AVEC 10
10th International Symposium on Advanced Vehicle Control
August 22-26 2010
Loughborough, UK
Post Symposium Tour
This tour provides a scenic alternative to the train journey back to London. The tour will depart Loughborough on the Friday morning, stopping for two hours to experience the imposing grandeur of Warwick Castle before heading on to Stratford-upon-Avon - the birthplace of William Shakespeare, on the banks of the river Avon in the beautiful rural countryside of Warwickshire. In Stratford-upon-Avon you will have an hour or two to have lunch and to wander through the streets and along the river, visiting any sights you might choose. From here the tour will drive on into Oxfordshire where the penultimate stop is the world famous University town of Oxford. For a few hours you can roam as you wish or follow a self guided tour we will provide for you. The coach will then depart for London where you can get off at Heathrow or in central London.
Tour fee : £55.00 includes all transport costs and entry to Warwick Castle
Please note that if your flight is on the Friday night we are unable to guarantee the arrival time in London , due to the unpredictable nature of traffic around London on a Friday evening.
Bookings for the post symposium tour will be available on the registration page. If you need to book accommodation for Friday night you should do this separately. At the end of the tour the coach will be dropping you at St Pancras International Railway Station, from here there are easy links to Central London either via the underground from Kings Cross Station or you can hire a London Black Cab.
Below are a couple of hotel websites for you to use if you wish.
http://www.hoteldirect.co.uk/london/
Warwick Castle
Warwick Castle’s history stretches back almost 1,100 years. In 914AD Ethelfleda, daughter of Alfred the Great, ordered the building of a 'burh' or an earthen rampart to protect the small hill top settlement of Warwick from Danish invaders. Over the centuries this developed into a vast and imposing castle.
The castle is now owned and run by the same entertainment group which owns several theme parks in England, as well as the well known Madame Tussaud’s Waxworks in London. It now combines the attractions of a large historic castle, with several waxwork reproductions of historic events.
During the visit you will experience Castle life behind the mighty walls, relive the preparations for battle, meet Henry VIII and his wives, marvel at the grandeur of the Great Hall and the Georgian State Rooms and experience a Victorian Royal Weekend at the Castle. The grounds of the castle offer some stunning outdoor experiences, including the Conservatory & Peacock Garden, the Victorian Rose Garden and The Island in the River. Take a walk up The Mound and take in the beautiful unfolding views of these peaceful grounds.
Stratford Upon Avon
Stratford-upon-Avon, the birthplace of William Shakespeare, lies on the banks of the river Avon in the beautiful rural countryside of Warwickshire. In Stratford-upon-Avon there will be time to have lunch and to wander through the streets and along the river visiting any sights you might choose:
Visit one or more of the five houses connected with William Shakespeare and his family. Shakespeare's Birthplace, New Place/Nash's House, Hall's Croft, Anne Hathaway's Cottage, Mary Arden's House. These sixteenth-century houses feature rare period furnishings and domestic items. Aspects of Tudor life are on display, all set in attractive gardens and grounds offering a unique experience of the Stratford world in which the famous dramatist and poet was born, lived and died.
The Shakespeare Centre Library holds collections covering all aspects of William Shakespeare's life, works and times and includes original editions of his plays dating from 1623. It also houses some of the earliest examples of printed English.
Shakespearience and Falstaffs Experience both offer the chance for you to discover more about Stratford and it’s most famous resident.
Holy Trinity Church is where William Shakespeare and Anne Hathaway are buried. This ancient church provides a moment of calm away from the bustle of the town. Both the courtyard and the churchyard itself are breathtakingly beautiful.
Harvard House is a town house which has survived in its present state since the late sixteenth century (although some of the stained glass windows date back to the 14th century). Here you can discover a Brief History of John Harvard of Stratford-upon-Avon. John donated the money with which Harvard college was founded, and for this reason the house is now the property of Harvard University.
The River Avon is an excellent place for a peaceful walk alongside weeping willows, with the Royal Shakespeare Theatre and various boating activities available. And beside the river, at the Stratford-upon-Avon Butterfly Farm and Jungle Safari you can enjoy some of the world's most spectacular and colourful butterflies flying around you.
Cox's Yard was amongst the wharves and warehouses lining the banks of the River Avon as businesses and the local population grew during the great Victorian boom. James Cox and Son supplied timber to builders in Stratford and the surrounding area and gained a great reputation for providing the finest materials for many of today's historic buildings in Shakespeare Country. Today Cox's Yard is playing a central role in the life of the town, and offering visitors a unique location for Drinking, Dining and Entertainment on the River.
Oxford
Two hours in Oxford will allow you to glimpse the fictional worlds of Lyra and Harry Potter and learn about the city that inspired such novelists as Lewis Carroll and C. S. Lewis and continues to inspire the students of the illustrious Oxford University today.
A self guided tour of the city centre takes in the city’s architecture and introduces Oxford’s heritage including some of its colleges, Bodleian Library, The Ashmolean Museum, The Botanic Gardens and Christ Church Cathedral. For something a little different you could take a ride on the River Thames, known locally as the River Isis; perhaps you could even try your hand at punting. If you want a more slow paced, relaxing time you can simply stroll around the streets of this world famous University city soaking up the atmosphere, do a spot of shopping and watch the world go by in a cosy little cafe.
As the oldest university in the English-speaking world, Oxford is a unique and historic institution. There is no clear date of foundation, but teaching existed at Oxford in some form in 1096 and developed rapidly from 1167, when Henry II banned English students from attending the University of Paris. University, Balliol and Merton are the oldest of the colleges, having been established between 1249 and 1264.
The Bodleian Library is a working library, dating from 1602-20, which forms part of the University of Oxford. It is housed in a remarkable group of buildings which form the historic heart of the University, and you can explore the quadrangles of these magnificent structures at no charge.
One of the world's leading museums is also the world's first university museum. Its first building was built in 1678–1683 to house the cabinet of curiosities Elias Ashmole given to Oxford University in 1677. The collections span the civilisations of east and west, from the Neolithic era to the present day. Among its treasures are the world's largest group of Raphael drawings, the most important collection of pre-Dynastic Egyptian material in Europe, the only great Minoan collection in Britain, the greatest Anglo-Saxon collections beyond the British Museum, and the foremost collection of modern Chinese art in the Western world.
Warwick Castle
The Conservatory, Warwick Castle
Queen Anne's bedroom, Warwick Castle
The mound, Warwick Castle
William Shakespeare's Birthplace, Stratford upon Avon
Harvard House, Stratford upon Avon
Oxford University, Oxford
Punting down the River Isis (River Thames), Oxford
Ashmolean Museum, Oxford