Hi All. My wife and I are planning to go to the UK in either June or September, 2020, and we've roughed out this itinerary:

London - 5 days
York - 2 days
Edinburgh - 4 days
West Country - 5 days
(to include the Cotswalds, Oxford, Bath, Glastonbury, and Salisbury by car)

We're experienced travelers and have been to the UK before. We're flexible and can add days to the trip if we want. But could y'all help with a few questions?

1. With Oxford in our plans would it be worthwhile to also stop over in Cambridge? We could do it on the way to York or as a day trip from London.
2. We plan to go from Edinburgh to the West Country by train. Does a stop over in the Lake Country make sense? If so, which town? (The train connection and we're hikers.)
3. Coming from Edinburgh by train, is Bath a good town to pick as our base in the West Country? Swindon looks more central but I don't know anything about it.

We'll appreciate any and all advice! Thanks.

Bath is nicer than Swindon, I would prefer to hike in the Cotswolds and might stay here rather than Bath. Swindon is more industrial and the roads just seem to go on and on.

Oxford is a better visit than Cambridge, but Cambridge is a good visit. A car in Oxford is a pain. They have a Park- and- Ride system there, I would use it.


The Lake District really needs a commitment of time. I would not include it on this trip

Hi,

1) Cambridge is absolutely worth it.

2) I don't see how would you have the time for that? Can you add more days? If not, than it has to be either the West Country or the Lake District.

3) Swindon is ghastly. Bath is a nice base, but I'm not sure if you can rent a car there, it's quite a small city and has no airport. Perhaps just take the direct train from Edinburgh to Bristol and rent a car there, than stay in Bath. Oxford may be better done as a daytrip from London.

Yes you can rent a car in Bath

In June I would probably start in the south and work north; the opposite if you're traveling in September.

IMO Cambridge is a fine day trip from London, more of a (routing) nuisance if grafted onto a train ride to York.

I guess my questions surround what you plan to do with your days in London, Edinburgh and the "West Country." If you like hiking, instead of a stop in the Lake District (again,same issues with train access - the area is well off the main lines) why not spend a day or two in some Highland location reachable from Edinburgh? And the "West Country" is a big and very diverse area (and definitions vary as to what that means.) Bath could be a good central location, but not particularly if you plan a car-based touring plan. It comes down to your touring priorities - villages? Hill or moorland walks? Cathedrals or ancient sites?

It's not our job to be critical of your choices (remember it's your trip, not ours) but I wonder if you've looked at other rural regions that might be more "geographically" compatible with your plans than the West Country. ("Compatible" in this case meaning a bit more conveniently located in terms of the rest of the trip.) For example, East Anglia offers marvelous villages and touring potential, not dissimilar to the West Country, but easily included with an east coast-based plan that includes Cambridge. With a car between Cambridge and York, you could include cathedral cities like Lincoln or Ely, the marvelous Suffolk villages, etc. Or with a car between York and Edinburgh, you could travel by way of Durham with its incredible cathedral, or the Northumberland coast with its fishing villages, castles, sites like the Holy Island, etc. Note that one-way car hire is not especially more expensive than if you return the vehicle where you got it.

Just some ideas, anyway.

"you like hiking, instead of a stop in the Lake District (again,same issues with train access - the area is well off the main lines)"

The Lake District is in fact not well off the main lines. Penrith is on the West Coast Main Line and a transport hub for coaches into the Lake District, to villages like Keswick and Ullswater which give you access to some of the best fells of the Lake District.

"For example, East Anglia offers marvelous villages and touring potential, not dissimilar to the West Country"

It's a beautiful region, but its flat landscape is quite dissimilar to the rolling hills of the West Country.

"With a car between Cambridge and York, you could include cathedral cities like Lincoln or Ely, the marvelous Suffolk villages, etc. Or with a car between York and Edinburgh, you could travel by way of Durham with its incredible cathedral,"

You can of course easily travel to these places by train if you don't wish to drive. Suffolk villages are more tricky, but there is no need to drive to Ely, Lincoln or Durham.

These comments are great. Very helpful, thank you!

I think I'd like to stay in Bath. It has good rail connections and it's central to the places we want to visit. (By car. We'll probably rent a local car in Bath.). By the way, the reason we're including the "West Country" is that I had a year of school near Glastonbury and want to stop in there. So it looks like we'll add a hiking day out of Edinburgh and / or the Cotswolds, and look at the Lake Country through the train window.

Anybody know if you can take a train from Bath directly to LHR without going into London - Paddinton or Waterloo stations?

And what is it with train ticket pricing in the UK? The price of a single ticket between London and Bath showed at anywhere from GBP 18 to GBP 159. What kind of a system is that? We got back from Switzerland recently and the trains there were so easy to use!

"Anybody know if you can take a train from Bath directly to LHR without going into London - Paddinton or Waterloo stations?"

Directly from Bath to LHR, no.

Without going into London is possible, by changing trains in "Reading" and "Hayes and Harlington".(Just don't try that in rush hours with lots of luggage!)

"And what is it with train ticket pricing in the UK? The price of a single ticket between London and Bath showed at anywhere from GBP 18 to GBP 159. What kind of a system is that? We got back from Switzerland recently and the trains there were so easy to use!"

Oh dear! Switzerland is railway heaven. Britain has quite a good railway(despite what the locals tell you), but it ain't Switzerland.

UK train system explained: https://www.seat61.com/UK-train-travel.htm

We took the train from London to Edinburgh, and I enjoyed seeing it, but I have to say that 4 days is probably more than you need there. Love Bath- we went to Avebury, which is a smaller version of Stonehenge, less visited, and therefore less roped off. I spent several days in Oxford when my daughter was working there and loved it. We did a van tour of the Cotswalds from there. We got to see an outdoor performance of Shakespeare in one of the Oxford courtyards- a great experience!

UK train prices are time variable, like airlines. Read seat61.com to get the best deals.

[QUOTE=BDKR;17026156]"Anybody know if you can take a train from Bath directly to LHR without going into London - Paddinton or Waterloo stations?"

Directly from Bath to LHR, no.

Without going into London is possible, by changing trains in "Reading" and "Hayes and Harlington".(Just don't try that in rush hours with lots of luggage!)

"And what is it with train ticket pricing in the UK? The price of a single ticket between London and Bath showed at anywhere from GBP 18 to GBP 159. What kind of a system is that? We got back from Switzerland recently and the trains there were so easy to use!"

Oh dear! Switzerland is railway heaven. Britain has quite a good railway(despite what the locals tell you), but it ain't Switzerland.

UK train system explained: (see above) /QUOTE]
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I was just reading that you can take the bus between LHR and Bath. It's a few minutes longer than the train, and lots cheaper.

Since I can't post a website, check out rome2rio . com / map / London-Heathrow-Airport-LHR / Bath
Cost is $8.00 - $11.00 US for a 1 way ticket.

Don't leave any spaces when copy/pasting.

Hope that works.

I figured as much; but for people doing research for their upcoming trip (raises hand), the information may be useful. The fare that I quoted was from the rome2rio website. I just clicked through and checked LHR / Bath, and found fares as low as $18.31 US for April 2020.

It's with National Express. According to the schedule, the bus runs approximately every 2 hours on the date mentioned above.
A wise traveler will plan accordingly for bus departure times. Flying and arriving on time is always a gamble. I just checked the cost for Sunday 29/12 or 12/29 at 0750. It's $37.93 US to take the bus. Booking in advance is $18.31.

Last minute train will cost you $78.95 US.

It's up to the traveler to make the ultimate decision.

Dan

Please think in terms of £ not $. But yes, as I suggested way up thread, 3+ weeks ago, the coach is a better option than the train. It is cheaper and a lot more convenient.