UK Travel Guide
Concise Information

This cluster of tiny countries comprising Great Britain - which is England, Scotland and Wales - and Northern Ireland, has 5,000 years of history and a brilliant variety of things to see and do, culture to nature, old to new, silly to serious, whatever suits the tourist - apart from serious sunbathing or skiing.
London and Edinburgh both offer top class arts and culture scenes with superb museums [mostly free], galleries and theatres in settings of great age and historical reference, while the rest of the island spills over with historic buildings, traditional villages, lovely gardens, parks and even mountains.
The British countryside is easily accessible by car and ranges from dramatic moors to bleak mountains to big soft beaches; a walker's delight and not bad for drivers too, if they stick to the smaller roads. See photos of England, Scotland, Edinburgh and London

Downside:
- It's expensive, especially London hotels and even after the crunch year.
- The weather is often lousy and unpredictable, particularly in Wales and Scotland.
- Public transport, especially rail, is expensive, while some sections of the tube [London's underground rail system] are shabby and overheated - the tube was built long, long ago when users were few.
UK climate:
Best: May-Sept.
Worst: Jan-Feb [wet, cold, grey, and short daylight hours].
London and Edinburgh have accommodation problems around New Year [Dec 29-Jan 2], summer time and the Edinburgh Festival [mid July-Aug.]

Length of stay:
Minimum worthwhile stay, not incl. flights: London or Edinburgh only - a long weekend could be excellent.
Recommended: 2 weeks, London, Edinburgh, plus 2 to 3 historical towns and/or the country side [Scottish Highlands, Lake District, etc.]
Wales and Northern Ireland are not often included in package tours, and offer less important 'must sees' unless you have unlimited time or a special interest.



Main attractions:
England:
London and the South:
***London, close to being Europe's coolest city, with something for everyone.
**Bath, an elegant but touristy city, with a real Roman spa and fine examples of early Georgian Palladian architecture. In Somerset, along with wacky Glastonbury.
***Cornwall and **Devon,ranging from bleak moorlands to thatched cottages on rolling grasslands, magnificent beaches, pleasant little fishing villages and good surfing.
The Eden Project, Cornwall. Extraordinary, educational and artistic biospheres housing a zillion exotic plants.
***Dorset. Castles [Corfe and Maiden], beautiful harbour [Poole], great beaches [Poole, Bournemouth and scattered along the south-west coast], Cerne Giant, grand old houses [e.g. Longleat] and superb walks such as:
***The Southwest Coast Path, a lovely 630 mile [1014 kms] clifftop stroll through rural, coastal England and the fossil stuffed Jurassic Coast.
***Stonehenge, an enormous, enigmatic, prehistoric stone circle in Wiltshire, along with Avebury, the Cerne Giant and more.

UK Beaches are plentiful and often have goodly amounts of gleaming sand and sunshine May-Sept. Excellent walks abound, though the water is always chilly and the weather can change in a moment.
North of London:
***Oxford, the world's best-known university city, lovely centre, pity about the suburbs.
**Cotswolds, typical English countryside with rolling hills and charming thatched villages.
**Stratford-upon-Avon, Shakespeare's home town.
**Cambridge, a pleasant riverside city with its notable university and gorgeous buildings.
**Chester, the finest Roman and medieval town in the UK [pic top right].
**York, an historic, walled city with the largest cathedral in Europe.
***Lake District National Park, Cumbria, one of the most scenic landscapes in Britain.
*Durham, the most striking cathedral city in Britain.
And all topped off by the decrepit but still impressive**Hadrian's Wall.

Scotland:
***Edinburgh, a dramatic and lively city. Edinburgh Pictures.
***The Highlands, splendid landscapes, wilder and more dramatic than the Lake District, with mountains, glens and lochs make for magnificent walks if you can handle the erratic weather and summer midges [little, swarming mosquitoes].
**The Borders, tranquil pastoral country with delightful towns as well as Hadrian's Wall on the English side.
**Stirling and the Trossachs, a compact and historic town with imposing castle.
*Glasgow, an industrial city with a bad reputation, but reinvented as a wacky cultural destination.
*St Andrews, a coastal town with the famous old golf course.


Northern Ireland:
**the Giant's Causeway, a spectacular volcanic rock formation of basalt columns along the Antrim Coast. A World Heritage Site.
UK Activities:
Walking and Hiking: Numerous short walks and long distance footpaths surround most towns and often cross picturesque scenery in this walks-loving cluster of countries.



Climbing: There are many good climbing spots from the sea cliffs of the Dorset coast to Scotland's Mt. Ben Nevis [1344m], Britain's highest peak. See above link.
Biking: Hundreds of miles of dedicated bike/ walking tracks have been opened recently, as well as road routes. The Whitby to Scarborough Trailway, 20 miles along the edge of the North York Moors National Park, is one of the most spectacular routes.
Bird-watching: the Orkney Isles, Shetland Isles in Scotland, the Norfolk Broads and more.
Fishing: The Borders, Deeside in Scotland and shoals more.
Pony trekking: The Pembrokeshire Coast, Wales or the Pennines, England.
Skiing: Aviemore, Scotland, Britain's biggest skiing centre.

Golfing: From the ancient, lunatic Edinburgh city centre Brunswick Links to St Andrews, there are more than 400 golf courses in Scotland, and not a few in the rest of the UK too.
Surfing: Yes, really, but you'll need a wetsuit! Especially Cornwall - Newquay and Fistral beach are the best known - and North Devon [Atlantic/north-west coasts] plus also Wales and Scotland.
Nightlife & Entertainment: Regional cities such as London, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Bristol, Birmingham, Manchester and Newcastle have wild and varied clubbing scenes, though provincial places tend to be extremely youth oriented.
Tipping:
Waiters will hopefully deserve 10-15% of the bill unless service charge is included. Taxi drivers will be looking for 10%
Intercity Travel
Trains are sometimes on time, sometimes not; they are expensive unless you can book online well ahead.
Intercity buses are much better value and usually make good time.
Some destinations from London by train: Scotland about 6 hours; Wales about 2 hours; Brighton 1 hour; Oxford 1 hour; Cambridge 45 mins; Bristol 2 hours; York 2 hours+; Stratford-upon-Avon 2 hours+; Exeter 3 hours; Bath 1.5 hours;Manchester 2.5 hours; Penzance 5 hours.
Getting around London:
Apart from London's ancient undergound [metro/ subway] or pricey taxis, buses are the best option and reasonably efficient.
Visa advice:
EU citizens are free to travel and work in the UK for any amount of time. Nationals of USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa do not need a visa for up to 6 months holiday, but do need a work visa.
Electricity:
Electric sockets are 240v and take 3 rectangular pin plugs.
Safety:
Tourist places are no problem save for the occasional pickpocket. Take care where you walk after late night booze sessions, particularly in the big cities.
Language
Naturally English is used everywhere though a few Celtic diehards in Wales and Scotland may insist on using their ancient tongues.