PS: Don’t forget about Royal Windsor!
IF YOU want to avoid London, there’s plenty taking place at Windsor, previously regarded as the Queen’s weekend retreat.
June 5 will see the town’s
Big Lunch, which aims to create the longest picnic table ever – running from Windsor Castle’s Cambridge Gate down the
Long Walk. The weekend will also see classic cars on show from throughout the Queen’s reign, with big screens in place to watch the Jubilee pageant.
Stay at Castle Hotel Windsor, just opposite Windsor Guildhall, where Prince Charles married Camilla Parker Bowles.
After receiving a Royal Warrant in the 1700s to provide horses and carriages for the Royal Household, the hotel was the place to be seen; the Duke of Wellington dined there after winning the Battle of Waterloo. Some of the rooms have views of Windsor Castle. Tuck into a special Jubilee tea, which includes a Union Jack cupcake and a coronation chicken wrap.
Two nights’ B&B for two costs from £555. Or book a threenight package, available throughout the year, from £1,036 per room, which includes a dinner and afternoon tea as well as tickets to Windsor Castle, The Savill Garden in Windsor Great Park and for the Windsor Bus Tour. The Jubilee tea costs from £30pp (castlehotelwindsor.com).
For something a little different, take a Thames boating break, mooring in Windsor to stroll the cobbled streets and explore the castle. You will also get a waterside view of the God Save The Queen Platinum Jubilee Run on June 3, along a stretch of the river between Staines and
Old Windsor. Better still, moor and join the runners; online registration is open on letsdothis.com and costs £36. A week’s self-catered stay on the Thames from May 30 on board a boat sleeping three costs from £1,449 (leboat.co.uk).