Category: Travel Tips

London Stopover Trip

PerryGolf Staff

We decided to stop off in London for a few days – so much to see and do! Fortunately the weather was perfect for sightseeing and we were quite happy to explore on foot. Our hotel was not far from the River Thames and we walked to the Millennium Bridge, taking in St. Pauls Cathedral on the way, and then along the Embankment to the London Eye. This is a must for everyone on a London trip and includes a short 4D film – the fourth dimension being atmospherics as you ‘travel’ through London.

Houses of Parliament
Houses of Parliament

After the Eye, we continued our walk and went over Westminster Bridge to the Houses of Parliament. London is really well sign-posted for tourists anyway, but every time we opened up our tourist map, someone would ask if we needed a hand! These were ordinary people going by and they were so helpful. We continued our walk past Westminster Abbey, found Downing Street (we could only see No 10 from the security barrier), and went onto the Horse Guard’s Parade to watch the changing of the guard. The two regiments that guard the palaces are the Household Cavalry (in red tunics) and the Blues & Royals (in blue). The horses were magnificently turned out and so patient with everyone wanting their pictures taken next to a horse. The troopers looked so young but maybe that was just me!

Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace

We continued our walk through St. James Park and up to Buckingham Palace(so many people and so many nationalities, but all just enjoying being there) and then on up Constitution Hill to Hyde Park, Kensington Gardens, the Princess Diana Memorial garden and the Serpentine. London is full of statues and memorials and you could spend a day just exploring these. We were getting pretty hungry by now and found a pavement café for an excellent lunch and then heard someone say that downstairs was Prince Harry’s favourite nightclub. Setting off again, we retraced our steps through the park and down The Mall to Trafalgar Square to see Nelson’s Column and the lions. The National Art Gallery (located on one side of the square) is a very impressive building, but we didn’t have time to visit it on this occasion. Must go back!

We wanted to see a show while we were there and headed to Leicester Square and the returned ticket booths – discovering Covent Garden on our way. This was once the original fruit and flower market for London but is now two storeys of small trendy shops, stalls selling all sorts of jewellery, handbags, scarves, etc, and courtyard areas where ‘living statues’, musicians, singers and entertainers amuse the shoppers. One tiny teashop specialises in very large iced cupcakes in every conceivable flavour and with amazing decorations; we had to try them…and with a (very English) pot of tea!

Theatre tickets purchased, we headed back to the hotel for a rest before our evening ahead and to plan how we could fit in the Tower of London, Carnaby Street, Soho and China Town, not to mention shopping in Oxford Street and Harrods!

By Yvonne Shaw. Yvonne Shaw has worked for PerryGolf for over 9 years and is a member of our Administration Team.

SHARE

Snow in Scotland….and bureaucracy in inaction!

PerryGolf Staff
Testing the depth of the ice at the Lake of Menteith
Testing the depth of the ice at the Lake of Menteith

You may have read reports about the unusually lengthy cold spell we have had in Scotland since before Christmas. While we do get some snow each year, it is generally fairly insignificant aside of parts of the Highlands. The lowest temperature so far has been recorded at -23, the record is -27 in Braemar. The ski resorts in Scotland – Glen Coe, Annoch Moor, Cairngorms and Glenshee have had an outstanding season, lots of fresh snow and lovely sunny days to ski. The last time we had this volume of snow and such low temperatures was in 1947, and my mother, whose family farm was between two golf courses, remembers great sledging, with the occasional sudden dive into a bunker filled with snow!

My biggest excitement was the prospect of the Grand Match being played; a Curling Bonspiel to be held at the Lake of Menteith (the only lake in Scotland, the rest being Lochs) which is west of Stirling, in the Central Belt. This outdoor match was last played in 1979 in which my father played, so I very definitely wanted the chance to play. Having been a member of our local club since the early 1980’s, I managed to pull rank and get a place in the team; I found some hip flasks, my fathers Tam O’ Shanter (tartan beret), procured a ‘crampit’, (basically a piece of metal with prongs into the ice to give you a solid surface to throw your stone from) and had my curling stones polished. Everything was in place and the ice was the requisite 8 inches deep – then bureaucracy kicked in, the emergency services got nervous at 2500 curlers on the ice and pulled the plug on it. So disappointing…I would have taken my chances just to take part in this historic event, but sadly it seems it may never be allowed to happen. Are there still a lot of outdoor bonspiels held in USA? Maybe we need some tips on how to appease the authorities.
By Anne Filshie. Anne is the Group Director of Operations at PerryGolf.


SHARE

South Island, New Zealand additions

Gordon Dalgleish

Millbrook, a popular resort for PerryGolf clients on the South Island of New Zealand has just opened an additional 9 holes, bringing the total to 27 holes at the facility. Additionally, they have also completed the restoration of a high country wool shed which has been outfitted with the latest club fitting technology.
 

About the Author: Gordon Dalgleish is the Co-Founding Director of PerryGolf, the leading provider of international golf vacations. You can find him on Google+

SHARE

Highland Safari experience – Scotland, ideal for non golfers

PerryGolf Staff

From the moment we were collected at the hotel by our Safari Guide, Colin, we had a fantastic day. Loch Tay must surely be one of the prettiest of Scotland’s lochs and Colin had plenty of interesting conversation to keep us amused as we headed off-road and up through the forest – here I got my wish, and as promised, he found a red squirrel who was keeping very still on a fir tree not far from the track. I would never have noticed it myself as it was much smaller than I was expecting but really red and even prettier than it appears in pictures.

Leaving the Land Rover, we walked to a viewpoint only to be ‘attacked’ by a group of Highland Warriors wielding claymores. They were putting on a display for another group but thought they would practice on us!

We took it in turns to drive the 10-seater off-road vehicle, and with Colin’s guidance, negotiated some impressive hills and water obstacles. Lunch was laid on for us in a hilltop bothy and, either the food was exceptionally tasty, or we were exceptionally hungry! On the way back to the hotel, our guide pointed out a golden eagle circling high over the glen and he told us how to tell the difference between the various hawks by their wing and tail formation.

The Highland Safari offers a fantastic opportunity to view some of Northern Scotland’s hidden wildlife!

By Yvonne Shaw

SHARE

Machrihanish Golf Club with Kintyre Express

PerryGolf Staff

Machrihanish Golf Club is one of Scotland’s true hidden gems. Situated on the Southern tip of the Mull of Kintyre, the course is not easily accessible by road and is often excluded from itineraries purely because of its location. The journey time by road from Glasgow Airport is at least 3 hours, but by sea the time can be more than halved. Most people will travel to Machrihanish whilst spending time in Ayrshire – usually in Troon or Turnberry – and with the Kintyre Express making the journey much more achievable, I think it is an excellent addition to any schedule. Check out our website for more information on the Kintyre Express.

The PerryGolf team onboard the Kintyre Express
PerryGolf team onboard the Kintyre Express

I was lucky enough to get the opportunity to play the course earlier this year and had an outstanding experience. Our departure time from Troon was 9:00am for an 11:30am tee-time – which was ideal as it gave me enough time to travel down from my home and stop for a bacon sandwich en-route. The journey between Troon and Campbeltown was quicker than I thought and Wilson Smith, the captain of the Kintyre Express, gave us a running commentary of the surrounding area as we progressed. When we arrived at Campbeltown Harbour, two taxis were waiting to transfer us to the golf course as Wilson had called in advance and made the reservation. After a short taxi journey, we arrived in time for a quick warm up, a few putts, and were then faced with the first tee-shot over a corner of the Atlantic – no warm up could have prepared me for that. I was delighted to walk to the 2ndtee with a par. The rest of the course did not disappoint; each hole had its own character and offered something a little bit different. Machrihanish is not a long course with the onus put on hitting the ball straight off the tee for good lines to the greens. They have recently added some new tees to the course and I’d recommend single figure handicapped players play from the blue tees – the club is quite relaxed and will accommodate players who wish to do so. After golf there was enough time for a light bite and a couple of pints before the taxis picked us up again to transfer us back to Campbeltown Harbour to meet Wilson and the Kintyre Express.

The entire day was a great experience which I’d recommend to anyone spending a couple of nights in Ayrshire. It is something a little bit quirky and a memorable way to add a course which is in the Top 100 in the World to your schedule.

By Gary Sheppard

SHARE