What is it?
A guided tour is the practice of an individual leading a group of people around a point of interest and giving them information about it, which can cover topics such as religious significance, cultural history and how it relates to other locations and events in history.
What does it involve?
Attending a guided tour basically just involves paying attention! All the work is done for you in finding out the facts and presenting them in an interesting manner; the role of the participant just calls for a level of interest in your surroundings and an eagerness to learn!
Why do it and what are the benefits?
Tour guides can be extremely educational - physically interacting with the place while learning about its history will provide a different kind of academic experience to the classroom by giving the students something more tangible to focus on.
What equipment do we need?
You shouldn't need any equipment for a guided tour, but check beforehand to make sure; some tours involve their participants even further by getting them to write down their own thoughts, or make drawings - so you may need to ensure students have something to write on!
Who is it suitable for?
Guided Tours are suitable for pretty much anybody if you pick the right one - smaller children will find it harder to focus on more complex subjects and will need more visual aids, but if they are engaged correctly they will have a great time! Likewise, teenage students will get bored if the subject isn't engaging enough, so make sure to choose the tour appropriate for the age and interests of the group.
Costs?
Around £20 or less per person, but it can vary greatly depending on the location of the tour - for example, a minibus tour around a park will cost more than a short walk around a country manor! Make sure to shop around to get an idea of the prices in your area.
Issues/Things to think about? (unsuitable for age groups, medical conditions etc)
A guided tour should be suitable for all ages, but students with condtions such has ADHD may have trouble focusing for an extended period of time - make sure to be aware of the specific needs of your group.
How do we include?
Many guided tours have disabled access for those with limited physical movement, but it would be wise to doublecheck beforehand. Those who are deaf and blind can also be included in guided tours but may need more specialist staff - again, you will need to check with the specific establishments.
Doing it abroad?
There are points of public interest all around the world, so wherever you can find something well known chances are there will be a guided tour available! Foreign tours may be conducted in another language though, so make sure to confirm the specifications of the tour before booking it.
Main website:
This website gives a good overview of places where you can go for a tour guide, but you're best looking at the specific areas around you to find out details!
A grand country house near Glasgow city centre, Pollok House is Scotland's answer to Downton Abbey and gives a real taste of upstairs/downstairs life in the 1930s.
Children can learn through activity what it was like to live in the House and be a servant in Victorian times. Cost £2 per head (or £1 per child if your school has an educational membership of the Trust).
Set in the peaceful Wiltshire countryside beside a lake, Old Wardour Castle, near Tisbury was once one of the most daring and innovative homes in Britain. It was built in the 14th century as a lightly fortified luxury residence for comfortable living and lavish entertainment. Today the castle ruin provides a relaxed, romantic day out for couples, families and budding historians alike.
This 400-year-old castle in the former mill town of Menstrie at the foot of the Ochil Hills is part of the Clackmannanshire Tower Trail.
The ground floor houses a fascinating slice of Scottish-Canadian history in a museum dedicated to the founding of Nova Scotia by Sir William Alexander, who was born here in 1577.
Ever wanted to see behind the scenes at the home of Stoke City Football Club? Well now you can!
Tours of the Britannia Stadium are available throughout the week and give supporters full access to rooms and suites that most will have never seen before.
Tucked away behind stone walls in the charming village of Inveresk, this delightful hillside garden offers an oasis of calm and a year-round feast for the senses.
School visits are arranged through the ranger service.
An atmospheric house set within Leith Hill with panoramic views across the Surrey countryside, Leith Hill Place was the childhood home of one of England's greatest composers, Ralph Vaughan Williams, who gave it to the National Trust in 1944.
Swansea Museum is a real treasure house of the ordinary and the extraordinary from Swansea past and present, and is a focus for the future of the city and its people, as well as providing a visitor experience that we hope you find enjoyable. You are able to visit Swansea Museum at four locations - the Museum itself on Oystermouth Road, the Tramshed in Dylan Thomas Square in the Marina, the Muse
Step back to the early 1900s and enjoy a grand day out, Edwardian-style! Play our hickory lawn game and a spot of croquet, try your hand at billiards, outwit your chums in fun parlour games and more.
Oystermouth Castle sits majestically on the hill in Mumbles with stunning views overlooking Swansea Bay.
Come and explore parts of the castle that have been hidden away for centuries, and learn about the castle's exciting history.
Shirehall Museum is in a 16th century building that was built as a hostel for important visitors to the Augustinian priory next door. In the 1770s it became Walsingham’s court house and the court room, which was in use until 1971, is still intact.
Witness two opposing kings - Robert the Bruce and Edward II - whose tactics in 1314 changed the path of Scotland's history, forever.
The Tenement House provides a rare glimpse into life in Glasgow in the early 20th century, in the faithfully restored four-room house lived in by Miss Agnes Toward for over half a century.
School visits must be booked in advance by telephoning the property. Weekday mornings (March to October) are available for visits by school groups and other large parties.
Located at the western tip of the Ardmeanach peninsula on the island of Mull, this nature reserce is recognised as a National Scenic Area and a Special Area of Conservation, but is probably best known for being home to MacCulloch's fossil tree. Ranger-led activities to meet curriculum requirements can be organised by arrangement.
Windsor Castle, an official residence of The Queen and one of her favourite homes, is the oldest and largest inhabited castle in the world. Since the building of a wooden fortress here at the time of William the Conqueror, the Castle has been transformed over the centuries into a splendid palace, while still retaining much evidence of its turbulent past.
The site provides Insight into rural Scottish life 200 years ago. Housing one of Scotland's finest folk collections, this museum shows exactly how the country's rural workforce used to live. Children can experience a Victorian classroom, see how people lived and worked, and dress up in traditional costumes. Groups will be split into small groups of no more than 10 pupils.
Powderham Castle is located in a unique, picturesque setting just outside Exeter, beside the Exe estuary. Six hundred years of history are contained within the walls of one of England's oldest family homes. Sir Philip Courtenay began building it in 1391 and it has remained in the same family to this day, currently home to the 18th Earl & Countess of Devon.
One of the most beautifully located fortresses in England. For over 600 years Dartmouth Castle has guarded the narrow entrance to the Dart Estuary and the busy, vibrant port of Dartmouth. It offers stunning views of the estuary and out to sea and offers a great family day out, whatever the weather.
It was in this house that Thomas Carlyle, the great Scottish social historian and one of Britain's most influential writers and thinkers, was born in 1795.
Many of Carlyle's belongings are still in situ, along with domestic items of the time, providing an authentic glimpse into Victorian life and a fascinating insight into Thomas Carlyle's early years.
The 'last castle to be built in England', set above the Teign Gorge with dramatic views over Dartmoor.
Commissioned by retail tycoon Julius Drewe, and designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens, the castle harks back to a romantic past, while its brilliant design heralds the modern era.
Kinver's woodland sandstone ridge offers dramatic views across surrounding counties and miles of heathland walking country. The famous Holy Austin Rock Houses, which were inhabited until the 1950s, are open to visitors at selected times.
Learning
Raglan, with its great multi-angular towers, handsome majesty and Tudor-styling, is unlike any other castle in Wales.
One of the prettiest villages in Kent, and perhaps England, Chiddingstone is a beautiful example of a Tudor one-street village.
Stuffed to the turrets with antique furniture, paintings and ceramics, the legacy of generations of Clan Brodie, this 16th-century castle is a slice of Scottish history not to be missed.
Originally an Elizabethan house, Morville Hall was extensively enlarged and expanded around 1750, giving it the appearance of a Georgian home.
Look out for interesting and quirky Elizabethan features of the original house. Wander through to the back of the house where a flight of elegant stone steps lead down to a beautiful garden.
The Bushcraft Company offer residential school trips with a difference, taking students into the wild and giving them real back-to-nature experiences they will never forget.
A 15-year-old boy fell 60ft over the edge of a cliff whilst on a geography school trip, miraculously only suffering minor injuries.