Bobbe

We'll be in the UK for 15 days (5 in London, 5 in Wales, and 5 in mid-south England. Outside of London, we'll be traveling by car. <BR> 1) Should we make Bath or the Coltswolds our base for that part of the trip - or divide it into two areas? <BR> 2) What places in Wales do you recommend? Should we stay concentrated in the southern part (and not bother with Snowdownia, etc.)? How long would it take us (considering "normal" conditions to drive from Northern Wales to London? <BR>thanks, all. (I love this forum!) Bobbe. <BR>

ginny

Bobbe: Hi! What a wonderful time you are going to have. I have stayed in all of the places you listed(except South Wales). I love the Cotswolds so I would make this the base for that part of the trip. Stayed in the village of Stanton(near Broadway) in a self-catering cottage in Sept 98 for one week. So much to see and do, lots of sleepy-little-off-the-beaten-path-towns(Great Tew, GuittingPower to name a few) as well Bourton-on-Water with its miniature village, Stow-on-the-Wold, Upper and Lower Slaughter, Bibury and so on. You could drive and take a day to visit Bath but my choice would be to stay in the Cotswolds. We also spent a day at Warwick Castle from this base and you could do more. As for Wales, I just spent a week this past Sept. in a beautiful stone cottage in the town of Llanbedr in Snowdonia on the coast overlooking Cardigan Bay just below Harlech where there is a very impressive castle that stands on a cliff and overlooks everything, breathtaking!!!! From this base we were able to visit Porthmadog and ride the Ffestiniog Railway, Beddgelert(beautiful mountain village), Portmeirion(impressive Italian-like village), Caernarfon Castle(about 40 miles from where we stayed) and on the way back from the castle visited Swallow Falls.The beautiful walled town of Conwy, Bodnant Gardens, Llanberis and its mountain railway, even the touristy town of Betws-y-coed. A good web site for this area is www.gwynedd.gov.uk. For Wales iteself www.visitwales.com and for the Cotswolds www.visitbritain.com/heart-of-england. From where we stayed in the Cotswolds, Bath was about 70 miles(this is where we picked up our rental car) and took the train to London (about 90 minutes) since I won't drive into or near London. This is getting rather long but you hit on something I love to talk about so just one other thing. Another suggestion if you're stuck on where to stay in Wales, north or south, we stayed, yes on a trip in Sept 99 in Whitchurch, England in Shropshire at Combermere Abbey and were just 7 miles from the Wales border so we were able to take day trips into Wales north or south! Have fun!!!!!!

kam

North Wales is in my opinion far more interesting and historic with all the castles than south Wales. Cardiff is pretty disappointing. Snowdonia is fantastic--little town of Betws-y-Coed is charming. Caenarfon Castle great as is Conwy. We drove London--Bath--Brecon Beacons--then north into Snowdonia and the Isle of Anglesey then to Chester then Shrewsbury, sometimes skipping across back into Wales to see another castle. From Shrewsbury we drove one afternoon (through pouring rain which slowed us down) into Twickenham, western suburb of London by dinnertime. Warwick is on this route back, if you want to stop there. Hint: don't rent your car until you're ready to leave London and then I would advise going out to Heathrow to do so. That way you're part of the way to Bath and out of London traffic. Enjoy. Oh, the reason we didn't stop in the Cotswolds was we had been there for quite a while in previous year, but you could also see Cotswolds, Gloucester, Salisbury, Stonehenge etc. from Bath. Stayed outside of the actual city of Bath at Apsley House (as I recall the name) which had easy parking and just taxied or walked into the center of Bath. Enjoy, it's a great trip. Read some of the history of the Welsh and the Marcher lords.

kk

I agree with Ginny...stay in the Cotswolds and make it your base. Tons of good choices. Personally, from what I saw two years ago, I would either stay at the inn (not sure of the name, didn't stay there) in Bibury or at a National Trust Property. <BR>Do not miss Stourhead!!! and its gorgeous grounds. Miss anything else, but do see it.

jet

I really enjoyed Tinturn Abbey, near Chepstow

kate

I agree with the earlier comment about North Wales being better than South. I'm from England and spent most summers as a child holidaying in Wales. South Wales is more built up and industrial, as well as being flatter, although Swansea is quite lively and has some lovely beaches. <BR> <BR>The North is much less developed, has some incredible landscapes, and Snowdonia is an absolute must see. If the weather's good (never a guarantee!) then the beach at Harlech is fabulous - 8 miles of beach backed by rolling sandunes.

Meg

I travel to Bath and to Wales from my home near Warwick quite often. You should take no longer than 4-5 hours to get from N Wales back to London, using motorways M56/M6/M42/M40 <BR>I'd recommend Eagle House Hotel in Bathford (which is 2-3 miles outside Bath) to stay. Tel 01225 859946/Fax 01225 859430. It's a beautiful Georgian house with a very friendly family. You can take the bus into Bath (difficult to park in city centre) and the Cotswolds are within easy reach by car. North Wales- Llandudno has a well preserved Victorian seafront; Bodelwyddan Castle which has an annexe of the National Portrait Gallery is worth a visit. Bodnant Gardens are great if the weather is kind. There are lots of suggestions! In South Wales I don't think you can beat the Pembrokeshire coast for good beaches; Dylan Thomas connections with Swansea; |Cardiff Castle and Castell Coch just outside Cardiff; St David's- monastic settlement, now a beautiful cathedral 12th c. and on and on

Roger

Kate or someone else from the UK. Two years ago I spent a few days in Chester and one day took the train to Conwy. Noticed acres and acres of small mobil homes in neat row. Always wondered what they wew used for. Rentals or private get away places? Whats the popularity of them? Thanks for any info.

Mike

Stourhead is south of Bath, one of the finest landscaped parks in Britain. They hold a Fete Champetre for one week in the summer - open air theatre, fireworks etc. It is about an hour from Bath. Book well ahead (it's a National Trust place/event). Good hotel in the area? Look at Stock Hill for upmarket. <BR> <BR>Unfortunately, that is the other side of Bath from the Cotswolds. Bath is a pig of a town for traffic, and getting north to south can be grim for such a small place. So the Cotswolds, Bath and Stourhead is getting complicated. If you're determined, OK, but still... <BR> <BR>I live near Bath, love it, and sometimes do my weekly shopping there (as I will tomorrow). However, I would think you could well think of spending a single night in the town, and the rest in the Cotswolds. Ginny's is a good list. My favorite restaurant? Buckland Manor, actually a very upmarket hotel in a ridiculously picturesque setting. Remember, history costs! <BR> <BR>Cheltenham is another favorite place for shopping - Montpelier and the Promenade, Champignon Sauvage or Petit Blanc for lunch. Fewer shops than Bath, but similarly good quality. <BR> <BR>North Wales to London is quite a long trip! British roads are very busy. Chester (another nice place!) to London should be less than 4 hours, but could take substantially longer. On the motorways, an average speed of 60 mph is very good during the week. My rule of thumb is 30 mph on normal roads.

Mike

One more thing - Bath's most exclusive restaurant, Lettonie, also has quite reasonable (for the south of England) rooms (c£75 a double). We used to really like it, but, on our last visit, the cheery French waiter wasn't there, and he was very much missed - these places can be a bit oppressive. It is smart but homely - pictures of the kids in the lounge etc. As for the rooms - well, no pictures on the web site, which is strange. I also like Bath Priory - lounges filled with some of the most miserable pictures ever, but pleasant dining room, lovely gardens and, I think, underrated food. <BR> <BR>Kilkenny Inn near Andoversford good spot for a Cotswold walk - not packed out like the Slaughters. Park in car park, take walk opposite, back to inn for quite a good lunch - it's not really a pub any more, more a restaurant with a bar. <BR> <BR>No spit and sawdust places there - there are a couple I quite like in the Cotswolds, but I can't remember their names! You tend to drink a bit more when it's cheaper.