Farming Tour of the British Isles

Explore the farms and machinery manufacturers across arable, dairy, sheep, beef and pig farming. With the sights and culture the British Isles offer included, this tour is ideal for both farmers and students.

Itinerary at a Glance

  • A tour of England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland.
  • Technical visit to the New Holland Tractor factory.
  • Take in the wonderful scenery of the Yorkshire Dales, pint at the highest pub in England
  • Technical visits to a wild cattle herd at Chillingham.
  • Scottish evening banquet with piping in of the haggis.
  • Technical visits to cattle farms in Scotland.
  • Visit an agricultural show in the Lake District.
  • Technical visit to JCB – the iconic machinery company.
  • Technical visits to many farms across all four countries.
  • Visit the Irish National Stud and take in Ireland’s wonderful countryside
  • See a sheepdog demonstration and visit a local sheep market in Ireland.

Day Two - Arrive in London

  • Met by the experienced tour manager with a farming background at LHR airport for the transfer to the hotel.

Day Three – Meat market and tour of London

  • An early morning visit to Smithfield – where there has been trading for more than 800 years. Originally a cattle market, now London’s main wholesale meat market supplying London’s butchers and catering trades. Then a full day city tour including the London Eye for its spectacular views over the city.

Day Four – Cambridge and the tractor factory

  • Morning visit to the New Holland tractor factory in Basildon which is producing a record number of tractors. Walking tour in Cambridge with college visit and chauffeured punting along the river for fun. Evening dinner in a local pub

Day Five – Farm visits in Suffolk

  • Visits to a pig farm, a cereal and sugar beet farm, meetings and discussions with the local farmers to discuss their methods of production and differences in farming practices. Mid-afternoon visit to the Suffolk Punch Horse Trust.

Day Six – Head North

  • Morning visit to Camgrain, which is the UK’s only farmer owned network of co-ordinated APC (Advanced Processing Centre) central stores. Over 30 years of experience and investment in world class grain handling infrastructure sees Camgrain as an industry benchmark with over half a million tonnes of storage capacity.

    Afternoon to JSR farms, one of the largest family-owned farming businesses in the United Kingdom. They farm 4100 hectares/10100 acres in Yorkshire.

Day Seven – Into Yorkshire

  • Stop at the James Herriot museum and then drive through the Yorkshire Dales – options to stop at the Wensleydale Cheese factory. Lunch at the top of Swaledale – the highest pub in England, followed by an afternoon visit to a local organic farm.

Day Eight – To Scotland for a banquet

  • Heading north, stop to view the Angel of the North, a 100 ton steel sculpture. Then stop at Housesteads Roman Fort for tremendous views. Finally Chillingham to see the wild cattle. A traditional Scottish banquet at Dalhousie Castle complete with bagpipes and haggis.

Day Nine - Edinburgh

  • A morning guided city tour with the afternoon free and an evening visit to the famous Edinburgh Military Tattoo which is staged in front of the castle to massed military bands, light and firework shows.

Day Ten – Farming in the Lake District

  • South to the Lake District. A morning visit to a Belted Galloway cattle farm and a local agricultural show in the afternoon.

Day Eleven – Sightseeing in the Lake District

  • Morning visits to the homes of Wordsworth and Beatrix Potter plus the quirky pencil museum. Afternoon free to relax and take in the wonderful scenery.

Day Twelve – JCB factory tour and Chester

  • A fascinating morning factory tour of JCB – one of the UK’s biggest companies producing not just the iconic back hoe digger, but more than 300 types of machine that are sold in more than 150 countries around the world. Followed by a visit to a bull stud farm and short walking tour of Chester.

Day Thirteen – North Wales

  • Stops in scenic Llangollen and Betws-y-Coed, then a visit to Electric Mountain for an underground tour – a pumped storage system for electricity generation. Stop to see the village with the longest place name – just for fun Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch- before taking the ferry to Dublin.

Day Fifteen – Irish Stud and Famine

  • A visit to the Irish National Stud followed by the Famine Museum at Strokestown which highlights the problems when crops fail.

Day Sixteen – Sheep market and sheep dogs

  • Visit a local sheep market to meet the local farmers to discuss the local situation, meat prices, fodder and differences in farming practices. In the afternoon watch a sheep dog demonstration to see this ancient profession in action.

Day Seventeen – The Irish countryside and farm visit

  • Stop in the Burren for a guided walk and to see the rare plants growing here. Stops at the new visitor centre at the Cliffs of Moher, before a technical visit to a local arable farm.

Day Eighteen – Exploring Ireland

  • A morning tour of Ring of Kerry taking in the dramatic scenery before visiting Blarney Castle and stopping in Cork for some last minute shopping.

Day Nineteen – Return flight

  • Return to Dublin and transfer to the airport.