PalenQ

Nope -- all. No one knows what the flight will be like so prebooking a car and accommodations based on 'maybe' getting a little sleep is silly IMO/IME.>

Your way or the highway -no pun intended - some folks can get no sleep and be careful drivers IME - it is IMO and others like dwdvagamundo not always a problem.

I've always after an all-night flight with little sleep felt wide awake the first day - each person is different - caution yes but other folks know their bodies better than you.

For one thing you are driving an hour in dwd's case on motorways- you have someone with you -you binge on coffee at Gatwick - no problem IMO- or much much overblown - a Cassandra IMO.

What's good for the goose is not always what's good for everyone.

historytraveler

There are always those who will swear they don't have a problem with jet lag but there are. couple of problems with that. Just because one doesn't feel tired or have symptoms doesn't mean that their facilities are not impaired. Jet lag is similar to having one drink and thinking you're fine, yet studies have shown that one drink does cause a slower reaction time. So just because one feels fine doesn't mean that they are. Toss in driving on the opposite side of the road in addition to a number of other differences and the possibility of having or causing an accident increase significantly.

PalenQ

but do realize the Brits treat driving while impaired by other factors such as lack of sleep as they would drunk driving.>

No I did not -anything to support that?

If I take a Benadryl can I get a drunk driving ticket?

Let's quit blowing this way out of proportion - are there roadside checks for sleepiness?

Yes one drink makes reaction times a tad slower than usual but does not in most folks cause what would be called impairment. Again lots of meds cause drowsiness in some - very few folks would be driving in UK it sounds like legally. Some of my meds I've taken for years for BP have warnings on them -should I and zillions like me not be allowed to drive?

And if you get sleepy on the short drive just pull over.

Lots of folks have occasional sleep deprivation -guess they should never rent a car in case they have such a bout?

giro

Premier Inns always seem like a good economical hotel option. Clean, comfortable and you know what you will get ahead of time.

Hate to throw my two cents in the driving spat, but after an overnighter I drove a relatively short distance from Shannon airport to Ennis; no problems with tiredness.

ClaSP7

Oh dear! Didn't mean to cause a row (have to practice my British).
I am the OP. I asked my husband, who would be the actual person driving from Gatwick after the 10 hour flight, and he said no, thank you. We are 60, not 25, and we need to leave ourselves some time to adjust. So we will take a train from Gatwick to somewhere close by. Thank you to everyone who made a suggestion!
An important fact that I forgot to mention is that he is not a good walker--has a bum knee. So that's why I like the car for any travel that's remotely villagey.
We have already ditched the Paris idea, too. Great minds...
Now I am investigating which small town near London, that we could train to, has a Hertz rental car branch. I think there is one in Winchester. I choose Hertz only because of the familiarity of the name! We will probably train to Winchester or Salisbury or another smaller place and stay overnight before picking up a car. Then visits to Bath, Cotswolds, Stonehenge and other similar. I can fill this in later once I get the big picture. Then the week in London with maybe a day trip or two if we feel so inclined. But there's so much to do in London alone! Wish we had more time. I appreciate the suggestions about training north, and I will file them away for our next trip. We just need to keep it simple and easy this time.
Thanks a million, everyone who replied!

thursdaysd

If he has a bum knee, sounds like you need to be sure to get an automatic.

Don't discount National Express in favor of the train. A direct coach may well be more convenient, and Southern Railways has been plagued by strike action.

ClaSP7

Thanks, Thursdaysd. The automatics seem to be bigger, and many posters say to be sure to get a small car for the narrow streets. He can drive a manual, though he's a little rusty, so we thought we would be okay on smaller roads...plus the smaller cars get great mileage. Also, he can walk about a quarter mile before he starts to regret it ;-).
National Express and the National Rail both seem unusually expensive. I see that the cheaper Advance fares on the National Rail are released just 12 weeks out. So far I've seen fares of 47-60GBP one way to Westminster. Is that normal? It seems out of line with the price to rent a car--$135 a week? Maybe that's why people are picking up the car at Gatwick and driving straight after the flight? If we had an automatic and a simple route out of the city, we could probably handle the driving. At least the signage is in English, right?
I thought I had a plan, but the logistics and my lack of familiarity are defeating me. I wish I could move on from this point to the stage of thinking about the fun stuff!
I guess I need to do some research.
"Simple and easy"--lol!

thursdaysd

National Express tickets are about a third the price if bought ahead of time. I bought a senior rail card last year which got me good discounts but you have to do a lot of travel to make it worthwhile.

Why Westminster? I thought you were starting somewhere like Oxford or Salisbury.

Last time I tried to drive srick the gear box complained and my knee complained. If he drives stick at home he should be OK.

bilboburgler

Don't panic.

First you are right the signs are in English and they point towards the nearest town or city. If you get GPS then you can more or less trust to that, but you will find the motorways the fastest with roads getting slower as you get off the M, onto the A and finally the B roads. The M25 (the ring motorway around London can be especially frustrating at times.

Road maps are sold at all good service stations and are very cheap, but either your phone (use "here" app) or the car's GPS will sort you out.

Now the Uk has a density of about 256 people per km2, while the USA has about 32 people per km2. The density is especially high in the south of England so you will find traffic tight, the roads are relatively narrow and often fast with speed limits at 70 mph rather than 50 or 55 on the motorways. Don't panic, you just need to be awake, I find having two people awake is best (one giving advice!) this advice can include giving "road position" and looking out for signs. Once you get the hang of it you'll be fine but the first time and each time after you get back into the car remember "Drive on the Left", I've had to do it the other way and I promise you it helps.

public transport (ie buses, trains and trams) can all be accessed from http://www.traveline.info/
National Express from http://www.nationalexpress.com/home.aspx

To Salisbury (as an example) I think the train will take about 2 and 1/2 hours and the coach about 4 hours. Prices are time dependant so if you are ordering for 6 months time the price will be low, but for today will be high. You pick the tickets up at the rail station by sticking your credit card in the machine. Not sure how you pick up coach tickets, but the website will explain.

Hertz. The issue with using a named brand is you don't know who owns it in the UK (it could be Hertz). We tend to use Autoeurope as they broker the deal for you and solve all the BS. They will advise which company they are offering and the deal is normally easier for you.

For driving around planning use http://www.theaa.com/route-planner/index.jsp I guess some of this will have been covered above but don't panic.

Finally if you need more advice on the rail system start with seat61.com

bilboburgler

Roundabouts, if you live in the sort of place where such things are an invention somewhere in your future they can be a bit daunting. You might find this helpful https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Diu1k_5H45k

thursdaysd

If I were going west from Gatwick I would head for Oxford by coach - direct, 29 GBP. Salisbury and Winchester both require a change whether by train or coach, and although the train is faster the first leg is on Southern, which I would avoid if at all possible.

It is surprising that despite the population density in the UK, there are still plenty of areas quite lightly settled.

ClaSP7

So, I am the OP and I thought I would report back to tell everyone who so kindly chimed in with great ideas what we finally settled on. The more we talked about driving, the less my husband wanted to commit to it. He doesn't normally drive a stick at home. The last time we had a stick shift car was in our early twenties, and though he is/was an excellent driver, he didn't remember it fondly. So I decided we would take the train to Salisbury, though I realize it requires a transfer and may be more expensive than I expected. I know York would be lovely, but it will have to wait till next trip. I have a place in Salisbury for 5 nights that is pretty inexpensive (airbnb) and close to both downtown and the train station, which is where the car rental place is. So this way we can play the car by ear, at least for a little while longer. I'd love to drive up through the Cotswolds and drive to Stonehenge and maybe Bath (though Bath will be having a music festival which is supposed to get crowded) and Dorchester and the New Forest and Winchester. There seems to be enough to see in the area...and five days gives us plenty of time to catch our breath and enjoy it at our leisure. If we need to, we can take public transport to some of those places. On the other hand, if we are driving and we absolutely must sleep someplace else, like staying over in the Cotswolds, then we'll just go ahead and stay, knowing we can come back to our Salisbury place the next day. Wasteful, but saves some planning stress. Then I have reserved another airbnb in London for 5/28-6/4, and we fly back to CA on 6/4. I will fill in the details of transport and sights and online tickets a little later, since I am falling behind on other responsibilities in my life right now! I want to thank everyone again from the bottom of my exhausted heart. Now I'm moving on to figuring out the cellphone and credit card things, making sure our insurance covers us over there, and maybe even planning some of the fun stuff!
You guys are awesome!

SKCStu

It sounds like you have a good plan. Please don't worry about the Bath festival making the city more crowded. It is quite a laid back classical music festival and is venue based. There aren't generally more than two performances a day and they are very low key. You really wouldn't notice any significant crowds.

hope you enjoy your trip.

thursdaysd

Thanks for reporting back. I have a month-by-month deal with T-Mobile, which gets me unlimited low speed data and texts and cheap calls in the UK, but you may be better off buying a SIM on arrival. Look on the Travel Tips board for some threads on this. Plenty of credit card threads on the Europe board....

janisj

SKCStu is right - Bath won't be a problem at all. If you drive over you can use the park&ride lot and take a bus into the center, but Bath is also an easy train journey from Salisbury.

If you do get a car be sure to visit Avebury.

Megdorset

If you visit Dorchester I can recommend Dorset County Museum. They have plenty of Roman and Viking history, including Roman mosaics which you may walk on.

On the outskirts of the town you will find Maiden Castle - an Iron Age settlement.

In the town itself there is the remains of a roman town house - the mosaics there are under cover.

annhig

thanks for coming back to tell us what you decided to do - it looks like a nice leisurely plan albeit with plenty to see and do and it gives you some flexibility re Bath and Stonehenge.

hope you have a great trip!

PalenQ

Congrats on Salisbury - a sweet regional town not too huge not too small and I found driving on side roads at a meandering pace to be pure joy-stopping by a small village's local pub, etc.

You could even drive to Oxford it seems if to the Cotswolds.