgrims, Cathedrals & Castles

From Madrid to Toledo: Trade, Treasures & the World of Philip II

Music & Opera in New York

*Wild Poland: From Ancient Rivers to Primeval Forest

From Washington to Jamestown

Somerset Levels in Winter Cambridge Churches, College Chapels & Organs Art Treasures of Dresden

Ancient Sicily

Art on the Côte d’Azur

Art & Architecture in the Loire Valley

Art Treasures of St Petersburg

Citadels of Transylvania

Roman & Byzantine Ravenna

Churches of Norfolk: An Appointment with Angels

Aquileia: City of Antiquity

Cyclades: Ancient Islands of the Aegean

Vasari: Father of Art History

Douro River Cruise

Venice: The Triumph of Light & Colour

Roman Provence

Uzbekistan: Cities of the Silk Road Beethoven in Bonn: A Cycle of Symphonies Isle of Man *Algeria: Rome Meets the Sahara *Art in Berlin *Riviera di Levante: From Genoa to Pisa *Roussillon *Roman York

*Lycian Cruise

MAY

MARCH

Liverpool: Private Wealth, Public Riches

*Albania: From the Illyrians to the Ottomans

Great Bardfield & Beyond: Mid-Century Art & Design in East Anglia Isles of Scilly Melk Baroque Music Festival Bergen International Music Festival Northamptonshire Country Houses Wagner’s Ring Cycle in Chemnitz Wild & Ancient Dartmoor

Bauhaus: German Modern Art & Design

Riga Opera Festival Lincolnshire Halls & Houses Madeira: Pearl of the Atlantic Historic Malta Provence River Cruise Kazakhstan St Magnus Music Festival The Pyrenees Shetland Islands Islay, Jura & Colonsay *Constable & Gainsborough in Suffolk *Lorraine

JULY Beaune Music Festival Artists of the North Houses & Gardens of Herefordshire & the Welsh Marches Iceland: History & Landscape Mendelssohn on Mull Medieval Burgundy Prehistoric & Roman Anglesea & Snowdonia Pomerania Wild & Ancient Orkney The Golden Age of Dutch Painting Kuhmo Chamber Music Festival Wild Austria Worcester Three Choirs Festival (*second departure will be across July-Aug) *The Hanseatic League *Tour goes across two months

ACE CULTURAL TOURS P roviding E x pert - led T ours since 1 9 5 8 Stapleford Granary, Bury Road, Stapleford, Cambridge, CB22 5BP England 01223 841055 ace@aceculturaltours.co.uk aceculturaltours.co.uk