LONDON FOR FASHION LOVERS

Day 1 | Sunday 4 October
London’s Fashion Story Begins

Our tour begins in the heart of Marylebone with check-in at the Holmes Hotel, our convenient and stylish base for exploring the city and its surrounds over the coming days. We meet this evening for welcome drinks and an opening talk by tour leader Nicole Hayward, looking at how fashion in London reflects its history, politics and identity, setting the stage for the days ahead. Our talk is followed by dinner in a nearby restaurant.  Overnight London (D)

Day 2 | Monday 5 October
City as Catwalk – Tracing London’s Style Evolution

Our guided walking tour this morning traces the rich narrative of London fashion, exploring the influence of British designers, tailors and dressmakers from the Victorian era to the present day and looking at how London’s streets have long doubled as runways of social expression. After a break for lunch, we visit the Fashion and Textile Museum, the only museum in the UK dedicated solely to contemporary fashion and textile design. Founded by British designer Zandra Rhodes, the museum offers vibrant, thought-provoking exhibitions that explore the work of leading designers and key movements in fashion history. Our guided tour of the temporary exhibition (to be confirmed) will highlight the diverse cultural influences that have shaped London’s style identity from the 20th century to today – offering a fitting continuation of our morning exploration into the city’s creative evolution. The remainder of the afternoon is at leisure to explore nearby Marylebone and Regent’s Park. Overnight London (B)

Day 3 | Tuesday 6 October
Surreal Style – Elsa Schiaparelli at the V&A
Our focus today is Elsa Schiaparelli, one of the most influential fashion designers of the 20th century, whose bold creations bridged art, performance and haute couture. This much anticipated V&A exhibition traces her impact on British design sensibilities and her relationship with contemporaries like Salvador Dalí and Coco Chanel. On display will be more than 200 carefully curated objects, including garments, accessories, jewellery, paintings, photographs, sculptures, furniture, perfumes, and archival material from the Schiaparelli house. Following our visit there is time to explore the museum’s extensive collection of historic and contemporary fashion, followed by a traditional afternoon tea nearby. We conclude the day back at our hotel with an evening talk exploring the dynamic intersection of fashion, sport and performance – where functionality meets spectacle on the global stage. Overnight London (B, AT)

Day 4 | Wednesday 7 October
Dressing for the Stage and the State
Our day begins with a private Behind the SEAMS tour at Angels Costumes, one of the world’s largest and most prestigious costumiers for film, television and theatre. With a history dating back to 1840, Angels has dressed countless productions and remains at the heart of the UK’s costume industry. On this exclusive private tour, we explore the vast workrooms and warehouse that span over eight miles of racks and house more than one million garments and accessories. The tour also reveals designs created for major sporting events and ceremonial uniforms, showcasing how fashion functions at the intersection of performance and spectacle. After lunch together in a nearby restaurant, we continue to The King’s Gallery at Buckingham Palace to view the landmark exhibition The Queen and Her Crown: Life in Style. Presented by the Royal Collection Trust, this new exhibition is the most comprehensive display of Queen Elizabeth II’s wardrobe ever assembled and features garments worn across seven decades of public life – from coronation gowns and diplomatic ensembles to her signature coats, hats and handbags. Designed by leading couturiers such as Norman Hartnell and Hardy Amies, the pieces reflect the extraordinary craftsmanship, symbolism and subtle messaging woven into every royal appearance. On return to our hotel, the evening is at leisure. Overnight London (B, L)

Day 5 | Thursday 8 October
Tudors to Regency – Fashion, Silk and Social Change
Our full day excursion today takes us out of London, beginning at Hampton Court Palace, the magnificent royal residence once home to Henry VIII. Here we tour the palace’s extravagantly decorated rooms where rich tapestries and paintings of royalty and courtiers offer an insight into sumptuary laws, embroidery as political language, and the daily reality of clothing in a hierarchical court. Our next stop is Whitchurch Silk Mill in rural Hampshire, a rare example of a working Georgian silk mill on the River Test. Our private tour takes us through the mill’s machinery and weaving rooms, looking at the story of English silk production and its role in dressing Britain’s growing middle class. Our day concludes with a private after hours tour of the Jane Austen House Museum in nearby Chawton. Surrounded by the furnishings, letters and daily objects of the celebrated novelist, we reflect on how the refined simplicity of Regency fashion – with its empire-line silhouettes and delicate muslins – expressed both social constraint and quiet rebellion in the lives of women like Austen. We then enjoy dinner at the charming Greyfriar Pub across the lane, soaking in the village atmosphere before returning to London in the early evening. Overnight London (B, D)

Day 6 | Friday 9 October
A Proper English Gentleman
Today we explore the rich and refined history of British menswear, beginning with a walking tour of Savile Row and Jermyn Street. Synonymous with the English gentleman’s wardrobe for over 200 years, these two streets are home to master tailors and shirtmakers catering to aristocrats, politicians, celebrities and subcultural style icons. As we walk, we trace the evolution of masculine dress – from the understated elegance of Beau Brummell, whose minimalist dandyism reshaped 19th-century fashion, to the flamboyance of David Bowie, who redefined gender and performance through clothes. In the afternoon, we travel to Walthamstow to visit the William Morris Gallery, located in Morris’s childhood home. A radical thinker, designer and social reformer, Morris championed craftsmanship, workers dignity and the aesthetics of everyday life – laying the groundwork for today’s movements in ethical fashion and sustainable textiles. Overnight London (B)

Day 7 | Saturday 10 October
Reconstructing Historic Dress – Hands-on with the Past
This morning we travel by train to Nottingham, once a global centre for fine lace and knitwear, whose workshops and factories supplied garments for royalty, the military and the high street alike. Here we have a behind-the-scenes visit to the studio of historical costumer Ninya Mikhaila – from the well known BBC series, ‘A Stitch in Time’ – where we have a hands-on opportunity to learn about the skills, resources and technologies involved in reconstructing replicas of historic dress. After a break for lunch we continue to the Framework Knitters Museum, a unique surviving example of a 19th-century framework knitters’ yard, which tells the story of mechanised knitting and working-class life from the Industrial Revolution to the Luddite protests. We return to London by fast train in the early evening. Overnight London (B)

Day 8 | Sunday 11 October
Silk and the City – Huguenots in Spitalfields
In the late 17th century, thousands of Huguenots – French Protestant refugees – fled persecution and settled in London’s Spitalfields, bringing their exceptional weaving skills with them. Today our walking tour takes us through the narrow lanes and past the now restored townhouses of the neighbourhood, looking at how these artisans transformed the area into a vibrant hub of silk production and design. After a break for lunch we continue to the Spitalfields and Brick Lane Markets, home to vintage boutiques, fabric stores and designer pop-ups, where there is time to wander at leisure. We reconvene for a tour of Dennis Severs’ House, an atmospheric candlelit experience set within an original 18th-century silk weaver’s townhouse, offering a theatrical glimpse into the life of a fictional Huguenot family through layered interiors and silent storytelling. Overnight London (B)

Day 9 | Monday 12 October
London’s Fabric Emporiums & Atelier Craft
Today is a celebration of fabrics, threads and embellishment, beginning with a morning walking tour taking us to some of London’s finest purveyors of cloth and trimming including MacCulloch & Wallis, VV Rouleaux and Liberty of London. These world-renowned shops offer an insight into Britain’s dedication to quality materials and detailed workmanship. After lunch together at the instore restaurant of Liberty’s, we continue to Hand & Lock, a prestigious embroidery house established in 1767. On our private visit, we step behind the scenes to discover how centuries-old techniques are kept alive, from intricate goldwork and bead embroidery to hand-stitching for couture houses, military regalia and ecclesiastical vestments. The tour will offer a rare glimpse into the precision and artistry that define this enduring craft. Overnight London (B, L)

Day 10 | Tuesday 13 October
Conserving Couture – Behind the Glass
When the vast V&A East Storehouse opened in May 2025, it made one of Britain’s most important decorative arts archives accessible to the public. This visionary new facility which has reimagined how cultural collections are experienced – has over 100 micro-exhibitions embedded among the racks, offering surprising encounters with fashion, art, performance and design. Among other sections we should be able to visit are the David Bowie Centre and the Clothworkers’ Centre for the Study and Conservation of Textiles and Fashion. Overnight London (B)

Day 11 | Wednesday 14 October
The Future of Fashion – Innovation and Identity in London
London has long been a laboratory for fashion innovation, blending rebellion with refinement to produce bold new visions of style. Today our guided walking tour takes us through some of the capital’s most forward-thinking design neighbourhoods. Beginning in Mayfair, our tour explores the latest in London design, shaped by the city’s iconic fashion schools, tailoring traditions, and its vibrant street and club culture. The afternoon is then free to enjoy at your leisure, with time for shopping, individual visits, or simply soaking up the city’s creative energy. This evening we gather for a farewell dinner as we reflect on the themes that have run through the tour – identity, craft, innovation and heritage – and how London continues to stitch these elements together in new and provocative ways. Overnight London (B, D)

Day 12 | Thursday 15 October
Departure
Our tour concludes after breakfast. Those departing today will be transferred to the airport, while others may choose to continue their stay independently. (B)