I haven't been on an actual Jane Austen tour, but when I was in England in 2006 I created my own "Regency Tour" of England. This is by no means a comprehensive list, but I doubt you will find a package tour that incorporates all the places I visited. I took in sites in Jane Austen, Georgette Heyer, Hornblower and Patrick O'Brian. Plus I visited other places with Regency themes as they presented themselves to me.
Some of the places I visited were Portsmouth, Bath, Bristol, Buxton and various sites in London.
London has a plethora of Regency sites, mentioned in various books. Some of the places I remember visiting are:
* Green Park where Luffra the dog disturbs all the diary cows in the park in Georgette Heyer's Frederica
* the National Portrait Gallery to see the little watercolour believed to be of Jane Austen, not to mention all the portaits and biographies of important persons of the era, often referred to in Georgette Heyer's novels
* Sir John Soane's museum, to see what a typical town house of the day looked like
* Greenwich, to see the uniform Nelson was wearing when he was shot
* the Costume display in the V&A to see some period costumes, including the "court dress" so often described in Georgette Heyer's novels
* Apsley House/Wellington Museum, to see the splendid collection of the Duke of Wellington's treasures, many of which were presented to him by foreign countries for winning the Battle of Waterloo and ridding Europe of Napoleon
* Wandering around Mayfair and exploring some of the pretty arcades, including the Burlington Arcade which has a statue of Beau Brummell at one end
Portsmouth is a significant Regency site because it is home to the Historic Dockyards and the HMS Victory. Of course, Fanny Price visits her parents in Portsmouth too. But just getting an overall sense of the importance and strenght of the British Navy during the Napoleonic Wars is essential to getting the background of Jane Austen's novels. I was completely blown away by Portsmouth. The Historic Dockyards need three full days to get to fully appreciate them. You get access to three historical ships, including the HMS Victory, a tour around the harbour, visits to various museums with all sorts of fun interactive displays, a look at the Trafalgar Sail and the Nelson museum. And that doesn't include all the other things there are to enjoy in Portsmouth (which I am yet to do) such as walking along the esplanade to Southsea, visiting Southsea Castle, taking the hovercraft over to the Isle of Wight, climbing the Spinnaker etc.
Bath is, of course, the quintessential Regency city. Features in books by both Jane Austen and Georgette Heyer. I spent five full days there and visited just about everything it was possible to visit. Just wandering around the town is atmospheric, but some specific places to visit are
* Sydney Street, where Jane Austen lived for a few years
* Sydney Gardens, where many of Georgette Heyer's heroines went for walks and concerts
* the Jane Austen Centre (an underwhelming experience, I have to say)
* the Building of Bath Museum, a somewhat dry experience, but I can tell you all about the history of how Bath was built and what makes it so special. Once again, essential background understanding. The highlight was a scale model of the city.
* the Assembly Rooms and the Museum of Costume. See the history of costume and walk through the rooms graced by Anne Elliott and countless other Georgette Heyer heroines. The audioguide is a wonderful accompaniment, with extracts from novels by Jane Austen, Frances Burney and Charles Dickens.
* the Roman Baths. They didn't look like this in Jane Austen's day, but you can see the King's Bath, which is where they would have swum in Georgian times. Be sure to visit the Pump Room and "take the waters"!
* Number 1 Royal Crescent has been transformed into a townhouse as it would have been in 1767. Absolutely fascinating and each room has a knowledgeable guide who can answer all your tricky questions.
* the new Bath spa! Yes, you too can bathe in the same warm, sulfurous water that Jane Austen would have!
Here is my diary entry after spending five days in Bath:
"After being here for five days and visiting so many museums, walking the streets and reading my two Georgette Heyer novels set in Bath, I'm starting to get a feel for how this place worked. I'm starting to understand where teh best parts of town were and what made them so desirable, where the Upper and the Lower Town was and that the Bath Season was one huge fashion parade. Reading the books and beign in the city are really complementing each other and bringing so much more enjoyment and meaning to my visit here. Bath is certainly a wonderful town."
Bristol may not be your most obvious Regency site, but there are areas in Bristol abounding in Georgian history and charm. In particular Clifton, with it's squares, crescents and tiers. Well worth some time to visit some other attractions too, like the Clifton Suspension Bridge and the SS Great Britain (do you get that I love ships yet?)
On to Buxton - the Princess of the Peak as they call her. Buxton is another charming spa town which had its heydey during the Regency. There is some spectacular Georgian architecture and an amazing glass pavilion designed by Paxton, who went on to build the Crystal Palace in London. If you Buxton is also a great base from which to visit Chatsworth, often believed to be Pemberley. Need I elaborate?
I didn't go to other obvious Jane Austen sites, like Chawton or Winchester Cathedral (well, I went there when I was eight year's old) nor did I go to Brighton, which is where one will find the Pavilion, which was the Regent's favourite monstrosity. But still, got to leave something for next time!
Still, I hope my list gives you some good ideas about how you might create your own itinerary, rather than just joining a tour.
Hope you have a great trip!
Claire.
