Suggestions for a Reformation tour of Scotland and England

brianeschen · Sep 17, 2008

My wife and I are planning a reformation tour of Scotland and England for us and our three young children (4, 6, and 7). This is a request for help in any of the following categories (but not necessarily limited to those):

1) Places that are a "must see"

2) Best ways to get about

3) Resources (books, Cd's, etc) for adults and children to help get the most out of our experience

4) Money saving tips

Thank you in advance for your help. :wwbd:

(I don't know you Bob, but am sure with a smiley like this you must have some good suggestions)

N. Eshelman · Sep 17, 2008

http://www.reformationtours.org/index.php

toddpedlar · Sep 17, 2008

brianeschen said:
My wife and I are planning a reformation tour of Scotland and England for us and our three young children (4, 6, and 7). This is a request for help in any of the following categories (but not necessarily limited to those):

1) Places that are a "must see"

2) Best ways to get about

3) Resources (books, Cd's, etc) for adults and children to help get the most out of our experience

4) Money saving tips

Thank you in advance for your help. (I don't know you Bob, but am sure with a smiley like this you must have some good suggestions)

Don't let your kids wear getups like you have in your avatar. That would probably be a no-no on the plane...

brianeschen · Sep 18, 2008

toddpedlar said:
brianeschen said:

My wife and I are planning a reformation tour of Scotland and England for us and our three young children (4, 6, and 7). This is a request for help in any of the following categories (but not necessarily limited to those):

1) Places that are a "must see"

2) Best ways to get about

3) Resources (books, Cd's, etc) for adults and children to help get the most out of our experience

4) Money saving tips

Thank you in advance for your help. (I don't know you Bob, but am sure with a smiley like this you must have some good suggestions)

Click to expand...

Don't let your kids wear getups like you have in your avatar. That would probably be a no-no on the plane...

I'll keep that in mind.

JonathanHunt · Sep 18, 2008

I can only speak within my experience.

You must include London, if possible include a Sunday service at the Metropolitan Tabernacle (Spurgeons)

You can also see, easily, Spurgeon's grave (and other notable graves in the West Norwood Cemetery), Wesley's Chapel, Bunhill Fields, plus the more obvious destinations like Westminster Abbey and the Houses of Parliament.

There is history smattered everywhere around. You might find some inspiration from the 'Travel with' guides available from Day One. You might consider Cheltenham/Gloucester/Tewkesbury (where I live) as an excursion. Gloucester was Whitefield's home town.

Travel Guides - Day One - Christian Book Publications

Get 'Travel with Spurgeon'

Books - Travel Guides - Travel with CH Spurgeon - Day One - Christian Book Publications

Also 'Travel through Oxford' would be great for a day trip:

Books - Travel Guides - Travel through Oxford - Day One - Christian Book Publications

For Scotland, 'Travel with John Knox'

Books - Travel Guides - Travel with John Knox - Day One - Christian Book Publications

Also in London you may appreciate the British Museum. Although Day One have a guide, there is a superior guide available which is better for a walking tour:

Heritage of Evidence - MAST05

FenderPriest · Sep 18, 2008

JonathanHunt said:
I can only speak within my experience.

You must include London, if possible include a Sunday service at the Metropolitan Tabernacle (Spurgeons)

You can also see, easily, Spurgeon's grave (and other notable graves in the West Norwood Cemetery), Wesley's Chapel, Bunhill Fields, plus the more obvious destinations like Westminster Abbey and the Houses of Parliament.

For teaser photos of my wife and me at those places (in bold), see our pictures here.

LawrenceU · Sep 18, 2008

You might want to contact Vision Forum. They just completed an amazing Reformation Tour of England and Scotland. Following their schedule would just about hit it all. You can see a good bit of it on Doug Phillip's blog.

jambo · Sep 18, 2008

Speaking for Scotland, Edinburgh is the place to be. Around the Royal Mile you have Greyfriars Kirkyard where the solemn league and covenant was signed and where some of the covenanters are buried. You can visit John Knox's house half way down the Royal Mile and a couple of hundred yards beyond you can see the brass studs in the road that supported the gallows where the covenanters were hung beside the tollbooth where they were jailed. Further down the coast at Dunbar you can see the Bass Rock where many others were imprisoned,. Theres is a plaque in Dunbar marking this however to my great annoyance it merely says it had been used as a prison without reference to the covenanters.

Throughout Ayrshire and Dumfries you can visit the covenater graves whilst at Anworth see the remains of the church Samuel Rutherford ministered in. If you are up in Dundee you can visit M'Cheynes church, St Peters. If you are around the Isle of Lewis, you will be able to talk with people who lived through the revival there of 1948.

The following are some links to sites that might be of interest.

Covenanter Tour
http://www.reformationtours.org/
Covenanters and their Memorials

Whilst in Edinburgh you should also visit Tynecastle. This has nothing to do with the Reformed faith but it will let you see where the greatest football in the country is being played by the Heart of Midlothian.

Galatians220 · Sep 18, 2008

There is a man in our church who conducts a Reformation tour every year, has been doing this for years... He doesn't do it with his kids, though, but he does know a ton of money-saving tips, and the best places to see. If you'd like, I'd contact him to see whether he'd be open to being e-mailed...

He's doing the next one in January.

Margaret

21st Century Calvinist · Sep 18, 2008

jambo said:
Whilst in Edinburgh you should also visit Tynecastle. This has nothing to do with the Reformed faith but it will let you see where the greatest football in the country is being played by the Heart of Midlothian.

No, no, no. Glasgow is THE home of excellent football(soccer).

There is also loads of history there!

Aside from that I would recommend the Reformation sites Jambo listed. Don't forget St Giles Cathedral in Edinburgh- for a visit, definately not for worship though. For Sunday worship in Edinburgh St Columba's Free Church is a few blocks up the Royal Mile towards the castle.
In Edinburgh you really won't need a car. You can walk many places and also public transport is good. You could save a few bucks by staying in a Bed and Breakfast. There are loads in Edinburgh. There are also backpacker hostels throughout Scotland which are really reasonable. They could be busy and noisy though.

Try to find time on your itinerary to travel north to the Highlands. Inverness really is a beautiful city. Go to Loch Ness and hunt for the monster- I'm sure he must have played a part in the Reformation.
Venturing west from there, after a scenic tour of 90 miles through the wilds you will come to the beautiful Isle of Skye. There your breath will be taken away by the sheer beauty of it all. The photo in my avatar is taken towards Skye from the mainland. Oops, just realized that the photo is of Raasay, which is beside Skye. Dunvegan Castle on Skye is also the home of Clan MacLeod.

Watch out for Scots trying to sell you kilts and determining your Scottish clan/heritage. Watch out for haggis- they're everywhere :lol:

- and on highland roads the sheep and cattle. Go in late May or June, that's my favorite time of year in Scotland.

brianeschen · Sep 19, 2008

Wow! Thanks for all the great ideas and suggestions. My wife has already hit the ground running now with these suggestions. It seems she is checking my puritan board account more than I.

JonathanHunt · Sep 19, 2008

Brian, I had to go through Oxford today. I forgot how great it is. Go there, a thousand times GO!!

If it had to be just three cities - Edinburgh-Oxford-London

LawrenceU · Sep 19, 2008

Another Rangers fan on the board?

21st Century Calvinist · Sep 19, 2008

LawrenceU said:
Another Rangers fan on the board?[/quote

I hope you didn't assume that from my earlier response. I was referring to high quality soccer.

JonathanHunt · Sep 19, 2008

21st Century Calvinist said:
LawrenceU said:

Another Rangers fan on the board?[/quote

I hope you didn't assume that from my earlier response. I was referring to high quality soccer.

Click to expand...

You don't... support... oh no. No. No.

Surely it is nae possible!!

21st Century Calvinist · Sep 19, 2008

JonathanHunt said:
21st Century Calvinist said:

LawrenceU said:

Another Rangers fan on the board?[/quote

I hope you didn't assume that from my earlier response. I was referring to high quality soccer.

Click to expand...

You don't... support... oh no. No. No.

Surely it is nae possible!!

Click to expand...

Awright there Big Man,
You too might be jumping to a false conclusion here,of course you might not be. If you did jump to that conclusion, would that be a tacit recognition that they do play good football?
What can I say but I was a difficult child.

brianeschen · Sep 19, 2008

Another question my wife and I were pondering :think:

. . . Is it possible to do an adequate tour from a central location in each country, or would we need to travel and stay in several locations?

jambo · Sep 19, 2008

There is a lot around Edinburgh and 1-2 hours driving would take you to a lot of places of interest. However if you went up the Highlands (Inverness, Skye, Lewis etc) you would really need to stay over. If you are coming mid-Aug to Sept the Edinburgh festival is on which makes accommodation difficult as everywhere is booked up. If you go up the Highlands (June to Aug) in the summer, beware of the midges.

ericfromcowtown · Sep 19, 2008

What I find amazing is that your wife is keen on a "Reformation tour of Scotland and England!" It sounds fascinating to me, but I'd have to sell it as a "Tour of Scotland and England" period, that just happened to include a few Reformation-related stops.

"What, I didn't know that this is where Spurgeon was buried, what a coincidence!" Wife rolls eyes

and yawns looking for a coffee shop, while I rub my hands and soak in the history.

VirginiaHuguenot · Sep 21, 2008

brianeschen · Sep 23, 2008

ericfromcowtown said:
What I find amazing is that your wife is keen on a "Reformation tour of Scotland and England!" It sounds fascinating to me, but I'd have to sell it as a "Tour of Scotland and England" period, that just happened to include a few Reformation-related stops.

"What, I didn't know that this is where Spurgeon was buried, what a coincidence!" Wife rolls eyes and yawns looking for a coffee shop, while I rub my hands and soak in the history.

That is a hilarious picture. That used to be me.

I never much thought of this before. My wife grew up in a family whose vacations consisted of visiting every fort between the Missouri River and Atlantic Ocean as well as other historic places. Unlike her, I did not develop a love of history until I, by God's grace, was able to shake off my humanistic view of history (a lovely by product of my government education).

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