Europe: Western Cafés, castles, architecture, art, wine, the Euro, gastronomy, let´s meet up, and pub crawls.! Oh oui, backpackers paradise... |
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05-25-2006, 08:46 AM
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#1
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Hey guys!
My friend and I are going to Britain this summer. We're looking forward to it so much and are currently in the process of planning our trip.
Therefore I wondered, if maybe someone could help me out with some tips and suggestions, what cities to visit etc. All in all, we'll have eight days "on the road" (or better "on the train"), starting out from Stansted Airport in England. After these eight days we'll go to London and will meet up with a friend.
I know that eight days aren't much and would like to know how far we can possibly get. Would it be worth while visiting Scotland as well or are we too short in time for that (in addition to England and Wales)? We'd really like to see as much as possible.
Oh, also another question...is it worth visiting the Isle of Wight? I would really like to but am not sure about ferry fares etc..
Anyway, enough of my rambling :D
Any answer is very much appreciated!
Thanks in advance & greetings from Austria,
Julia
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05-25-2006, 08:56 AM
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#2
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Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Loch Carron,Highlands,Scotland
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Quote:
Originally posted by Ladybug@May 25 2006, 03:46 PM
Would it be worth while visiting Scotland as well or are we too short in time for that (in addition to England and Wales)?
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what ya mean,is it worth while,which means worth it,of course it is,oh my god,that hurts,and i may not be english,but oh,the pain
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05-25-2006, 10:08 AM
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#3
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I DIDN'T MEAN IT LIKE THAT! lol
Of course, I'm sure it's so worth it! (Been dreaming about going to Scotland forever now.)
I just meant whether it'd pay off or not, since we don't have much time.
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05-25-2006, 10:39 AM
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#4
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Join Date: Mar 2006
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crap i meant i may be english,shit,8 days all round uk,hmmm,well nothing is impossible ,how much money ya got and what time ya gotta leave and where from,ya know simple things ,and what ya want to do/see EXCACTLY,then things can be figured out and then i know whether you will be able to fit,in your view,the runt of the uk in to your trip
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05-27-2006, 12:39 AM
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#5
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Depending on how long you have in London, you could possibly do some day trips from there as well, so you could save your first 8 days for things farther afield. Do you absolutely have to fly into Stanstead? If you haven't already booked, consider a flight to Manchester or Blackpool or somewhere farther north, (even Glasgow or Edinburgh or somewhere in Scotland) and then wind your way south, ending up in London. Or you could see about getting another cheap flight out of Stanstead on the same day you arrive, so you don't spend too much time heading north and then coming south again.
There is such a lot to see throughout the country, just depends on your personal interests, I suppose. We always try to balance a trip with at least one foray into the countryside or smaller towns/villages - the cities are amazing, but you get a very different look at the country you're in, and especially the people, when you get away from the centres. Visiting the Lake District or the Moors would show you an utterly different Britain than you'll see in London.
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05-27-2006, 03:00 AM
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#6
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I have only travelled Southern England so my recommendations are biased. I would suggest 3-4 days in London, then on to Bath for the Roman Baths and surrounding Cotswolds villages plus also Stonehenge.
ev
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05-28-2006, 09:50 AM
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#7
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Backcountry Betty
Join Date: Jun 2004
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kingcrazylegs and i just did a 12 day trip to england, wales, ireland and scotland in march. the flights on ryanair and easyjet make it easy to visit the other countries easily. although, for an 8 day trip, i'd just plan going to one other country...sure it worked out for us to go to all 4, but if anything went array with our many flights, trains or rental cars, we would have been screwed.
anyhow, if you're interested, here's my day by day write up of what we did:
march 2006
**start at the bottom and read up**
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people travel to wonder at the height of the mountains, at the huge waves of the sea, at the long course of rivers, at the vast compass of the ocean, at the circular motion of the stars; and they pass by themselves without wondering. -St. Augustine
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05-29-2006, 03:37 AM
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#8
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Yeah, Ladybug, let us know what you like to do. Hiking? Historical sights? Museum hopping? Pub crawls? What do you want to do? Then we can go from there...
Some suggestions, in the meantime:
Hiking the Cornish Coastal Path -- gorgeous seascapes, quaint seaside towns
Charming Villages -- the Cotswolds
Hiking the Hills -- Lake District, England
History -- Stonehenge, southern Wales' castles, York, Hadrian's Wall
anything strike your fancy?
worldwidemike
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05-29-2006, 04:54 AM
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#9
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No visit to England would be complete without seeing an authentic british seaside town. Brighton and Blackpool are the most famous, but if you are fliying into stansted you could always pop to southend on sea, my home town!
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Last night i had a dream about reality. It was such a relief to wake up. - Stanislaw Lec.
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05-29-2006, 05:37 AM
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#10
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ok personaly i would start off in scotland, edinbourgh. the city is amazing and the people are great, then head down to blackpool, go on "the big one" and see a staged show, in the evening just get hammered and some of the great clubs.
next stop manchester, (my home town). go to the bars and clubs, see the musium and the canals, for a bit of country jump and the 192 bus from manchester to stockport then get a connection to marple. should cost about £5 max for 2 and take 40 min. if you like people with funny accents jump on a train to liverpool.
stay away from moss side and longsight (horrible areas and you will get robbed).
then back to manchester for the evening. lots of clubs and pubs, including student bars. ask everywere if they do student discount.
from manchester to the lake district. ride some bikes, take a walk have a picnic make a day of it and pray its sunny, no fun when its raining. then on to london
ok london, the most expensive part fo england is the the south in general. esp london. if u see a suicide bomber shoot the wanker :greenguy: lol
london bit like manchester only people are all rush rush. v.busy.
ok the good thing about london is that you can get to anyware eaisly. go to say rochester in kent its about an hours travel and you can see rochester castle, oh and keep your ears to the ground for events like the dicken's festivel, everybody dresses up and theres singers etc, its good fun.
i dont know anything about wales except for the funny accent and they are knowen as sheep shaggers lol. the isle of wight is def worth visting and cost about £10 for a ferry crossing. every if its just to get the different colour sand.
http://www.wightlink.co.uk/travel/travel_index.htm
hope i helped.
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05-29-2006, 08:58 AM
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#11
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Backcountry Betty
Join Date: Jun 2004
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^Conwy in Wales was beautiful. it is kind of a seaside town built in and out of spalling castle grounds. just beautiful!
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people travel to wonder at the height of the mountains, at the huge waves of the sea, at the long course of rivers, at the vast compass of the ocean, at the circular motion of the stars; and they pass by themselves without wondering. -St. Augustine
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06-06-2006, 05:55 AM
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#12
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Join Date: Mar 2006
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my fave bits of britain:
Snowdon/Ben Nevis/Helvellyn-lake district (all really beautiful mountains and you can climb easily in a day)
Blackpool (tacky and fun, but dont go swimming!)
St Ives/ cornwall coast (cliffs and beaches, quaint fishing villages,lovely ice cream)
if you're planning on going to bath, could go to bristol 1/2 hour away.
plus edinburgh,york and london.
and cheese-rolling races!
have a look at 'megabus' website, book in advance and it's very cheap.
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07-10-2006, 03:25 PM
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#13
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Join Date: May 2006
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Hey you guys!
I honestly feel terrible, because you peeps have all been so nice, friendly and helpful and I haven't even replied until now. I'm truly sorry, life's been crazy.
Now, my friend and I have tried to put together a route...
- Stansted Airport -> York
- York -> Edinburgh
- Edinburgh -> Glasgow
- Glasgow -> Liverpool
- Liverpool -> Conwy (not completely sure about this one yet...somewhere in North Wales, anyway)
- Conwy - Cardiff
- Cardiff -> St. Austell (other suggestions for Cornwall? Maybe Truro?)
- Cornwall -> Southampton
- Southamptn -> Brighton
- Brighton -> London
Bristol will probably be included as well, because I think we anyway have to do a stopover there, when we go from Cardiff to Cornwall.
Okay, we tried to plan it as best as we could (looking up train times etc.), now I would like to hear your opinion...on a scale from 1 to 10, how unrealistic to you think this is? :D
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07-10-2006, 04:33 PM
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#14
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There are loads of fantastic places in cornwall, but i recommend tintagel or perranporth, if you want to see beautiful sights. If you want a hectic surf bum party vibe, Newquay is the place for you.
I'm sure you can do that route on the trains (though dont really know about conwy)......personally after a flight i would prefer not to travel all the way from stansted to york, but hey its your holiday, so enjoy :D
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Last night i had a dream about reality. It was such a relief to wake up. - Stanislaw Lec.
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07-12-2006, 05:42 AM
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#15
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Join Date: Dec 2005
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Julia,
When are you and your friends starting this trip. I'm currently in Surrey visiting family and am thinking about heading off to Scotland next monday or tuesday. TPunk meetup in edinburgh?
, Will C.
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