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UK   0345 475 1815   USA (toll free)   877‑209‑5620   International   00 44 345 475 1815 [email protected] Rated 98% on feefo

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Fortress Malta. From The Knights of St John to World War Two - click here to find out more

This is a wonderfully varied and scenic tour of Malta – a tiny island with a warm welcome and proud military and cultural heritage. The Second World War siege will be our main focus, but we also examine the indelible marks that other cultures and events have left behind: the unspoilt ancient walled city of Mdina, the renaissance architecture of the Knights of St John, the brief occupation by Napoleon and the extant Victorian fortifications

The Battle For Berlin - click here to find out more

The Battle for Berlin was the decisive action that brought an end to the war in Europe. The tour will focus on the fierce and bitter action from the point when the Red Army crossed the Oder River to the eventual fall of Berlin.

Wellington in Spain | A Classic Peninsular War Tour - click here to find out more

This eight-day tour, the second in our series of 'classic' of Peninsular War tours is led by award winning Peninsular War historian Nick Lipscombe. It visits some of the most beautiful and historic parts of central Spain and Wellington’s most notable battles and sieges during the period 1809 – 1812.

The Pompeii Experience | Archaeological delights of the Bay of Naples - click here to find out more

This comprehensive archaeological tour of the Bay of Naples and the events of AD79 not only includes the well-known and impressive remains of Pompeii and the superbly preserved Herculaneum but also those lesser known, but nonetheless important sites such as the seaside villas of the wealthy at Oplontis.

The Vietnam War | From Defeat at Dien Bien Phu to the Fall of Saigon - click here to find out more

Appealing to history and culture enthusiasts alike, this tour combines the key locations of the Vietnam war, with the stunning highlights of that country. Vietnam offers a rich culture and history, combined with delicious local cuisine with a French twist. Hanoi, with its leafy tree lined avenues, plays host to fascinating, thought provoking museums and military sites.

The Holocaust - click here to find out more

In this 8-day tour to Poland, we visit the sites of the former ghettos in Warsaw, Lublin and Krakow alongside four of the concentration and death camps - Treblinka, Majdanek, Belzec and Auschwitz-Birkenau - that played such a significant role in this genocide.

The Raise & Fall of Nazi germany - click here to find out more

This tour tells the whole story of the Rise and Fall of the Third Reich chronologically from its birth in 1919 Munich, to its bloody end in Berlin in 1945. Led by Historian Nigel Jones, this tour will visit all the significant milestones marking Adolf Hitler's ascent and Germany's descent into the abyss.

Finland 1939. The Winter War - click here to find out more

This tour follows the fortunes of the 9th Soviet Army attempting to cut Finland in two at its narrowest point in time for Stalin’s 60th birthday. Ex Parachute Regiment colonel and historian Robert Kershaw uses his Arctic training background and broad military experience to explain the nature of this amazing victory against seemingly insurmountable odds.

Discovering the Western Front - click here to find out more

This five-day Western Front tour provides an overview of the major events involving British and Empire forces in Northern France and Belgium: it is both an introductory tour for the novice and an essential ‘aide memoire’ to those more familiar with the First World War.

History Tours & Holidays With Expert Historians

The Cultural Experience is a leading international battlefield tour , historical tour and cultural tour company offering expert led holidays to destinations throughout the world. We offer a wide range of scheduled escorted tours including archaeology, military history and general history tours all of which are accompanied by leading historians, academics or senior soldiers.

We are also a leading provider of school trips to many schools in the UK and Ireland and organise bespoke battlefield studies and staff rides for The Army, RAF, Royal Navy and other MOD establishments. We can also create a wide range of tailor made tours for individuals, small groups and organisations.

Today's Recommended Tours

Latest News From The Cultural Experience

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Established in 2009, The Cultural Experience now offer tours all over the world. From the battlefields of the Zulu War in South Africa to the War Of the Roses in the UK, all bases are covered. If for any reason you cannot see the tour you would like to do, you can either see our future planning page or contact us to arrange your own bespoke tour.

Each of our guides are experts in their respective fields. Authors, historians, lecturers and fellows guide you through battlefields in France, America, India, Israel, Canada, Belarus and more. They guide you throughout the day, and dine with you in the evening, as all Cultural Experience tours include a three course meal in the evening.

Another benefit of a Cultural Experience tour is that a maximum of 22 passengers are accommodated on each tour. This means that we can include more in our daily activities as there is less time spent waiting for others to catch up.

All of our tours vary in the amount of physical activity involved. This is why we have added an activity level to each tour. This enables you to ascertain which tours are most suitable for you. All of the extra information about all of our tours can be found on our what to expect page.

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For up to date news as well as details about all of our tours please subscribe to our fortnightly e-newsletter

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The Cultural Experience 11B Mansfield Park Four Marks Alton GU34 5PZ United Kingdom

UK: 0345 475 1815 USA (toll free): 877 209 5620 International: 00 44 345 475 1815

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LET'S GO ON AN ADVENTURE

Discover history, guided historical & cultural educational tours, private and group tours in wwii normandy, battle of the bulge, market-garden & rhine crossings, italy incl sicily, germany, pearl harbor and pacific; wwi france and belgium; american revolution, american civil war, cuba, south africa, greece & turkey, and vietnam; as well as england and scotland, poland, czech republic and the netherlands, essential history expeditions develops, coordinates and conducts vibrant and memorable historical tours and cultural expeditions to worldwide locations to educate and inspire guests..

Essential History Expeditions is pleased to have received ALL five-star reviews on Yelp! Check out our Yelp reviews here and our testimonials here . More than 50 percent of all guests who join us for an EHE tour register for a second tour and approximately 15 percent of guests have traveled with us three or more times! Our goal is not to run many tours per year but, instead, to focus on a few highly crafted tours with engaging guests. We truly value the friendships we develop with guests in seminal locations around the world!

“The experience bolted to the top of all my vacations, tours and trips around the world!”

Sample expeditions.

D-Day: Operation Overlord

Essential Vietnam 2026

Pearl Harbor 85th & Hawaiian History and Culture

Italy in WWII: from Sicily to Rome

The Pacific: America in WWII, 1941-45

South Africa: The Prism of Mandela

Essential Vietnam

World War I: America in The Great War

80th Anniversary D-Day 2024

Sample Private Normandy: History/Culture

OVERVIEW OF

Essential history expeditions adventures.

• In-depth guided educational tours with expert historian
• Comprehensive knowledge of all tour history and a deep knowledge of all history tour locations and culture
• Experiential & immersive
• Culture-based adventure
• Fast-paced and hands-on tours
• Guest ability to role-play historical characters
• Exciting mix of history and culture
• All inclusive
• All high-quality accommodations and transportation (partnership expeditions may be mid-range accommodations to control prices)
• 90 percent of all meals
• Social hour most evenings
• All entrance fees
• All gratuities to outside support
• Restaurants specifically selected for local and cultural experience
• Fantastic history & educational tours for individuals, couples, families, groups, reunions and corporate leadership teams
• Personalized tour support
• Flexible and customizable
• Comprehensive arrangements
• Travel available or included
• Ability to customize an adventure by developing Partnership Expeditions
• Attentive to individual needs, such as dietary restrictions

Expert Guide And Historian

Dr. brian detoy.

• PhD in European History
• 28 years of service as an Infantryman in the United States Army with multiple deployments
• Chief of Research & Publications at Combat Studies Institute and senior Historian in Iraq theatre
• 14 years as a professor and program director at the United States Military Academy at West Point and the University of Kansas
• Featured in numerous documentaries on the History Channel, A&E , Military Channel, Discovery Channel and PBS
• Author of numerous publications on military history and travel destinations
• Presenter and chair at numerous conferences worldwide
• Experienced world-wide traveler

Why is travel insurance so important?

In today’s changing travel environment, it’s important to protect your travel investment so you can relax and enjoy your trip. Unforeseen events such as flight delays, baggage loss or even a sudden sickness or injury could impact your travel plans. For your convenience, we offer a Travelex Insurance Services protection plan to help protect you and your travel investment against the unexpected. For more information on the available plans  click here  or contact Travelex Insurance 800-228-9792 and reference location number 06-0263.

The product descriptions provided here are only brief summaries and may be changed without notice. The full coverage terms and details, including limitations and exclusions, are contained in the insurance policy. Travelex Insurance Services, Inc CA Agency License #0D10209. Travel Insurance is underwritten by Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance Company, NAIC #22276. V94

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History tours of medieval castles and cathedrals

Reserve your spot today!

Historian, Dr Geoff, DPhil Oxford, leads you on Single or Multi-Day historic tours of England.

All tours begin and conclude in London.

Take a private tour of Salisbury Cathedral, Canterbury Cathedral, The RAF Museum, Dover Castle, Hever Castle or even Highclere Castle - made famous by Downton Abbey.

multi-day tours

Expert guides, unique boutique hotels breakfast and dinners included.

Expert guides will lead you throughout your tours. 

Tours are limited to a group of twelve so that we keep the personal touch for your needs.

Explore areas of outstanding natural beauty - what England is famous for in your private air conditioned chauffeured coach.  

Join us at fabulous boutique hotels throughout England well off the beaten path.

Enjoy full English breakfasts and dining at our hotels (Marquis of Granby Hotel room pictured above) or great local pubs.  

Experience! Live England's History

History & old pubs can life get any better.

 We will bring you to exciting places where you can watch knights in jousting tournaments, watch a trebuchet (catapult) fire a projectile, learn about stone carving from master masons at Salisbury Cathedral, test your own skills in archery and hear the sounds of WW2 Spitfires and P51s overhead. On our tours you live English history!

We visit some of England's oldest and most famous pubs like, The Eagle in Cambridge, and Nottingham's  Ye Olde Trip to Jerusalem built in 1189!

Castles & Cathedrals - 2 tours

Medieval castles, experience history.

We offer two Castles and Cathedrals tours, in the South East and in the famous charming Cotswolds.  The South East tour heads from London to Kent where we visit the castles at Leeds 'the loveliest castle in the world', Hever (13th c. and home of Anne Boleyn) and Dover (11th c. origin and perhaps the most important castle in England's history. 

The Cotswolds tour heads west visiting the castles at Thornbury (Henry VIII stayed here), Berkeley, and Oxford (both from and after 11th c.), and with time permitting we will also visit the Tower of London.  

On the South Eastern tour we visit the cathedral at Canterbury, the most important church in England and the seat of the Archbishop of Canterbury. It is also the site of the brutal murder of St Tomas Becket in 1170. We also visit Westminster Abbey, England's most famous landmark, the burial places of famous Kings and Queens of England and others including Sir Isaac Newton, Stephen Hawking, and Charles Dickens. On the Cotswolds tour we see the cathedrals at Salisbury, Gloucester, Bath, and Oxford (within the grounds of Christ Church College).

Our tours are not sit back and listen. Are you brave enough to get close up to a bird-of-prey, or walk Salisbury Cathedral's external parapet 75 feet up with its master masons? Or is descending into a medieval dungeon more your thing? On a bespoke tour, why not walk the ramparts of Medieval York then shop in its world famous Shambles followed by a classic English afternoon tea at Betty's. All of these are possible on our Castle and Cathedrals tours.

Great Ambiance

Pubs and great dining.

Our tours are limited to a small group of twelve. We believe that this allows us to really get to know one another on our tour and to share our love of history, great food, hotels and English pubs.

Fabulous Shopping

We will definitely have many shopping opportunities in all of the locations we visit. Highlights include Canterbury, Bath,  and Oxford.

Have a pint where King Richard the Lionheart assembled his court in Nottingham. The first round is on us at 

Ye Olde Trip to Jerusalem 

that dates from 1189! 

Learn more about our 2025

Castles and Cathedrals Tours

Wars of the roses - AUGUST 14-17, 2025

Richard iii, battlefields.

Villain or Noble King?

Did Richard murder the Princes in the Tower? Let us track the Wars of the Roses and maybe find answers to the Great Medieval Whodunnit

We visit the most important Wars of the Roses battlefield and museum at Bosworth Field. Here you can follow a guided walk on the battlefield and explore the weapons and armour used on the fateful day of August 22, 1485. The tour ends with the Bosworth Medieval Festival for an entire day at Bosworth Field. This is not to be missed!

Cathedrals, Abbeys and Churches

Our tours take you to some of the most important castles in the Wars of the Roses. We visit Warwick Castle, one of the best preserved castles in England and the home of Neville, Earl of Warwick a great baron in the Wars. We also visit castles at Berkeley, York and time permitting at Nottingham.

Our tours head to Tewkesbury Abbey which was the site of a battle inside the church! We also proceed to York, the heart of Richard III's powerbase. We visit York's cathedral, as well as the smaller churches where Robert Beauchamp, the Earl of Warwick is buried.

Incomparable York

York retains much of its medieval charm. The Shambles is its famous shopping area within yards of the cathedral. There is so much to see in this gem of Yorkshire. We will take a guided tour along the castle walls then stop for a traditional English afternoon tea at the famous Betty's.  

Incredible Pubs

The pubs along this tour are exceptional. Starting with Ye Olde Starr Inne built in the early 1600s, The Abbot's Table in Tewkesbury,  and The Old Coffee Tavern steps from Warwick Castle.

Wars of the Roses Tours

britain at war 1939-1945 - June 27- 30, 2025

Ww2 usaaf air base - duxford.

A highlight of the tour is a tour of the USAAF Duxford airbase. This branch of the Imperial War Museum's permanent  exhibition contains many classic WW2 planes including the B17G, P51D, P47D, P40F and others. It is not to be missed. 

Tanks in Action

No student of WW2 can miss the incredible Bovington Tank Museum and its TankFest Weekend 27-28 June 2025. Its collection is second to none. Its WW2 collection includes, Tiger I, Tiger II, Jagd-Tiger as well as the M4 Sherman, M26 Pershing and Soviet tanks. The museum also has tanks of WW1 and the Cold War.

The Ultra Secret

Breaking Germany's codes, the Ultra Secret, played an enormous role in the victory over Nazi Germany. Alan Turing (played by Benedict Cumberbatch in The Imitation Game 2014) was central to this battle. We visit Bletchley Park and see where he and the famous Bletchley girls helped win the war.

Blenheim Palace

Winston Churchill held Britain together in its darkest hour. We visit the underground Churchill Cabinet War Rooms in London. See where he conducted the war 'safe' from the bombs and rockets fired in the Blitz. 

We also visit one of England's treasures, Blenheim Palace. Built in 1705-22 it was the seat of the Dukes of Marlborough. The 1st Duke was John Churchill the victor of the Battle of Blenheim. His more famous descendant, Winston Churchill was born here in 1874.

D-Day Museum

The greatest amphibious invasion in history left the ports and airfields of England on June 6, 1944. We discover more about the invasion at the D-Day Museum in Portsmouth, a major port and embarkation point for the armada heading to Normandy. If time permits, we may also visit HMS Victory, Lord Nelson's 104 gun Ship-of-the-Line flagship at the Battle of Trafalgar 1805. 

Britain at War Tours

important terms and conditions - full terms are on the link below

Deposits and Payment

• Multi-Day Tour Price is based on double occupancy of hotel rooms.
• Single travellers will be required to pay a supplement of 35% of the Tour Price. 
• A Deposit of £200 per person is required for any of the Multi-Day Tours or £100 per person for a Single Day Tour is required to confirm your reservation.
• The Deposit is refundable if a cancellation request is delivered and confirmed by return email at least 120 days prior to the Tour Date.
• The Deposit will not be refundable within 120 days of any Tour Date. 
• The Balance of Payment is due 90 days prior to any Tour Date.
• Payment may be made via PayPal, or accepted credit card, to Historic Tours of England Limited.

Hotel and Room Availability

• All hotels and rooms selected are subject to availability.
• In the unlikely event that a chosen hotel(s) is not available, an alternate hotel(s) in a similar category will be substituted as required. 
• For a multi-day tour the price per person includes three breakfasts and three dinners. One drink per person (alcoholic or not) is included per person per dinner. Further drinks and lunches are not included.

Group Size, Changes & Transportation

• The maximum size of each group is 14 guests.
• In the event a group's size is smaller than 6, we reserve the right to substitute transport by private coach to alternatives including a combination of train, public coaches, and private taxis to assure we can complete the tour in a safe and reasonable manner.

Special Food and/or Mobility Requirements

• Please let us know at the time of booking if you have mobility or dietary requirements.
• A modest surcharge may be required based on your particular needs, please see our Reservation Form for more details. 

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Special requests available.

For small group tours, we can customize an itinerary to emphasize your interests. If you have a special request, send us a message, and we will be sure to get back to you soon.

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