We will be landing at Heathrow at six am and will be heading for So.Wales. We don't want to do too much driving the first day and would like recommendations on a nice town to spend the first night. We will be spending our final night in Windsor so would like something a little further out...maybe Bath... or are we apt to hit heavy traffic getting into the city? Any advise would be appreciated.

I would strongly recommend you not drive much, if at all, on your first day. And you definitely don't want to be driving in Bath -- when most locals go to Bath for shopping and such they use the out of town park-and-ride lots and take buses into the city since the driving/parking is difficult.

Windsor is the best option - but if you don't want to stay there here are a couple of places to check out

http://www.britainsfinest.co.uk/beda...f/70001330FISA in Mildenhal just outside of Marlborough -- a really lovely B&B w/ the river and swans at the bottom of the garden.

or http://www.raycornerguesthouse.co.uk/ - a B&B on Maidenhead.

Hi K,

I limit my jet-lagged driving to under 3 hr.

IMO when jet lagged, and driving on left side of the road (even if you have done it a time or two) three hours is about 2.25 hours too much. No driving is better, but 30 - 45 minutes should be about it.

The problem is, one might be well rested and feel fine, or a total zombie - but would not know one way or the other until sitting behind the wheel of the car.

Plan for the worst sleep-wise and just enjoy a leisurely day if you luck out.

After our last jet-lagged driving experience - Glasgow airport to Edinburgh, my husband simply refuses (and rightly so) to drive in a zombie-like state. We have booked a B&B near the airport (in our case Manchester) and intend to do NOTHING that first day. I strongly urge you to consider the same. Some unfortunate small traffic pylons near Edinburgh wish we had done that on our last trip.

I would never drive while jet-lagged, especially if as an American driving in England! Perhaps you are well-rested after having a solid sleep on the airplane, but I never am.

I had an accident while in England in 2001, which was caused by a combination of my being tired (it was at the end of the day) and being unused to driving on the "wrong" side of the road. I became confused while trying to enter a dual carriageway, and there was this big ole dumptruck...

Oops! Delete that "if" in the first line.

janisj,
Thanks for the info on the B&Bs. You have convinced me not to try to drive into Bath. We may reconsider and stay in Windsor the first day....do you have any recommendations on B&Bs there. Thanks you.

What sort of budget?

But here is one just to get you started looking . . http://www.langtonhouse.co.uk/index.php

janisj,

I don't really have a budget but I am also not a big spender for just an overnight stay. The last time we traveled in England (8 years ago) we stayed in nice B&Bs in the $60. to $80. range.....but with the weak dollar that may be impossible?? I notice the price on the Langton House would be about $170....if I read it right. I hoping we find nice places for less than that. We took two trips last year...one to Croatia and one to Turkey and were able to find nice places in the $75. to 125. range...even in Istanbul and Dubrovnick.

OK - I do have to ask - what hotels/B&Bs in the States have close to the same rates they had 8 years ago?? Just normal inflation w/o even considering the exchange rates. You are not going to find many (any) decent B&Bs for £15 - £20 pp.

Count on about £25 to £35 and up pp for nice B&Bs in places like Windsor/Bath. But in small villages out in the countryside you can still sometimes find B&Bs in the £40-£50 double range.

No, I didn't expect to find any that would be the same price as 8 years ago.....I was just wondering if you could find them in the $75. to $125. range.....and I guess from what you say, I will be able to....Thanks for your help.

Is that budget per person or per room?

You can just about find decent B&Bs in the upper end of that range for a double room if you hunt around a bit. Anything towards the lower end will have a good reason for being so 'budget', for example, shared bathroom.

Thanks for your help....I think I know now what to expect.

A nice town we've used for a similar purpose is Henley-on-Thames.

It's less than an hour from Heathrow...