I will be in London for 8 days and have decided to do two out of town trips. Bath/Stonehenge, I think is at the top of my list.

Is Stonehenge worth the trip? I cannot schedule a tour to get inside the stones and have read that site is overly commercialized. However, as a teacher of Brit lit I feel compelled to go take a look.

Could anyone comment on relative merits of Canterbury vs. Oxford/Blenheim?

Stonehenge is commercialised, by guided tour only, and it is fenced. So you can't get close, and you can't linger and contemplate. Nevertheless if you feel you should see it, then why not?
Personally, and especially if you're going to Bath, I'd call at Avebury on the way. Here you have extensive and dramatic standing stones covering a vaster area than Stonehenge, set around a tiny quaint village, all making for a delightful few hours' rambling and atmospheric introspection if that's what you're into.
I don't know Blenheim, and Canterbury vs. Oxford is a hard choice, but I'd probably opt for Oxford - or for that matter Cambridge. Whatever you choose it's sure to be good - but Avebury is better than good!

Stonehenge was certainly a major disappointment to us; for that matter, Bath was a minor one. If you do end up going there, try to get to either Salisbury or Wells (for the magnificent and non-disappointing cathedrals).

Oxford and/or Canterbury is very much worth it; Blenheim, so-so.

Kent is close to London and is rich in interest, Canterbury being one; Chartwell, Never and Leeds, Sissinghurst, Rye and the Cliffs of Dover are a few of some of the others.

It is easy for me to agree that Stonehenge is a disappointment considering that if I jumped in my car I could be there in 2 hours. However, it is amongst the most important ancient monument sites in the World and should be seen if in the vicinity. If you are going to Bath then I would make the detour and why not have some time in Salisbury also?
Canterbury has a very historic cathedral but if you've already been in London then go to Westminster Abbey and give Canterbury a miss.
Do go and have a look at Stonehenge - especially the first view from afar which can be breathtaking.
Oxford is also great - if hiring a car, use the park and rides as parking is a nightmare!!

Hever, not Never [sic]...

I strongly suggest skipping Stonehenge as well. I was one my biggest travel disappointments ever. Spend the extra time saved walking around exploring Bath, which deserves a full day trip at the least.

We found Stonehenge fascinating, but that was back in the days when it was possible to walk among the stones and be awed by their size and weight. Now...I don't know.

However, I would take Canterbury in a minute. The cathedral is very impressive, and if you know something of the history of the Henry II/Becket controversy you will be moved by viewing the spot where Becket was struck down by Henry's knights. Don't miss the chapel in the crypt.

Don't pass on Stonehenge! For me Stonehenge has been the highlight of four visits to England and it is not at all "disapointing" or "over commercialized", nor is it accessable "only by guided tour". You can drive there, take the bus, walk, bike, whatever on your own. Sure you have to pay to go inside the fence but come on, these historic sites have to be preserved and you can't do that on air. (If you have a Great British Heritage Pass, entry to Stonehenge is included.) Yes I do believe you have to use a guided tour to go in and touch the stones (before or afer regular visiting hours), but even if you go during regular hours, you are not really kept that far away - you can still see them well - and the barrier between the stone and the people is only a velvet rope like in a movie theater, so you have an unobstructed view and photo opportunity. This is to preserve the site and protect it from graffiti and souvenir hunters who have damaged the stones in the past. You don't have to touch the stones to be amazed by them (though I would like to do that perhaps on a fuutre visit, but you shouldn't let the fact that you can't work that special tour into your schedule keep you away.)

As for the "commercialization", there is one gift shop, snack bar and toilet across the street (not impeding your view or impression of the site) and no one holds a gun to your head to patronize them if you choose not to. Don't let others' negativity stop you from visiting this awesome ancient monument if you're at all interested! And as AR said, you can also easily visit Salisbury which is very near Stonhenge and has an amazing cathedral with one of the four surviving copies of the Magna Carta on display in the Chapter House.

Now I've read recently that there are possible plans in the works for expanding the visitors cwnter and/or putting the road nearby into an underground tunnel, but I don't know if these plans have been approved or finalized, and I'm pretty sure nothing has been started yet. I was there in 1999 and would love to go back someday. It's definitely worth the trip!

As for your other possible visits, Canterbury & Oxford/Blenheim - I've been to both and while they're both impressive, would rate Blenheim slightly above Canterbury. (Didn't see Oxford itself, just passed through on the way to Blenheim so I can't comment on that part.) B. Palace is on of the most opulent buildings I've ever seen (also birthplace of William Churchill) and the grounds are fabulous as well (you can visit the grounds/parkland for free, it only costs to go into the palace, and that also is on the GBHP.) However, since you said you were a teacher of Brit Lit, you might lean more towards Canterbury, what with Chaucer and all. I was particulary interested in seeing the site of Thomas Becket's murder, and when we were there it was just a couple days after Easter so the Easter displays were still up.

I'd hate to give up Canterbury for Oxford, and vice versa, especially if I were a teacher of British literature! Canterbury is a very pleasant town to spend an afternoon in. It gave me goosebumps (of the nicest kind)to walk in the same cathedral as did Chaucer and to see what he saw. Reading the Canterbury Tales was sheer torture as a high school student, but it paid back in spades by being in "the" Canterbury as an adult.

Oxford is a great college town! You could easily spend a day wandering around the colleges. Hertford College (my husband's alma mater) with its bridge is worth visiting, as is Radcliffe Camera, but then again, they're all different and beautiful. The Ashmolean Museum and Blackwell's Bookshop are also must-sees, and try to take a walk along the river. A day spent in Oxford will fly by!

I took all those day trips many years ago when I lived there. The one I still remember to this day and would like to repeat is Canterbury. Oxford would be second.

We were lucky enough--purely by chance--to be in Canterbury on the 700th anniversary of the martyrdom of St. Thomas Becket. The entire cathedral was decorated with flowers courtesy of the British Floral Association; the wall at the site of the martyrdom had a huge spray of red flowers cascading down. There was a specially commissioned performance of a choral setting of "Murder in the Cathedral" as well. What an experience!

<<We were lucky enough--purely by chance--to be in Canterbury on the 700th anniversary of the martyrdom of St. Thomas Becket.>> And still able to remember it 133 years later! Amazing ;-)

Truly amazing, isn't it? But then our families are all long-lived.

Congratulations to a history buff--glad to know another one. Can you give the month and date also?

Underhill:

Ron is probably just showing when he went to school.

1940s Monday-morning history test for second formers (12 yo): 'What was the date of Beckett's murder?'. Penalty for failure: six of the best.
1950s Ditto: Same question. Penalty for failure: write out one hundred times: 'Thomas a Beckett (and make sure you get the grave accent on the a) was murdered in Canterbury Cathedral on December 29 1170'
Early 1960s Ditto. 'Discuss the implications of Beckett's murder on Plantagenet foreign policy'. Penalty: hour's detention
1970s Sixth Form (18 yo) end-of-year exams. 'Discuss the implications of Beckett's murder on Plantagenet foreign policy'. Penalty: doing media studies at obscure polytechnic.
1980s ditto: 'A long time ago, Thomas a Beckett died. Discuss the implications for cathedral Health and Safety planning' Penalty: What a reactionary idea
1990s ditto: 'How would you have felt in Canterbury during the Blitz?'

In addition to my earlier plugs for Avebury (it really is more of an inter-active "experience" than the mere "gawk from afar" that Stonehenge offers) and Oxford and/or Cambridge (please don't underrate Cambridge), I also second the suggestion made several times in this thread to get to Salisbury if you can. And Wells. The list gets bigger, innit?

Have been to Canterbury and Bath. Personally, I like Canterbury better. Also appealing is Cambridge (I chose Cambridge over Oxford).

One suggestion is, since you are a Brit lit teacher, Stratford-upon-Avon, where William Shakespeare was born.

Thank you for the many suggestions. I think I should just extend my visit by 6 weeks. Posts have given me much to think about.

flanneruk,

Pretty good analysis! This puts me in the mood to watch "Becket" this week-end.

I just have to add my 2 pence ;-)
I also feel that Stonehenge is worth seeing. Since you have been warned about the commercialization, you will be prepared for neon signs and lots of shops -- which you won't see. It's true you can't wander around the stones like in the good ole days, but you will see their haunting majesty. I can't think that you won't like them.
I also am a major fan of Canterbury. I'm sure the fascination comes from my English lit major past. Walking up the well worn steps where millions of pilgrims have also walked was a huge thrill. And seeing the spot where Becket was murdered gave me goose bumps. The town of Canterbury is lovely, too. I preferred that city to Cambridge and Oxford.
But being an English lit teacher, you will visit Stratford, right?! Yes it's commercialized, but that's the birthplace and it's all still there. So do consider that if you can! I believe there are enough trains where you can make that a day trip, too. I honestly find all these places much more appealing than crowded, touristy London.

Unless something drastic has happened in the past 3 years since I visited, I'm baffled by accusations that Stonehenge is "commercialized." It stands alone on the plain; as mentioned above it's quite a striking sight from a distance. The 1500-acre site is owned by the National Trust, not known for using neon.

English Heritage has a small building/gift shop across the way, and a modest parking lot from which you enter a tunnel to go under the road to approach Stonehenge itself. The "fence" that surrounds it is quite a token thing, wouldn't keep a dog out of your yard, people talk like it's an 8-foot chain-link fence or something. There's nothing else in sight, absolutely nothing commercial at all. I was not aware that guided tours were required, though there is an attendant on hand at all times to maintain order and answer questions.

The much-touted Avebury, OTOH, has a pub in the center, other people clambering all over the stones, and actually is mostly a reconstruction (watch the movie about it in one of the two excellent associated museums).