There's something about the much anticipated emergence of spring, with gardens abloom, that especially appeals to travellers.

Whether it's England's Chelsea Flower Show, Holland's vibrant tulip fields, or azaleas brightening a Virginia garden, it's a very special time of year.

And although brisk Atlantic winds may be adding a chill to Bermuda's gardens right now, it's not too early to think about planning your spring escape.

A number of garden-oriented cruises and land tours are being offered and although it may sound early to be talking about what will be happening in May, they do sell out fast and often have very limited space.

Their itineraries are usually very special, with private visits to estates noted for their colourful gardens. Because they often include such extras as lunch with titled owners and access to properties rarely open to the public, they do tend to be pricey.

But you can duplicate segments of these itineraries on your own. So their itineraries may also serve as inspiration for planning your own individualised trip.

English Garden Treasures offered by the National Trust for Historic Preservation explores Britain's West Country from May 9-21. Grand finale of this itinerary is a visit to the Chelsea Flower Show on Members' Day when exhibits are at their peak.

But before reaching there, you will have savoured the beauty of Cornwall, Exeter and Bath for in-depth visits to historic estates and gardens, guided by experts noted in their field of expertise.

Eleven-night accommodations are at carefully chosen properties, including manor houses. And there's not excessive moving around . . . stays are four nights at one property, three at another and two more two-nighters. Cost is $6,900, air extra. www.nationaltrust.org/tours.

From February 5-16 the National Trust will focus on gardens of the Caribbean, visiting Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, Grenada, Bequia, Dominica, St. Lucia and Martinique. Travelling aboard Sea Cloud II, travellers will discover some of those islands' premier gardens.

Two on Barbados are managed by Barbados National Trust . . . Bush Hill, where George Washington and his brother lived several months in 1751, is one of them.

Did you know the beautifully tropical island of Dominica has a 40-acre botanical garden founded in 1891 as an annex to London's Kew Gardens? On my family's first cruise there in the early 1960s, we felt the entire island resembled a botanical garden, yet it was virtually undiscovered by tourists.

Again, this itinerary will offer a combination of visiting private plantations and public gardens with specialist guides. There will be eight nights aboard Sea Cloud II, three nights at the Barbados Hilton Hotel starting at $6,000. Air fare is additional.

Name almost any area in Europe and garden enthusiasts are there oohing and aahing over floral beauty. When poets proclaimed, "Oh, to be in Kew at lilac time", it wasn't idle chatter.

This traveller has often been in France when both lilacs and pink chestnuts were blossoming in all their glory. That's when one learns why "April in Paris" is so acclaimed.

Because it has such a temperate climate, I've marvelled how Cornwall can be abloom with daffodils and jonquils while other parts of the British Isles are still bundled in tweeds.

After such trips, any visitor is certain to return home with plans for enhancing their own landscape. Britain is not only noted for its gardens, but shops at many of them featuring unique, often one-of-a-kind garden accessories, are hard to resist.

Your travel agent will be able to tell you about special garden tours that include specific acclaimed events, such as annual flower shows at Hampton Court (July), Malvern (May), Blenheim Palace (June), Guernsey Floral Festival Week (June) and Jersey Battle of Flowers (August), among others.

Some gardens specialise. Sudeley Castle, for example, where roses brighten June. The castle's interior deserves several hours of attention.

There's no denying this traveller finds it impossible to bypass either an historic house or an acclaimed garden. A lifetime of travel has provided the opportunity to visit a very long list of them and they seldom disappoint.

Whether it's walking down "The Primrose Path" at Alfred Lord Tennyson's former Isle of Wight home, now a hotel , roaming Sissinghurst with its all-white garden, or Hever Castle with its herbaceous border, each has been memorable.

And, of course, timing can be everything where flowers are concerned. "For everything there is a season. . ." Some are best at certain times of the year.

Lord Mountbatten's country home is one I especially remember for its walled garden, as well as Hertfordshire's Hatfield House with its bewildering maze, Wiltshire's Longleat House, Cliveden, Harewood House, Castle Howard and Scotland's Inverewe Gardens in the Western Highlands.

Northern Ireland's Florence Court in County Fermanagh is famous for its two-and-a-half-acre walled kitchen garden that would delight anyone who likes to add special flavouring to their cooking.

That's just a very minuscule sample of blooming beauties.Drive out into the countryside almost anywhere in the British Isles and there's such an abundance of worthy sights, it will be hard to choose.

Just type in British Garden Tours, British Gardens or Royal Horticultural Society, UK on your computer and there will be an impressive number of green-thumb temptations.

Closer to home, Historic Garden Week in Virginia is set for April 19-27. And because this marks the 75th anniversary of this popular annual springtime event, it promises to be even more special than usual.

A statewide celebration of exceptional gardens ranges from Chesapeake Bay to the Blue Ridge Mountains. A number of private homes and gardens will welcome the public for the first time.

They're not only beautiful, but very historic, covering properties dating back to colonial times and on through the American Revolution period, the Civil War, Victorian era, as well as more recent times.

There's a bit of everything from remote country settings to urban ones. No two houses included in tours are alike. You can go from carefully preserved colonial plantations to a Victorian farmhouse.

Gardens reflect assorted periods and lifestyles from the very formal and manicured to very relaxed and natural.

The oldest and largest statewide house and garden tour, it has been a headline event since 1929.

During World War Two, Garden Club members suspended it to cultivate Victory Gardens.

But it's been full speed ahead ever since, with 3,400 members of the Garden Club of Virginia involved in the tours.

Historic Garden Week ticket sales have raised around $13 million used for restoration of historic landscapes statewide. There will be flower arranging demonstrations, lunches home made by church groups, discussions by master gardeners . . . even analysis of Thomas Jefferson as gardener held at Monticello, where you will be as impressed by the landscape as his house.

Money from these tours have restored some very special gardens of very prominent figures . . . George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, Patrick Henry, George Mason, Robert E. Lee and Woodrow Wilson.

All these historic properties and their gardens are open to the public.

Check their web sites, www.GCVirginia.org and www.VAGardenweek.org. Prices for tour tickets range from $10 to $40 and may be purchased on site the day of the tour.

It's almost guaranteed that your first stop once back home will be a local garden centre. So spectacular is even the simplest garden that you will be inspired.

And you'll find that's true of many hotel gardens as well when staying in the British countryside.

After settling in to the Priory in Wareham, Dorset to explore the Lawrence of Arabia region, we spent many an hour relaxing, reading and strolling through the impressive riverfront garden.

Ask your travel agent to try to book you into a property like that, one where you feel you're personally part of a garden experience.

Next week: What's new in adventure travel?