Paul, Tricia and Dawn have just returned from a wonderful five nights in the Wallonia region of Belgium, hosted by visit Wallonia. South of Brussels, enveloped by Luxembourg and France. Official website for tourism in Wallonia | VISITWallonia.be
Wallonia has such natural beauty, steeped in history with unique places of interest and just an hour and half from Manchester by air, easily accessible by Eurostar to Brussels and just over two hours from Calais by coach. It has something for everyone! Wellness packages, castles and gardens, boats and trains, and plentiful family adventure playgrounds.
Belgium is renowned for beer and chocolates (we have probably sampled all there is to offer on our travels). There are micro breweries/brasseries on nearly every street corner in Wallonia, the opportunities are endless in the offerings.
Christmas Markets, Flower & Garden Shows, Bathtub Race, Tanks in Town and Steam Festival… Definitely a hidden gem to add to your to do list of places to visit
Be the first to register for our new and improved itineraries coming soon for Wonderful Wallonia!
Lisa and Charlotte (UK Operations) visited the Meitheal trade show on Ireland’s West Coast this week. The weather was very kind and the scenery in Killarney, county Kerry was breathtaking. Across two days of networking, Lisa and Charlotte had a total of 82 appointments, where they met with new and existing suppliers to discuss exciting new developments within the Irish tourism industry.
We are looking forward to showcasing new and improved products in our Ireland section over the coming months after this wonderful trip to County Kerry.
Recently Sam (Europe Operations) and Guy (Sales Team) joined an excellent Flanders Fields Fam Trip professionally organised by www.visitflanders.com. Covering key battle sites, cemeteries and both mainstream and ‘alternative’ highlights, including a very moving attendance at the Last Post at Menin Gate, this was a wonderful introduction to the wide appeal of this region. Ypres is charming and the people so welcoming…even before tackling the amazing chocolate and beer.
Being so close to the UK it is a rewarding and affordable place to visit. Lots of inspiration and insight gained for new and exciting tour itineraries, so do contact us at sales@greatdays.co.uk if you are looking for a refreshing tour package to Belgium.
Lisa, the UK & Ireland Operations Manager and Claire, our Private Groups Sales Manager, had the briefest of visits to Belfast to visit hotels that we offer to our groups. They stayed at the Hilton Hotel adjacent to the ICC. The Hotel has the Riverside Restaurant and No 4 bar, all of the bedrooms have either a city or river view.
Taking a short walk from the Hilton through the City they visited the Grand Central Hotel, proudly the owner of Ireland’s tallest bar; The Observatory, which has 360-degree skyline views of Belfast and beyond. With a luxury yet modern feel throughout, the Hotel was beautiful.
The next stop was the world-famous Europa Hotel, the four-star hotel of choice, located in the heart of the city.
Ramada by Wyndham Belfast located in the Cathedral Quarter Belfast, was the final visit of the day. This Hotel offers stylish bedrooms with walk-in wet-rooms.
Lisa and Claire also managed to jump onto the City Sightseeing Belfast bus to enjoy local tales from the live commentary as they passed highlights within the City including Titanic Belfast, Peace Wall and Crumlin Road, before ending the day in an historic pub for local cuisine and drink.
Claire from Sales and Sam from the European Operations team enjoyed the itinerary of dreams arranged by Hauts-de-France tourism last week 19-24 January 2025.
Flying from Manchester to Paris Charles de Gaulle, the first stop on the tour was Senlis, a real hidden gem described as a true open-air museum, and a magnet for film directors looking for the perfect set.
With their first overnight in Chantilly, the next morning began with a visit to the stunning Chateau de Chantilly including the great stables and a Chantilly cream workshop all before lunch at Le Craft, a show round Le Grand Pavillion, followed by short drive to Chateau Montvillargene, a Greatdays favourite, to see the new refurbished rooms before the second overnight in Amiens.
An amazing tour of the largest cathedral in France located in Amiens, was followed by a short tour of the city, before lunch at O’jardin to warm them up before they boarded their boat for the first sail around the Hortilonnages, whilst the second sailing showed the art installations. Their next overnight stop was Arras.
The morning began with a drive to the Commonwealth War Graves Commission just outside Arras, to see the workshops and how the CWGC work. An interesting tour of Arras followed from the Town Hall around the squares to see how the city was rebuilt after the war. En-route to their next stop, they managed to see the Vimy Memorial and Ring of Remembrance. Lunch followed at l’Atelier du Cerisier with a guided tour of Louvre Lens museum. Continuing onto Lille, home for the next two nights.
Lille has something to offer everyone from shopping, art, history and beer. They tried it all from visiting the Palais des Beaux Arts, a beer themed walking tour, tea at chez Meert, to ending the evening with a typically Welsh dinner at Les Moules.
The final day of this wonderful trip was to La Piscine de Roubaix museum, an Art Deco masterpiece.
Claire from our Sales Team has had a very busy 48 hours with The New Meridian members in Manchester, staying at the beautiful Malmaison Piccadilly Hotel, ideally located from the main railway station Piccadilly and near the tram network. The group took the tram to their first visit, the Coronation Street Experience. How things have changed from Hilda Ogden’s time, Weatherfield is now a town not just a street; they even took a stroll down the cobbles and a peek at the exhibition with its own Rovers Return. The first day ended in a lovely meal at the hotel and a presentation from Emily about the other Malmaison and Du Vin hotels.
The second day started at the RHS Bridgewater gardens with a guided tour by volunteer guides, learning how the garden started, is progressing and working with the community. Members easily walked around this transformed heritage landscape. With a short transfer to the other side of Manchester by coach seeing the changing skyline of the city, they arrived at the Etihad Stadium for a behind the scenes tour of the reigning Premiership Champions Manchester City. The guides showed them the home dressing room, the tunnel club and they got the chance ask the groundsman how they kept the pitch in perfect condition. Taking a rest in the Managers Corner they enjoyed a scrumptious afternoon tea.
The evening started with a short walk from the hotel to the Northern Quarter to the Abel Heywood award winning unique pub, for an Abel’s pie and a fascinating talk from local guide Emma Fox on the history of Manchester Music.
Comments Off on Discovering The Wirral the other side of the River Mersey
Claire from the Sales Team, was intrigued when an offer from Steve Reed came along to join The Wirral Showcase. Looking at the itinerary it brought childhood memories flooding back of school holidays taking the ferry to New Brighton, so off she went to find out what the Wirral had to offer.
She was not disappointed – starting with her first visit to Ness Botanic Gardens. The autumn colours were stunning and the views of North Wales and the River Dee beautiful.
The following day started with the local Wirral Tourism Industry holding a networking show and presentation with all the plans they have to make the Wirral a place to visit.
Taking the coach to New Brighton with a local guide, the group heard lots of stories of the local area both past and present before arriving at Floral Pavilion Theatre for a tour and lunch with a view (the Mersey). With a quick visit to the Escape the Fort at Fort Perch Rock with a Squadron Leader, she made sure she didn’t get locked in before it was time to join the coach for the final stop at Port Sunlight Village, for a walking tour where the Port Sunlight Museum and Lady Lever Gallery are.
With some great plans ahead, the Wirral offers history, art, heritage and a warm welcome.
Comments Off on Lucy’s trip to watch groups perform onstage at Disneyland® Paris
Lucy ate at Walt’s restaurant (serving sophisticated and contemporary American cuisine with European influences, this is a Victorian-style tribute to the life and work of Walt Disney) within the Disneyland® Park. She also did a day in Paris and went up to the top of the Eiffel Tower. She watched the nighttime drone (Disney Electrical Sky Parade) & firework show (Disney Illuminations – dazzling finale full of breathtaking beauty in front of Sleeping Beauty Castle!) as well as the parade (Disney Stars on Parade – Admire Disney Characters on their colourful floats against a backdrop of upbeat music) at Disney.
There was over 100 passengers in the group which attended to watch their friends and family perform onstage in the Disneyland® Park, showcasing their dance skills to an international audience.
Disneyland® Paris says:
“The Disney Performing Arts OnStage programme provides performance opportunities to amateur groups, with the aim of giving them a glimpse into Disney’s world of entertainment, by offering them the unique once in a lifetime experience of becoming a ‘Disney performer’ for the day.”
Sarah enjoyed a great fam trip to the West Coast of Ireland hosted by Tourism Ireland. Sarah met with business partners at Limerick and Westport, obtaining new contacts at great new attractions and had a lovely catch up with our established partners to refresh ideas. Highlights during the event was visiting Kylemore Abbey, an evening at Trad on the Prom and of course seeing the local sheep in the heart of the Connemara mountains. Certainly a very beneficial few days spending time with great people offering superb Irish hospitality which was second to none, as always.
Guy, Claire and Dawn enjoyed a successful day at the Group Leisure & Travel Show 2024, at Marshall Arena Milton Keynes.
Lots of exciting enquiries and stimulating conversations with many GTO and Coach clients, and we received a lot of positive feedback. Guest speakers included Simon Calder, Paul Martin from TV’s Flog It and Britain’s Hidden Heritage, and Jilly Goolden from BBC’s Food & Drink Programme. There was a good atmosphere, enthusiasm among the visitors, and even free ice creams!
Claire, our Sales Manager for Private Groups, travelled to her second favourite city London to attend the London for Groups Live, held at the Actor’s Church in Covent Garden.
With an overnight stay at the St Giles Hotel, she also visited the Tavistock Hotel that is used for our Sleek London Art Dec Tour ( https://www.greatdays.co.uk/tour/london-art-deco/ )
With a visit to the Garden Museum in Lambeth, the morning of the show, she climbed the 131 tower steps to be greeted with fabulous London views.
Greatdays’ Stand at the Show
View of London from the tower at the Garden Museum
Greatdays offer a trade only booking service for coach and tour operators or professional group travel organisers and we can provide single or multiple elements of a holiday.
Greatdays are able to offer a complete tailor-made booking service for group travel organisers with the help of one of our friendly consultants to assist you through the booking process.
