Libre
Soutien
Depart Edinburgh 09.15 and travel northwest through the historic area of Linlithgowshire, close to the historic palace. The tragic Mary Queen of Scots was born at Linlithgow palace, and became Queen when she was only 6 days old. According to legend her father James V died of a broken heart when he discovered his wife had given birth to a daughter and not the son he was hoping for! Your route along the Forth Valley is one which has been used for thousands of years by invading armies, it was the northernmost frontier of the Roman empire and was later used by the English King Edward I as he marched proudly towards Stirling (only to be sent homewards to think again!). Nowadays it’s at the centre of one of Scotland’s most important industries with huge oil refineries dominating the area. As you approach Stirling the magnificent castle dominates your view and you make your way up towards the high volcanic rock where it imposes itself upon the surrounding land. Known as the ‘Key to Scotland’, for centuries this was the most important castle in Scotland and the views from the top make it easy to see why. To the north is the 220ft high tower of the National Wallace Monument commemorating Scotland’s great hero William Wallace, played by Mel Gibson in the Oscar-winning movie Braveheart. From the castle you can look down over the scene of Wallace’s greatest triumph, the battle of Stirling Bridge, where he defeated the English army in 1297. To the south is Bannockburn where, in 1314, the great Scottish warrior-king Robert the Bruce defeated the English army of Edward II. The battle was fought for possession of Stirling Castle but eventually led to a far greater prize for Scotland – the restoration of independence. It’s an area alive with history and you stop at the castle to give you time to soak up the history and heritage of this great site. From Stirling you head into the Highlands and an area known as the Trossachs. Known as ‘The Highlands in Miniature’, it marks the point where the Lowlands meet the Highlands and entering this beautifully picturesque area feels like going into a different country. With its shimmering lochs, rugged mountain tops and forest-filled glens it’s easy to forget that this was once thought of as a dangerous frontier fought over by the fiercely territorial Highland clans. You stop here for lunch in the village of Aberfoyle, made popular in Victorian times due to its great location. After lunch you ‘take the high road’ or back-road to Loch Lomond, Scotland’s largest lochs at over 22 miles long, passing Lochs Ard, Chon and Arklet along the way as you travel through the protected lands of Scotland’s first National Park. The route you take was described by the famous Scots comedian Billy Connolly as his favourite road in Scotland, and you can discover why – it’s stunning!! You stop at Inversnaid on the secluded north-east of the loch, making it the perfect place to enjoy a walk along the ‘bonny banks’, up to a viewpoint for a fantastic view of the loch and the mountain it’s named after, Ben Lomond. This tranquil setting was once the home of Scotland’s famous highland folk hero, Rob Roy MacGregor. Made popular by many books and films Rob Roy lived an incredible life as a soldier, businessman, cattle-rustler and outlaw. By spending time on the trails by the loch you will undoubtedly be walking in the footsteps of one of Scotland’s great legends. There is also an alternative option to take a boat cruise around the north of the loch (Summer only) or merely enjoy a drink at the local hotel and sample the views. Leaving Loch Lomond you return to Edinburgh passing Scotland’s only lake – the Lake of Mentieth (although we have around 3000 freshwater lochs!). The legend states that after William Wallace was betrayed by his great friend the Earl of Mentieth and executed in London the name was changed from the Loch of Mentieth to the Lake of Mentieth so that nobody would ever forget the traitorous part the Earl played in his death.
Madame Tussauds London Millions and millions of people have flocked through the doors of Madame Tussauds since they first opened over 200 years ago and it remains just as popular as it ever was. There are many reasons for this enduring success, but at the heart of it all is good, old-fashioned curiosity. Today’s visitors are sent on a unique, emotionally-charged journey through the realms of the powerful and famous. The museum-style ropes and poles have gone so guests can truly get up, close and personal with A-list celebrities, sporting legends, political heavyweights and historical icons, reliving the times, events and moments that made the world talk about them…. Filled with 14 exciting, interactive zones and the amazing Marvel Super Heroes 4D movie experience, Madame Tussauds London combines glitz and glamour with incredible history. Walk down the red carpet and strike a pose with Kate Winslet, before challenging your favourite sportstars like David Beckham or Lewis Hamilton. Start your royal experience with an audience with the Queen, before standing alongside The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. For the brave, get face-to-face with scary serial killers in our live fear experience SCREAM. After a sneaky behind-the-scenes look at how our World-renowned sculptors create the figures, relax in our taxis and relive the rich history of London. Then step up to your favourite Marvel Super Heroes before getting ready to experience the spectacular and exclusive Marvel Super Heroes 4D movie, where our Marvel Super Heroes battle it out to save London from impending doom. So, who do you want to meet? The London Dungeon Transport yourself back to the darkest moments in the capital’s history within the deep depths of the London Dungeon. Live actors, shows, rides and interactive special effects ensure that you face your fears head on in this unique experience. Everything that you see is based on real historical events from Jack the Ripper, to the Great Fire of London, torture and the plague. Now with two scary rides the London Dungeon provides a thrilling and fun experience that will leave your family screaming for more! Ninety minutes of thrills and chills… are you brave enough? This February half term promises families scary fun of the plague-ridden kind as the London Dungeon introduces a new resident for 2012 – the sinister Plague Doctor. Dressed in standard medieval Plague Doctor’s uniform – including a massive mask that looks like a giant bird’s beak – the Doc will be on the lookout for any less than healthy visitors. Those who don’t pass his plague test will be in for a nasty Dungeon’s diagnosis and the prescribed course of treatment could include eating dried toad or bathing in vinegar and rosewater. PLUS look out for some Valentine’s fun with a Dungeon’s twist at the "Kiss of Death" Kissing Booth on February 14th. One of the Doctor’s patients will be selling kisses and anyone who dares pucker up for a donation of fifty pence will be rewarded with a smacker from a boil riddled plague victim! All money raised will go to charity. With fifteen action packed experiences bringing London’s horrible history to life and featuring some of its most notorious characters from Jack the Ripper to Sweeney Todd – PLUS thrilling rides and a cast of super scary actors – there is plenty to enjoy at the London Dungeon this half term. Vengeance: Taking scare to a whole new level, this technologically groundbreaking 5D ride is a full scale assault on the senses. Set in Victorian times at London’s most haunted address, 50 Berkeley Square, Vengeance takes guests on the ultimate ghost hunt. As a séance spirals out of control, riders will shoot it out against twisted, vengeful spirits whilst completely disorientated in the dark and spinning at high speeds. Vengeance joins two other thrill rides and an action-packed mix of twisted experiences bringing to life history’s horrible bits. From close shaves with Sweeney Todd to a public execution by order of Bloody Mary Tudor there’s plenty of scary family fun. The London Dungeon is open seven days a week. Surgery: Blood & Guts Hold onto your stomach as you enter the filthy makeshift operating room of Tooley Street's blundering Butcher-Surgeon, where history's most horrific blood soaked surgery is performed in graphic, gangrenous detail...on even the most unwilling of patients! Extremis: Drop Ride to Doom! Embark upon your last journey on Extremis: Drop Ride to Doom! At the mercy of the hangman, you are at the very point of death and the end is drawing near… Taste the fear and feel the adrenaline pump as the trapdoor opens and your heart shoots into your throat as you drop, screaming into the darkness below…! Live actors, interactive shows, breath-taking special effects and the thrilling Traitors Gate Boat ride make it anything other than a dusty museum. Add to this the largest mirror maze in the world and you have a Dungeon experience that will leave your group screaming for more! Few have come face to face with Sweeney Todd and survived and none have met Jack the Ripper and lived to tell the tale, are you up to the challenge?!! Please Note: The Dungeons is not suitable for young children or those of a nervous disposition. Please note that ride restrictions apply for Extremis That you can not use any offer, promotion or voucher with our ticket. Tower Bridge Exhibition Tower Bridge Unveils New GLASS FLOOR Across High-Level Walkways Launched in the West Walkway today, the glass floor offers visitors a never-seen-before view ofLondon life, from 42 metres above the River Thames. Look down to spy road and pedestrian life whizzing over the Bridge while river vessels sail under it – and plan your visit in advance for the truly magical experience of the bascules being raised beneath your feet. The glass floor measures 11 metres long by 1.8 metres wide and comprises of six panels weighing 530 kilograms each. It is made up of five thick layers and can hold the equivalent weight of an elephant and two taxis! The installation took a 20-strong team to construct it over a six week period. The Walkways also offer stunning panoramic views of London while each of the 20 bridges featured in our popular and refreshed 'New Great Bridges of the World' display showcase a breath-taking feat of engineering. After learning about the history of the Bridge through animations and displays in the Towers, continue to the Victorian Engine Rooms for the beautifully maintained steam engines that were once used to power the bridge lifts. Over 100 years ago, the Victorians built a bridge that has become one of London's most famous landmarks. High level walkways were built to allow people to cross the Thames whilst the Bridge was lifted to let tall ships sail past - Tower Bridge Today these Walkways act as viewing galleries, giving visitors the most spectacular views across an ever changing London skyline. Walkways & Exhibition: Visitors enter Tower Bridge Exhibition via the North Tower. They are then transported by lift to the top of the Tower (47 metres above the Thames) where they have a unique opportunity to see the Bridge’s steel skeleton from within. A short film explains the history and provenance of the Bridge and then there is the chance to admire the spectacular views – from both covered Walkways. On the east Walkway there are fantastic views of the Docklands and from the west Walkway you can see the new GLA building, the Tower of London, St Paul’s, the city, the Pool of London and Big Ben and the London Eye in the distance. Interactive computerised kiosks and graphic panels explain the significance of the views to visitors, as well as providing more information on the history and building of the Bridge. The interactive material and graphic panels are written in seven languages and an audio loop for the hard of hearing is also in place for the video show. There is another film to view in the South Tower before descending for the short walk to the historical Engine Rooms, included in your ticket price. Victorian Engine Rooms: These provide a fascinating insight into late 19th century engineering. Installed for the completion of Tower Bridge in 1894, these huge, and beautifully maintained, coal-driven engines were used to power the thousands of bascule Bridge lifts performed until 1976. Although lifts are now operated by electricity, the original steam engines are still in place. The Engine Rooms give visitors a chance to experiment with models demonstrating the technology behind the Bridge. There are also some amazing photographs of Tower BridgeTthroughout its lifetime – including a revealing picture of the heavy steel structure of the Bridge as the stone cladding was installed over it.
Stars Kerry Washington and Steven Pasquale take to the Broadway stage in American Son. See the riveting drama with tickets from ShowTickets.com.
Chicago Trolley:
Technology
Bus Tracker
Guests can now head to http://chicagotrolley.com/gps/ to see when the next double decker or trolley is headed their way!
Language App
Chicago Trolley & Double Decker Company now has a FREE, foreign language app for both Android and iPhone!
This new, easy to use app provides a fully narrated tour in Chinese (Mandarin), German, Portuguese (Brazil) and Spanish. We're excited to offer this option to our international guests!
How to download? Easy as 1, 2, 3!
On the guest's phone, search and download "Chicago Trolley Tour" in the application store.
Once downloaded, open the app and the language options will appear. Choose the language needed and download.
There will be a prompt to enter a password. The password is Chicago (not case sensitive). Please provide password information only once ticket has been purchased. That's it!
So how does it work?
Headphones will be provided for any guest using the app.
Using GPS, the app follows the guests as they enjoy the views from our double deckers and trolleys. The narration is based on plotted points along our tour route. Guests can even click on each point to read the information.
Once downloaded, the app does not use data. Guests can turn cellular data OFF if they would like to. However, GPS accuracy IS improved when Cellular Data is left ON, even though no data is use.
Ticket Types
One-Day Adult Ticket
Two-Day Adult Ticket
Three-Day Adult Ticket
Kids Ticket
Valid for 24 hours after time of redemption.
Valid for 48 hours after time of redemption.
Valid for 72 hours after time of redemption.
Valid for up to 72 hours after time of redemption.
Includes access to the Downtown Tour, Night Tour, and Wrigley Field/Lincoln Park Zoo Route
Includes access to the Downtown Tour, Night Tour, and Wrigley Field/Lincoln Park Zoo Route
Includes access to the Downtown Tour, Night Tour, and Wrigley Field/Lincoln Park Zoo Route
Includes access to the Downtown Tour, Night Tour, and Wrigley Field/Lincoln Park Zoo Route
SHEDD AQUARIUM EXHIBITS
UNDERWATER BEAUTY – A SPECIAL EXHIBIT
Our living world is full of wonder. Celebrate with us the unbelievable beauty living in our oceans, lakes and rivers in a new special exhibit at Shedd Aquarium: Underwater Beauty. Get a glimpse of the grandeur beneath the waves as 100 species from around the world come together in an evocative new space. What is beauty? Spark your curiosity as you see all the ways beauty moves and coexists. Watch sea jellies pulse, eels ribbon and a rainbow come alive with reef fishes. Feel the rhythms, embrace the colors and savor the patterns found only underwater. Experience a world worth celebrating – and saving.
AMPHIBIANS
Get ready for a toadally ribbiting experience! Shedd’s new special exhibit, Amphibians, included with admission.
In Amphibians, you’ll meet 40 species of frogs, salamanders and rarely seen caecilians. Learn how amphibians’ lives are full of change, from their life cycles to their adaptations to live in nearly every environment on Earth. Find out how too much change can spell trouble for amphibians — and how you can help them cope with big changes in our world today!
Waters of the World
Travel the world in 80 habitats.
Dive into Oceans, from coastal kelp forests to the seafloor. Explore the self-contained ecosystems of Islands and Lakes. Visit Rivers—big and small—and learn more about our local waters in the new At Home on the Great Lakes exhibit. Meet hundreds of amazing animals, from tiny mantella frogsto a a giant octopus, from a Grand Cayman blue iguana to Nile knifefish, and from moon jellies to sea stars. We even have map turtles, in case you get lost.
Caribbean Reef
Take a 360-degree tour of an underwater reef community.
Follow a green sea turtle. Peek at a moray eel in a rocky crevice. Watch regal rays glide by. Get eye-to-eye with parrot fish and sharks. Visit Caribbean Reef, Shedd’s award-winning 90,000-gallon circular habitat in the grand rotunda.
Amazon Rising
Take an exotic journey in the Amazon, home to one-third of all living things.
Watch out for anacondas and piranhas, spiders, rays and a camouflaged caiman. In churning river channels, still lakes and even flooded treetops look for tetras, turtles and fruit-eating fish called tambaqui. See how the region’s animals, plants and people adapt to the water’s dramatic annual rise and fall.
Abbott Oceanarium
The Abbott Oceanarium immerses you in the vibrant coastal ecosystem of beluga whales, Pacific white-sided dolphins, sea otters and sea lions. You’ll also find a host of fishes and invertebrates that make their homes where freshwater flows into the ocean or where tides turn seascapes to landscapes and back again each day. Use our self-guided map to discover how animals are linked to each other, their homes and you.
Polar Play Zone
Kids have a place at Shedd that they can call their own—Polar Play Zone. It’s cool as ice and twice as nice! The penguins think so, too.
Play! Splash! Pretend! What would you like to be? A sleek sliding penguin? A deep-sea explorer? How about both? In Polar Play Zone, you can slip into a penguin suit and try being a bird in the Icy South play area. From there, head to the Icy North to explore the belugas’ Arctic waters in a kid-sized submarine. Don’t forget to shake hands—or is it arms?—with colorful sea stars in the touch pools. In Polar Play Zone, you’ll learn about polar opposites—big and small, fast and slow, shallow and deep, even north and south—while you play.
The Oceanarium Aquatic Presentation is included however based on available seating and remaining show times at the time of guest arrival. (2018 Aquatic Presentation Schedule)
Stingray Touch (seasonal experience) is included. Open late May through October.
4D Experience is not included however the 4D experience tickets may be purchased at the theatre for $3.00 per -person
Pets are not allowed in the aquarium
Travel back in time with a 1-3 day ticket to the Parc du Puy theme park in Les Epesses in the heart of the Vendée. Named the Best Theme Park in the World, the shows take you on an historical journey through the Middle Ages, Gauls, Victorians, and more. Highlights: This unique theme park won the ‘World’s Best Park’ award in Los Angeles An amazing journey through time A wide choice of shows which will delights visitors of all ages A fabulous range of 25 dining options to satisfy every visitor's taste, hunger and budget With 1.6 million visitors in 2012, this is the 4th most visited French theme park Whether you’re looking for spectacular shows, lush greenery, or great dining, Puy du Fou transports you through the centuries. With your 1-day, 2-day, or 3-day ticket, you will have plenty of opportunities to experience new attractions, such as “The Knights of the Round Table,” where Merlin will put Arthur’s bravery to the test at the foot of the ramparts, and then discover the wonders of the enchanted lake. Shiver as birds of prey pass above your heads during “The Phantom Birds Dance,” and watch as falcons, owls, and vultures appear, brushing against you, while kites, pelicans, storks ,and marabous put on a dance. Experience a medieval adventure during “The Secret of the Lance,” and marvel at the circus games of "Triumph’s Sign," set in a replica amphitheater that tells the story of the Gauls in Roman times. In between shows, relive the atmosphere of the Belle Epoque in the Market Town, flanked by a covered market and lined with shops selling toys, sweets, and more. Wander the Medieval City and discover the heritage of the Middle Ages and lost expertise of master craftsmen. Fast forward to the 18th-Century Village, strolling narrow streets, and paying a visit to the vegetable garden, wash house and barn. And choose from 25 dining options to suit every taste and budget, such as the "Bourg 1900," a 19th-century brasserie, serving traditional French cuisine.
There is a security check for entry into the Sainte Chapelle. Sharp objects are not allowed (corkscrews, Swiss Army knives etc.) and may be confiscated. We will make every effort to minimize disruptions to our tours caused by third-party employees We are not responsible for any loss associated with events out of our immediate control. Comfortable walking shoes are advised. There are 422 steps to the top of the towers at Notre Dame. The stairway is vey narrow in areas with small windows. If these conditions make you feel unconfortable you can skip this part of the tour. All of our tours operate rain or shine.
