Right now, no tours are being planned. Further tours will depend upon interst shown. If you have an interest in going on a Dodge tour of England, read the following information about our tours, and then contact us.
Tour members arrange for their own least expensive flight to and from Manchester, England. When arriving there, they are met by the friendly Bullock's Coach driver/representative. A short drive takes them to their Hotel where they can rest up and get acquainted.
Our first dinner together is the evening that we arrive. The next morning, we board our Coach for the start of our tour.
We head out for the southwestern part of England to visit St. Margaret's Parrish Church , Middle Chinnock, where John Dodge, father of William, Richard, and Michael, and his family attended, and East Coker where Richard Dodge lived with his family before emmigrating to America. Along the way we will vist other places that are decided upon, once a tour is in the planning process
We then head for Shaftsbury where we enjoy the Royal Chase Hotel , usually for three nights. Shaftsbury itself is an interesting place with its steep Gold Hill, a photo of which is often included in calendars, and interesting shopping areas.
While we are there, Dodges from the area will have a meal with us giving you ample opportunity to visit with them. Several have joined our DNA project and prove to come from the same family as those in America who descend from William or Richard. They most likely descend from the brother, Michael, who stayed in England.
Shaftsbury itself is an interesting place with its steep Gold Hill and interesting shopping areas. While there we will visit the Chinnocks in Somerset where William and Richard originated.
We visit several interesting sites while in that part of England. Sometimes we go to Cornwall. Other times we visit Wales. The itinerary is planned when a tour is being organized.
Finally we head for Stockport, so prominent in Dodge History. We stop on the way at some other historical sites. While in Stockport we will see the open- air market, now some 500 years old, the beautiful Town Hall and St. Mary's Parish Church where some of our Dodge Family ancestors worshipped. Also available, is a visit to the Sand Caves that housed people during air raid warnings in WWII.
On our final full day we attend services at St. Mary's, have an English Tea and tour at Halliday Hill House, one of our Dodge ancestral homes (begun in the late 1300's) and end the day with our Farewell Dinner at the famed Bells of Peover Inn. The Inn is so named because it is adjacent to the church with the famed bells. We may get to hear the Sunday evening bells rung as we did on a previous tour. This Inn flies the English and the American flags daily becausse General Eisenhouer and Prime Minister Winston Churchill would meet here to plan for D-Day.
Except for your air-fare from your home to Manchester and back WE INCLUDE ALL EXPENSES IN ONE PRICE.
Tour Participants Receive:
* Every night's Lodging in very fine, clean, comfortable hotels.
* Full English Breakfast and Dinner each day.
* All transportation to and from the airport and to all points we see.
* We ride in our private, very comfortable coach with a restroom on board. We have many extra seats so we can change positions and stretch out when we need a rest.
* Admission to all attractions that we visit.
* Luggage Handling from the time the coach meets us at airport until we return there.
We purposely limit the distances we travel each day. It is not a "if this is Tuesday, this must be Belgium" type of tour. Plenty of time to get acquainted and relax.Those who have gone before have returned for a total of as many as five tours. Universally, all agree it is a wonderful experience.
Cost: Total cost of a 14 day-13 night land tour depends on the value of the U.S. dollar to the English pound. The dollar has slipped and costs have gone up since our 2004 Anniversary Tour. That tour was $3200. Right now, a tour the same length would probably cost about $3400 - $3500
The Tour is operated by Dodge Historic Tours, a non-profit service operated by Earl and Barbara Dodge. The Tour's sole purpose is to help our family see the land of their roots and appreciate our heritage even more than we do now.
Our 2004 tour included participants both from the United States and from England. ALL DODGE FAMILY MEMBERS FROM ANY NATION ARE MOST WELCOME.
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