Journeying | Pilgrimage Holidays | Christian Walking Holidays | Christian Short Breaks

Cost

£950 per person for a single room ensuite room with shower.
£850 per person sharing a twin or double room, ensuite room with shower. Please note on the booking form the name of the person you want to share with.

Description

The `Three Shires’ we will be exploring are the counties of Gloucestershire, Herefordshire and Worcestershire. A long distance footpath has been created to connect geographically, the choirs of the cathedral cities of these counties. It is known as The Three Choirs Way and we will be walking sections of it during this holiday. For almost 300 years, the choirs have been meeting each summer in one of their cathedrals, for a choral event known as The Three Choirs Festival. Although the Malvern Hills are not on route to any of the cathedral cities themselves, it was included to honour Sir Edward Elgar, one of Britain’s most famous composers. He ties the locations together because of his choral music, his deep connection with the Festival and his love of walking the Hills. These hills fired his creativity and imagination and were the inspiration for many of his compositions. He chose to live in the shadow of them for much of his life.

Following in Elgar's footsteps over the hills up to the Iron Age settlement known as `British Camp’ and around the North and South Circuits with their Beacons, we may understand why they captured his imagination and his heart. We perhaps may sense the spirit of the pilgrims and monks, that made their way between the Holy Wells and springs here in the 11th and 12th century, which led to the founding of the priories at Great Malvern and Little Malvern. Gentle paths along the slow flowing River Severn, through water meadows and lush pasture land await us, as well as beautiful ancient woodland. We cannot walk the whole 100 miles of the route, so we have chosen lovely sections that will delight you and capture the spirit of the counties and the Festival itself.

As well as walking in Worcestershire to visit its cathedral, our walking trails will also take us to visit other ancient places of Christian worship, in the other two counties. Our destinations include Malvern Priory, Tewkesbury Abbey, St Mary’s Priory Church and Odda’s Chapel. There will be some short steep climbs on some of the hill sections but generally the walking is gentle and light with places to pause and picnic – there is no need to hurry on this holiday. We will be walking in the spirit of pilgrimage, which means allowing time to notice the little things; for our path to become our prayer and for gentle conversations and friendships to ripen slowly. This is an opportunity to relax and be refreshed and in slowing down we become more sensitive to the still small voice speaking within. There are places we will be walking to and things we will be doing, but most of all, this is a time to enjoy sweet fellowship amongst like-minded people, to let go of your cares and concerns and discover a few moments to simply be.

This year’s The Three Choirs Festival will be hosted in Worcester Cathedral. We have a special event planned for our final evening of the holiday – the closing night of the Festival to hear Elgar’s brilliant oratorio, The Light of Life. This performance holds a special place in the history of the event, as it was specifically written by Elgar for the Festival, premiered in the cathedral and conducted by Elgar himself in 1896.

Walks and Excursions

In order to maximise our time together and do as much walking as possible on this holiday we will begin walking on the day of arrival.

Day 1- Day of Arrival: We will arrive for 1pm at Regents College. As we will not be able to check in just yet, lunch will not be provided, so please come with your own packed lunch or have eaten before we meet. After a cup of tea/coffee and a little introduction, let's drop off our bags and head for the hills! We only have to step out of the door to begin as the footpath is right in front of the college. We are going to go up and over the hill to visit St Anne’s Well - one of the best loved of all the Malvern Wells, named after the patron saint of springs and wells. The building that houses it dates back to 1813 and hosts a little café. It is set on the hilly slopes that rise steeply above Malvern and is one of several wells and springs that feed natural spring water to the town. As we climb we will have more expansive views of the hills that offer beauty, space, and a sense of quiet drama. Looking over a patchwork of fields, the Severn plain stretches before us and the distant outline of the Cotswolds can be seen. From there we descend along a path lined by ancient gnarled trees which are very tolkienesque and then drop down into the centre of the pleasant little spa town via the 99 steps where Malvern’s ancient Priory awaits. It is a Benedictine masterpiece founded in 1085, renowned for its old red sandstone and Normandy limestone; its soaring nave houses and breath-taking treasury of medieval glass are a must for us to see. In 1851 Darwin brought his daughter Annie here, hoping the famous water cure might improve her fragile health. Tragically, she died in Malvern aged just 10, and her grave lies in the churchyard, beautifully preserved. Whilst the climb up the hill is a little steep, this section is short and the steep drop down into Malvern is on a gravel and tarmac track. The walk is about 3 miles

Days 2, 3 and 4 will include:-
A pilgrimage walk of intent from Malvern to Worcester Cathedral. We will actually start in a tiny village (Madresfield) just outside of Malvern, which allows us to avoid having to walk through a horrible industrial estate. It’s a delightful walk through fields, meadows and woodland and finally along the Severn River. The Cathedral was first built by St Oswald and has been a place of prayer and worship since 680 AD. Saint Wulfstan rebuilt the cathedral in 1084 and began the present building. During Anglo Saxon times Worcester was one of the most important monastic cathedrals in the country and a centre of great learning. On the north wall of the nave is the stained-glass memorial dedicated to Sir Edward Elgar. The design is based on his famous choral work, The dream of Gerontius. The Three Choirs Festival is being hosted in the Cathedral, so what awaits us when we get there will be a surprise! The poems and reflections as we walk will have a musical theme as will the intention we choose to walk with. The route is a linear one from Malvern, following the Three Choirs Way and later joining the Severn Way that guides us into the Cathedral that sits close to the river bank. The footpath is level and well-trodden, making the walking easy and allowing us to enjoy the peace and quiet of the river before entering the city that will be full of music. We will return to Malvern using public transport. 9 miles

The North Malvern Hill Circuit including the Worcestershire Beacon: Starting from Regents College we will walk around what is described as the Northern Hill Circuit and then onto the Worcestershire Beacon. The views are spectacular from here, which at 425m is the highest point of the Malvern Hills and also the highest point in Herefordshire. These hills have been described as a mountain range in miniature and today we will sense being on top of the world and experience a sense of freedom under the vastness of the sky above and an aerial view of the landscape below. It is a steady climb that is not too strenuous. There are some hilly stretches on this walk, the one to the summit is short and steep but the tracks are well trodden and we will take it easy. Let’s allow our minds to slow down as the pace of footsteps slows down and stop frequently to rest and drink in the beauty of our surroundings and give thanks to our creator God. 5 miles

A guided tour of Tewksbury Abbey and a circular walk:Tewkesbury Abbey is a former Benedictine monastery, considered to be one of the finest examples of Norman architecture in Britain with one of the largest and finest Romanesque crossing towers in England. After our tour we will leave this lovely city behind to enjoy a gentle walk along the River Severn, through the beautiful water meadows to Odda’s Chapel, one of the most complete surviving Saxon churches in England (only 400 survive). This beautiful chapel was built in 1056 by Earl Odda, a relation of Edward the Confessor and today stands simply, quietly and unused in the tiny village of Deerhurst. This village appears so insignificant yet it also possesses one of the most important Saxon churches in England, dating back to 700AD - St Mary’s Priory Church. In 809 it was part of a Benedictine Monastery and today it is a parish church and a treasure trove of early Christian art and artefacts. It has a beautiful stone carved Saxon font, sculptures and the ‘Deerhurst Angel,’ a rare 9th-century stone carving set high on the exterior wall of the ruined apse. The route is easy walking along flat grassy tracks. There is an option to extend this walk along the river to visit the lovely village of Apperley but let’s see how we feel, we may be tired from hill walking the day before and we want to be in good shape for our final hill walk tomorrow. 5 miles

The Southern Malvern Hill Circuit including British Camp: British Camp also known as the Herefordshire Beacon, is thought to be primarily an Iron Age hill fort, though its earliest origins may trace back to the late Bronze Age. It stands at a height of 338m above sea level, and has the most distinctive appearance of any of the Malvern Hills. Elgar was inspired by this hill to compose Caractacus, the tale of a British warrior chief driven westwards by the Romans. Up on the ridge the land beside us falls steeply away towards Herefordshire on one side and Worcestershire farmland on the other. It’s the perfect setting to take time to consider the landscape of our lives and perhaps as we walk, to reflect on our own inner journey. The Guardian Newspaper rated this walk as 4th in the country for spectacular views and hopefully we will be blessed with a clear day so we can see thirteen counties and the Black Mountains from this fortified Precambrian hill. This is a long day with a few steep sections but the countryside is so beautiful and the terrain so varied that you will be glad you chose to walk it. 8 miles.

Final Evening:The closing night of the Three Choirs festival in Worcester Cathedral to hear Elgar’s brilliant oratorio, The Light of Life. The concert will also include Walton’s Orb and Sceptre and Strauss’ Four Last Songs, with soloists soprano Elizabeth Watts, contralto Jess Dandy, tenor Ruairi Bowen, and baritone Marcus Farnsworth. (Dependent upon ticket availability)

The cost of entrance tickets, guided tours of venues and transport for the walks is included in the price of this holiday.

Accommodation

Regents Theological College is a magnificent building in West Malvern, Worcestershire, England. It is the national training centre of the Elim Pentecostal Church established in 1925. Surrounded by its own 35 acre woodland with far reaching views across Herefordshire towards mid Wales and it also has beautiful grounds to walk and rest in and an outdoor heated pool for us to swim in.

Each room has en suite shower facilities and there are single, double and twin rooms available. We will eat breakfast and evening meals together in the college dining room and have a packed lunch prepared for us for our picnics when out walking.

For more information view a virtual tour on their website: https://www.regents-tc.ac.uk/virtual-tour/
It is set on the 675 bus route that links Ledbury and Malvern. However, it is a very limited service run by First Midland Red. The College has its own cute Sugarloaf café and shop that sells and serves great home cooked food and coffee. It is a hub for the community and a great place to chill.

Regents College is our meeting place at 1pm.
The holiday finishes at 9 am on the morning of Sunday 1st August 2027.

Getting there

By Car:On the day the holiday starts we will meet at Regents College at 1pm: Regents Theological College, W Malvern Rd, Malvern WR14 4AY. There is free parking on site
Reception: 01684 588979

By Train: Malvern has two train stations we will be using Great Malvern NOT Malvern Link.
On the day of arrival we will collect you from Great Malvern Train station at 12.00pm.
-Great Western Railway runs long distance services to Great Malvern from London Paddington, Reading, Oxford and Hereford, as well as direct regional services from Gloucester and Bristol. Great Malvern railway station is a short walk from the town centre. For journey times, train information and to buy tickets visit GWR.com
-West Midlands Railway runs services to Great Malvern from Hereford, London Paddington, Worcester and Birmingham New Street. For journey times, train information and to buy tickets visit www.westmidlandsrailway.co.uk
On the day of departure we will drop you at Great Malvern Station by 9.30am.

If your train arrives or departs before or after these pick up and drop off times please use the local bus service (675) or a taxi for the short distance between Regents College and Great Malvern (8 miles).

Contact & Booking Form

Pepper and Jo are the leaders on this holiday. Please get in contact if you have any questions or need any more information. Here are our contact details:
Pepper (Cheryl) Tettmar: mobile/Whatsapp 07977163032 email: cheryltettmar@gmail.com
Jo Reed: mobile/Whatsapp 07928590155 email: joannereed05@gmail.com

After you have contacted the leader to check that a place is still available please complete the details on the Booking Form