The day-by-day itinerary including concert details.
10. DISCOVER THE PLACE
Valletta, Malta’s delightful, diminutive capital.
12.
MEET THE MUSICIANS
International musicians of the highest calibre.
16.
ACCOMMODATION & PRICES
Choose between five excellent hotels in Valletta.
Published: November 2024
TRAVEL OPTIONS
A range of ways to travel to and from the festival.
20. 22.
PRE-FESTIVAL TOURS
Extend your stay in Malta or Italy with a tour that has been designed to link with the festival.
24. BOOKING
Details of how to book, a booking form, and our terms and conditions.
HANDEL IN MALTA
AN INTRODUCTION
New for 2025, this is the first Martin Randall Festival dedicated to the music of George Frideric Handel.
Why we would dedicate a festival to Handel is obvious – the emotional power and technical virtuosity of his astounding output speak for themselves. We have long wished to make him the focus of a musical celebration, the only difficulty being which of his many masterpieces to select!
But why Malta? First and foremost are the superlative performance spaces – the Teatru Manoel, a gilded masterpiece dating to 1731, the lavish Baroque cathedrals of St John and St Paul in Valletta and Mdina, and the Verdala Palace, the summer residence of the President of Malta. All chime in period and ambiance with Handel’s music to create a deeply moving experience.
Add to this a backdrop of well-preserved architecture and enchanting streetscape predominantly of the Age of Baroque; plentiful good hotels, restaurants and cafés; and an urban space compact enough for getting around on foot to be entirely viable, and you have the perfect setting. And in late November, temperatures are still mild but the crowds have dispersed.
There are daily talks on the music by Richard Wigmore, and for those who prefer a full day of activity and company there are extra meals, walks and visits to sign up to. You choose the level of participation that suits you.
The ensembles performing are some of the best in the world – The English Concert, Gabrieli Consort & Players and Solomon’s Knot all appear, with soloists such as Aryeh Nussbaum Cohen, Alexander Chance, Paula Murrihy and Mary Bevan.
And from the feast of possible repertoire, we have chosen Rinaldo (concert performance), Dixit Dominus, Israel in Egypt , an organ recital and a programme of chamber works, and – what else – the Messiah, to conclude what will be a thrilling and utterly unique festival.
MARTIN RANDALL FESTIVALS
This festival has been devised and planned by Lizzie Watson, Artistic Director of Martin Randall Travel. It follows the format that Martin Randall established 30 years ago with our first Danube Music Festival, of site-specific concerts for a private audience. Since then we have organised festivals along the Rhine, Loire and Seine rivers, in Oxford, Suffolk, York, Lincoln, the Cotswolds and the West Country, to Seville, Toledo, Burgos, Santiago, Sicily, Venice, Florence, Rome, Bologna, the Veneto, to St Petersburg, Prague, through Thuringia, and the Alentejo.
THE FESTIVAL PACKAGE
The price includes:
• All six performances.
• Accommodation for six nights – choose between five options. See pages 16–19.
• Return flights between London and Malta. See pages 20–21.
• Breakfasts, one lunch, two dinners and interval drinks.
• Talks on the music by a Handel expert.
• Travel by comfortable private coach.
• The assistance of festival staff and a detailed programme booklet.
OPTIONAL EXTRAS
• A choice of pre-festival tours. See pages 22–23.
• Arriving a day early at your festival hotel. See pages 16–19.
• Extra dinners, so that each evening is spent in the company of other participants. Details will be available at a later stage.
THE SPEAKER
Richard Wigmore Music writer, lecturer and broadcaster for BBC Radio 3. He writes for BBC Music Magazine and Gramophone and has taught at Guildhall College of Music & Drama, Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music & Dance and Birkbeck College. He read French and German at Cambridge and later studied Music at Guildhall. His publications include Schubert: The Complete Song Texts and Pocket Guide to Haydn . Richard has written and lectured extensively on Handel, and in 2023 gave a highly successful 4-part webinar series on the composer for Martin Randall Travel.
Illustration: Valletta harbour, German lithograph c.1850
• A range of walks and visits led by art historians. Details will be available at a later stage.
THE FESTIVAL PROGRAMME
Arrive a day early
Thursday 20th
November
Day 1
Friday
21st November
Day 2
Saturday 22nd
November
We are offering the option of arriving at your hotel in Valletta a day before the festival begins.
Fly directly from London to Malta with one of our group flights, or make your own way independently. Coach transfer to Valletta. For travel options, see pages 20–21.
Fly directly from London to Malta with one of our group flights, or make your own way independently. Coach transfer to Valletta. For travel options, see pages 20–21.
Depending on the arrival of your flight, there may be free time to become acquainted with Valletta.
Settle into your chosen hotel before a drinks reception and dinner.
The first event today is a morning lecture on the music. The first performance is this afternoon.
The Teatru Manoel, built in 1731 at the behest of Grand Master Fra António Manoel de Vilhena, is one of Europe’s oldest working theatres. A masterpiece of carpentry, there are three tiers of wooden boxes, gilded and painted.
Opera, 3.00pm: Valletta, Teatru Manoel Rinaldo (concert performance)
The English Concert
Harry Bicket director
Aryeh Nussbaum Cohen Rinaldo
Rachael Wilson Armida
Paula Murrihy Goffredo
Mary Bevan Almirena
Ashley Riches Argante
Alexander Chance Eustazio
Andy Shen Liu Araldo/Donna/Magician
Handel’s arrival in London in 1710 proved to be a major milestone in his career. The success of Agrippina (1709, Venice) had established his operatic credentials, and he was ready to cater to the English demand for Italian entertainments. Rinaldo’s triumphant premiere in 1711, replete with dramatic stage effects (including live birds), placed Handel at the forefront of the London opera scene. With a sorceress in a flying chariot, mermaids, monsters, and magic wands, all accompanied by equally thrilling music, it is not hard to see why the opera has captivated modern audiences too.
A morning lecture on the music is followed by departure by coach for Mdina. The ‘Silent City’, Mdina is a masterpiece of medieval and Baroque architecture, where honey-coloured stone encloses a tiny labyrinth of quiet, narrow streets. Once the island’s capital, its position offers sweeping views over the countryside.
Lunch is served here for everyone in the Palazzo de Piro, a 17th-century palace nestled in the bastion walls.
St Paul’s Cathedral, rebuilt after the 1693 earthquake, was designed by Lorenzo Gafá and completed in 1702. The simple façade is set off by two bell towers and two clock faces – one telling the time, the other the date. The interior is a Baroque explosion befitting the former capital city, with soaring arches, marble floors and intricate frescoes.
Concert, 2,00pm:
Mdina, St Paul’s Cathedral Dixit Dominus
The English Concert
director
Dixit Dominus allows us to see the moment when Handel emerged as a mature composer. Written in 1707 on commission from the powerful Colonna family in Rome, it represents the earliest major choral work to survive in the composer’s own hand. 22-year old Handel had already developed an excellent technical mastery of harmony, counterpoint and melody, and was ready to put these skills on full display. The programme also includes Handel’s Concerto Grosso No. 6 Op. 6.
Coaches return to Valletta after the performance. There is an optional dinner for those who wish.
There is a morning lecture on the music followed by an organ recital.
St Paul’s Pro-Cathedral, serene and restrained, was built in the 1840s, and is Malta’s most prominent Anglican landmark. Commissioned by Queen Adelaide, it was intended to support Malta’s British community. The tall spire is a distinctive feature of Valletta’s skyline, and was recently restored. Handel once played the impressive pipe organ here, apparently, before it was brought over to Malta.
Recital, 11.00am:
Valletta, St Paul’s Pro-Cathedral Organ recital
The afternoon is free until either an optional dinner, or the evening concert.
Concert, 8.00pm:
Valletta, St Paul’s Pro-Cathedral Israel in Egypt
Solomon’s Knot
Handel returned to oratorio in the 1730s as the popularity of Italian opera in London began to wane. The premiere of Israel in Egypt in 1739 followed Saul from the same year, and Deborah and Athalia from 1733.
The Exodus story offered a particularly splendid array of inspirational images: leaping frogs, buzzing flies, and pounding hailstones are all brought to musical life.
Participation in our festivals is a very different experience from conventional group travel.
No repetitive or redundant announcements, no herding by elevated umbrella, no unnecessary roll calls, little hanging around. We work on the assumption that you are adults, and our staff cultivate the virtue of unobtrusiveness.
Though there will be up to 220 participants, you will often find yourself in smaller groups – the audience is divided between five hotels, and into different restaurants for one of the dinners.
For those who are not averse to group activities there are extra meals, walks and visits to sign up to. You choose the level of participation that suits you.
We provide sufficient information to enable you to navigate the festival events without needing to be led. However, festival staff are also stationed around the events to direct you if needed.
Harry Bicket
THE FESTIVAL PROGRAMME
Day 5
Tuesday 25th November
The audience is divided in two today.
In the morning, the first group departs by coach for the Verdala Palace, the official summer residence of Malta’s President, and the second group has some free time or the option of an art historical visit. In the afternoon, the groups are reversed.
Located near Buskett Gardens, the palace was built in 1586 as a hunting lodge for the Grand Master de Verdalle of the Order of St John. Later fortified and expanded, the palace served as a summer residence for subsequent Grand Masters. The main hall, where our concert takes place, dates to c. 1720 and looks out over lush woodland, reaching down to the sea.
Each concert is preceded by a talk on the music.
Concert, 11.00am or 4.00pm: Buskett Gardens, Verdala Palace Chamber works
Soloists of Gabrieli
Soloists of Gabrieli present a programme exploring the expressive depths of Baroque music, featuring works by Handel and Telemann alongside a hidden gem by Johann Gottlieb Janitsch. Handel’s ‘Mi palpito il cor’ and Telemann’s ‘Ich seh’ euch fast mit bittern Tränen’ showcase the intimacy and poignancy of the secular and sacred cantata forms with obbligato instrumental accompaniment, and two of Handel’s celebrated trio sonatas demonstrate his mastery of the chamber music genre.
The programme concludes with Janitsch’s chamber sonata for the unusual combination of two violins and oboe with continuo, a work of contrapuntal brilliance and heartfelt lyricism.
Day 6
Wednesday 26th November
A final morning lecture on the music, then the day is free before a gala dinner and the final performance of the festival in St John’s Co-Cathedral.
This was the Order’s church in Valletta, with a chapel for each langue. Built in 1572 by Girolamo Cassar and consecrated in 1578, the cathedral oratory and sacristy were added in 1604. The opulently decorated interior seen today is the result of aggrandisement over the second half of the 17th century.
Concert, 8.00pm:
Valletta, St John’s Co-Cathedral Messiah
Gabrieli Consort & Players
Paul McCreesh director
Soloists tbc
Handel and Charles Jennens began working on the Messiah in 1741, and settled very quickly on a particular approach to the central story of Christian faith. Highlighting the moments of divine revelation and miracles, they hoped to counter the contemporary trend towards a faith motivated by scientific observation. Correspondingly, some of the most iconic music comes with the prophecies of Christ’s birth, the joyous appearances of the angels imparting God’s word, or with texts such as ‘I know that my redeemer liveth’, a glorious statement of pure, trusting faith.
Illustration: Valletta harbour, wood engraving from ‘The World, its Cities & Peoples’, 1890.
Coaches take participants to Malta airport. Fly to London directly, or leave the festival independently. For travel options, see pages 20–21.
More about the performances
Private. All the performances are planned and administered by us, and the audience consists exclusively of those who have taken the festival package.
Seating. Specific seats are not reserved. You sit where you want.
Audience size. There will be up to 220 participants on the festival. At the one venue which cannot accommodate this number, the concert is repeated.
Acoustics. This festival is more concerned with locale and authenticity than with acoustic perfection. The venues may have idiosyncrasies or reverberations of the sort not found in modern concert halls.
Changes. Musicians fall ill, venues may close for repairs, airlines alter schedules: there are many circumstances which could necessitate changes to the programme. We ask you to be understanding should they occur.
Extra dinners
Choose to join four extra dinners in Valletta on Saturday 22nd, Sunday 23rd, Monday 24th and Tuesday 25th November. This ensures that you eat in the company of other festival participants on all evenings. Details and the option to book these will be sent nearer to departure.
‘This was an extraordinary and wonderful experience, brilliantly managed and conceived, and truly transcendent.’
DISCOVER THE PLACE
Valletta, Malta’s delightful, diminutive capital, is among the loveliest and most fascinating of cities built in the Age of Baroque.
Situated on a promontory and lapped by the Mediterranean on three sides, the heart of the historic city is a rightangled grid of streets and squares and handsome buildings, a rare realisation of a Renaissance ideal.
Construction began after the Great Siege of 1565, when the Knights of Malta prevailed over a numerically vastly superior Ottoman force. Herculean efforts were subsequently lavished on the most formidable – and, as it turned out, the most sublimely picturesque – early modern defensive system in Europe. The street pattern blithely ignores the topography, which rises and falls, quite steeply in places. This results in breath-taking vistas, and a visual tension between the classical horizontality of the architecture and the tumbling elevation of the streets and alleys.
The earlier palaces and churches exhibit an austerity of design appropriate to the ruling military religious order, though interiors often display joyous and elaborate decoration. All buildings, the grand and the rank-and-file, are built with a honey-coloured stone which is radiant in all lights and suffuses the city with beauty. To one side is Grand Harbour, one of the world’s greatest natural ports, and a dramatic sight from land or sea. Elsewhere on the island are other settlements and country palaces, all sharing something of the ineffable charm which characterises the island.
For over 40 years, the Gabrieli Consort & Players, under the artistic direction of Paul McCreesh, has cultivated an international reputation for excellence, innovation and wide-ranging ambition. Driven by a desire to recreate the original performances of musical works as far as possible, they believe that historical performance ideals and knowledge of the old world are essential for creating music anew.
Gabrieli’s mission is to educate as well as to entertain, and its deep commitment to music education is highly regarded. Gabrieli Roar is a unique and exciting partnership with a network of diverse British youth choirs where teenage singers perform side-by-side with professional musicians. Significant recent projects include Mendelssohn’s Elijah , Elgar’s The Dream of Gerontius and the Verdi Requiem , and large-scale Christmas projects.
Gabrieli is perhaps most highly acclaimed for its astounding library of recordings. Building on an extensive Deutsche Grammophon catalogue, since 2010 Gabrieli has released award-winning recordings on its own record label, Winged Lion Records, including A New Venetian Coronation , Purcell Fairy Queen and King Arthur, Mendelssohn Elijah and Britten War Requiem .
PAUL MCCREESH
Paul McCreesh is renowned for the energy and passion of his musicianship and the interpretative insight he brings to repertoire of the widest stylistic and historical breadth.
First established as the Artistic Director of Gabrieli Consort & Players, he led the second generation of ‘period instrument’ conductors and built an acclaimed discography with Deutsche Grammophon. He now guest-conducts the widest of repertoire with some of the world’s finest orchestras.
McCreesh’s ever-questioning spirit makes him a difficult artist to categorise; he is as likely to be found conducting Purcell’s theatre works as Elgar’s symphonies or an a cappella part song. His most recent recording, Elgar’s The Dream of Gerontius , has won a Gramophone award, following a 30-year recording career which includes numerous award-winning benchmark recordings. He is one of today’s most highly regarded recording artists.
SOLOISTS OF GABRIELI
At the heart of Gabrieli there is a core ensemble of extraordinary musicians that have performed together for several decades. Some of Gabrieli’s principal musicians assemble here to perform a programme curated by Gabrieli’s leader of over two decades, Catherine Martin. The commitment, talent and specialist expertise that they bring is part of what makes Gabrieli so special. Together, they seek to challenge common and accepted perceptions of the music performed, combining rigorous scholarship with free, imaginative and expressive music-making to create memorable performances that inspire, provoke and excite.
THE ENGLISH CONCERT
The English Concert is an outstanding orchestra: exceptional, in the worldrenowned quality, ambition and variety of its live and recorded output; unique, in the zeal of its players for working and performing together; unwavering, in its desire to connect with its audience throughout the world.
Founded by Trevor Pinnock in 1972 and under the present artistic direction of Harry Bicket and principal guest Kristian Bezuidenhout, The English Concert has earned a reputation for combining urgency, passion and fire with precision, delicacy and beauty. Highlights of the orchestra’s calendar include an international Handel opera tour, a regular London series at venues including Wigmore Hall, St Martinin-the-Fields and the Barbican Centre, and an annual residency at Garsington Opera.
In 2023, The English Concert launched its ambitious Handel for All project, which aims to film and make freely available all of Handel’s works online. For more information visit englishconcert.co.uk.
HARRY BICKET
Internationally renowned as an opera and concert conductor of distinction, Harry Bicket is especially noted for his interpretations of Baroque and Classical repertoire. Since 2007 he has been Artistic Director of The English Concert.
He is Music Director of the Santa Fe Opera, and is a regular guest at The Metropolitan Opera, especially for Mozart and Handel titles, and last season returned to the Canadian Opera Company for Le nozze di Figaro
He has appeared regularly in all the UK opera houses and his Theodora at the Royal Opera House in 2022 was nominated for an Olivier Award for best new production. Last season he returned to Opera North for Purcell’s Masque of Migh t – devised and directed by David Pountney.
Born in Liverpool, he studied at the Royal College of Music and Oxford University, where he was organ scholar at Christ Church. He was appointed Honorary Member of the Royal Academy of Music in 2018.
SOLOMON’S KNOT
Solomon’s Knot is ‘one of the UK’s most innovative and imaginative ensembles’ ( The Observer ). An international, flexible collective of leading instrumentalists and singers, the ensemble brings old music to new life by pushing the limits of what is possible on stage.
With no conductor, Solomon’s Knot sings everything from memory, integrating innovative live performance with scrupulous musical preparation to produce an intense and visceral experience for its audience. The group’s acclaimed sound is defined by tight, compact instrumental playing coupled with the vocal virtuosity of soloists who meld as an intuitive ensemble.
Performing regularly throughout the UK and Europe, Solomon’s Knot is the longterm Baroque Ensemble in Residence at Wigmore Hall and has appeared at the BBC Proms, Snape Maltings, Halle Handel Festival, Bachfest Leipzig, Thüringer Bachwochen, Bach Academie Brugge and Tage Alter Musik Regensburg.
Photographs (clockwise): Gabrieli Consort & Players, Paul McCreesh, The English Concert, Harry Bicket (credit: Dario Acosta)
MARY BEVAN
Praised by Opera for her ‘dramatic wit and vocal control’, British soprano Mary Bevan is internationally renowned in Baroque, Classical and Contemporary repertoire, and appears regularly with leading conductors, orchestras and ensembles around the world. She is a winner of the Royal Philharmonic Society’s Young Artist award and UK Critics’ Circle Award for Exceptional Young Talent in music and was awarded a MBE in the Queen’s birthday honours list in 2019.
During the 2024/25 season, Bevan returns to English National Opera as Susanna Le nozze di Figaro , to Opera di Roma as Morgana Alcina , and makes her debut with the Semperoper Dresden as Michal in a new Claus Guth production of Saul
ALEXANDER CHANCE
In demand as a concert soloist, Alexander Chance has given many recitals around Europe, making his recital debut at Wigmore Hall and Concertgebouw Amsterdam in 2024. His debut recording, ‘Drop not, mine eyes’ with lutenist Toby Carr, was named one of Gramophone Magazine’s ‘Best albums of 2023’. His recent opera roles include Oberon ( A Midsummer Night’s Dream , Britten) for The Grange Festival; Apollo ( Death in Venice , Britten) for Welsh National Opera; and Tolomeo (Giulio Cesare , Handel) for English Touring Opera. Recent and future highlights include his debut appearance at the BBC Proms, a return to Wigmore Hall with the London Handel Players, and concerts with The English Concert and Dunedin Consort.
ARYEH NUSSBAUM COHEN
Countertenor Aryeh Nussbaum Cohen brings his ‘astonishingly beautiful’ ( The Guardian) instrument to a range of repertoire spanning the Baroque to the Contemporary. His recent portrayal of the title role in Sir David McVicar’s production of Handel’s Giulio Cesare at Glyndebourne was ‘dazzling’ ( ArtsDesk ) and ‘superbly sung’ ( Bachtrack ). He has performed with leading opera companies and orchestras around the world. He debuts this season with La Monnaie de Munt, for the world premiere of Fanny and Alexander, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Festival de Froville, and the Kennedy Center, and he returns to Deutsche Oper Berlin, Carnegie Hall and many others.
Nussbaum Cohen earned a History degree from Princeton; he then graduated from San Francisco Opera’s Merola and Adler Fellowship Programs and the Houston Grand Opera Studio. He has taken top prizes in the vocal competitions of the Metropolitan Opera, Houston Grand Opera, Dallas Opera, Gerda Lissner Foundation, and earned a George and Nora London Foundation Award and a Richard Tucker Study Grant and Career Grant.
Paula Murrihy enjoys a busy career working at the highest level in Europe and the US. She has appeared on the world’s major stages including Covent Garden, the Metropolitan Opera, Opéra de Paris, the Bolshoi Theatre, Gran Teatre del Liceu, Zurich Opera and the Salzburg Festival. This season’s highlights include Dejanira Hercules at Oper Frankfurt, Waitress Innocence at the Semperoper Dresden, Béatrice Béatrice et Bénédict at Irish National Opera, Komponist Ariadne auf Naxos at Opéra de Rouen and Fox Cunning Little Vixen at Opéra de Paris. Paula tours extensively on the concert platform, particularly enjoying her regular collaboration with the English Concert.
ANDY SHEN LIU
Hailed as ‘a little short of sensational’, Andy Shen Liu has mesmerized audiences globally, from the stages of Lincoln Center to Royal Albert Hall. Since his debut at age seven, Liu has performed with leading orchestras and opera companies, premiering works ranging from Baroque to Contemporary. His notable roles include Ernesto in Haydn’s Il Mondo della Luna and Eurindo in Stradella’s La Forza dell’amor Paterno . Liu’s performance of Twilight of the Himalayas was released by Deutsche Grammophon. A graduate of Juilliard Pre-College and the Royal Academy of Music, he is committed to inspiring younger generations to embrace opera and Baroque music.
Bass-baritone Ashley Riches trained at King’s College, Cambridge and the Guildhall School. He was a Jette Parker Young Artist and BBC New Generation Artist.
His 2024/25 season highlights include Handel’s Messiah with John Butt, and the Academy of St Martin-in-the-Fields, Bach’s St John Passion with Harry Bicket, and Puccini’s La Rondine with the LSO and Antonio Pappano. Recent roles include Roucher in Giordano’s Andrea Chénier at the Royal Opera House and performances of Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis , Verdi’s Requiem , Handel’s Messiah , and Purcell’s King Arthur.
An accomplished recitalist, he released his debut solo recital recording, A Musical Zoo , in 2021.
American mezzo-soprano, Rachael Wilson is a recent recipient of the honorary Bavarian Art Prize. A native of Las Vegas, Nevada, she is a graduate of the Juilliard School, and was a member of the Opera Studio at the Bayerische Staatsoper.
In the 2024/25 Season, Rachael will make her debut with the Komische Oper Berlin as the Alto Soloist in Damiano Michieletto’s new staging of Handel’s Messiah at the Tempelhof Airport and she also makes her debut at the Staatsoper Hamburg as Donna Elvira Don Giovanni; she returns to the Glyndebourne Festival as Varvara Katya Kabanova conducted by Robin Ticciati – Varvara is a role she will also sing in Krzysztof Warlikowski’s new production at the Bayerische Staatsoper conducted by Mirga Gražinytė-Tyla. On the concert stage, Rachael will appear the Münchner Rundfunkorchester, the Gävle Symphony Orchestra and she will make her debut at the Musikverein with the Wiener Symphoniker and Lorenzo Viotti.
ASHLEY RICHES
PAULA MURRIHY
ACCOMMODATION & PRICES
There is a choice of five hotels in Valletta.
Four of the five hotels (the Phoenicia Hotel is the exception) are located within the historic centre of Valletta and follow a similar pattern: a tall building, with an internal courtyard that serves as a bar or relaxation area, and a roof terrace with spectacular views over the city and harbour. Most offer some combination of spa, gym and swimming pool – these are delightful but much reduced versions (e.g. a splash pool, not big enough for swimming lengths). All are between four and five stars in rating, apart from the Phoenicia which is fully five stars.
All rooms have the modern amenities one would expect – air conditioning/heating, hairdryer, safe, lifts, WiFi etc.
Every hotel also has the option of booking a Suite, but we are not currently holding any of these – please let us know if you would like us to enquire about availability and provide you with a quote.
Your choice of hotel is the sole determinant of the different prices. The prices given are all per person and include flights (see pages 20–21). If you choose to make your own travel arrangements, there is a reduction of £210 per person on the prices given over the next three pages.
THE EMBASSY HOTEL
This comparatively large hotel is very centrally located in Valletta, mere metres from St George’s Square and the CoCathedral. Its main entrance is on a narrow street, busy with bars and restaurants.
The décor blends classic and contemporary elements, but tends towards the latter and has the most modern feel of any of the festival hotels. Rooms feel more luxurious than some of the public areas.
Deluxe rooms face the street or internal courtyard, and tend to be on the lower floors; Superior rooms have a city or sea view, are located on the 5th and 6th floors, and have a balcony or terrace.
Bathrooms almost exclusively have only showers (no bath).
There is a popular restaurant on the roof terrace, which is where breakfast is served, as well as a small spa, gym and outdoor pool.
Walk to coach/lectures: 700m
embassyvallettahotel.com
PRICES, per person
All rooms are doubles, whether two sharing or single occupancy.
ARRIVING 20 NOVEMBER
Two sharing:
Deluxe • £4,240
Superior • £4,680
Single occupancy:
Deluxe • £4,890
Superior • £5,460
ARRIVING 21 NOVEMBER
Two sharing:
Deluxe • £4,080
Superior • £4,490
Single occupancy:
Deluxe • £4,640
Superior • £5,160
PALAIS LE BRUN
Housed in a 17th-century palace, Palais Le Brun is an elegant, smaller hotel, located on a quiet street at the far north-eastern end of Valletta.
Rooms are tastefully furnished, and are the largest of the three boutique hotels (Palais Le Brun, Domus Zamitello, Gomerino) with king-size beds, spacious marble bathrooms, espresso machines and Persian carpets.
Views are either towards the city, or the internal courtyard; the higher category rooms offered here have either a Maltese (closed) balcony or terrace.
Bathrooms have a mix of shower only and bath with shower attachment.
There is no public restaurant.
There is a small gym and outdoor pool on the roof terrace.
Walk to coach/lectures: 1000m palaislebrun.com
PRICES, per person
All rooms are doubles, whether two sharing or single occupancy.
‘Every moment was interesting, whether it was the music, the architecture, the history or the setting.’
THE GOMERINO HOTEL
A sister hotel to Palais Le Brun, the Gomerino is also housed in a Baroque palace, but slightly closer to the central square –wonderfully still away from the main footfall.
Much like Palais Le Brun, rooms are elegantly furnished in a traditional style (marble floors, touches of florals and tapestry, refined colour palette), but are slightly smaller in size.
Classic rooms overlook the internal courtyard, and those with a French balcony open onto city views.
Bathrooms have a mix of shower only and bath with shower attachment.
There is no public restaurant.
There is a small spa and sauna, indoor plunge pool, outdoor pool on the roof terrace, and a gym which is comparatively larger then the other boutique hotels. The roof terrace has some of the most breathtaking views of all the festival hotels, despite strong competition.
Walk to coach/lectures: 900m
thegomerinohotel.com
PRICES, per person
All rooms are doubles, whether two sharing or single occupancy.
ARRIVING 20 NOVEMBER
Two sharing:
Classic • £4,940
Balcony • £5,280
Single occupancy:
Classic • £5,760
Balcony • £6,310
ARRIVING 21 NOVEMBER
Two sharing:
Classic • £4,740
Balcony • £5,080
Single occupancy:
Classic • £5,440
Balcony • £5,980
DOMUS ZAMITELLO
An award-winning and familyrun boutique hotel, in a historic palace. Welcoming and intimate, it is the smallest of our festival hotels. It is located at the start of the main pedestrianised street through Valletta but maintains a hushed and tranquil interior.
The décor is refined and stylish, with linen and furnishings of the highest quality and Penhaligons toiletries. Room size varies.
Deluxe rooms look out onto the internal courtyard or Republic Street; Premium have a bigger window and are located on higher floors, with super-king beds.
The majority of rooms have showers only, but a handful have a bath with shower attachment.
There is a very good public restaurant (currently under restoration but due to reopen by summer 2025).
There is a small gym and spa.
Walk to coach/lectures: 350m
domuszamittello.com
PRICES, per person
All rooms are doubles, whether two sharing or single occupancy.
ARRIVING 20 NOVEMBER
Two sharing:
Deluxe • £5,130
Premium • £5,490
Single occupancy:
Deluxe • £6,010
Premium • £6,370
ARRIVING 21 NOVEMBER
Two sharing:
Deluxe • £4,920
Premium • £5,280
Single occupancy:
Deluxe • £5,670
Premium • £6,030
Please note if sharing: only Deluxe rooms can be twins.
THE PHOENICIA HOTEL
The Phoenicia is an excellent five-star hotel located on the edge of the historic centre of Valletta, with exceptional levels of service.
Rooms are tasteful and bright, with clean Mediterranean colours (blue and white a theme), with fresh flowers and Acqua di Parma toiletries.
Classic rooms are on the 1st and 2nd floors; Superior on the 3rd; Executive rooms have a balcony; Deluxe Harbour View are larger and look out over the water (some have balconies but not all).
Almost all bathrooms have a bath with shower attachment.
The hotel has two excellent restaurants. There is an extensive spa (sauna, steam room, salt room), fitness centre, good-size indoor and outdoor infinity pools and seven acres of gardens.
Most of the daily lectures take place in this hotel, and the coach drops and picks up from here.
phoeniciamalta.com
PRICES, per person
All rooms are doubles, whether two sharing or single occupancy.
ARRIVING 20 NOVEMBER
Two sharing:
Classic • £6,350
Superior • £6,560
Executive • £6,790
Deluxe Harbour View • £7,130
Single occupancy:
Classic • £7,460
Superior • £7,730
Executive • £8,110
Deluxe Harbour View • £8,580
ARRIVING 21 NOVEMBER
Two sharing:
Classic • £6,040
Superior • £6,240
Executive • £6,440
Deluxe Harbour View • £6,740
Single occupancy:
Classic • £6,990
Superior • £7,240
Executive • £7,560
Deluxe Harbour View • £7,980
Coaches cannot enter Valletta, and so stop at the Phoenicia Hotel , where most of the daily lectures are also held. Walking distances are indicated.
On arrival and departure days, luggage is transferred separately by minivan.
Flights with KM Malta Airlines or British Airways are included in the price. These are all direct flights between London Heathrow or Gatwick and Malta.
There is the option to fly out on 20 November, the day before the festival begins – see the previous four pages for accommodation details and prices.
Please be aware that these flight times are subject to change, as schedules for late 2025 have not yet been released. These are based on November 2024. We will update you as soon as our group flight bookings are confirmed.
Alternatively you can choose to make your own travel arrangements, and select our ‘No flights’ price, for a reduction of £210.
FESTIVAL FLIGHT OPTIONS
ARRIVING 20 NOVEMBER (a day early):
OPTION 1 • KM MALTA
20 November: London Heathrow to Malta (KM101), depart 11.25 and arrive 15.45.
27 November: Malta to London Heathrow (KM102), depart 16.45 and arrive 19.25.
OPTION 2 • KM MALTA & BA
20 November: London Gatwick to Malta (KM117), depart 11.55 and arrive 16.10.
27 November: Malta to London Gatwick (BA2615), depart 12.30 and arrive 14.50.
ARRIVING 21 NOVEMBER:
OPTION 3 • BA
21 November: London Gatwick to Malta (BA2614), depart 07.20 and arrive 11.35.
27 November: Malta to London Gatwick (BA2615), depart 12.30 and arrive 14.50.
OPTION 4 • KM MALTA
21 November: London Heathrow to Malta (KM101), depart 11.25 and arrive 15.45.
27 November: Malta to London Heathrow (KM102), depart 16.45 and arrive 19.25.
Flying from elsewhere in the UK
If flying with British Airways , it may be possible to arrange connecting flights from Edinburgh, Manchester, Glasgow, Aberdeen or Belfast. Please request these on your booking form if you require them.
If flying with KM Malta Airlines , it may be possible to fly directly to Malta from Birmingham, Edinburgh or Manchester, but only through booking individually with the airline.
THE NO-FLIGHTS OPTION
You can choose not to take any of our flight options and to make your own arrangements for joining and leaving the festival.
Price reduction for ‘no flights’: £210.
Easyjet and Ryanair operate direct flights to Malta in November. Although we cannot make a group booking with them or indeed recommend them, we can advise on timetables and routes once they are published. You are welcome to join our airport coach transfers if your flights coincide with any of our flight options. Below is an indication of schedules based on this year.
Easyjet
20 November: London Gatwick to Malta (EZY8761) 07.25–11.40.
21 November: London Gatwick to Malta (EZY6327) 07.25–11.40.
27 November: Malta to London Gatwick (EZY8762) 12.30–14.50.
Ryanair
20 November: London Stansted to Malta (FR4208) 16.15–20.25.
21 November: London Luton to Malta (FR3882) 06.25–10.35.
27 November: Malta to London Luton; (FR3883) 10.50–13.20; Malta to London Stansted (FR4207) 13.20–15.50.
FLIGHTS FOR PRE-FESTIVAL TOUR PARTICIPANTS
The prices for these tours include the option of a return flight – out at the start of the tour, and back at the end of the festival.
We charge for flights, if you are taking them, as part of your pre-festival tour booking. You therefore pay the ‘no flights’ price for the festival regardless.
See pa ges 22–23 for full details.
Fitness for the festival
This is a physically demanding festival and fitness is essential. Within Valletta, you will be expected to walk for anything up to 20 minutes and at a pace which is unlikely to slow others down when moving together.
The main pedestrianised street in Valletta is relatively flat, but drops either side so ascents and descents are unavoidable. Many streets are uneven or cobbled.
Not all venues have lifts.
Some hotels are a 20-minute walk from where coaches can stop, a walk that is repeated each time we arrive into and leave from Valletta.
Two of the concerts take place outside Valletta and are reached by coach; all others take place in the city centre, where arrival is on foot. Average distance by coach per day (including airport transfers): 6 miles.
If you have a medical condition or a disability which may affect your holiday or necessitate special arrangements being made for you, please discuss these with us before booking – or, if the condition develops or changes subsequently, as soon as possible before departure.
Illustration: G. F. Handel, engraving 1800s
GASTRONOMIC SICILY
FOOD & WINE IN THE WEST
Pre-festival tour:
13–20 November 2025 (ml 851)
8 days • £4,090
Speaker: Marc Millon
Colourful Palermo street markets, authentic salt flats near Trapani, historic cellars in Marsala.
Learn about making wine, olive oil and artisan foods from the craftsmen and women who carry on these age-old traditions.
Spectrum of culinary experiences from street food in Palermo to dinner in a private palazzo. Emphasis on authentic methods rather than haute cuisine.
If Sicily’s history is a layer-cake of the different cultures that have colonised the island through the centuries, its food is no less complex. Citrus fruits and ices were brought there by the Arabs before the Middle Ages. Wine-making was introduced by the Phoenicians, and during the Roman era wheat turned the inland hillsides to gold. As the tour travels across the Western part of the island we visit small producers of artisan foods, wine-makers, home cooks and chefs alike, and do not ignore cultural sites that determine its key historical importance. Sample street food from market stalls in Palermo, the freshest seafood in the Mediterranean, and homeprepared dinners whose hospitable cooks share their secrets with us.
ITINERARY
Day 1: Palermo. Fly at c. 8.30am from London Heathrow to Palermo (British Airways) for the first of four nights.
Day 2: Palermo. A morning walk to the city’s best market, sampling authentic
street food. See also key cultural sites such as the cathedral, a building of many periods, and the church of S. Cataldo. Dinner at a private palazzo.
Day 3: Monreale dominates a verdant valley southwest of Palermo, and its cathedral is one of the finest Norman churches. Lunch is at a top restaurant. In the early evening the lecturer leads a wine tasting in the hotel.
Day 4: Segesta, Partinico. With its magnificently sited temple and theatre, Segesta is one of the most evocative of Greek sites. Travel on to visit an organic farm in Partinico, one of the earliest of its kind in Sicily.
Day 5: Erice, a medieval town perched on top of a hill, boasts spectacular views of the coast. Demonstration and tasting of traditional pastries here, before continuing on to the charming port town of Marsala where the following three nights are spent.
Day 6: Mazara del Vallo, Menfi. Visit Il Museo del Satiro Danzante in Mazara del Vallo before a couscous cooking demonstration and lunch. The afternoon is spent at an award-winning olive oil estate, discovering their methods.
Day 7: Mozia. Drive north of Marsala to see the saltpans that have been in use since Phoenician times, and take a boat across the lagoon to visit the ancient ruins of Mozia (weather dependent). In the afternoon, visit and tasting at the cellars of a historic Marsala producer.
Day 8. Fly from Palermo to London Heathrow, arriving at c. 4.45pm; or if joining the festival, fly from Palermo to Malta, via Milan (ITA Airways), arriving c. 5.15pm.
PRACTICALITIES
Price, per person. Two sharing: £ 4,090 or £3,850 without flights. Single occupancy: £4,560 or £4,320 without flights.
If combining this tour with Handel in Malta , we will arrange travel from Palermo to Valletta, and will assume that you require festival accommodation on 20 November (‘arriving a day early’). Flights are charged as part of your pre-festival tour booking, so you take the ‘no flights’ price for the festival.
Included: flights (economy class) with British Airways/ITA Airways; travel by private coach; hotel accommodation; breakfasts; 6 lunches and 5 dinners with wine, water, coffee; all wine and food tastings; all admissions; all tips; all taxes; the services of the lecturer and tour manager.
Accommodation. Grand Hotel Piazza Borsa, Palermo (piazzaborsa.it). Hotel Carmine, Marsala (hotelcarmine.it).
How strenuous? There is a lot of walking, some of it over rough ground and cobbled or uneven paving. Fitness and surefootedness are essential. Average distance by coach per day: 47 miles
Group size: 10–22 people
WORLD HERITAGE MALTA WITH A DAY ON GOZO
Pre-festival tour:
14–20 November (ml 809)
7 days • £3,860
Speaker: Juliet Rix
A wonderful exploration of this fascinating, diverse island.
Some of the world’s earliest stone buildings, all of them unesco World Heritage Sites.
Many more major historic sites in the fortified capital of Valletta and ancient Mdina.
Magnificent Baroque art and architecture with 21st-century designs by Renzo Piano. Rural and picturesque Gozo Island, with its stunning natural features.
ITINERARY
Day 1: Valletta. Late morning flight from London Heathrow to Malta. Drive to Valletta, a peninsula flanked by fine natural harbours and once the most strongly fortified city in Christendom.
Day 2: Qrendi, Marsaxlokk, Valletta. Drive through the countryside to the prehistoric temples overlooking the sea, Hagar Qim and Mnajdra. Time in the picturesque, traditional fishing village of Marsaxlokk before returning to Valletta. Afternoon visit to the National Museum of Archaeology, home of the unique ‘Fat Ladies of Malta’.
Day 3: Valletta. A morning visit to the charming Manoel Theatre, a rare survival of the early 18th century. Then the CoCathedral of St John, one of the most interesting of Baroque buildings, which has lavish carved wall decoration and tombs,
ceiling paintings by Mattia Preti and two paintings by Caravaggio. Finally, a private visit of the Casa Rocca Piccola provides unique historic insight to the customs and traditions of the Maltese nobility over the last 400 years.
Day 4: Paola, Valletta. In Paola, the Hal Saflieni Hypogeum is a unesco World Heritage Site and the only prehistoric underground burial site in the world. The Tarxien Temple site is the most complex in Malta and would have been the most decorative. The afternoon is free in Valletta.
Day 5: Gozo. A 30-minute ferry crossing to the island of Gozo, which is more rural and less populated than Malta. See the temple of Ggantija, one of the oldest of Malta’s prehistoric monuments. The chief town is Victoria, with its cathedral and medieval Citadel.
Day 6: Mdina, Rabat. Mdina, Malta’s ancient capital, is an unspoilt citadel of great beauty, centre of the Maltese aristocracy, with medieval walls, grand palazzi and Baroque cathedral. Spreading below is the town of Rabat, with Early Christian catacombs.
Day 7: Vittoriosa. Cross the Grand Harbour by dghajsa (traditional water taxi), to see churches, forts, and the Knights’ auberges in Vittoriosa. Fly to London Heathrow arriving at c. 7.30pm; or if joining the festival, stay on in Valletta, transfer to your festival hotel if not staying on in the Phoenicia.
PRACTICALITIES
Price, per person. Two sharing: £3,860 or £3,660 without flights. Single occupancy: £4,720 or £4,520 without flights.
If combining this tour with Handel in Malta , we will assume that you require festival accommodation on 20 November (‘arriving a day early’). Flights are charged as part of your pre-festival tour booking, so you take the ‘no flights’ price for the festival.
Included: flights (Economy) with KM Malta Airlines (Airbus 320); accommodation as below; travel by private coach; breakfasts, 2 lunches and 4 dinners with wine, water, coffee; admissions to museums and sites; gratuities for waiters, drivers and local guides; the services of the lecturer, tour manager and local guide.
Accommodation. Hotel Phoenicia, Valletta (phoeniciamalta.com)
How strenuous? There is a lot of walking on this tour, some of it over rough ground, and there are sites that involve a lot of steps. Valletta is relatively hilly so you will need to be comfortable with everyday walking and stair climbing. Average distance by coach per day: 15 miles
Group size: 10–22 people
MAKING A BOOKING
1. Booking Option. We recommend that you contact us first, or visit our website, to make a booking option which we will hold for 72 hours. To confirm it, please send the booking form and deposit within this period – the deposit is 10% of your total booking price.
2. Definite booking. Fill in the booking form and send it to us with the deposit. It is important that you read the Booking Conditions at this stage (see page 27) and that you sign the booking form. Full payment is required if you are booking within 10 weeks of the date the festival begins.
3. Our confirmation. Upon receipt of the booking form and deposit we shall send you confirmation of your booking. After this your deposit is nonreturnable except in the special circumstances mentioned in the Booking Conditions. Further details about the festival may also be sent at this stage, or will follow shortly afterwards.
FITNESS TESTS
We ask that you take the following fitness tests before booking. By signing the Booking Form, you confirm that you have done so. Please also read ‘Fitness for the festival’ on page 21.
1. Chair stands. Sit in a dining chair, with arms folded and hands on opposite shoulders. Stand up and sit down at least eight times in 30 seconds.
2. Step test. Mark a wall at a height that is halfway between your knee and your hip bone. Raise each knee in turn to the mark at least 60 times in two minutes.
3. Agility test. Place an object three yards from the edge of a chair, sit, and record the time it takes to stand up, walk to the object and sit back down. You should be able to do this in under seven seconds.
An additional indication of the fitness required is that you should be able to walk unaided at a pace of three miles per hour for at least half an hour at a time, and to stand for at least 15 minutes.
NAME(S) – as you wish them to appear on the list of participants. Please note that we do not use titles:
Participant 1: Participant 2:
Contact details for all correspondence:
Address Postcode/Zip Country
Telephone (home) Mobile
E-mail
Tick if you are happy to receive your festival and booking documents online where possible (confirm your e-mail address above).
How would you like to be kept informed about our future tours and events?
By post: Yes No
e-newsletter: Yes No
What prompted this booking? It is very helpful for us to know how you first heard about this event, and if you can be specific, e.g. if in an advertisement, the name of the publication it appeared in; if we sent you a communication, what type? (e-mail or post?):
ACCOMMODATION – please tick:
DOMUS ZAMITELLO
Two sharing: Deluxe Premium
Single occupancy: Deluxe Premium
EMBASSY HOTEL
Two sharing: Deluxe Superior
Single occupancy: Deluxe Superior
GOMERINO HOTEL
Two sharing: Classic Balcony
Single occupancy: Classic
Balcony
PALAIS LE BRUN
Two sharing: Classic
Balcony/terrace
Single occupancy: Classic Balcony/terrace
PHOENICIA HOTEL
Two sharing: Classic Superior Executive
Deluxe Harbour View
Single occupancy: Classic Superior Executive
Deluxe Harbour View
ADDITIONAL OPTIONS:
YOUR ARRIVAL DATE
Please tick one to confirm:
20 November (a day early)
21 November (day 1)
Please tell us about any other accommodation requests (upgrades, etc.) below.
SHARING A ROOM?
Please tick one:
Twin beds
Double bed
NB: At Domus Zamitello only Deluxe rooms can be twins.
TRAVEL OPTION – please tick one (please leave this section blank if also booking pre-festival tour).
ARRIVING 20 NOVEMBER
Option 1 • KM MALTA
Option 2 • KM MALTA/BA
NO FLIGHTS
FURTHER INFORMATION. Please notify us of dietary restrictions (for example, religious, medical or if you are vegetarian or vegan). Please also use this space to request room upgrades, or extra nights, etc.
ARRIVING 21 NOVEMBER
Option 3 • BA
Option 4 • KM MALTA
Making own arrangements for travel to and from the festival.
PRE-FESTIVAL TOURS – tick to add to your booking:
Gastronomic Sicily, 13–20 November 2025
World Heritage Malta, 14–20 November 2025
Room-type:
Double / twin room
Double for sole use
Travel option:
I require the group flights, either side of the tour and festival. I will make my own travel arrangements.
PASSPORT
DETAILS & NEXT OF KIN
Essential for airlines and the hotels, and in case of emergency. Please use capital letters for your passport details.
PAYMENT
We prefer payments by bank transfer. All money paid to us is fully protected regardless of payment method. Please tick one option:
BANK TRANSFER Please use your surname and the festival code (ml 850) as a reference and ask your bank to allow for all charges.
Account name: Martin Randall Travel Ltd. Bank: Barclays
Address: 1 Churchill Place, Canary Wharf, London E14 5HP
Account number: 4054 4558
Sort code: 20-96-63
Transfers from non-UK bank accounts: please instruct your bank to send payment in pound sterling (GBP)
DEBIT OR CREDIT CARD. I authorise Martin Randall Travel to contact me by telephone to take payment from my Visa credit/Visa debit/Mastercard/AMEX.
Please tick payment amount, and then ensure you sign at the bottom of this form:
EITHER Deposit 10% of total booking cost.
OR Full balance
Required if you are booking within 10 weeks of departure.
Add carbon offset (£5 per person). Tick to offset the emissions generated by your booking. Read about the project we currently support through carbon offsets by visiting martinrandall.com/sustainable-tourism.
TOTAL: £
I have read and agree to the Booking Conditions and Privacy Policy (www.martinrandall.com/privacy) on behalf of all listed on this form.
Signature:
Date:
Martin Randall Travel Ltd
10 Barley Mow Passage London W4 4PH, United Kingdom
Tel +44 (0)20 8742 3355
From North America: 1 800 988 6168
info@martinrandall.co.uk www.martinrandall.com
Martin Randall Australasia PO Box 1024 Indooroopilly QLD 4068, Australia
Tel 1300 55 95 95
New Zealand 0800 877 622 anz@martinrandall.com.au
PLEASE READ THESE
You need to sign your assent to these Booking Conditions on the booking form.
OUR PROMISES TO YOU
We aim to be fair, reasonable and sympathetic in all our dealings with clients, and to act always with integrity.
We will meet all our legal and regulatory responsibilities, usually going far beyond the minimum obligations.
We aim to provide full and accurate information about our holidays. If there are changes, we will tell you promptly.
If something does go wrong, we will try to put it right. Our overriding aim is to ensure that every client is satisfied with our services.
ALL WE ASK OF YOU
That you read the information we send to you.
SPECIFIC TERMS
Our contract with you. From the time we receive your signed booking form and initial payment, a contract exists between you and Martin Randall Travel Ltd.
Eligibility. You must be in good health, free of infectious illness, and have a level of physical and mental fitness that would not impair other participants’ enjoyment by slowing them down or by absorbing disproportionate attention from the tour leaders. Please read ‘Fitness for the festival' on page 21 and take the self-assessment tests described on page 24; by signing the booking form you are stating that you have understood what we are asking of you and are fit to participate. If you have a medical condition or a disability which may affect your holiday or necessitate special arrangements being made for you, please discuss this with us before booking – or, if the condition develops or changes subsequently, as soon as possible before departure. If during the festival or tour it transpires, in the judgement of the tour leaders, that you are not able to cope, you may be asked to opt out of certain visits or to leave altogether. This would be at your own expense. We reserve the right to refuse to accept a booking without necessarily giving a reason. Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office advice. Before booking, please refer to the FCDO website to ensure you understand the travel advice for the places to which the festival or tour goes. Non-UK citizens should look at the advice issued by their governments, which may differ significantly.
Insurance. It is a requirement of booking that you have adequate holiday insurance cover. The insurance must cover, at minimum, medical treatment, repatriation, loss of property and loss of payments to us in the event that you cancel your booking. If you are making your own arrangements for international travel, please ensure you have insurance that protects you in the rare event of Martin Randall Travel cancelling the festival or tour. Experience indicates that free travel insurance offered by some credit card companies is not to be relied upon.
Passports and visas. British citizens must have valid passports for travel outside the United Kingdom. The passport needs to be valid for 6 months beyond the date of the festival and/ or tour. For Schengen countries, your passport must have been issued less than ten years before the date you enter the country and valid for at least three months after the day you
leave. Non-UK nationals should ascertain whether visas are required in their case.
If you cancel. If you have to withdraw from a festival or tour on which you had booked, there would be a charge which varies according to the period of notice you give:
Up to 57 days: deposit only
Between 56 and 29 days: 40%
Between 28 and 15 days: 60%
Between 14 days and 4 days: 80%
Within 72 hours: 100%
For cruises only
Up to 90 days: deposit only
Between 89 and 70 days: 40%
Between 69 and 50 days: 60%
Between 49 days and 30 days: 80%
29 days or fewer: 100%
Additional costs for individual arrangements (including but not limited to flight upgrades, flight amendments, extra nights at hotel(s), room upgrades and airport transfers) are subject to the same cancellation charges, apart from in the instance where we have previously notified you that an additional cost is non-refundable.
If you cancel your booking in a shared room or cabin but your travelling companion chooses to continue to participate, the companion would have to pay the single-occupancy price.
We take as the day of cancellation that on which we receive written confirmation of cancellation.
If we cancel. We may decide to cancel a festival or tour if there were insufficient bookings for the it to be viable (though this would always be more than 8 weeks before departure). We would refund you with everything you had paid us.
Safety and security. Cancellation may also occur if civil unrest, war, natural disaster or other circumstances amounting to force majeure arise in the region to which the festival or tour was due to go. If the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office advises against travel, we would either cancel or adjust the itinerary to avoid risky areas.
Health and safety. We have a safety auditing process in place and, as a minimum, request that all of our suppliers comply with local health and safety regulations. However, we operate tours in parts of the world where standards are lower than those you are used to at home, particularly in the areas of accessibility, handrails and seatbelts. We ask that you take note of the safety information we provide.
The limits of our liabilities. As principal, we accept responsibility for all ingredients of a tour or festival except those in which the principle of force majeure prevails. Our obligations and responsibilities are also limited where international conventions apply in respect of air, sea or rail carriers, including the Warsaw Convention and its various updates.
If we make changes. Circumstances might arise which prevent us from operating a tour or festival exactly as advertised. We would try to devise a satisfactory alternative, but if the change represents a significant loss to the tour or festival we would offer compensation. If you decide to cancel because the alternative we offer is not in your view an adequate substitute, we would give a full refund.
Financial protection for UK residents. Any money you have paid to us for a holiday which includes an international flight is protected by our Air Travel Organiser’s Licence (ATOL, number 3622).
Payments for holidays which do not include a flight from/to the UK are protected by ABTOT – The Association of Bonded Travel Organisers Trust Limited. So, in the (highly unlikely) event of our insolvency in advance of the festival or tour, you would get your money back, or if we failed after it had begun, it would be able to continue and you would be returned to the UK at its conclusion. Clients living elsewhere who have arranged their own flights should ensure their personal travel insurance covers repatriation in the event of holiday supplier failure.
Financial protection – the official text. We are required to publish the following:
We provide full financial protection for our package holidays which include international flights, by way of our Air Travel Organiser’s Licence number 3622. When you buy an ATOL protected flight inclusive holiday from us you receive an ATOL Certificate. This lists what is financially protected, where you can get information on what this means for you and who to contact if things go wrong. Most of our flights and flight-inclusive holidays on our website and in our brochure are financially protected by the ATOL scheme. But ATOL protection does not apply to all holiday and travel services listed. Please ask us to confirm what protection may apply to your booking. If you do not receive an ATOL Certificate then the booking will not be ATOL protected. If you do receive an ATOL Certificate but all the parts of your trip are not listed on it, those parts will not be ATOL protected. In order to be protected under the ATOL scheme you need to be in the UK when you make your booking and/or one of the flights you take must originate or terminate in the UK with the group.
We provide full financial protection for our package holidays that do not include a flight, by way of a bond held by ABTOT – The Association of Bonded Travel Organisers Trust Limited.
We will provide you with the services listed on the ATOL Certificate (or a suitable alternative). In some cases, where we aren’t able do so for reasons of insolvency, an alternative ATOL holder may provide you with the services you have bought or a suitable alternative (at no extra cost to you). You agree to accept that in those circumstances the alternative ATOL holder will perform those obligations and you agree to pay any money outstanding to be paid by you under your contract to that alternative ATOL holder. However, you also agree that in some cases it will not be possible to appoint an alternative ATOL holder, in which case you will be entitled to make a claim under the ATOL scheme (or your credit card issuer where applicable). If we, or the suppliers identified on your ATOL certificate, are unable to provide the services listed (or a suitable alternative, through an alternative ATOL holder or otherwise) for reasons of insolvency, the Trustees of the Air Travel Trust may make a payment to (or confer a benefit on) you under the ATOL scheme. You agree that in return for such a payment or benefit you assign absolutely to those Trustees any claims which you have or may have arising out of or relating to the non-provision of the services, including any claim against us (or your credit card issuer where applicable). You also agree that any such claims maybe re-assigned to another body, if that other body has paid sums you have claimed under the ATOL scheme.
English Law. These conditions form part of your contract with Martin Randall Travel Ltd and are governed by English law. All proceedings shall be within the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales.
Privacy. By signing the booking form, or by booking online, you are stating that you have read and agree to our Privacy Policy (available online at www. martinrandall.com/privacy).
MARTIN RANDALL TRAVEL LTD
10 Barley Mow Passage London W4 4PH
United Kingdom
Tel +44 (0)20 8742 3355 info@martinrandall.co.uk www.martinrandall.com
Contact the London office from the USA and Canada:
Tel 1 800 988 6168 (toll free) usa@martinrandall.com
MARTIN RANDALL AUSTRALASIA PO Box 1024
Indooroopilly QLD 4068 Australia
Tel 1300 55 95 95 New Zealand 0800 877 622 anz@martinrandall.com.au
MARTIN RANDALL TRAVEL…
is Britain’s leading specialist in cultural travel and one of the most respected tour operators in the world.
MRT aims to produce the best planned, best led and altogether the most fulfilling and enjoyable cultural tours and events available. They focus on art, architecture, archaeology, history, music and gastronomy, and are spread across Britain, continental Europe, the Middle East, North Africa, India, Japan and the Americas.
For 2025 we have planned around 200 expert-led tours for small groups (usually 10–20 participants), four music festivals of our own devising (such as Handel in Malta), several short history and music breaks, an extensive programme of online talks, and single days in London.
For over 35 years the company has led the field through incessant innovation and improvement, setting the benchmarks for itinerary planning, operational systems and service standards.
To see our full range of cultural tours and events, please visit www.martinrandall.com
