Friday
Private dinner with wine followed by an illustrated talk by Mike Stone on 'Hadrian's Wall'. Mike is a Roman archaeologist who over the years has conducted many guided tours to Hadrian's Wall; he is also Vice-Chairman of the Association for Roman Archaeology and a Blue Badge guide.

Saturday
We travel to the Roman fort of Birdoswald which has recently been the site of a major research excavation. The excavated remains have been consolidated for public inspection showing the gate, granaries and exciting new information about occupation in the 5th and 6th centuries. The musuem also has a reconstructed section of the wall along with numerous finds from the excavations. We then travel the short distance to view the Roman fort and settlement at Vindolanda, where excavations are being carried out on an annual basis; here you will be guided around the excavations of the civilian settlement and the Roman fort. After lunch (not included) we visit the new revamped musuem, where it is possible to see some of the world famous Vindolanda writing tablets, which were voted number one by the BBC TV programme 'Our Top Ten Treasures in 2003'. The tablets form the earliest written records from Britain and include store lists, duty rotas, requests for leave and the famous birthday party invitation. Later we visit the spectacular Roman fort at Housesteads, high on its ridge with impressive views of the countryside. The fort contains remains of granaries, the headquarters building and the world famous soldiers' latrine block. We end the day with a visit to the Temple of Mithras near the Roman fort of Carrawburgh. This temple is the most complete and was excavated in 1949; it allows visitors to get an impression of its layout. Saturday evening: After dinner, enjoy a talk by Dr Peter Jones on 'The Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire'. Our speaker (Dr Peter Jones) retired over four years ago from the Classics Department of Newcastle University and has appeared on TV and radio. He has also written widely about the ancient world for numerous publications including The Spectator, the Daily Telegraph and BBC History Magazine.

Sunday
Today we travel to Segedunum which stood at the eastern end of the wall and was the home to 600 Roman soliders. Today, after total excavation, the fort is once again the gateway to Hadrian's Wall in the east. While here you will have a detailed guided tour of the excavated remains, view an impressive reconstuction of Hadrian's Wall and a chance to enter a full size reconstruction of the military bathhouse based on the remains at Chesters Roman fort. This award-winning interpretation centre has a 35-metre high viewing tower, numerous finds from the excavations as well as further reconstructions and interactive activites. After lunch (not included) we travel through the Tyne tunnel to visit the Roman fort of Arbeia at South Shields. We will be able to view the ongoing excavation work and marvel at the spectacular rebuilt fort gate, reconstructed barrack blocks and the stunning reconstruction of the Commandants house which has been used in numerous history film projects. We then travel back into Newcastle to view the waterfront and visit the site of the Roman fort of Pons Aelii.

Monday
Travel to the Roman fort at Chesters to view the best preserved remains of a cavalry fort in a lovely setting near the river. We begin the visit by viewing one of the best preserved Roman bathhouses in Britain along with the remains of the bridge. After a guided tour of the fort we visit one of the most interesting collections of carved stones and inscriptions assembled by a local collector. Finally we travel into Newcastle to visit the award-winning Great North Musuem. We will begin with lunch (not included) followed by time to inspect some of the best finds from Hadrian's Wall, including a large-scale interactive model of Hadrian's Wall and some of the state of the art interactive displays. We return to the hotel for approximately 5pm.

Please note: Extra nights are available at a supplement, please click here or on the availability tab above to select your date of travel and extra night rates

NB: Exact order of itinerary may vary according to local conditions and tour manager's discretion

Holiday Inn, Newcastle Upon Tyne

Located in rural surroundings and minutes away from the A19 and A1, the 3-star Holiday Inn Newcastle Upon Tyne Hotel offers a restaurant, bar, indoor pool, fitness centre and comfortable bedrooms with private bath/shower, TV, telephone and tea/coffee making facilities. Car parking at the hotel is complimentary.