Hi everyone:

I just found out I'm going to England next month for about a week. I lived in London but I never saw much of the countryside. This trip is purely for fun and to see things I haven't seen. Both myself and the person i'll be travelling with like horses so we'd like to stop in Newmarket (and probably see Cambridge seeing as it's close) but aside from that, we're in need of suggestions. I wouldn't mind seeing Bath again as I loved it but I was thinking maybe the cotswolds or??? We will be travelling without a car and we have about 7-9 days total. We both like the idea of "the real England" as far as little towns without a million tourists and a good English pub to meet locals and just enjoy the experience. Any help or ideas you could suggest on a route would be most appreciated.

Hello Reed

I think Suffolk may meet your specifications especially if you're wanting to watch horse racing at Newmarket. Lavenham would be a wonderful base and picture postcard villages such as Kersey are stunning. Then of course there is Constable country near Dedham and Flatford Mill. However be careful with opening hours of attractions. A lot of tourist and National Trust locations close down by the end of October.

The big advantage of Suffolk compared to the Cotswolds is very few non Brits ever get there!

On Newmarket race days the National Stud is also open for tours (it is a couple of miles from Newmarket) and is better than the races if you want to get up close and personal with the horses. Some of the top thoroughbreds in the world can be seen there and it's really interesting. It is open every day in the summer but just race days in October and November.
Look at http://www.nationalstud.org.uk

And I second Suffolk - great countryside, lots to see, far less touristy than the cotswolds.
If you are interested in antiques and junk shops go to Long Melford village (and I recommend lunch in the Swan pub). There are also two historical houses in the village: Melford Hall (NT) and Kentwell Hall (privately owned, may be open and if you are lucky you will coincide with one of their special events). The church is also worth a look.

Hi
I was born and bred in Suffolk, and would normally recommend it unreservedly - EXCEPT the original poster has said they are travelling without a car. Kersey probably gets a couple of buses a day! Maybe some people will say you can tour Suffolk on public transport but I beg to differ - you can't, not successfully.

To follow up on Morgana's info -- the Cotswolds are not well serverd by train either. VERY few places even have stations.

Is there a particular reason you won't be driving? If you did rent a car, w/ a week+ you'd have enough time to visit Newmarket/Suffolk, the Cotswolds and Bath w/o rushing. But by train/bus you will be at the mercy of the limited services in the areas you want to see.

If you can't drive - then consider maybe going to Newmarket, Cambridge and then up to York. York is very well served by train and you could take local buses to nearby villages/sites.

I would also recommend Suffolk, but you would certainly need a car.
I'm very fond of Southwold, but it has no train service. It's a charming little seaside town with two good sources of food, The Swan and the Crown.

I have stayed in a very nice reasonably priced little hotel in Saxmundham, The Bell.
It's run by an Anglo/French couple and the food is beginning to get a national reputation.

You can see a few photos of Suffolk at
http://sylvia.photoblog.me.uk/c450498.html
They are mostly of Hadleigh, another nice little town. There is a bus service there from Ipswich.

I'll also join the chorus about Suffolk and East Anglia. I think you could find a small market town like Hadleigh where you could base yourselves, then take buses to smaller villages for outings. Most have several buses a day and it would be a good way to see the countryside while you're at it.

My other thought was Hereford and Herefordshire. It's around 3 hours by train from London, so not as close as Cambridge/Suffolk, but there are numerous wonderful small towns in the area (Ross on Wye, Hay on Wye, Leominster) that could easily gobble up a couple of rewarding days, again, using local bus services. Hereford itself is quite pleasant, with a gorgeous small cathedral.

In November I don't think you're going to have much of a problem anywhere with excess tourists. Excess blah weather maybe.

Thanks Morgana for noticing the no car issue. Got to say this is a constant problem for tourists who want to see the best of rural England but don't want to get behind the wheel of a car. Trains will always go to towns or cities!! Also local bus services in the countryside are usually eccentric at best (1 bus a day and then you have to wait until the next day to get the bus back)

Agree with Janis that Bath and York would be the best bet.

There used to be a saying that East Anglia was cut of on 3 sides by the sea and the fourth by British Rail. There are some pretty villages but it's not the best place without transport.

My sister lives in Suffolk, she used to have a bus that regularly stopped by her house - twice a week!

I wonder about Dorset and not far from London.
It's a beautiful county.
You could possibly base yourselves in Dorcester http://www.visit-dorchester.co.uk/
and see if there are local buses to take you out to some of the villages.

Reed181, I hope you do get to Newmarket for a chance to see the gee-gees. Beside Cambridge, other towns available by rail include Ely and Bury St Edmunds. Another treat in the area is the Duxford Air Museum available by a free bus from Cambridge.

A little further NE is Norwich. We visited in Nov 2004 on a daytrip from London and were disappointed not to have more time.

Though we've never visited, Ipswich and Colchester are on our spots to visit. I would suspect some of the seaside towns could be interesting and November would hardly find milling crowds of tourists.

Hi everyone! Boy this forum is so very helpful! I should have known. Last year I needed help with Italy and I had a wonderful trip thanks to this forum.

Okay, back to the issue at hand. Well, first I will address the driving issue. I just can't do it. Call me irrational but it scares me enough on our roads here but when you add driving on the wrong side of the road...well, I would need to be drugged and then I couldn't drive anyway! HA. Ditto my friend. So trains/busses it is.

On the issue of Suffolk: All very good suggestions! Very good! The only problem is that Suffolk I have seen! Terribly sorry for not mentioning that I had a little trip there two years ago (based in Ipswich and I highly recommend the whole area). I had never gone when I lived in London... This was long after I moved back to the states. Anyway, the reason I had mentioned the cotswolds and Bath is because I definitely have spent less time in that area. I have NOT been to York so that is a definite maybe. It's very difficult to decide what to do on such a short trip as you all know!

I did find a tour in Newmarket for the day we're there but when I contacted the National Stud, I was told nothing was going on there horse racing-wise... They did suggest the tour though...a tour run by a company named Hoofbeats and we will get to see two stud farms this way. But after Newmarket, we still have all those days to fill. So I guess back to the drawing board. I do thank you all for your kindness.

Reed181

When we moved to the USA it worried me to drive here. Especially once I heard in th MA that Learner Drivers don't use a 'L' Plate like they do in the US. Do they in other States? How do you know which drivers to give a wide berth too? Perhaps I'll ask this on the US Forum

My mother has never driven but lives in an area with good transport and to be honest, she's never at home

If you want to visit Britain and not drive you need to visit large towns but unfortunately that means other tourists. The only way to get off the beaten track is to drive, Sorry! but it's the same in the US

BTW most places have a 'good English pub'- just buy the recent copy of "The Good Pub Guide" and if you have more than one to chose from (you'll be suprised how often this happens) check out the one with the most cars in the carpark

I lived in Norwich for a few months and really loved the city. Nice medieval central area, and the cathedral is beautiful. Go to vespers; they do it by candlelight. Also known for its medieval mystic (Julien of Norwich). I also loved the river walk. Castle was okay, but but not on par with Nottingham or Lincoln.

The saying goes that Norwich has a church for every week of the year and a pub for every night of the year. Buy some Coleman's mustard and some lavender. To answer your post, I would say there was something genuine about Norwich; at the time I was there, the outdoor market was for ordinary people to buy groceries or replace a pot.

However, other posters are right about trains not being always convenient to smaller towns.

It is reasonable to go to Cambridge and Norwich by train. Then I think you take a train from Norwich to Petersborough, and switch to the fast train north to York if you have not seen it. Otherwise, I think there is a different train route for Nottingham and/or Lincoln.

I did not go to York and regret it; however, Lincoln is also really beautiful, both the cathedral and the castle, and the section of town going up the hill to the castle.

If you DO get to newmarket make sure you have a meal at a little pub called "The Star" in a little village called Lidgate.

http://www.multimap.com/map/browse.c...5&out.y=11

Just found this reply box..... but have started a separate thread for you!

http://www.fodors.com/forums/postrep...p;tid=34696536

Should read "driving on the other side is much more scary in anticipation than reality".

Also if it's horseracing you want, there will be several other racecourses holding meetings around the country.


November 2005
1st CATTERICK BRIDGE Exeter Worcester .
2nd Chepstow Kempton Park NOTTINGHAM .
3rd Haydock Park MUSSELBURGH Towcester .
4th Fontwell Park Hexham YARMOUTH .
5th DONCASTER Kelso Sandown Park SOUTHWELL (AW) Wincanton WOLVERHAMPTON (AW) (EVE) .
6th Ayr Hereford Market Rasen .
7th Carlisle Stratford-On-Avon WOLVERHAMPTON (AW).
8th Huntingdon Sedgefield SOUTHWELL (AW).
9th Bangor-On-Dee Lingfield Park WOLVERHAMPTON (AW) .
10th LINGFIELD PARK (AW) Ludlow Taunton.
11th Cheltenham Newcastle WOLVERHAMPTON (AW).
12th Cheltenham LINGFIELD PARK (AW) SOUTHWELL (AW) Wetherby WOLVERHAMPTON (AW) (EVE) Uttoxeter.
13th Carlisle Cheltenham Fontwell Park.
14th Folkestone Leicester WOLVERHAMPTON (AW).
15th Fakenham LINGFIELD PARK (AW) SOUTHWELL (AW).
16th Hexham Kempton Park SOUTHWELL (AW).
17th Hereford Market Rasen Wincanton.
18th Exeter Kelso Windsor.
19th Haydock Park Huntingdon LINGFIELD PARK (AW) SOUTHWELL (AW) Windsor WOLVERHAMPTON (AW) (EVE).
20th Aintree Plumpton Towcester.
21st LINGFIELD PARK (AW) Ludlow SOUTHWELL (AW).
22nd Sedgefield SOUTHWELL (AW) Warwick.
23rd Chepstow Lingfield Park Wetherby.
24th Carlisle Taunton Uttoxeter.
25th Musselburgh Newbury WOLVERHAMPTON (AW).
26th LINGFIELD PARK (AW) Newbury Newcastle WOLVERHAMPTON (AW) (EVE) Towcester .
27th Doncaster Leicester Newbury.
28th Folkestone SOUTHWELL (AW) WOLVERHAMPTON (AW).
29th Hereford LINGFIELD PARK (AW) SOUTHWELL (AW).
30th Catterick Bridge Plumpton WOLVERHAMPTON (AW).


Lots of choice as far as going to the races!!