Outings Details

The u3a has several Interest Groups that arrange trips on a regular basis for Members. The majority of these are arranged by the Out & About Group.

If you want to receive information on all these trips, please register your interest by joining the Out & About Registration Groupon the Groups page, please Click Here to go to the Groups Page.

This will enable the Group Leader to keep you informed by e-mail of future trips.

All future trips will have their own entry on the Groups page and you must join the relevant group for the trip you are interested in to apply for a place.

If you do not have access to e-mail, then the Group Leader will contact you by your preferred contact method specified by you when you joined the U3A.

A desk with all the information on future trips is also set out at the monthly meetings. Booking at the monthly meeting and the monthly library desk is also available. If you need to contact someone about a trip, please do so by using the u3a Contacts button in the top menu bar.

Please note that outings are available only to members of Holmes Chapel & District u3a.

All trips at the time of advertising are provisional and maybe subject to change or cancellation. The cost of each trip will be based on the number of people attending and what is included in the trip. e.g. entry fees etc.

We fully recognise the importance of enriching the lives of others within our u3a. But please note, on all Out & About and Theatre trips Members must be able to manage independently or should be accompanied by a carer; companion or partner. It is not the responsibility of the Group Leader nor any other Member to have to accompany someone who has independently signed up for the trip and be responsible for their welfare. Every Member is responsible for their own health, safety and welfare and that of the person/s they have agreed to accompany.

Click on Booking Details for Terms and Conditions for booking trips.

Destination : Papplewick Pumping Station & Newstead Abbey
Date               : 14th May 2025

Papplewick Pumping Station & Newstead Abbey

Status Live: Bookings now being taken

Our first stop this morning is Papplewick Pumping Station, our visit includes a tour and refreshments. This afternoon we are visiting Newstead Abbey where we have a tour of the Abbey and time to explore the gardens and parkland.

Papplewick Pumping Station- Britain’s finest Victorian Waterworks

This beautiful place was designed in the early 1880s to pump millions of gallons of clean fresh water every day to the rapidly increasing population of Industrial Nottingham. Today, thanks to the endeavours of The Papplewick Pumping Station Trust, a Registered Charity dedicated to the preservation of the Pumping Station, you can still experience the most spectacular, preserved water Pumping Station in the British Isles. The Pumping Station is now protected as a Scheduled Ancient Monument, the highest preservation order that can be bestowed upon a site in England.

Newstead Abbey

A beautiful historic Abbey, steeped in over 800 years of history, set in a glorious landscape of gardens and parkland within the heart of Nottinghamshire. Founded as a monastic Abbey in the late 12th century, Newstead was home to the poet Lord Byron between 1808 - 1814. Inside the Abbey there is much to explore including Victorian room settings, and the poets private apartments. Newstead’s 300 acres of parkland owes much of its beauty to the River Leen feeding the lakes, ponds and cascades that ornament its gardens, along with its wildlife of peacocks and swans. The formal gardens are the perfect place to relax and offer colour and interest throughout the seasons.

The cost for this trip is £42.00, this includes a tour at Papplewick Pumping Station & refreshments; a tour at Newstead Abbey and transport.

We will leave Holmes Chapel at 8:30am/Goostrey 8:40am and expect to be back home for approx. 6:00pm.

Destination : Llandudno and cruise on the Paddle Steamer Waverley
Date               : 30th May 2025

Status Live: Names now being taken for waiting list

Enjoy a day in Llandudno and cruise on the Paddle Steamer Waverley.

The morning is your own to enjoy Llandudno.  This famous Victorian seaside town on the North Wales coast has plenty for visitors to enjoy.  Take a stroll down the promenade and enjoy the view and sea air; ride the tram to the top of the Great Orme, enjoy one the walking trails around the town; visit a museum; view Llandudno from the longest pier in Wales; peruse the shops or just stop for tea and cake in one of the many cafes and watch the world go by.  There is always something to do in Llandudno!

In the afternoon we are booked on the Paddle Steamer Waverley to enjoy a cruise along the North Wales Coast taking in the Great Orme and Puffin Island.  We will board the Waverley from the Pier.

Waverley is named after Sir Walter Scott’s Waverley novels. She was built to replace the 1899 Waverley which was sunk by enemy action on May 29, 1940 at Dunkirk.
 
Waverley is the World’s last seagoing paddle steamer. In 1974, at the end of her working life, she was famously gifted for £1 to the Paddle Steamer Preservation Society. Waverley Steam Navigation Co. Ltd., a charity registered in Scotland, was set up to own and operate the ship. Waverley then began a second career as one of the country’s best-loved tourist attractions. Since she has been in operational preservation, she has been awarded four stars by Visit Scotland, an engineering heritage award, and has carried over 6 million passengers from over 60 ports around the UK.
 
Puffin island is a Special Protection Area, particularly because of its great cormorant colony of over 750 birds, which is over 10% of the national population, making it one of the largest colonies in the British Isles.   It also has good numbers of guillemot, Razorbill, shag and kittiwake nesting, and in recent years small numbers of common eider and black guillemot.  Also look out for the Atlantic Puffins, from which the island gets its modern English name. 
 
A great cruise to spot some the sea birds of the British Isles, or to just observe this spectacular coast line.  Don't forget your binoculars!!!


Cost £60.00, includes cruise and transport.

Destination : Llandudno
Date               : 30th May 2025

Status Live: Names being taken for waiting list

Enjoy a day out in Llandudno.

Join us on our trip to Llandudno.  This famous Victorian seaside town on the North Wales coast has plenty for visitors to enjoy.  Take a stroll down the promenade and enjoy the view and sea air; ride the tram to the top of the Great Orme, enjoy one the walking trails around the town; visit a museum; view Llandudno from the longest pier in Wales; peruse the shops or just stop for tea and cake in one of the many cafes and watch the world go by. 

There is always something to do in Llandudno!

Cost £22.00, includes transport.

Destination : St Asaph Cathedral & Bodnant Garden
Date               : 3rd June 2025
Status Live: Names being taken for waiting list
 
I'm sure that many of us have driven past the stunning cathedral at St Asaph on our journey to other places in North Wales.  Today we are stopping for a tour of the "Marble Church" on the A55.  Then we are continuing our journey to Bodnant Garden.
 
The city of St Asaph lies between Denbigh and the coastal resort of Rhyl. It is set on the banks of the River Elwy.
St Asaph Cathedral is the smallest in Britain and one of the oldest in Wales. The present structure dates from the 15th century and houses William Morgan’s first Welsh translation of the bible.  Worship lies at the heart of everything in the life and work of this ancient cathedral where prayers have been offered daily for 1,450 years. 
 
Bodnant is a Grade I listed historic garden.
It covers 80 acres and includes formal gardens, shrub-filled glades, meadows and woods, dells and water gardens and is home to historic plant collections.  With intimate corners, sweeping lawns, grand terraces and verdant woodland, there are many gardens in one at Bodnant. Created over 150 years, with plants collected and brought to Britain from far afield, and the incredible vision of generations of the McLaren family and Puddle head gardeners, this haven of rarity and beauty with a stunning backdrop of the Carneddau mountains of Eryri (Snowdonia) is a delight for the senses. 

At this time of year the Laburnum Arch should be in full bloom.  The golden blooms of the arch only flower between 10 - 14 days each year in late May - early June.  The arch is the only one of its kind in the country which is curved, following the wall which runs alongside.  
 

Cost for National Trust Members £25.00; non National Trust Members £41.50, this includes a tour of the Cathedral; entry to Bodnant Garden and transport.

Destination : John Wilson & Sinfonia of London - Rodgers & Hammerstein's Greatest Hits
Date               : 22nd June 2025

Status Live: Names being taken for waiting list

John Wilson and Sinfonia of London - Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Greatest Hits at the Bridgewater Hall, Manchester


John Wilson and Sinfonia of London brings the timeless music of Rodgers & Hammerstein to life in a spectacular concert featuring beloved songs from some of the greatest musicals of all time including South Pacific, The Sound of Music, Oklahoma!, Carousel and The King and I.

You will be treated to classic hits such as Oh What a Beautiful Morning , People Will Say We’re In Love, Some Enchanted Evening, Younger Than Springtime and more.

Sinfonia of London with their ‘extraordinary musicality’ under the masterful direction of John Wilson, who is renowned for his passion and expertise in interpreting the music from the golden Age of Hollywood, will ensure each note resonates with the magic and emotion that has captivated audiences for decades.

‘John Wilson is the most exciting British conductor since Simon Rattle… his Sinfonia of London sets the gold standard – an orchestra of generals that takes the unfashionable, the obscure, the overlooked, and makes it unmissable’ The Sunday Times


We will leave Holmes Chapel at 5:30pm for this 7:30pm performance.  We expect to be back home for approx. 11:00pm.  Cost £65.00, includes transport and ticket for the stalls.

Destination : Matthew Bourne's The Midnight Bell. Lowry Theatre, Matinee Performance
Date               : 3rd July 2025

Status Live: Bookings now being taken

Matthew Bourne’s award-winning The Midnight Bell comes to Salford for the first time in 2025.

In 1930s London ordinary people emerge from cheap boarding houses nightly to pour out their passions, hopes and dreams in the pubs and fog-bound streets of Soho and Fitzrovia. Step inside The Midnight Bell, a tavern where one particular lonely-hearts club gather to play out their lovelorn affairs of the heart; bitter comedies of longing, frustration, betrayal and redemption.

Inspired by the great English novelist Patrick Hamilton (Twenty Thousand Streets Under The Sky, Hangover Square) who created some of the most authentic fiction of his era; stories borne out of years of social interactions with the working man and woman at his favourite location - the London Pub.

Hailed by The Observer as ‘the undisputed king of dance theatre’, master storyteller Bourne has produced some of the most successful dance theatre productions of the last 30 years.

Cost £64.00, includes transport and ticket for the stalls.

Destination : Portmeirion Village
Date               : 17th July 2025
Status Live: Bookings now being taken 
 
Portmeirion Village, North Wales
 
We will travel to Portmeirion Village via Lake Bala and the Snowdonia National Park arriving at Portmeirion Village around lunchtime.  This scenic drive will allow us to appreciate the stunning beauty of this area.
 
Situated on a private peninsula overlooking stunning coastal scenery, the Italian Riviera meets rural Wales with a riot of colour and architectural styles at Portmeirion Village. Built by Sir Clough Williams-Ellis, Portmeirion Village comprises of a cluster of colour-washed buildings around a central piazza, scenic surroundings and extensive woodlands, two hotels, historic cottages, gift shops and restaurants. The village was built over two phases, 1926 - 1939 and 1954 - 1976 by which time Clough was well into his 90s.

The concept of a tightly grouped coastal village had been envisaged by Clough Williams-Ellis years before he found the site, close to his own home in North Wales, on which he managed to realise his dream. Using an eco-friendly approach, he designed his architectural vision around a Mediterranean piazza. Endangered buildings and unwanted artefacts from all over the globe were transported and rebuilt to create a nest of loggias, grand porticoes and tiny terracotta-roofed houses, painted in bright colours. 

Take time to explore the white sandy beaches of the Dwyryd Estuary and discover hidden caves, gullies and a flurry of interesting plants and discover the impressive natural landscape surrounding Portmeirion. The subtropical forest, affectionately known as The Gwyllt (Wildwood in Welsh) features some of Britain's largest trees, secret gardens, a derelict castle and rare flowers. Explore the 70 acres of exotic woodlands with 19 miles of pathways which cut through forests, secret spaces and coastal coves.
 
The cost for this trip is £39.00 and includes entrance to Portmeirion Village & coach. We will leave Holmes Chapel at 8:00am. 

We expect to be back in Holmes Chapel for approx. 7:00pm.
Destination : Ness Gardens & Liverpool Bay Cruise
Date               : 6th August 2025
 
Status Live: SOLD OUT - names being taken for waiting list
 
Ness Gardens & Liverpool Bay Cruise
 
We start our morning at Ness Gardens, the Botanical Gardens of Liverpool University.  The Gardens spread across 64 acres with stunning views of the River Dee and North Wales.  In 2023 , Ness turned 125 years old as a garden site and celebrated 75 years as a University botanic garden.
 
Ness Botanic Gardens features a diverse variety of plants and planting areas including a rock garden, terraces, water garden, Mediterranean garden, wildflower meadow, herbaceous boarder and a rhododendron & pinewood boarder.  Something for everyone!
 
There is a cafe & shop on site.
 
Early afternoon we drive over to Seacombe to board our vessel for our three-hour cruise. 
 
You’ll enjoy incredible scenery and learn more about the fascinating history and geography of the River Mersey and Liverpool Bay with expert commentary from a Blue Badge Guide.  The cruise offers incredible panoramic views of the river as you sail past Royal Seaforth Docks, Fort Perch Rock at New Brighton and along the Crosby Channel towards Blundellsands and Formby. 
 
The cruise will give you the chance to experience Anthony Gormley’s spectacular 'Another Place' art installation at Crosby Beach from the river, and enjoy incredible views of the 100 cast-iron life-sized figures spread across the foreshore, stretching out into the sea.  
 
As we sail back into Liverpool from the mouth of the river and the Irish Sea, you’ll follow the journey of many cruise liners and ships, past and present.
 
The cruise features live music from talented local artists, and the fully licensed bar will be open throughout, so you can buy snacks and drinks. 

The cost for this trip is £50.00, this includes entrance to Ness Gardens, Liverpool Bay Cruise and coach travel from Holmes Chapel & Goostrey. We will leave Holmes Chapel at 9:00am/Goostrey 9:10am and expect to be back home for approx. 7:00pm.

Destination : Harrogate Autumn Flower Show at Newby Hall
Date               : 19th September 2025

Status Live: Bookings now being taken

Harrogate Autumn Flower Show at Newby Hall

September is the perfect time to celebrate the year's growing achievements.

The Autumn Show promises both beautiful floral displays as well as exceptional produce from the allotment. Garden inspiration for both expert and occasional gardeners will feature in abundance.

Visitors to the show can also enjoy Newby Hall's award winning gardens, live talks and demonstrations, great garden shopping, and stunning floral art installations within Newby Hall.


Cost £42.00 includes entrance to flower show and transport

We will leave Holmes Chapel at 8:00am / Goostrey at 8:10am. We expect to be home for approx. 7:00pm depending on the traffic.

Destination : Royal Edinburgh & Beyond: Castles, Chapel & Kelpies
Date               : 30th September 2025

Status Live: Bookings now being taken

Royal Edinburgh & Beyond: Castles, Chapel & Kelpies
Tuesday 30 September - Saturday 4 October 2025 - 4 nights/5 days

# Half Board stay at the 4* Doubletree by Hilton Queensferry
# Time to explore the Burrell Collection, Glasgow
# 2 half days with our Blue Badge Guides discovering Edinburgh's architecture, landmarks and Medieval history.
# Time to explore Edinburgh Castle & Holyrood Palace
# Included visits to National Trust Culross Palace & Rosslyn Chapel
# Boat trip on the Falkirk Wheel & visit to the Kelpies
# Executive Coach travel with departures from Holmes Chapel & Goostrey 

Cost £834.00 per person sharing a double/twin room.

Deposit of £150 per person required to secure your place on this holiday.

Upon receipt of your application a booking form will be forwarded to you.

Destination : Fiddler on the Roof, Palace Theatre M/cr, Matinee Performance
Date               : 23rd October 2025
Status Live: Names being taken for waiting list
 
Fiddler on the Roof has enchanted theatregoers from all around the world since it first premiered on Broadway in 1964.  It is one of the greatest musicals of all time - featuring ‘If I Were A Rich Man’, ‘Tradition’, ‘Matchmaker’ and ‘Sunrise, Sunset’ - Fiddler on the Roof is a classic musical of joy, revolution and community and an exuberant celebration of love and life.

Tevye, a dairy farmer, is an old-fashioned man who finds solace in tradition. Like many fathers in the close-knit community of Anatevka, he has raised his descendants to follow the Jewish customs of his long-gone ancestors. The time has now arrived for him to find husbands worthy of marrying his precious daughters. As tradition has it, he must find the perfect suitable match. But in 1905 Tsarist Russia, this is easier said than done as the country wobbles on thin ice, just one bad incident away from a violent uproar, a new era in which young people listen to their hearts and not their elders…


Cost £66.00, includes transport and ticket for the stalls.

Destination : Top Hat, Manchester Opera House, Matinee Performance
Date               : 26th November 2025

Status Live: Bookings now being taken

Top Hat, Manchester Opera House, Matinee Performance

There may be trouble ahead,

But while there’s moonlight, and music,

And love, and romance…

Let’s face the music and dance

You’re invited to the musical equivalent of the finest vintage champagne. Effervescent, elegant and exhilarating, Top Hat is a heady romantic cocktail laced with sparklingly witty dialogue, stunning choreography, lavish sets and gorgeous costumes. Irving Berlin’s irresistible score includes some of Hollywood’s greatest songs, the immortal Cheek to Cheek, Let’s Face the Music and Dance, Top Hat White Tie and Tails and Puttin’ on the Ritz.

When Broadway star Jerry Travers arrives in London to open a new show, he crosses paths with model Dale Tremont, whose beauty sleep is rudely interrupted by Jerry tap dancing in the hotel suite above hers. Instantly smitten, Jerry vows to abandon his bachelor life to win her – but the path of true love never does run smooth. Especially since Dale has mistaken Jerry for his hapless producer Horace, who’s trying to avoid the wrath of his formidable wife Madge, and Dale’s own fiery Italian admirer is planning a trip to Venice for her to showcase his couture gowns…

Based on the classic 1935 film which starred Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, the stage adaptation’s West End premiere won the 2013 Olivier Award for Best New Musical and the Evening Standard Award for Best Night Out. Acclaimed American director and choreographer Kathleen Marshall, whose Tony and Olivier Award-winning production of Anything Goes recently wowed audiences and critics in London and on television, comes to the UK to stage this brand-new production.

Cost £65.00, includes ticket for stalls & coach.

We will leave Holmes Chapel at 12:30pm / Goostrey 12:40pm and expect to be back home for approx. 6:30pm.

Destination : Matthew Bourne's The Red Shoes - Lowry - Matinee Performance
Date               : 27th November 2025

Status Live: Bookings now being taken

The Red Shoes, a timeless fairytale, has captivated audiences and inspired generations of dancers with its powerful tale of obsession, possession and one girl’s dream to be the greatest dancer in the world. Victoria Page lives to dance but her ambitions become a fierce struggle between the two men who inspire her passion.
 
Matthew Bourne’s magical double Olivier Award-winning production of the legendary Powell and Pressburger film is set to a score orchestrated by Terry Davies, featuring the mesmerizing music of golden-age Hollywood composer Bernard Herrmann, with sumptuous designs by Lez Brotherston.
 
An intoxicating drama where life imitates art with fateful consequences, The Red Shoes will dazzle your senses and break your heart.


Cost £74.00, includes transport and ticket for the stalls.

Destination : The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Lowry Theatre, Matinee Performance
Date               : 11th December 2025

Status Live: Bookings now being taken

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

Get ready for the adventure of a lifetime as the West End smash-hit production of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe comes to the Lowry.

Step through the wardrobe into the magic kingdom of Narnia where a world of wonder awaits. Join Lucy, Edmund, Susan and Peter as they meet new friends, face dangerous foes and learn the lessons of courage, sacrifice, and the power of love.

Watch the nation’s favourite novel The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe come to life on stage in this spectacular production which is guaranteed to delight all ages.

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is a portal fantasy novel written by British author C.S. Lewis, published in 1950. It is the first published and best known of seven novels in The Chronicles of Narnia.

Reviews
★★★★★ ‘SPECTACULAR’ METRO
★★★★ ‘A FANTASTICAL FAMILY TREAT’ THE TELEGRAPH
★★★★ ‘EXHILARATING PRODUCTION, SPELLBINDING SPECTACLE AND PERFECT PUPPERTY’ THE GUARDIAN
★★★★ ‘SUPERB. THERE’S NO DENYING ITS CHARM. IT’S HARD TO BEAT’ THE STAGE
★★★★ ‘THE MOST RIVETING SPECTACLE’ THE GUARDIAN

Cost £63.00, includes transport and ticket for the stalls.

Destination : To Kill a Mocking Bird, Lowry Theatre, Matinee Performance
Date               : 14th January 2026

Status Live: Bookings now being taken

Aaron Sorkin’s riveting, award-winning stage adaptation of the seminal American novel about racial injustice and childhood innocence became a Broadway and West End sensation with star-studded sell-out seasons on both sides of the Atlantic. Now this thrilling courtroom drama embarks on a UK & Ireland tour for the very first time.

Successful lawyer, Atticus Finch, encourages kindness and empathy in his children, but is pushed to the limits of these qualities himself when he resolves to uncover the truth in a town that seems determined to hide it. Set in 1934 Alabama, To Kill a Mockingbird was inspired by novelist Harper Lee’s own childhood and has sold more than 45 million copies worldwide. It won the Pulitzer Prize for Literature and was long at the top of the banned book lists.

Cost £61.00, includes transport and ticket for the stalls.

Destination : Don Quixote, Birmingham Royal Ballet, Lowry Theatre, Matinee Performance
Date               : 7th March 2026

Status Live: bookings now being taken

Don Quixote, Birmingham Royal Ballet
In this first revival of his 2022 production Director Carlos Acosta delivers entertainment for all ages. Don Quixote introduces us to Cervantes’ famous knight himself, lovers Kitri and Basilio, and a host of supporting characters. As the Don sets out on a quest to track down his true love, with his loyal friend and servant Sancho Panza at his side, he finds himself embroiled in an unlikely adventure of love and dreams.

 
Don't miss this stunning 19th-century masterpiece, full of thrilling pas de deux, delightful music played by the Royal Ballet Sinfonia, and much, much more!
 
Treat yourself to some Spanish sunshine!!!


Cost £68.00, includes transport and ticket for the stalls.

Leave Holmes Chapel at 12:00noon / Goostrey 12:10pm.  Expect to be back home for approx. 6:00pm depending on traffic.