Garden Trips
Now that I’ve moved one more step closer to full retirement, I’m drastically cutting back on the garden trips I’ve been doing with Lowee’s Group Tours for the past 15 years or so.
Other than annual trips to the Philadelphia Flower Show (see details below), I’m retiring from the travel business. However, my wife, Sue, who has gone on most trips over the years, is planning to pick up some of the slack with a few trips of her own.
Call Lowee’s at 717-657-9658 for details or to sign up for any trip. You can now book trips directly online at Lowee’s website. All of the trips are open to the public.
2024 Philadelphia Flower Show Day Trips with George
Mon., March 4; Tue., March 5; Wed., March 6, 2024
This is America’s biggest and longest running flower show, and it’s taking place over 10 acres inside the Pennsylvania Convention Center, 12th and Arch streets, Philadelphia.
The 2024 show theme is “United by Flowers,” a topic that celebrates how gardening, flowers, and plants can be the glue to connect people from all walks of life. It’ll feature a “massive, immersive, and flower-filled entrance garden,” plus large-scale floral creations and gardens designed by florists and garden artists from Philadelphia, the United States, and around the world, plus a huge gardening marketplace and the world’s biggest judged amateur plant-growing competition.
We get there around noon (avoiding the early lines), drop you off at the front door, and stay until 6 p.m. These three trips each have pickups from both the West Shore (Sam’s Club in Silver Spring Twp.) and East Shore (Weis Markets in Linglestown).
The cost is $99, which includes your show ticket. More information and sign-ups are available by calling Lowee’s Group Tours at 717-657-9658 or toll-free 1-888-345-6933 or by emailing CKelly@Lowees.com. Or book directly online at Lowee’s website.
Philadelphia Flower Show Day Trip with George from Boiling Springs and West Shore
Thur., March 7. 2024
We’re heading back to the 2024 “United by Flowers” Philadelphia Flower Show on Thursday, March 7, except this time we’re picking up at the South Middleton Twp. building near Boiling Springs and then at Sam’s Club in Silver Spring Twp.
We’re scheduled to arrive at noon and leave at 6 p.m.
The cost is $99, which includes your show ticket. More information and sign-ups are available by calling Lowee’s Group Tours at 717-657-9658 or toll-free 1-888-345-6933 or by emailing CKelly@Lowees.com. Or book directly online at Lowee’s website.
Philadelphia Flower Show Day Trip with George from York and Mt. Joy
Fri., March 8, 2024
We’re heading to the 2024 “United by Flowers” Philadelphia Flower Show one last time on Friday, March 8, this time picking up in Springettsbury Twp. in York County and then Clearview Bowling in Mt. Joy, Lancaster County.
We’re scheduled to arrive at noon and leave at 6 p.m.
The cost is $99, which includes your show ticket. More information and sign-ups are available by calling Lowee’s Group Tours at 717-657-9658 or toll-free 1-888-345-6933 or by emailing CKelly@Lowees.com. Or book directly online at Lowee’s website.
2024 Trips with Sue
Gardens of Oz
Tue., May 14, 2024
My wife, Sue, organized and will be leading this day trip to Lancaster County, highlighted by a tour of Dr. Dennis Denenberg’s “Garden of Oz” and his house filled with “Wizard of Oz” film memorabilia.
The day starts with a two-hour visit to Denenberg’s unique property. The outside features an acre of gardens, including a yellow brick path, a pink garden dedicated to his sister and all fighters of breast cancer, an Asian garden, a bamboo grove, ponds, a Mardi Gras tree, and thousands of blooming flowers.
Indoors, Denenberg’s home is a shrine to the “Wizard of Oz” with a huge collection of items related to the classic film.
The day’s second stop is a visit to the Lancaster Farmer’s Market, one of the nation’s oldest, where you’ll have time for lunch on your own.
Then the afternoon is shopping time at Black Creek Garden Center in the heart of Pennsylvania Dutch country. Black Creek has a wide variety of annual and perennial flowers at very good prices – plus seeds, hand tools, pots, and other gardening goods.
The trip cost is $99 per person, and pickups are available from both East and West shores. (FYI: This is a Sue trip, and George isn’t planning on going.)
More information and sign-ups are available by calling Lowee’s Group Tours at 717-657-9658 or by emailing CKelly@Lowees.com. Or you can book directly online at Lowee’s website.
Buffalo Garden Walk
Tue., July 26-Sun., July 28, 2024
My wife, Sue, is leading this three-day trip to America’s biggest garden tour – the more than 400 gardens open to visit for Garden Walk Buffalo.
You’ll have the best part of two days to see as many of these fun, eclectic, and beautiful gardens as you’d like. Most of the gardens are within walking distance, but a free shuttle is available that runs a continuous route around the three-mile Garden Walk radius.
The trip up includes a stop at Kinzua Bridge State Park, which features an elevated walkway out the remaining section of the Kinzua Viaduct that was destroyed by a tornado in 2003. It offers a stunning view over the forested gorge.
That first evening includes dinner, a visit to the Erie Basin Marina Trial Gardens, and a twilight lake cruise on the Moondance Catamaran.
Saturday starts with a visit to the Buffalo Rose Garden, then the rest of the day is devoted to touring those amazing Buffalo home gardens. The evening is free to relax and dine at one of the many nearby restaurants.
On Sunday, you’ll have the option of spending a second day touring Buffalo gardens or taking a day trip to the American side of Niagara Falls, which is only about a half-hour away. Options there include a Maid of the Mist boat tour, an observation tower, a Cave of the Winds walk, and Adventure Theater. Then it’s back home with a dinner stop en route.
The trip cost is $799 per person, which includes two nights hotel, catamaran fare, transportation, and six meals. Pickups are available from both East and West shores. (FYI: This is a Sue trip, and George isn’t planning on going.)
More information and sign-ups are available by calling Lowee’s Group Tours at 717-657-9658 or by emailing CKelly@Lowees.com. Or you can book directly online at Lowee’s website.
Magnificent Maryland
Tue., Aug. 27, 2024
My wife, Sue, is leading this day trip to the Annapolis area of Maryland, including free for lunch and shopping along Annapolis’ quaint, Colonial-era waterfront.
The day starts with a two-hour visit to Brookside Gardens in Wheaton, Md. This is an award-winning 50-acre public garden and park that features a collection of theme gardens, such as a butterfly garden, a children’s garden, a rose garden, an aquatic garden, and many cutting-edge flowers, trees, and shrubs.
After lunch at the Annapolis waterfront, the afternoon will feature a tour of the Colonial home and gardens of the William Paca House. Paca was a signer of the Declaration of Independence. Dinner is included afterward.
The trip cost is $149 per person, which includes transportation, admissions, and dinner. Pickups are available from both East and West shores. (FYI: This is a Sue trip, and George isn’t planning on going.)
More information and sign-ups are available by calling Lowee’s Group Tours at 717-657-9658 or by emailing tiffany@lowees.com. Or you can book directly online at Lowee’s website.
New York Botanical Garden
Wed., Aug. 28, 2024
My wife, Sue, is leading this day trip to New York to see one of America’s biggest and best public gardens, the New York Botanical Garden, plus the Van Vleck House and Gardens in Montclair, N.J.
The first half of the day is at NYBG and its diverse collection of just about every kind of garden – from perennials to vegetables to a magnificent conservatory of tropicals. The Garden is featuring a theme this year of “Wonderland: Curious Nature,” which is based on Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. A buffet lunch is included at the Garden.
By 2:30, it’s off to Montclair to tour the 12-acre estate of the Van Vleck family, which features a U-shaped Italianate villa along with landscaped grounds and gardens.
The trip cost is $225 per person, which includes transportation, admissions, and the buffet lunch. Pickups are available from both East and West shores. (FYI: This is a Sue trip, and George isn’t planning on going.)
More information and sign-ups are available by calling Lowee’s Group Tours at 717-657-9658 or by emailing tiffany@lowees.com. Or you can book directly online at Lowee’s website.
A Trio of Private Gardens
Thur., Aug. 29, 2024
My wife, Sue, organized and will be leading this day trip to the Chester County and Philadelphia areas to tour three outstanding private home gardens, plus the new 42-acre Stoneleigh gardens.
Stop 1 is a tour of David Culp’s Brandywine Cottage near Downingtown, which features two acres of lavishly planted layered gardens. Culp is best known for writing several books, including one on the Brandywine Cottage and one called “The Layered Garden.”
After an included box lunch, stop 2 is a visit to the 42-acre Stoneleigh estate garden of John and Chara Haas, located near Villanova University. You won’t find a collection of theme gardens here but rather a peaceful, landscaped park with winding paths, towering shade trees, and several flagship features, including a long stone pergola, a pool house with neighboring bog gardens, and tree stumps carved into rabbits (Haas means hare in German).
Read George’s PennLive.com column on Stoneleigh
Stop 3 is a tour of the two-acre gardens surrounding author Charles Cresson’s century-old home in Swarthmore. Cresson has skillfully paired more than 2,000 plants of all sorts throughout this home garden.
Stop 3 is a tour of Andrew Bunting’s third-of-an-acre home gardens that he calls “Belvidere.” Bunting, a vice president of the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, shows how it’s possible to plant a wide diversity of plants in a relatively small space.
The trip cost is $134 per person, which includes lunch, transportation, and donations to the gardeners for sharing their creations. Pickups are available from both East and West shores. (FYI: This is a Sue trip, and George isn’t planning on going.)
More information and sign-ups are available by calling Lowee’s Group Tours at 717-657-9658 or by emailing CKelly@Lowees.com. Or you can book directly online at Lowee’s website.
Hudson Valley Gardens
Fri., Sept. 13-Sun., Sept. 15, 2024
My wife, Sue, organized and will be leading this two-night, three-day trip to the Hudson Valley of New York, featuring six superb gardens with historic buildings (and some good food) mixed in. The day-by-day itinerary:
Day 1: After lunch en route, tour the 60-acre hilltop Stonecrop Gardens built in the late 1950s by Frank Cabot, founder of the Garden Conservancy. Then dinner is included in the evening at the waterfront Blu Point restaurant.
Day 2: Tour Hyde Park’s Vanderbilt Mansion and surrounding formal gardens in the morning, then visit the Beatrix Farrand-designed garden of Bellefield, then cap the day with a tour of the naturalistic landscape and Asian art at Innisfree, a garden built in the 1930s by Walter Beck. Visit the Walkway over the Hudson in the evening after an included dinner at Shadows on the Hudson.
Day 3: Start the homeward-bound day with a tour of Boscobel House and Gardens, a restored mansion and gardens built by wealthy Loyalists in the early 1800s. The afternoon features a visit to Untermyer Gardens, a blend of formal gardens and grand features in a setting that overlooks the Hudson in Yonkers.
The trip cost is $1,079 per person double, which includes transportation, two nights lodging, seven meals, and all admissions. (FYI: This is a Sue trip, and George isn’t planning on going.)
More information and sign-ups are available by calling Lowee’s Group Tours at 717-657-9658 or by emailing CKelly@Lowees.com. Or you can book directly online at Lowee’s website.
A Pittsburgh Holiday
Tue., Dec. 3-Fri., Dec. 6, 2024
My wife, Sue, organized and will be leading this three-night, four-day Christmas-season trip to Pittsburgh, featuring gardens, lights, history, and a backstage tour of the Pittsburgh Steelers football stadium.
The day-by-day itinerary:
Day 1: Drive to Pittsburgh and start with lunch and shopping time at one of the Pittsburgh area’s top garden, produce, and gift centers, Trax Farm. The evening itinerary features a tour of the Pittsburgh Botanical Gardens’ “Dazzling Nights” holiday display.
Day 2: This day starts with a tour of Acrisure Stadium, home of the Pittsburgh Steelers and Pitt Panthers football teams. Then it’s off to the city’s Strip District foodie area for shopping and a lunch on your own of “Yinzer” food. The afternoon features a tour of the Heinz History Center, which includes a western-Pennsylvania sports floor, the world’s oldest Jeep, and artifacts from the Mister Rogers Neighborhood TV show.
After an included dinner at Buca di Beppo, the evening features a tour of Phipps Conservatory and its Winter Flower Show and Light Gardens.
Day 3: The first stop this day is a tour of Heinz Chapel, followed by a short walk to the University of Pittsburgh’s Cathedral of Learning and a tour of its Nationality Classrooms that each pay tribute to a different ethnic group that helped build Pittsburgh.
The next stop is a tour of the Carnegie Museum of Art, which will have towering evergreens lit and trimmed for the holidays that time of year. After an included dinner at the Church Brew Works, the day ends with a coach “City Lights” tour of some of the city’s most impressive holiday lights displays.
Day 4: The last day starts with a tour of The National Aviary, home to more than 500 birds and mammals in walk-through habitats. After an included lunch, the afternoon features a tour of the Clayton House at the Frick Museum. This is a 23-room mansion that was home to the Henry Clay Frick family between 1882 and 1905.
The trip cost is still being finalized, but it will include transportation, three nights lodging at the Drury Hotel, seven meals, and all admissions. (FYI: This is a Sue trip, and George isn’t planning on going.)
More information and sign-ups are available by calling Lowee’s Group Tours at 717-657-9658 or by emailing CKelly@Lowees.com. Or you can book directly online at Lowee’s website.