Tales in Wales Inc. announces a series of cultural tours of Wales centred on North Pembrokeshire and based in the 18th century property called Gelli Olau (pronounced Gethlee Orl-i), meaning Grove of Light, which has been a favourite holiday retreat since 1997 (1). “We cater to travelers who are more interested in “being” in Wales, rather than simply seeing Wales”, says Deanna, owner/operator of Tales in Wales and Gelli Olau.
“Unlike the typical coach tour that moves to a new location each day, our guests can look forward to waking up and returning each day to a beautiful historic residence. Not only will they be treated to a variety of exciting adventures each day, but we will also bring entertainment and education directly to them at Gelli Olau.” According to Suzi Evans, Director of Operations: “We’ve lined up renowned local authors, musicians, artists and storytellers who will bring local culture straight to our doorstep."
Tales in Wales focuses on creating a special experience for small, comfortably sized groups of up to 14 people per group per week, who want to immerse themselves in the joy of Welsh culture, visit astounding ancient and sacred sites, and walk across breathtaking landscape. People who participate will get the benefits of research by many inspired locals over several decades.
The tours will take participants into the heart of the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park (2) with easy access to the spectacular coastline of Newport Bay. To east and west of our base lie wonderful sections of the long-distance Pembrokeshire Coast National Trail (3), which follows the whole coastline of the western tip of Wales for almost 200 miles. Within striking distance are many of the most impressive prehistoric monuments of Wales, including Neolithic burial chambers, Bronze Age standing stones and enclosures, and Iron Age hillforts. There are Norman castles and also abundant sacred sites, many of them used continuously since the days of the early Celtic Church (4). We have signed up renowned presenters, authors and musicians, insisted on gourmet food, developed fabulous comfortable accommodation and created a wonderful and caring atmosphere. There are more exciting places to visit within a 15 minute drive than anyone could imagine.
The landscape in our base area is intimate and unthreatening, and it is also mercifully unspoilt and free from commercial holiday developments (5). Most likely, in early summer and autumn, we will have the ancient sites, castles, churches and caves all to ourselves. There will be time and space to get to know the presenters personally, exchange stories and have unique and precious time to soak up the quiet magic of this mystical land. Visitors will have the assurance that a knowledgeable team has taken care of all the behind-the-scenes details.
As a special bonus, the starting point of all the tours is the sacred mountain of Carn Ingli, the focus of the five best-selling novels of
Brian John's Angel Mountain saga (6). The first three of these novels are now available from Random House in Canada (7), and the heroine, Martha Morgan, now has a worldwide following of fans who look on her as "Mother Wales." If you like, read the books before you join us -- and learn to love the area even before you get to see it! Brian will be with us every week as one of our key storytellers and tour leaders.
"These trips are specifically designed for active travelers in search of an experience that will take them deep into the culture and not leave them floundering on the surface like rapid-transit coach tourists”, says Deanna. “Because our team is made up of local characters we are uniquely able to share the “real” Wales with our guests. We know the stories and secret places of Wales. That’s why we call our tours “Tales in Wales”. We want to share our stories with our guests and help them to create stories of their own.”
For further information, please contact Deanna (deanna@talesinwales.com).
If you need access to photos to support a mention or article, or if you are interested in joining our media list,
please contact Suzi Evans (suzi@talesinwales.com).
NOTES
(2) http://www.pcnpa.org.uk/
(3) http://www.britainexpress.com/countryside/national-trails/ pembrokeshire.htm
(4) http://www.york.ac.uk/depts/arch/Projects/NPembsHist.htm
http://www.acadat.com/HLC/newportandcarningli/newportcarningliarea.htm
(5) http://www.newport-pembs.co.uk/frontpage_en.link
(6) http://angel-mountain.info
(7) http://www.randomhouse.ca/catalog/results.pperl?searchBtn1.x=39&searchBtn1.y=8&title_auth_isbn=Brian+John
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