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AVALON OF THE HEART TOURS

I am available as a Tour Guide with Avalon of the Heart Tours. There are options all the year round in Glastonbury.

In Avalon of the Heart Dion Fortune wrote ‘that the poetry of the soul writes itself at Glastonbury.’ Soul poetry is a good term for celebrating the numinous charisma of the place. The landscape here can have a profound effect on what might be called the higher emotions, the part of us that can appreciate a work of art, poetry, music. I offer year-round guided walking tours of Glastonbury, full and half-days, for groups and individuals. Connecting with mythology and history, with content adjusted to suit levels of interest. The Glastonbury myths are a work of art. A work of art that is alive and mutable for each new generation but carrying something distinct and eternal. Come and discover this for yourselves.

The Tour

Here is a glimpse of what such a tour usually involves. Use the arrows below to navigate left and right.

Meet here under the Abbey arch entrance. There are 2 locations on the tour that require an entrance fee that is separate from the tour price. The Abbey is the first and costs £11.00.

We will spend an hour or so in the Abbey. The history and mythology will be brought to life, covering the obvious topics of Joseph of Arimathea and Arthur and moving on to the terrible Dissolution and the rebirth with the psychic archaeology of Frederick Bligh Bond.

On our way from the Abbey to the Magdalene Almshouses and chapel, we will pass the Catholic Church. If it is open, there is an option to see Our Lady of Glastonbury.

The Magdalene Almshouses and Margaret Chapel are one of the lesser-known Glastonbury treasures. The serenity of the little garden and the atmosphere of the chapel are remarkable.

St John’s Church has now reopened after extensive building work. The labyrinth and stained glass window depiction of Joseph of Arimathea alone make it worth a visit.

After a lunch break, the second part of the day is increasingly different and expansive. Chalice Well Gardens has an admission fee of £4.60. We will linger a while there in the many distinct zones in this place of profound peace.

The White Spring is a powerful place that has been known to effect people in very different ways. Some are moved to tears and want to stay for hours. Some find it unnerving and wish to rapidly exit. We will respect whatever your response might be.

The day concludes with time on the Tor. The story of the alleged labyrinth there will be told, as will tales of Gwyn, Lord of the Faery Underworld, the Michael ley, and so on. Weather conditions are so variable that this will determine how long we stay on the summit to appreciate the extraordinary view and atmosphere. If you are interested, we can deal with the topic of the Glastonbury Zodiac.

Reviews

I have known Paul for 22 years and have asked him to lead Abbey tours for my Pilgrimage to Avalon tour for the past 16 years. Paul is a brilliant historian and weaves all of the threads of the Glastonbury mythos into his presentations. His unabashed love of place permeates his presentations which are a delightful combination of solid historical research, moving story telling and spiritual insight. I recommend him highly.

Judith Tripp.

My full day with Paul was one of the best experience I have in my entire life! He know so many things about Glastonbury and is absolutely passionate about all he will talk about.

He was taking care all day of my needs and what I wanted to know and made a personalized tour in what I was interested and I found all I was looking for: history, amazing landscape, ancient architecture, energies and ….so many more 🙂

Thank you so much Paul for taking me to my best experience, by far, of feeling energies.

Patricia Vicente