Victorian Port Sunlight & Tea

OVERVIEW

Cross the River Mersey to visit the architectural and artistic treasures of Port Sunlight, a charming 19th-century village built by an industrialist for his factory workers. The famous “Soap King” and philanthropist William Lever named the locale after Sunlight Soap, his company’s flagship product in the late 1800s and still a hit. The forward-thinking village remains one of the finest examples of early urban planning. On your guided walk here, you will notice a wide range of building styles, the result of 30 different architects working over the course of 80 years to design the hundreds of structures that make up the town. A museum sits in the heart of the village, with exhibits that clearly present Lever’s vision for Port Sunlight and what it was like to live and work here in the Edwardian and Victorian periods. Just nearby, Lady Lever Art Gallery houses some of the finest-caliber decorative arts in the UK – everything from intricate tapestries to Wedgwood Jasperware, Chinese porcelains and priceless paintings from British masters like Gainsborough and Turner. To end the tour in quintessential English style, you’ll relax over a pot of tea with fresh-baked scones, clotted cream and jam at the Leverhulme Hotel.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Travel back in time to a village conceived and built by a progressive 19th-century soap tycoon.
• On an expertly-guided walk, learn how this early example of purpose-built urban design came to be.
• Visit the Port Sunlight museum, home to a fascinating collection of period furnishings, children’s toys, rare photographs and – of course – soaps.
• Take in the world-class tapestries, porcelains and paintings on display at the Lady Lever Art Gallery.

HELPFUL HINTS

• Dress in weather-appropriate clothing.
• Flat, comfortable walking shoes are recommended.
• Bring a hat, sunglasses and sunscreen, and an umbrella as needed.