The need for a roof over one's head while traveling is as old as time. What could be more basic than shelter other than food? (that's next) The history of lodging is colorful and possibly sufficient to fill an entire online journal, but I won't even scratch the surface with my comparisons of today and the 1700s. It is possbile, even probable, several of the establishments who catered to travelers and tourists in Gilpin's time are still serving customers today. Only the staff has changed as have the prices and furnishings (we hope anyway).

Historically the search for suitable lodging was largely relegated to modes of transportation. If one was walking, with your traveling gear on your back, then you have a much broader range of choices. If you arrived by coach or train the selections narrowed greatly and quite often were directed by the particular financial arrangements between establishments and the companies providing travel services. Really this isn't very different from modern arrangements. Guidebooks (or published journals) often served as the primary source of information on any given area and have served travelers for the at least two centuries. During the Romantic period, hordes of tourists decended upon the Wye, the Lakes District, Northern Wales an the Scottish Highlands armed with copies of Gilpin's (and other writers') travel journals searching for Picturesque scenery and other pleasures. As the modes of travel improved, so did the variety of accomodations. Entrepreneurs like Thomas Cook (also a Baptist minister) began arranging escorted travel packages and a variety of other businesses would emerge to meet the growing demands of a traveling public. Printed guide books became common and by the end of the 19th century, one could find a good selection of materials to aid ones journeys. I have acquired several guidebooks from the early 20th century to today. Many of these (see images below) contain extensive advertising for lodging and others services of enterprises in the area.


Burrow's Guide, 1905



Burrow's Guide, full page ad




Ward Locke Guide, 1913





Ward Locke Guide, full page ad of hotel rates


Today your choices seem almost limitless between tourist bureaus, B&B collectives, and area tourism organizations. Add to this mix of choices the type of accomodation -- hotel, inn, B&B with full English breakfast (my favorite), B&B modified American plan (no breakfast?), B&B modified European plan (pastry and coffee), self-catering, and caravan (trailer). This system is further aided (or perhaps complicated) by several rating systems. Many a website link from groups/organizations will link to individual establishment's websites and some simply provide a minimal description. In today's visual world the demand is for more and more pictures of the establishment and its facilities. In all, it can be a daunting task to choose from. Did I mention there are even web sites which host forums, where people post and share information about their favorite places and accomodations? It seems endless.

After a long and exhausting search we settled on The Old Brewery B&B in Redbrook. It met our needs for a central location, easy access to roadways, an internet connection (wireless!!), and certain creature comforts and charm. Little did we know how interesting the place would actually be with its position directly upon the border of Wales and England... sleeping in Wales and dining in England every morning seemed pretty quaint. It also allowed us the knowledge and connections our friendly B&B owners, Christine and Dave, had made over the years they'd been working on the bulding and business.

Today's assortment of guide books (and personal guides like the Blue Badge guides) offer a very wide selection of interests, activities, and topics. From history, to geography, to architecture and gardens, and certainly sightseeing, we have a great amount of detail and opportunity to have our wishes and desires met while in almost any popular area.

Of those available, I prefer those which tend to offer a hands-on approach to travel as most of the Wye area walking guides or those which cater to particular interests, such as frame timbered architecture.

It's all good, but perhaps there is just too much.

As I prepare for the journey to the Wye River I am confronted with a variety of "problems" to solve before leaving home. Among these are issues of basic needs like money, transportation, lodging, food and appropriate clothing. Beyond these basics are some rather specific needs regarding my goals for the trip. These include photography, daily communication, reference materials and archives, books from and about the Picturesque period, and current maps and guides. My needs are certainly influenced by the goals, but not everything I will need to accomplish these are easily gathered together, even in today's wired world.

Looking at the state of travel in 1770 it would appear many of the same problems would need to be solved for an early tourist to maximize their travel experiences. I'd like to deal with just the basic needs today and provide a small glimpse into the travel regime of the Romantic period (and earlier).

Let me start with money. The banking system in 1770 was quite different from today. Tourists depended on a couple of different methods for obtaining the funds needed, most usually letters of credit or bills of exchange. Diplomats and bankers were the most frequent connections for these instruments. Often travelers would gather at weekly receptions and transact some of the functions to continue on their journeys. These connections required the acquaintance of important or influential people and knowledge of their methods. Young men and women were often accompanied by an (older and wiser) advisor on the Grand Tour to help negotiate and introduce them into the local social scene. It was an informal, but well established network. I can't imagine how I would fit into such a structure, but it would be much more difficult and unsafe to travel with enough money for an extended trip. The legendary highwayman was a fixture of both popular lore and reality.

Banking today is rather different -- from traveler's checks and Western Union, to credit cards, ATM machines, and Internet banking, we have made considerable advancements. In my own lifetime I've witnessed the evolution of banking systems which allow for teller-less banking, from mail or night deposits to the now ubiquitous ATM machine. This invention has come to represent the most widespread access to money across most of the modern world. From service stations, to movie theaters, to street corners in every major city you can gain access to your money or an advance on a credit card (also an invention of the late 20th century). Exchange bureaus are in every major transportation center and you can even order online your travelers checks in most currencies or cash (awaiting your arrival at the terminal). You get to choose between paying a fee for the exchange, between 1-5%, paying a 1-3% fee for ATM use, a 17% cash advance or risk robbery or loss with cash, but you get to choose your access method and associated risks. I'm using a combination of the above, but it still requires extra effort to conserve money. I have to drive into Detroit to a Federal Reserve bank to get the necessary currency (British Pounds Sterling) without paying a whopping 3% fee (what robbery!) at the airport. I'll spend three hours and twelve dollars in fuel to negotiate the deal. I remember another experience, in London, where I got cash from a machine while (whilst!) a young and sincere woman begged me for money, saying "please sir, I'm hungry" over and over and over. At the last moment, just as I reached for the bills protruding from the machine, she walked directly up to me, less than a foot from my face and repeated the mantra and blocked my easy exit. I was quite unnerved, but continued to explain I was not going to give her money, but would buy her food instead. My wife explained to me the folly of my actions as she drug me away from the scene with some appropriate force and I now will not withdraw money on a public street if at all possible. A letter of credit suddenly sounds so much more elegant!

Before I forget, I need to say this journey is made possible largely due to two grants from the University of Michigan.

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Physical travel in the 18th century was either by foot, horse, coach, or (sometimes) chaise. If the trip was distant or on another land mass, a sailing vessel was required. Again arrangements for these required an experienced provider and some knowledge of what topography and weather lay ahead. The Grand Tour included huge mountains with dangerous paths that required the hiring of local guides to both direct the course and often carry the passengers. Many a story of loss occurred on this portion of the tours. Later in the Romantic period, walking or horse riding was a simple and effective way to travel, but only you were already within the general location, otherwise a coach or 'steamer' was most always needed. Photography inventor, William H. Fox-Talbot took a steamer from Bristol to Chepstow in 1830 and walked the sixteen miles up river towards Tintern Abbey and beyond. (thanks Larry Schaaf)

Traveling by coach had a long and often volatile history. Rough rides, muddy ditch adventures, long delays, robbers, and unruly or rude passengers proved the norm. Often the destination was seen as a relief from the awful coach trip.

The first railways entered the Wye Valley in the mid 1800s and would slowly change the character (and speed) of the travel. While the other, more plodding modes of travel were less sophisticated, but they had good points. Many travelers enjoyed the pace, exercise, and connection to the landscape afforded by walking or riding. Many accounts from the period testify to the pleasures of strolling through a scene and its delirious effect on the mind and soul. (more on railroads later)

I should mention the possibility of horse riding being problematic as well for the Romantic tourist. William Coombe's satire of the Picturesque traveler and Rev. Gilpin, lampooned as Dr. Syntax and wonderfully illustrated by Thomas Rowlandson, provided a few glimpses into traveler by horse. Here Dr. Syntax causes a stir as his, recently purchased, blind horse crashes into a coach.



Getting to our current destination is pretty effortless, if one considers flying to be easy. I've not considered a long ocean voyage, but it was the only method available to the European bound tourist from North America before the late 1950s. Two weeks (or more) is just too long for me to be contained onboard any type of conveyance. Flying today is, of course, made more difficult by security concerns, but only the length of pre-boarding routines are affected greatly. Once in the sky, the movies, music, beverage and food service are designed to whittle away the hours and keep the passenger comfortable. Crying babies and high-school students going abroad for the first time, not withstanding, the airplane is generally a mild and good way to travel a great distance.

Now jet-lag is a completely different story and I have to be very concerned as I'm very susceptible to its effects. I've tried methods of rearranging daily schedule to mimic the time zone of my destination, melatonin, sleeping pills, and excessive drinking. Currently a combination of the first two works best for my needs. I need to be able to shoot on the first day to stay on my current schedule. It would be nice to sleep a little bit on the plane as we leave at 9 pm in the evening of the 20th and arrive at approximately 10 am at Gatwick Airport on the 21st of September. Time will tell.

Once on the ground in the U.K., I have several choices, but will rent an automobile instead of a taking a train or bus due to my need to get in and out of obscure areas of Wales and England bordering the Wye River. Having driven many times in England, I'm finally accustomed to the left-hand driving. But, the narrow roadways still give me quite an adrenaline rush. The cars are generally much, much smaller than in the USA, so (thankfully) I don't have to negotiate tight turns, narrow (and shoulder-less) roads in a long or wide vehicle. Did I tell you gasoline runs around $8.00 per gallon? It'll make you respect fuel efficiency if nothing else.

Many of the proposed site visits will only be accessible by foot, boat or canoe, or I guess I could ride a horse if I was so inclined... I'm not. So walking is probably the main part of our travels. The English have a long history of walking and anytime I'm told something is ___ minutes away by foot I tend to double that amount of time for my American feet. It's humbling, but a real difference in our cultures. Rebecca Solnit's book, Wanderlust: A History of Walking is an excellent treatment on the topic.

Continued later... more on Lodging, Food, and Clothing