Hello-

Looking to plan a last minute getaway to take advantage of next weekend's bank Holiday. We're based in London and are looking to explore the beautiful UK. Someplace drive able, within 3 hours would be good.

Open to all types of locations...we like to wander around, drink some pints and take photographs of scenery and our kids in front of said scenery.

A good investment if you're living in London is the Time Out Book of Weekend Breaks. It has lots of great ideas - i've tried about half of them and have yet to be anything other than happy.

Thanks CW--I'll head to Waterstone's this afternoon to pick up a copy.

Do you have any favorites you would care to recommend?

I'd head to Suffolk, somewhere like Lavenham or Southwold.
There's beautiful scenery and it's not as touristy as some areas.
You will need a car, though.

Do you have any favorites you would care to recommend? >>>

Not really as the ones I've tried will either be completely sold out or were the romantic break type.

North Norfolk is good - Sheringham, Cromer and Holt are lovely.

You might still be able to get a room in Cromer.

I'd also recommend Norfolk or Suffolk. They are really interesting w/ lots to see but not as overrun on Bank Holiday as some of the other usual suspects.

Besides the Time Out guide which is really useful - I'd also take a look at "Day Trips from London by Train". It will give lots of ideas for short breaks for the rest of the year.

The Cotswolds might be doable and delightful at this time of year. Bourton-on-the-Water or Chipping Campden would make pretty bases.

We always enjoy Cambridge and Ely is quite close by as well. In Cambridge the tourist office runs guided walks which are interesting and you can watch - or try your hand - at punting on the river. There is a nice tearoom we tried in Ely called Peacocks. It won the tearoom of the year last year and is right by the river so you can enjoy a walk and look at the canalboats.
Kay

Bourton-on-the-Water + Bank Holiday + anywhere near decent weather = absolute chock-a-block. I love the Cotswolds, but best to avoid the well know towns over any bank holiday.

I've been to the Cotswolds over Easter bank holiday and the weather was lovely. It wasn't even choc-a-block at Broadway.

The trouble with the Suffolk and Norfolk coasts is that it can get full of "hoity-toity people from Islington in their 4-wheel drives".

&quot;<i>It wasn't even choc-a-block at Broadway</i>&quot; Bourton gets much more crowded than Broadway. Just about <b>every</b> coach tour stops there.

Train to York (less than 2 hours) and then a rental car to explore the Yorkshire Dales or Moors? A few 'obvious' hotspots to avoid, but easy to get away from the crowds and do all the things you want to do in your post. Very easy to avoid the hordes.
The scenery is glorious up here, the beer excellent (Black Sheep especially - you can even go and tour the Brewery and enjoy a lovely meal in the Brasserie), the local food great and the locals friendly.
I live up here in North Yorks and what you descibe is exactly what I am going to do over the Bank Holiday!

&lt;&lt;Bourton-on-the-Water + Bank Holiday + anywhere near decent weather = absolute chock-a-block. I love the Cotswolds, but best to avoid the well know towns over any bank holiday.&gt;&gt;

I would agree absolutely. But there is SO much more to the Cotswolds than the well-known towns.

Come to the western part where you will find spectacular views, gloriously attractive villages clinging to the steep valley sides above fast flowing streams. The bluebells are out in the woods and the hedgerows are laced with that bright acid green that you only get at this time of year. Great Farmers Markets. Fabulous local beers as well. Castles, old manor houses, lovely Norman churches, haunted ruined mansions - we have it all here yet few people know about this area.

Stroud, Tetbury, Wotton-under-Edge and Dursley are the largest 'small' towns. Even smaller towns are Nailsworth and Minchinhampton. As for the picturesque villages, there are too many to mention, but we are still pretty much undiscovered by tourists/visitors in this part of the Cotswolds.

And with a clear run I can be parked in a underground carpark almost opposite Harrods in less than 2 hours, LOL!

But the roads round here are little more than single track lanes, edged by dry stone walls and hedges. Some are so narrow your wing mirrors have only an inch or so clearance! This is the rugged part of the Cotswolds, and to my mind the most beautiful.

If you'd like to know anything more then I'll be happy to provide what info I can.

Have a great BH weekend.

Oh - I totally agree julia_t.

My comment was solely in response to the suggestion to visit Bourton and Chipping Campden - on a Bank Holiday.

There are no hoity-toity Islingtonians.

If they're hoity-toity and they live in Islington, they're noove arrivistes. Therefore (and I speak as a unhoity-toity noove arriviste who's spent most of his life in Islington) they're not true Islingtonians.

The real argument against Norfolk/Suffolk is that they take longer to get to than West Oxfordshire/Gloucestershire. And, as always, juliat summarises perfectly the many reasons why the Cotswolds are the most wonderful place in the place in the world. Even for a weekend. If you can afford our hotels - but the non-Islingtonian noove arrivistes from Canonbury and Barnsbury have driven Suffolk hotel prices up just as much

I absolutely loved Lichfield....Why ?....I am a fan of Dr.Johnson...You can visit his house,which is also partly a bookshop...There is also a nice cathedral here called St.Chad's...Very quaint little place...

hi dexters,

how about the kent/sussex border?

Rye makes a lovely base, and from there you can do winchelsea, hastings, tenterden, biddenden, sissinghurst, and Tunbridge wells on your way back.

even on a bank hol w/end, it shouldn't be too busy.

regards, ann

annhig;

Can you give me some specific ideas of what to see in the Rye area?

We're going to be landing in Dover and staying overnight in Hythe before going on to London. We will have a car for the day.

We're planning to go to Dover Castle in the morning when we get off the ship, but wondering what to do in the afternoon.

We're a family of 4 (two teenagers). Gardens aren't a big attraction for us, but we're all interested in history, good food, and the outdoors.

Thanks!

hi dexters - I'll do my best!

from dover, [the town itself is a tip but the castle is supposed to be very good - despite living in kent for 15 years I never went!]

make for Hythe and the Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch railway the &quot;smallest railway in the world&quot; [allegedly]. or if you fancy a swim, [a bit cold yet I think] to camber sands a little further along the coast.

then along to Rye - a lovely town to wander around - and winchelsea.

or back to dungeness for bird watching.

in the morning, you could do Battle [no prizes for guessing why it's called that - the clue is in the name].

hope this helps,

regards, ann

Won't Rye be heaving on a bank holibob? Rye is a nice place but it's sole reasion for existence is tourism. It's a pretty old town but it does get very busy.