Beatles Tour of the U.K.

You’ll arrive at London’s Heathrow Airport and meet your guide who will get you situated at your hotel. After some time to catch your breath, you’ll head out for a low-key evening pint and a bite to eat while your guide will talk you through the upcoming trip’s events and get you oriented in this amazing city!

You’ll start the day off with a bang after an early breakfast, hitting the famed Abbey Road crosswalk where The Beatles were photographed for their album of the same name. You can check out the original Abbey Road studios, still in operation today and featuring a small gift shop adjacent, as well as a Beatles-themed coffee shop nearby. Then it’s just a short walk to Paul McCartney’s house at 7 Cavendish Avenue, which he purchased in 1963 for £40,000 and reportedly still owns today.

Then it’s a Tube ride down to Marleybone Station, where you can re-enact the opening of the band’s film A Hard Day’s Night, and pretend packs of wild-eyed packs of Beatles fans are chasing you! After stopping for lunch, you’ll head over to the Sherlock Holmes Museum on nearby Baker Street (hey, it can’t ALL be Beatles-related – you’re in London, after all!) then you’ll head over to 3 Savile Row where The Beatles shot their infamous final live rooftop concert at the offices of Apple Corp.

After dinner and bit of a rest, you’ll head out to the Hard Rock Cafe, which is home to a pair of John Lennon’s glasses along with some of his handwritten lyrics and piano he used.

After breakfast, you’ll head to the British Library, which houses several original manuscripts of songs handwritten by John, including “Strawberry Fields Forever,” “My Life” and more. The library is also home to the Magna Carta and 400 miles of shelves, so it’s well worth checking out. From there your guide will take you back to the Tube, where you’ll ride down to the Leicester Square stop. Here you’re in the heart of historic London, where you’ll walk past the National Gallery, then through Trafalgar Square, where we’re only a short walk from getting obligatory pictures of the Houses of Parliament, Westminster Abbey and Big Ben.

But never fear, more Beatles-related activities abound! After a well-deserved break for lunch along the Thames, you’ll head up to Piccadilly Circus, just a short walk from the Prince of Wales Theater. That’s the spot where the band played a live televised show for the Queen Mother and Princess Margaret in 1963. While introducing “Twist and Shout,” John infamously called out the mega-elite crowd in attendance, saying, “Those of you in the cheaper seats clap your hands… the rest of you, just rattle your jewelry.” Afterward, you’ll head up Carnaby Steet, the famously fash heart of 1960s Swinging London to do some shopping on your way to the birthplace of Beatlemania: The London Palladium. This venue is where the hordes of screaming fan-girls were first said to suffer from “Beatlemania,” and also where John made his infamous remark about the band being “bigger than Jesus,” leading to a major backlash in the U.S.

Stop off for dinner nearby and then perhaps a beverage at the famous Bag O’ Nails club, where Paul first met his future wife Linda, and Jimi Hendrix played his first London gig with rock royalty Pete Townshend, Eric Clapton and Jeff Beck in attendance!

Today you’ll head to the original home of all four of the Fab Four, Liverpool! After arriving and getting settled at your hotel, your guide will talk you through the upcoming fully-packed Beatle-riffic days to come over dinner. Then it’s off to the famous Cavern Club, where the boys first developed their musical chops. Also be sure to stop in at the nearby Grapes Pub, where the lads would down a pint in between sets.

First off you’ll head out to view the birthplaces of each of the Beatles and their childhood homes, with your knowledgeable guide providing tidbits of information about the boys. Then it’s off to St. Peter’s Church, the site of the church fete where John and Paul first met, and also home to the grave of the famous Eleanor Rigby. Next, we head up to Penny Lane, followed by a trip across the River Mersey to Strawberry Fields, the former orphanage that John immortalized in song.

Next, it’s over to the Casbah Coffee Club, where the band played their very first gig before heading back into the city center. Be sure to notice along the walk a statue a few yards away from the Cavern Club that immortalizes Eleanor Rigby, a thoughtful and poignant piece of art that evokes the song’s sadness. Time to stop off for dinner down at the Liverpool Riverfront followed by a walk along the Mersey, and maybe a nightcap before heading back to the hotel.

Today we start at the Magical Beatles Museum, owned and operated by Roag Best, the brother of original Beatles drummer Pete Best. The displays include memorabilia gathered by Best as well as Neil Aspinall, former road manager for the band and head of Apple Corp., including the very first footage shot of them playing as a band. Then it’s back to the riverside to the Museum of Liverpool, featuring tremendous Beatles-related exhibits as well as the history of this city.

After lunch, how about a ferry across the Mersey, an hour-long riverboat tour of the area? Follow that with a trip to the British Music Experience, staffed by actual musicians who are extremely knowledgeable about the memorabilia and instruments there from The Beatles, Queen, and Jimi Hendrix. That evening it’s back to the city center for some genuine fish & chips or meat pie on your last night in Beatles Britain!

After breakfast and comparing notes on the fabulous trip learning all about the Fab Four, it’s off to the airport and home, with plenty of tales to tell your friends and family – and a guaranteed winning category next time you play trivia!