Month: March 2013

The Chelsea Flower Show returns to London

Posted on by Dukes Blog

A display at the Chelsea Flower ShowWhy not come and experience the most iconic flower show in the world this May at London’s Chelsea Royal Hospital?

The brightest new ideas and the latest gardening trends make this show the one everyone wants to see, and this year we celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Chelsea Flower show with what is said to be an extra special event of magnificent displays and superb show gardens.

For the 2013 centenary show expect to see 15 spectacular Display Gardens, 11 Fresh Gardens demonstrating the best of contemporary garden design and eight Artisan Gardens. In addition, 150 exhibits from nurseries and florists in the Great Pavilion and up to 250 trade stands will all be at the show. This year’s gardening celebrations will be one not to miss.

The day isn’t just all flowers and gardens however – there will also be a ‘100 years in pictures’ presentation of historical photographs, capturing the growth of the Chelsea Flower Show, from a display of just 224 gardeners to the world famous exhibition it has become today. A concert, hosted with Opera Holland Park, will also be held on the Friday evening as part of the centenary celebrations. And don’t forget you can enjoy some sumptuous food and drink throughout the day.

Exhibits to look out for in particular this year include a garden modelled on London’s Olympic Park, ‘The Evolving Garden’ which shows how environmental issues have affected our gardens, and relax among beautiful summerhouses decorated by top UK designers and artists, including Wayne Hemmingway, Cath Kidston and Rob Ryan.

Tickets are selling out quickly but are still available here – http://rhs.atgtickets.com – from £28 to £55 per person, with discount for RHS members.

Just 10 minutes down the road, DUKES Hotel London is the perfect place to stay whilst visiting the Chelsea Flower Show. Unwind after a day on your feet in our luxurious suites or treat yourself to a martini in our legendary bar.

Chelsea Flower Show 2013

Image courtesy of Nzfauna

The world’s largest egg hunt is coming to Covent Garden!

Posted on by Dukes Blog

A variety of coloured Easter eggs hidden in the grassLondon’s annual (and the world’s biggest!) egg hunt – ‘The Lindt Big Egg Hunt’ – is back due to popular demand and is set to finish its tour in Covent Garden on 22nd March.

The event first launched in 2010 feauring some of the world’s most talented and leading artists coming together to raise awareness and money for the charity Action for Children. The charity runs more than 600 services across the UK, supporting more than 250,000 children, young people, parents and carers each year.

‘The Lindt Big Egg Hunt’ was so popular that last year alone it raised more than £1 million for the chosen charity, as well as captivating a million participants across the country and setting two Guinness World Records! The event is set to be even bigger this year, featuring more than 100 giant fibreglass Easter eggs created by designers such as Sam-Taylor Johnson, Alexis Harding and Billy Childish.

The eggs have been carefully placed in cities across the UK, and here is where you can get involved: the public can join in with the fun in a race to find the eggs whilst receiving goodies such as Lindt Gold Bunnies and Lindor truffles – courtesy of Lindt. With 101 eggs to track down, this is a great way to discover hidden parts of the city and a great opportunity for families, eggthusiasts and art fans to enjoy the hunt during the Easter break.

The fundraising side comes in as participants can get involved with bids on their mobile phones and find out more information about the designer eggs. The online auction starts at prices of £300 and eggs have been sold for as much as an astounding £40,000!

This Easter egg hunt is a really fun and engaging fundraiser, bringing with it an opportunity to get the community together in a fresh and interactive way through the Easter period.

If you cannot get enough of the Easter hunt, here at DUKES London we will be organising our very own Easter bunny hunt around St. James during the Easter weekend!

As well as the egg hunt we promise to bring you great fun for all the family with chocolates and cool costumes for small children. See you all down here for an eggtastic holiday!