Violets & Tea: English Garden Tours 

Extremely disappointed by the lack of communication about a refund of deposit for a tour I had to cancel. if there has been a misunderstanding, I would appreciate follow-up to my several enquiring emails. Eliza originally responded last May and let me know that the refund was in process, but as far as I can tell, no refund has been deposited to my account and my requests for help have been ignored. Sadly unprofessional.

Eliza and the Tour of Magnificence: top notch!!! So happy to have stepped into the pages of English House & Garden for real. Absolutely no hesitation to recommend the Tour of Magnificence. Hotels and their food and staff were excellent. Gardens and time allotted for each stop was just perfect. Excellent air-conditioned mini-bus with good driver and also internet. I hadn't expected to be able to interact with some of the Garden owners, so that was a bonus that was tremendously educational and interesting. Wouldn't hesitate to take another tour with Eliza.

Great product, poor execution.
We read the reviews of Violets and Tea and they were one of the many reasons we picked this company. The gardens and hotels Eliza picked out were definitely top drawer, and we have no complaints about them. I’m not sure what happened to the ‘Eliza’ that was in the reviews, as she was certainly not present on our tour. The lack of communication on daily events, history and facts about where we were going and what we were seeing was only given after asking, or prompting. Her lack of time management had us missing meals, and arriving late to various venues, leaving us feeling less than confident that we would have transportation to the airport for flights home. When booking a ‘high end’ tour the expectation is you will be ‘looked after’ from start to finish. This was definitely not the case, that being said, others in our group had Amanda as their guide on a previous tour, and could not have been more pleased. Eliza is good at putting packages together however she should leave the guiding to others.

I am a planner - almost to a fault. And when I say Violets & Tea left nothing unplanned, I am not exaggerating. Eliza Ford has created the most thought-out, well-organized, personally-tailored trip I've ever taken. Amanda's guiding was a gift - she is full of knowledge - not to mention humor and endless charm. She became family from minute one. The coach was comfortable and the perfect way to get from place to place, and our driver Marshall is a lovely human. The hotel stays were top-notch and so well-chosen, and with three of us traveling together, each location went out of their way to make sure we were comfortable. And the food - I didn't expect the level of culinary perfection and at every meal they paid extra attention to any allergies. Finally, the star of the show - the gardens! Spectacular is an understatement. Each location was more stunning than the last, and Eliza carefully curated an extensive history and description of each, along with expert guiding and insider information from Amanda. VIP to the Chelsea Flower Show was icing on the cake. Top it all off with an unfortunate accident and Amanda jumping to attention to take fantastic care of me, this is truly a trip I will never forget. Thank you, Violets & Tea - we'll be back!

This tour and the entire week was wonderful! Amanda was our tour guide and she was so engaged, kind, and flexible with all the varied needs of the party of 12. Amanda was an absolute pleasure as our tour guide. Each garden we went to was different from the next, the hotels were exquisite, and everything we ate was perfect. My mom, cousin and I became very close with the group and enjoyed the company so much we will likely stay in touch! Eliza and Amanda are so attentive to your needs and made traveling overseas easy and organized. We will definitely suggest Eliza's tours to everyone we know and look forward to traveling with them again in the future!

Eliza organized just a fabulous tour. Whether a novice gardener or a very experienced gardener, the trip was fantastic and far exceeded everyone's wishes for a dream garden tour. From the lovely accomodations in an old manor home to the special guest guides and tours, the variety and depth of the tour was simply amazing. Eliza was just a wealth of knowledge and was a real joy to be around. Her energy and enthusiasm were infectious and I returned home all charged up to improve and expand my own garden. Would not hesitate to recommend Violets and Tea and hope to join her on another tour soon.

Great company to work with and a joy to take one of their tours. All parts of our tour worked seamlessly and so many lovely details and touches had been thoughtfully included. The careful selection of gardens, both private and public provided for a delightful range of styles, beauty and intimate experiences. Private tour guides at each garden enriched our visit with detailed information ranging from the garden’s history to cultural practices and new ways to create and enhance beauty in the garden. This tour was a treat from start to finish and a boatload of fun as well!

My husband and I thoroughly enjoyed this tour and thought our guide was outstanding. Her passion for and knowledge of the gardens, flowers, garden designers, stately manors and history of England was very impressive and helpful.

The tour itself was well-planned with guides in many of the gardens who were the head gardeners at the estates, very interesting. The lodgings that we stayed in, in the Cotswolds, were historic estates that have been upgraded to modern, luxury, standards, very special experiences.

My husband and I are inveterate travelers and a British Garden tour has been a dream for decades. This tour definitely fulfilled our dreams and exceeded our expectations!

My V&T trip was memorable! Eliza’s choice of gardens, accommodations and of course English high teas was perfection! Added to this were Eliza’s exuberant personality and excellent organizational skills. The entire trip ran smoothly without a glitch and fellow travelers were convivial and true garden lovers. Only suggestion a bit more leisure time at the beautiful manor hotels to sit and contemplate, even play a little croquet! There was so much to see in the Cotswold gardens but a little more down time to reflect would have been welcomed. Loved every minute of my V&T tour and Eliza of course!

We joined this tour at the last minute not knowing what to expect.
It did, however, vastly exceed all our expectations.
The itinerary was beautifully organised as regards the gardens visited, the guides who showed us around each garden, the accommodation and meals. The tour would be worth going on just for the charm, enthusiasm, and professionalism of our tour leader Eliza.
We are certainly looking forward to taking future tours with Violets & Tea (starting next year) and we would certainly advise other garden lovers to do the same!

I thoroughly enjoyed my garden tour. The variety of gardens were well chosen, every one had something special to remember, the meals were delicious and generous, and the lodgings in the Cotswolds were really fun - large, gracious room and baths. I plan to return for another set of gardens in a different part of England in a couple of years. PS, the other participants were really interesting and added to the pleasure of the trip.

What a trip! And what a wonderful and refreshing guide Eliza is! And what an interesting group of people I met!

Travelling as a solo woman I was happy to be so well taken care of by Eliza and Violets and Tea, at beautiful historic hotels, in a luxurious mini bus with wifi, and to visit the Historic English Gardens of my dreams.

At the gardens we were met by knowledgeable experts who guided us through and were able to answer all of our numerous questions. We finished with the Chelsea flower show on their VIP day including a beautiful champagne high tea.

My special dietary requirements were always catered for exquisitely. We enjoyed numerous wonderful meals in top notch restaurants and gastro-pubs. And to top it off, as a group we had a ball!

I thoroughly recommend Violets and Tea: English Garden Tours to anyone wanting to travel in style through these incredible historic gardens.

Thank you Eliza!

This tour encompassed Fabulous Gardens, Stately Homes, The Royal Chelsea Flower Show - a wonderful combination that made each day a delight. Eliza, the tour director was friendly, relaxed and informative. The accomodation and food were superb and the countryside magnificent. My fellow tour colleagues were lovely and it really was a memorable 8 days. It was no ‘ordinary’ tour and very worthwhile. I enjoyed it immensely!

These garden tours were wonderful. The size of our group (10) was perfect and the people were exceptionally congenial. We lucked out with good weather too. Our tour had both garden novices and some real aficionados. Because of the variety of gardens presented, there was something of interest for everyone. Starting with the Chelsea Flower show added some glamour and fun. Our guide, Eliza, did a superb job of relating to everyone and sorting out any special problems. She is excellent at what she does. What an exciting and satisfying experience.

I was lucky enough to be part of VIOLETS AND TEA's inaugural tour. I could not have been happier. Eliza had chosen wonderful gardens and fabulous accomodation. The week went too quickly. I will be a return participant!

If you love flowers & stunning gardens... this is the Tour for you! Violets & Tea Luxury English Garden Tour was true to its name! Eliza, our tour organiser, did a fabulous job escorting us in a mini bus to beautiful estates each day with either a grand mansion or castle surrounded by magnificent gardens. In Sussex & Kent, we stayed o’night in charming hotels of a by-gone era, which were truly luxurious. Delicious breakfasts, a luncheon at Gravetye Manor in a private room, and several outstanding dinners at first class restaurants were a feature of this tour. I thoroughly recommend Violets & Tea if you’re looking for a classy tour of select English gardens, which is extremely well put together! Many thanks to Eliza for making my holiday one to remember!

The trip was perfect from beginning to end! The hotels were wonderful, the arrangements all made in advance, the mini bus was clean and carefully driven.

At each garden we visited we were promptly met by either a volunteer or a garden employee who gave us a fantastic tour, each and every one of them!

Our hostess, Eliza, was knowledgeable, interested, and consistently on top of her game! It was truly a pleasure getting to know her and the gardens that she chose for us.

I took the trip with my 82 year old mother and it was the perfect vacation for us. We arrived a day early and Eliza sent us wonderful suggestions for our spare day!

Even the restaurant choices were perfect.

And the Chelsea garden show, what can I say about that? It should be on every gardeners bucket list! What a fantastic garden show!!

I honestly have not one negative thing to say about our entire experience! I recommend Violets & Tea without reservation.

Absolutely fabulous, with Eddie and Patsy's bright Ab Fab colors and over the top fun, though more classical in style. The Cotswolds are movie-set charming, in fact they were filming a new version of Jane Austen's Emma in the village where we stayed. The gardens are gorgeous, of course, even more so than expected. National treasures, natural Edens, good for the mind, soul, eyes, and planet. The food, the manors, the gin, and above all, Violets and Tea Founder Eliza Ford, a passionate gardener who makes your dreams come true. And you'll get lots of new ideas for your own gardens. Book now, go!!!

It doesn’t get any better than this. Violets and Tea met every need from the beginning in London, fabulous tours through the Cotswalds and incredibly beautiful garden, historic tours and out of this world accommodations while on tour.
The added benefit....the tour guide led by Violets and Tea owner was above and beyond any I have taken I recent years.
Experienced luxury traveler,
Nancy
Princeton NJ and NYC

Eliza is a fantastic host ! She booked awesome very nice accommadations ! I loved this experience and hope to do another your soon ! Thanks Eliza ! Sue Waite-York