Day 1 - Saturday 

April 24, 2027 

BRUSSELS - BOARDING - “WELCOME DINNER” & PRESENTATION

 

You are welcome to board the ship this evening. After comfortably settling into your cabin, we'll introduce the crew, including our hosts at a welcome cocktail.  We will have our “Welcome Meeting” and dinner.  Following dinner, we will enjoy our first presentation by one or more of our expert hosts:

 

Dr. Owen Emmerson: a social and cultural historian and Assistant Curator at Hever Castle. He has authored several books, including Holbein’s Hidden Gem (2023), about the discovery of a lost book in Hans Holbein’s painting of Thomas Cromwell. His other works include The Boleyns of Hever Castle, Becoming Anne, and Catherine and Anne.

Kate McCaffrey: the Castle Historian and Assistant Curator at Hever Castle; known for her groundbreaking research on Anne Boleyn’s Book of Hours, which gained international attention in 2020. She has co-authored Becoming Anne, Holbein’s Hidden Gem, and Catherine and Anne, co-curated exhibitions, and is pursuing a doctorate at the University of Kent.

Special guest:

Professor Suzannah Lipscomb: an award-winning historian, author, broadcaster, and Professor Emerita at the University of Roehampton. She has written seven books, presents history documentaries for television, and hosts the Not Just the Tudors podcast.

 

 

Day 2 - Sunday 

April 25, 2027 

BRUSSELS / MECHELEN - DIPLOMACY & DYNASTIES /

ANTWERP - QUEENS & COMMERCE

 

Join us for a guided tour of Mechelen, where Anne Boleyn journeyed from England in 1513 to complete her education at the court of Archduchess Margaret of Austria. The afternoon will be spent cruising to Antwerp. This lively city has retained its charm with narrow streets and immense squares lined with gable houses. We will stroll through the old city in the company of our onboard hosts.

The People

* Catherine of Aragon: Grew up closely connected to the Habsburg dynasty, whose Brussels court was a centre of politics. She negotiated alliances here through her Spanish-Habsburg ties.

* Charles V: Catherine’s nephew, Holy Roman Emperor, with whom Henry VIII’s England repeatedly clashed and allied. Brussels highlights the international chessboard of Tudor diplomacy.

* Margaret of Austria: Governess of the Netherlands, influential in European politics and an important early female ruler that Anne Boleyn encountered. Anne spent time at her court as a young girl, absorbing the etiquette and humanist learning that shaped her later role as queen.

* Anne of Cleves: Stopped in Antwerp in 1539 en route to England to marry Henry VIII, received with pageantry and festivity.

* The Boleyn Family: Their fortunes came partly through trade in Antwerp, via their Merchant Adventurer relatives and contacts. Thomas Boleyn himself was active in diplomacy and trade tied to the city.

* English Merchants: Antwerp was the beating heart of English wool and cloth exports - the Tudor economy depended on it. We could spotlight the Merchant Adventurers’ Guildhouse and the English colony in Antwerp.

* Artists and Diplomats: Antwerp’s artistic culture influenced Hans Holbein, whose patrons included English merchants based here.

 

 

Day 3 - Monday 

April 26, 2027 

ROTTERDAM - IDEAS & REFORMS

 

Our ship will sail towards Rotterdam. Rotterdam offers us a chance to tie the intellectual ferment of the Low Countries to the Reformation currents in England.

We will cruise up the Scheldt River, cross the border between Belgium and the Netherlands, and travel though the Volkerak and Kreekak locks. 

In the evening, we will enjoy more exciting presentations!

The People

* Erasmus of Rotterdam: The great humanist, whose works were read and admired by English scholars and courtiers.

* Thomas More corresponded with Erasmus, and Utopia reflects their shared intellectual world.

* Anne Boleyn and reform - owned a New Testament in the vernacular, evidence of her reformist leanings.

* Catherine Parr also drew on Erasmus’s Christian humanism in her published works.

 

 

Day 4 - Tuesday 

April 27, 2027 

UTRECHT & THE HAGUE

AMSTERDAM - RISING TRADE & RELIGION

 

During the Tudor period, Amsterdam was emerging but not yet dominant, allowing us to foreshadow future Anglo-Dutch ties.  We will spend the morning cruising to Utrecht. In the afternoon, we visit The Hague and its inner courtyards. 

We will reboard our ship in Amsterdam.

The People

* Protestant Networks: By Elizabeth’s reign, Amsterdam and other Dutch towns became havens for English Protestant exiles and allies in religious conflict. This links back to Anne Boleyn’slegacy in shaping the English Reformation.

* Elizabeth I: Her support of the Dutch Revolt against Spain later in the century shows the culmination of the Tudor-Low Countries connection.

 

 

Day 5 - Wednesday 

April 28, 2027 

AMSTERDAM

 

Today we tour Amsterdam, a city rich in history, art and culture, where every street corner is filled with wonder! It is during a boat ride on the picturesque canals, classified as World Heritage by Unesco, that you will admire the architecture so particular with the many narrow houses with gables, the mansions of the seventeenth century, or the magnificent bridges that span the canals and offer an extraordinary urban landscape.

In the afternoon, choose between an excursion to the traditional fishing village of Volendam and Zaanse Schans, a museum presenting Dutch crafts still produced in authentic 17th and 18th century windmills and picturesque barns. 

OR

the the beautiful Keukenhof Gardens, the world's largest flower gardens, located in Lisse, Netherlands. They are a showcase for the Dutch floricultural industry. They feature over seven million spring-flowering bulbs, including tulips, daffodils, and hyacinths, planted in a 32-hectare park with themed pavilions, outdoor displays, and historic grounds. 

In the evening we will have our traditional "Farewell Dinner" and say goodbye to our hosts and new friends, for now.

 

 

Day 6 - Thursday

April 29, 2027 

Enjoy one last buffet breakfast on board before disembarking at 9:00 a.m.  

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Cabin Prices 

Cat A- 12 double cabins 151 square feet   $3723 per person, single supplement $989
Cat B - 4 double cabins    151 square feet   $3626 per person, single supplement $989
Cat C - 11 double cabins  151 square feet   $3475 per person, single supplement $847