hi everyone,

I'm planning my first trip to the UK and I'm afraid that I might be trying to see too much. Please let me know what you think, or if there is anything I should cut out. (I will probably be taking public tranportation)

Day 1 - fly into Heathrow, train to Edinburgh
3 days - Edinburgh, (my brother is getting married here evening train to York
2 days - York, one spent at Reivaulx or Fountain's Abbey
Day 7 - train thru London to Bath
Day 8 - to Salisbury, Avebury and Stonehenge
Day 9 - from Bath, bus to Glastonbury and Wells
Day 10 - to Cornwall
2 days - Cornwall, night train to London
(my original itinerary had 3 days in Cornwall but I thought it would be too difficult to get to Bath and see Glastonbury in one day.)
Day 13 - London
Day 14 - to Paris
2 days - Paris
Day 17 - return to London
Day 18 - London,fly home

Thanks!!!
Erin

I think it might be too much. Do you have a special reason for wanting to see all of the places you plan for England? Have you been to Paris before? If this is your first trip to these places, you might think about flying into Edinburgh, taking the train to London and spending 5 days with a day trip to one of the places you really want to see then going to Paris for 5 days and flying home from there. One full day in London and one full day in Paris isn't enough if you have never been there. An open jaw flight into Edinburgh and out of Paris will save you time and travel.

It's obviously a deliberate decision on your part to spend next to no time in London.

And you know what? That's perfectly alright. There is no law that requires visitors to spend time in London. You've got the rest of your life to catch up on the world's greatest city. It's always possible to manage a London weekend, or a few days there while travelling: getting to see the monuments of SW England is always going to require more time.

What's more, you obviously have an interest in our abbeys and pre-Christian (indeed, at Glastonbury, our extraordinary post-Christian) religious remains.

The real weakness in this, I'd say, is days 8+9. Unless you know of a tour company that does this, doing these places by public transport, especially using Bath as a base, is close to impossible in two days - and I wouldn't take any out. You need either more time or a car.

If the religious-mystic sites are important to you, I'd work through the time needed to do days 7+8 first, looking hard at the bus timetables on www.carlberry.co.uk and (more reliable)at the timtable links at individual places' websites. Then decide whether you need more time for this bit, and think hard about whether you really can fit Cornwall in, or whether you need a car.

If you stick to your approximate plans, be sure to stock up in Glastonbury on the literature about the Christ and Joseph of Arimathea legends (and go to Priddy). Then try to follow the sites around Falmouth which have similar legends. What does lie behind this very odd tradition?

Have a great time.

Both London and Paris have so much to offer that I'm afraid you'll become terribly frustrated with the short amount of time you've allowed yourself in these cities. I'd suggest spending Days 13-18 in London and saving Paris for another trip.

thanks for the replies!

I would like to spend more time in London but it's so hard to give anything up!

It seems like I might be overestimating the public trans. Is it possible to do a day trip to Avebury from Salisbury without a car and have enough to time to enjoy it? I hate driving at home so I'd prefer to avoid renting a car.