The Catherine Howard Tour September 2025 Map Image

12th - 20th September 2025

Gareth Russell, author of 'Young and Damned and Fair' as Resident Historian

Fully Escorted Tour with an Experienced Tour Director

8 Nights Luxury Accommodation

3 Course Dinner Each Evening

All Breakfasts and Dinners Included

Luxury Coach Travel

Experienced Tour Company, est 2014

Fully Compliant with Package Tour Regulations

This tour is now FULLY BOOKED.

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Tour Details

Our new Catherine Howard tour is a luxury, fully escorted, tour and the first of its kind devoted to the life of Henry VIII’s fifth, Queen Catherine Howard, for which we’ll be joined by best-selling historian Gareth Russell, author of the acclaimed Catherine Howard biography, Young and Damned and Fair.

Gareth’s book was described by Tracy Borman as “a stunning achievement in which Catherine is given a makeover so complete that she is virtually unrecognizable from the hopelessly naive girl of traditional history books.”

As we re-trace the route of Catherine and Henry VIII’s tour of the North in 1541, Gareth will be giving exclusive talks covering Catherine’s life from her childhood to her zenith as England’s queen. What went wrong? And how did this tour mark the beginning of the end?

The tour will start with meeting at our convenient pick-up point in London before heading to the sites where Catherine visited on her tour, including Lincoln Cathedral, York Minster, and the place where she allegedly held her fatal night-time meeting with Thomas Culpepper.

Using luxury hotels as our base, the tour will visit Grimsthorpe Castle and Pontefract Castle, as Gareth brings you into the glamorous but deadly world of 1541. We’ll see the same places Catherine saw as she reached the high point of her queenship, but which also marked the beginning of the end.

Like her, we will then head back to south to Hampton Court Palace, to see where Catherine was arrested and standing in the gallery still haunted by her ghost, before taking a guided trip to the Tower of London, where Catherine’s story ended on the scaffold and where she is buried.

This is a new tour about the rise and fall of Catherine Howard, with exclusive guides and talks by her biographer Gareth Russell. We will travel to the same sites she did and hear what went so catastrophically wrong for Henry’s “fair and beloved Queen Catherine.”

"I can’t rave about my experience enough! I was traveling on my own for the first time so I was a bit nervous, but Philippa and Gareth really helped me feel comfortable and made sure the whole group had everything they needed. The itinerary was simply amazing."

Kathryn, The Anne Boleyn Tour 2022

"Philippa and Gareth, our expert tour leads, were knowledge but also engaging and personable - making the tour seem more like friends on an extraordinary outing!"

Maria, The Anne Boleyn Tour 2022

Gareth Russell - Historian and Author

Gareth Russell, Historian in Residence

Philippa Brewell - Tour Manager

Philippa Lacey Brewell, Tour Director

Tour Highlights

  • Resident historian Gareth Russell, biographer of Catherine Howard,author of the acclaimed Catherine Howard biography, Young and Damned and Fair.

  • 12 Historical Locations

  • Series of Talks from Gareth Russell

  • Expert Guided Tours

The Anne Boleyn Tour 2018 at Hampton Court Palace
Hever Castle ©P Brewell
York Minster

The Itinerary

  • Day 1 - 12th September

    London Pick-up, Belvoir Castle, Welcome Drinks Reception and Opening Talk

  • Day 2 - 13th September

    Lincoln Cathedral, Bishops Palace & Lincoln Castle

  • Day 3 - 14th September

    Pontefract Castle and York

  • Day 4 - 15th September

    York Cathedral and St Mary's Abbey ruins

  • Day 5 - 16th September

    Fountains Abbey and York City

  • Day 6 - 17th September

    Grimsthorpe Castle

  • Day 7 - 18th September

    Hampton Court Palace

  • Day 8 - 19th September

    Tower of London

  • Day 9 - 20th September

    Farewells


  

Ticket Price

£5,750

per person with Double Occupancy,

(Double Room for Single Person Occupancy uplift of 50% Applies)

Upgrades are available

What's Included

Memorial at the Tower of London
The Grand Hotel, York
  • 8 Nights Luxury Accommodation

  • 12 Historic Destinations

  • Gareth Russell, Biographer of Catherine Howard as Historian in Residence

  • 3-course Dinner Each Evening

  • Breakfast Included 

  • Series of Talks from Gareth Russell

  • Experienced Tour Director, Philippa Lacey Brewell

  • Luxury Coach Travel

  • All Admissions as stated in the Itinerary

  • Private Guided Tours

  • An Experience of a Lifetime!


Tour Historian

Gareth Russell

Gareth Russell

Gareth Russell is a historian, author, and broadcaster, educated in modern and medieval history at St Peter’s College, Oxford, and Queen’s University Belfast. He is the author of popular and critically praised works including 'Young and Damned and Fair: The Life of Catherine Howard', 'The Ship of Dreams: The Sinking of the Titanic and the End of the Edwardian Era', 'History of the English Monarchy', 'Do Let’s Have Another Drink: The Wit and Life of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother', and 'The Palace: From the Tudors to the Windsors, 500 Years of History at Hampton Court'. His books have twice been selected as Books of the Year by The Times and have been recognised by The Daily Telegraph and BBC History for their narrative flair and scholarship. You may have seen Gareth on TV as he is a frequent contributor to television and radio, and has appeared on documentaries about the Tudors and the modern royal family. He hosts his own podcast “Single Malt History with Gareth Russell.”

Upgrades and Extras

Upgraded rooms are available subject to availabilty. Please indicate on your booking form.


 The Catherine Howard Tour 2025

  

Ticket Price

£5,750

per person with Double Occupancy,

(Double Room for Single Person Occupancy uplift of 50% Applies)

Upgrades are available

Photo Gallery

Lincoln Cathedral

Lincoln Cathedral

The Mitre Hotel, Hampton Court

The Mitre Hotel, Hampton Court

The Grand Hotel, York

The Grand Hotel, York

Expert Guide at Hampton Court Palace

Expert Guide at Hampton Court Palace

Expert Guide at Tower of London

Expert Guide at Tower of London

Breakfast Included

Breakfast Table at Hever Castle

Petwood House - Hotel

Petwood House, Lincoln

Fountains Abbey

Fountains Abbey

Luxury Coach outside Hever Castle

Luxury Coach

York Minster, Chapter House Ceiling

York Minster

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