Private & Public Gardens of Southern England 2026

Join Charles and Missy for a spectacular, once-in-a-lifetime tour of some of the finest private and public gardens of southern England, featuring vibrant-colored plant palettes, rich textures, unusual shapes and old-world architectural and water features.

During the course of this 12-day trip, we’ll visit 13 quintessentially English gardens, with exclusive private access to all but two, each with its own personality and distinctive features.

After an afternoon meet & greet the day before, your journey begins in London with a day-long visit to the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, which houses the largest and most diverse botanical and mycological collections in the world and includes four glass houses, a Japanese garden, arboretum, perennial border, Rhododendron dell, rock garden and much more.

Then, the following day, we’ll visit the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) Chelsea Flower Show, the world’s most famous flower show featuring stunning creative horticultural displays.  You’ll be given an opportunity to photograph impressive Show Gardens, as well as inside Chelsea’s three-acre Great Pavilion, which is filled with perfect specimens of every imaginable flower and plant under pleasing soft lighting conditions with little-to-no wind.  Some of the world’s finest growers and nurseries exhibit inside this Pavilion, and it will be filled with the glorious sights and scents of Spring.

Other gardens we’ll visit over the next 9 days include: Broughton Grange Gardens, Hidcote Manor Garden, RHS Garden Wisley, Great Dixter House & Gardens, Sissinghurst Castle Garden, Borde Hill Garden, Great Comp Garden, Upton Wold, Gravetye Manor House and three additional “secret” private gardens.

Our visit is timed for maximum color at peak bloom.  Some of the flowers you’ll likely be able to photograph include: Wisteria, Laburnum, Irises, Poppies, Allium, Lupines, Phlox, Clematis, Lotuses, Peonies, Rhododendron, Roses, Geranium and much more!

While this is primarily a tour, as opposed to a workshop, Charles and Missy will demonstrate various Impressionistic and multiple-exposure garden photography techniques and cover composition and macro flower photography methods while in the field.  Their goal is to teach you how to go beyond the “snapshot” and craft a truly great intimate garden landscape photograph, thus capturing the essence or “spirit” of a garden.

Limited to 13 participants.

Includes:

• Exclusive pre-paid private photography access to 4 privately owned English gardens
• Exclusive pre-paid private photography access to 9 public English gardens
• Photography in 2 world-class public English gardens for a day
• Entrance fees to all 13 gardens
• 12 nights’ accommodation in three 4-star luxury hotels (London, Cotswolds and Sussex)
• 12 full English breakfasts
• 9 days ground transportation by spacious private coach with driver
• All day entry to RHS Chelsea Flower Show (on RHS Members Only Day, May 19th)
• London Underground tickets to/from Kew Gardens and Chelsea Flower Show
• Welcome Reception (with tea, coffee & biscuits)
• Special pre-arranged catered dinner in 1 garden
• Special pre-arranged catered lunch in 1 garden
• Light refreshments in 3 private gardens and 1 public garden
• 3-course Michelin Star Farewell Luncheon (with champagne & glass of wine) at a 16^th century English country manor house hotel with rare opportunity to photograph in their stunning gardens of historical importance at peak bloom
• Charles and Missy’s expert guidance, individualized field instruction, field demos and supportive image evaluations throughout.

Does not include:

• airfare
• airport transfers
• optional travel insurance (Strongly recommended. See “Cancellation Policy” below.)
• optional spa treatments at hotel in the Cotswolds
• garden guidebooks and/or souvenirs
• some lunches and dinners (including alcoholic beverages)
• snacks
• incidentals (such as discretionary tips & gratuities, phone calls and laundry)

LODGING

You’ll be staying in three upscale 4-star hotels on this tour.  (Hotel names available upon request before booking.)  London for the first three nights, Cotswolds for the next four nights, then Sussex for the last five nights.  A limited number of single rooms are available at each hotel upon request and require an additional single supplement.  Please let us know if you would like a single room upon registration.  Every effort will be made to find a suitable roommate, should you require one.

GETTING THERE

Airfare is not included in the package price.  Please let us know if you would like help arranging flights; we can recommend a travel agent.  The tour begins at 4 pm, Sunday, May 17, 2026 and ends the evening of Thursday, May 28, 2026.  (Note: The night of May 28th at the hotel in Sussex and breakfast the next morning, May 29th, are included.)  We suggest a US departure on Saturday, May 16, 2026 for an overnight flight to Heathrow Airport (LHR) and return flight to the US from LHR Airport the morning of Friday, May 29, 2026.  You may also fly to/from London Gatwick Airport (LGW).  (Note: Heathrow is closer to our first hotel, while Gatwick is closer to our last hotel.)  Please do not book any non-refundable airfare before December 31, 2025.

AIRPORT TRANSFERS

Taxi service from London Heathrow or London Gatwick Airport to our first hotel in London is not included in the tour price but can be pre-arranged.  Taxi service from our last hotel in Kent to London Heathrow or London Gatwick Airport is not included either, but this can be pre-arranged as well.  Details and instructions on how to book airport transfers will be provided in a “Registration Packet,” which you will receive once registered.

If you wish to return to central London at the conclusion of the tour, this can also be pre-arranged.

TRANSPORTATION

Transportation to/from all 13 gardens during the tour is included in the package price. While in London for the first two days, we will visit Kew Gardens and the Chelsea Flower Show on foot via the London Underground (metro system).  Roundtrip tickets on both days are included in the tour price.  For the remaining 9 days, we have hired a 35-seater private coach with driver who will transport us to/from all the various gardens (also included in the tour price).

ITINERARY

• Sunday, May 17

Meet & Greet and orientation session starting at 4 pm (London hotel).  Dinner on your own at hotel or a nearby restaurant.

• Monday, May 18

Full day photographing at Kew Gardens. Hands-on macro and Impressionistic photography field demonstrations.  Lunch and dinner on your own.

• Tuesday, May 19

Full day at RHS Chelsea Flower Show (London) on RHS Members Only Day.  Photographic opportunities (in particular, Chelsea’s spectacular show gardens and inside the three-acre Great Pavilion).  Lunch on your own at Chelsea; dinner on your own at the hotel.

• Wednesday, May 20

Check out of London hotel.  Private coach and driver transportation to second hotel in the Cotswolds.  Settle into hotel.  Group lunch at hotel (not included).  Afternoon visit to Broughton Grange Gardens.  Photograph there with private access.  Special pre-arranged, catered dinner at the Gardens.

• Thursday, May 21

Early am departure for a “secret” garden.  Private photography access in that garden all morning before it opens to the public.  Return to hotel for a break.  Lunch on your own.  Late afternoon visit to Hidcote Manor Garden with refreshments upon arrival.  Photograph there with private access.  Return to hotel for dinner on your own.

• Friday, May 22

Early am departure for our second “secret” privately owned garden near Banbury.  Photograph there with private access.  Refreshments provided.  Then, moving on to a pre-arranged group lunch and garden visit at our third “secret” privately owned garden (also near Banbury).  Photograph there with private access.  Return to hotel.  Dinner on your own.

• Saturday, May 23

Free day with optional visit to the nearby picturesque Cotswolds town of Broadway. You may also wish to avail yourself of a spa treatment at our Cotswolds hotel.  Lunch and dinner on your own.

• Sunday, May 24

Check out of Cotswolds hotel.  Drive to RHS Garden Wisley.  Full day photographing at Wisley.  (Lunch on your own in the Garden.)  Drive to Kent hotel.  Check into hotel.  Dinner on your own.

• Monday, May 25

Morning departure for Borde Hill Garden.  Photograph there all morning with private access before they open to the public.  Lunch on your own in the garden.  Afternoon visit to a “secret” privately owned garden near the English Channel.  Return to hotel for dinner on your own.

• Tuesday, May 26

Morning departure for Great Comp Garden.  Photograph there all morning with private access for 2 hours before they open to the public.  Lunch on your own at the garden.  Return to hotel for a break.  Evening visit to Sissinghurst Castle Garden.  Early dinner there, then photograph with special private access after they close to the public for approximately 3 hours.

• Wednesday, May 27

Morning departure for Great Dixter House & Gardens.  Photograph there with private access before they open to the public.  Return to hotel.  Optional: explore the nearby town of Tunbridge Wells.  Dinner on your own.

• Thursday, May 28

Morning departure for Gravetye Manor House gardens.  Photograph their stunningly beautiful gardens (not open to the general public), followed by a 3-course Michelin Star Farewell Luncheon.  Return to hotel in the late afternoon.  Optional dinner on your own.

• Friday, May 29

Breakfast at hotel (included).  Group departures.

PROFICIENCY LEVEL

All skill levels and camera formats welcome, including smartphone cameras.  Students should have a basic understanding of exposure, lighting and composition. Proficiency in post-capture image editing software, such as Lightroom, Photoshop or Snapseed, would be an added bonus but is not necessary.

PHYSICAL DIFFICULTY

No strenuous activity will be involved on this tour; however, you must be able to walk at least a quarter mile each day on uneven terrain, some hills and some flat ground at a reasonable pace, unassisted, carry your own luggage and camera gear during the tour, and step in and out of a coach several times a day without needing assistance.  Additionally, the full days at Kew Gardens, RHS Garden Wisley, and the Chelsea Flower Show will require stamina, as there will be a significant amount of walking each day. You’ll also need to be able to walk the streets of London and navigate the London Underground metro system with its stairs & escalators on the days we visit Kew and the Chelsea Flower Show.  Having a modest level of health and fitness will greatly enhance your tour experience.

CANCELLATION POLICY

All tour withdrawal requests must be in writing and received either by US mail or e-mail and acknowledged by Charles Needle Photography. There are NO EXCEPTIONS TO THIS POLICY, even for medical or family emergencies. Unless otherwise noted, based on cancellation date, the following apply:

• Greater than 180 days before this tour start date: refund, minus a $1000 administrative fee.
• Within 180 days of the start of the program: no refund.

We strongly encourage you to purchase refundable airline tickets and “Cancel for Any Reason” trip cancellation insurance. If you are forced to cancel your trip, you will be subject to certain penalties, which are determined by how closely to the departure date you cancel.  In addition to our own costs, there will be charges imposed upon us by hotels, gardens and transportation companies we work with in the UK.  Trip insurance can protect you in the event of an unexpected situation that prevents you from attending the tour and can recover certain costs, including the tour fee itself, airline tickets, etc. We are not travel insurance experts, but based on past client recommendations, we recommend you purchase insurance from Travelguard or Travelex Insurance Services.

We reserve the right to cancel this tour if the minimum student enrollment is not met, or due to any COVID-19 or other health concerns. In the event we cancel this tour, you’ll be notified as soon as possible and be given the option to receive a full refund or apply your payment toward any future workshop or tour within one calendar year from the date of cancellation.

We are not, however, liable for expenses incurred such as airfare or accommodations, and for this reason we also strongly recommend purchasing “Cancel for Any Reason” trip insurance. The financial liability of Charles Needle Photography shall be limited to the amount paid to Charles Needle Photography for the tour only and shall not be extended to cover any other associated travel costs incurred (e.g. non-refundable air tickets, visa fees if applicable, clothing, equipment, miscellaneous transportation costs, lodging costs, medical expenses, travel insurance premiums, etc.).  For this reason, we highly recommend trip cancellation insurance.