mike_b12

Here is the plan;
Edinburgh
WEDS; Day 1; Arrive late afternoon on Weds early Nov; get settled in hotel; walk around Princess St
THURS;Day 2; Walking Tour - Edinburgh Free Tour.com; Ghost Tour? Royal Mile walk on our own; Edinburgh Castle (&) Holyrood Palace; Pubs? Live Music?
FRI; Day 3; Day trip to St. Andrews or should we go to Stirling Castle instead?
SAT; Day 4; Day trip to Glasgow; Pubs? Live Music?
SUN; Day 5 Open Air Market - Edinburgh; Royal Ship - High Tea?
MON; Day 6; Travel to London by Train; Arrive late afternoon London
TUES; Day 7; London walking tour & Jack the Ripper Tour; Either Hyde Park or Harrods or clubs?
WEDS; Day 8; Piccadilly Circus; Westminster Abbey; Buckingham Palace; Borough Market
THURS; Day 9; Day trip to Salisbury/Stonehenge
FRI; Day 10; High Tea; Museum? Tate Modern? War Rooms (Churchill?)
SAT: Day 11; travel day

LONDON: Would like to see serpentine swimmers and speakers corner in action at Hyde Park.
BOTH LONDON AND SCOTLAND: Would like to experience some good pubs with free live music;Any suggestions on good Haggis or Indian Food restaurants would be appreciated
SCOTLAND: Stirling Castle
Any other suggestions would be sincerely appreciated. Thank you.

janisj

Some random comments:

>>Would like to see serpentine swimmers<<

. . . In November??

>>FRI; Day 3; Day trip to St. Andrews or should we go to Stirling Castle instead?<<

Only you can decide. Both are 'worth' it. Stirling is the bit easier day trip - 50 min train ride. St Andrews is about an hour train to Leuchars then a bus or taxi the 7-ish miles to St Andrews.

Your London Days are very light and omit most of the biggies and things seems sort of scatter shot all over the city. For instance Day 8: Picadilly Circus is really just an intersection with a small statue in the middle. You certainly don't need to 'schedule' it because it is sort of juts in the center of things. Buckingham Palace is a five minute 'walk-by'. Westminster Abbey is near the palace -- but on the opposite side of the city from Borough Market. Then Day 10 you have the War rooms which are very near the Palace and Abbey, AND Tate Modern which id very near Borough Market.

For both Scotland and London -- you don't want 'High Tea' - that is a different animal. What you are looking for is Afternoon Tea.

I'd dump the Ripper walk. And where are major sites like the Tower of London, or St Paul's or the British Museum, or the V&A or a slew of others?

donnae_b

Afternoon tea it is! Thank you.

LONDON
serpentine swimmers - I emailed group, I am not sure if they swim in November - haven’t received a response yet. I read about this activity in a book.

We visited the big sites in London once about 12 years ago and were thinking that we should try something different. Do you disagree?

We are are hoping for suggestions that will optimize our time in both Scotland and London.

For instance, we never went to the War Rooms. Are they worth the time?

Thank you for the reminder to get activities organized by location so we are not running all over the place.

janisj

OK -- a bit confused are donna_b and the OP the same person? Or are you are a couple both posting about the same trip?

>>We visited the big sites in London once about 12 years ago and were thinking that we should try something different. Do you disagree?<<

Not at all -- but there are a heck of a lot of other activities/sites. To help us help you, which 'biggies' did you visit last time?

>>For instance, we never went to the War Rooms. Are they worth the time?<<

Definitely -- plan on a minimum of 2 hours. More if you are really into WWII history.

PalenQ

Book Edinburgh to London trains at National Rail Enquiries - Official source for UK train times and timetables - early for serious discounts over full fare and discounted 1st class tickets at times can be not much more than remaining discounted 2nd class tickets and if not much go for first - way nicer roomier seats and usually complimentary food and drink the whole way. www.seat61.com has loads on booking own tickets. There is also an overnight Caledonian Sleeper Train most nights - Google Caledonian Sleeper for details. Consider stopping off at York for a few hours or a few days en route to London - one of nicest cities in Britain.

donnae_b

Hi JanisJ, Mike_b and I are married planning the same trip. We appreciate your help, thank you!

Here are places we have seen in London; Tower of London
St Pauls Cathedral
Buckingham Palace
Harrods (including basement memorial)
10 Downing St walk by
Tower Bridge
Westminster Abbey
St Martin In The Field
Kensington Palace
Abbey Road
Bill Wymans Cafe (sticky fingers)
Windsor Castle

Warwick Castle
Liverpool

Paleq-thank you for the York and 1st Class suggestions - we will look into it.

historytraveler

You cannot just get off the train at York for a few hours and then head to Edinburgh on the same ticket. You would need two seperate tickets...one London to York and one York to Edinburgh. An any time ticket might allow you to do this, but these are the most expensive tickets available.

janisj

On your list I don't see (among others): The Tower, British Museum, V&A, National or National Portrait, either Tate, Imperial War Museum, British Library, theatre, Hampton Court, Greenwich, the Eye, a tour of Parliament, the Globe, Museum of London, or any of the many other great smaller museums/galleries.

And definitely note what historytraveler posted: You can't book London to Edinburgh and get off in York. It would require two separate tickets.

PalenQ

Yes stopping in York will cost more train-wise but if get deep discounted tickets maybe not that much. Anyway a few days in York lets you see something in England besides London.

donnae_b

All suggestions are welcomed and appreciated - thank you

janisj

OOPS -- I do see you mentioned the Tower (I only saw Tower Bridge in my first read through)

donnae_b

We have opted for Stirling Castle instead of St Andrew.
We enjoy outdoor markets, live music, local food, active lively atmosphere. Do you have a suggested activity? Thank you,