Trip Report: Edinburgh, York, Cornwall and Highclere
 

Hello Fodorites - Mom and I returned from our trip nearly two weeks ago, and I am just now settled back into my daily routine enough to consider starting this trip report. I owe many thanks to those on this forum who helped as I planned this trip.

I didn't keep a journal on the trip and am not one to keep track of what we ate or every last thing we did, but I do want to share our itinerary and impressions and will try to do so in enough detail to perhaps help other travelers. I truly hope I can finish this now that I've committed myself - please forgive me if I disappear for a day or two between postings (for such things as work and family!).

This was the third trip my mother and I have taken to the UK together, and quite possibly our last for various reasons. We had two major destinations on our wish list - Scotland and Cornwall - and combining them in one trip didn't seem at all logical at first. However, after doing some research and receiving positive feedback on this forum, I determined that it wasn't such a stretch to do a bit of both. After much jostling of details, we settled on the following itinerary: One week in Edinburgh, one night in York (two would have been better), one week in Cornwall, and two nights in Newbury to visit Highclere Castle.

We flew into Edinburgh and out of London, took the train between each location and rented a car for a few days in Cornwall. We had a good range of accommodation - each of which was perfect for our needs. In Edinburgh, we rented an apartment right on the Royal Mile; in Cornwall, we rented a "character" cottage right by Mount's Bay; in York, we stayed at the Hazelwood (a wonderful B&B); and in Newbury, we stayed at the Carnarvon Arms (a beautifully renovated coaching inn). I hired a private taxi to take us to Heathrow from Newbury. All reservations were made at least 6 months prior to our trip, and everything worked out perfectly. The weather was - much to our surprise - beautiful. Of 18 days total, we were only rained on (very lightly) one day - the rest of the time was partly to mostly sunny. I have no idea what we did to deserve that stroke of luck, but I'm very grateful!

I will post a condensed day-by-day, to be filled in as I have time.

May 12 - I flew from Denver and Mom from Cleveland; we met in Newark and flew overnight to Edinburgh.

May 13 - Arrived at EDI around 9:45 a.m. and took a taxi to our apartment on the Royal Mile (called Anne House Apartments). The apartment was cozy, clean and had everything we needed - especially the location! We were able to walk out the main door of the apartment building right onto the Royal Mile, which was always buzzing. We are always eager to get going when we arrive somewhere new, and usually don't take time to do much besides drop our luggage and freshen up a little.

We left our apartment pretty soon after arriving and walked over to St. Giles' Cathedral - literally a one minute walk. When we arrived at St. Giles', a choir was performing a noon-time concert, and we were treated to the glorious acoustics of the cathedral. I think the choristers were from the Faroe Islands (?) and they were wearing traditional costumes. I may have that completely wrong - in any case, the choir was wonderful. We sat and listened for awhile, then decided to visit the tiny Thistle Chapel (beautiful) before going down to the undercroft café. We had a large (and very good) lunch at the café, then left the cathedral to stroll around the Royal Mile a bit. Mom was wearing down by this time, so we decided to stock up on a few groceries at the Sainsbury Local and head back to the apartment.

After depositing Mom and the groceries, I headed back out to do my own reconnaissance of the area. I walked up to the Castle and stood on the Esplanade taking in the views, then headed down the Royal Mile, taking the occasional diversion to explore a few of the beguiling cross streets and closes. I ended up at the bottom of the Royal Mile, and had a good look around at the Palace of Holyroodhouse, Arthur's Seat and the Parliament building before finally returning to the apartment for dinner and an early bedtime.

May 14 - I had purchased the Royal Edinburgh Pass from home, which includes access to any of the bus tours for 48 hours, as well as admission to Edinburgh Castle, the Palace of Holyroodhouse and the Royal Yacht Britannia. The pass suited our needs perfectly. We walked over to Waverly Bridge to catch the first Edinburgh Tour bus of the day, then took the entire tour before hopping off at the Palace of Holyroodhouse. There was a special exhibit of Queen Elizabeth II's clothing in celebration of her birthday, and we really enjoyed our tour of the Palace and the collection of dresses. After seeing the interior exhibits, we strolled through the abbey ruins and gardens - both of which were gorgeous, and made more so by the lovely weather. We ate lunch at the Palace's café, then caught the sightseeing bus up to the Castle.

I had worried about Mom's ability to walk the many hills of Edinburgh (and later, Cornwall), but she did amazingly well. The tour bus drops you at the Lawnmarket, just below the Esplanade, and we made our way at a leisurely place to the Castle, used our pass to enter, and slowly made our way to the top of the castle to visit St. Margaret's Chapel. We worked our way downward from there, seeing the Crown Jewels, the Stone of Destiny and the Scottish National War Memorial (very moving). We managed to get into the Redcoat Café just before they closed for some cake and tea, then finished our visit with a stop in the very fine gift shop by the castle exit. Later, both Mom and I agreed that we actually enjoyed the Palace of Holyrood House more than the Castle - purely a matter of taste, I'm sure.

As we were leaving the Castle, a young woman handed us a flyer with information about a pipe and drum band that was to play later that evening. We went back to the apartment, had a light dinner, then walked back up to the Castle (twice in one day - my mom amazed me!), where we enjoyed a very traditional performance of bagpipes, drums and Highland dancers put on by the local postal corps of pipers. It was the perfect ending to our first full day in Edinburgh.

Really looking forward to this -- you put so much planning onto everything I'm glad the weather cooperated :)


I wanted to book one of those flats for August but they were full for my dates. Was it nice?

Thanks Janis - we were quite pleased with the weather! The flat was nice, but not fantastic. Just nice. We both thought it could have done with a little freshening up - then it would have been really nice. But the location couldn't be beat, the price was right, and it was very "homely", as our Brit friends would say.

I'm along for the ride!

me too.

Hurry up and get to Cornwall! [i don't mean it really]

Looking forward to more!

Thanks for the encouragement! Don't worry, Ann - I'll get to Cornwall, and will have nothing but nice things to say!

May 15 - Second day using our Royal Edinburgh pass. We walked to Waverly Bridge again and caught the first Majestic tour of the day, which takes you past the Royal Botanic Garden and out to the Royal Yacht Britannia. We got off at the Botanic Garden, picked up a map, and started off toward the glasshouses. The gardens are beautiful, although it seemed a lot of things weren't in bloom yet. We lingered at the gorgeous little cottage at the Queen Mother's Memorial Garden, admiring the walls and ceiling, which were covered in a mosaic of shells, pine cones and other little natural wonders. We ended up at the glasshouses, paid our 1/2 price entry fee (thanks to the R.E. pass), and spent a happy hour or so walking through a mostly tropical wonderland. Really enjoyed our time here.

Having spent perhaps 2 hours at the Garden, we caught the next Majestic tour bus and headed to the Royal Yacht Britannia. I should mention that it was a beautiful, sunny and actually pretty warm day. I recall taking my jacket off while onboard the yacht because it was so darn hot. ;-)

The Britannia had been high on our list of things to see while in Edinburgh, and we weren't disappointed. It has been pristinely maintained and is very well set up for tourists. I especially enjoyed seeing the family's living quarters, including the bedrooms, dining room and parlor, but I heard a few men oohing and aahing over the enormous engine room, which Mom and I had an obligatory look at before moving on.

We stopped partway through the tour at the Royal Deck Tea Room and had a very nice lunch with great views over the Water of Leith. I believe we had egg and rocket sandwiches, which I seem to eat of lot of in Britain, and some very nice cakes for dessert. After lunch, as we were leaving the tea room, I ran into (almost literally) an acquaintance from my hometown who I'd seen only a couple of week previously. We were equally shocked to see each other, neither one knowing the other had plans to be in Britain, much less the Royal Deck Tea Room at 1:30 on May 15! The world truly does feel to be a small place sometimes.

After returning to Edinburgh, we probably returned to our apartment for dinner. It's those kind of details that tend to escape me if I don't write it down. We aren't foodies, and are typically happy if we stumble upon a place that has food that looks appealing at that very moment, as dictated by our grumbling stomachs. I do know that we ate one evening at a restaurant on North Bridge Street that had excellent Scottish-raised hamburgers, and another evening had a very decent Italian meal. I think it's fair to say we didn't go out of our way to experience true Scottish food, which was probably our loss, convenience being the deciding factor when choosing restaurants.

May 16 - The first of our Rabbie's tours: West Highlands Lochs and Castles. We walked to the Rabbie's Café and meeting place at 6 Waterloo Place - an easy 5-10 minute walk from our apartment. The tour was a longer day tour, and we needed to be there by 8:00 a.m., which wasn't difficult considering how early the sun was coming up while we were there. (For anyone considering Scotland or England in May - there are LOTS of hours of daylight in late May!).

Our guide was a young woman named Franczeska, and she was fabulous. "Franny" kept a running story going all day, interspersed with information about the sights we were seeing, a bit of Scottish music and faultless driving. The tour stops at Doune Castle (of Monty Python and Outlander fame), Loch Lubnaig for restrooms and a photo opportunity, Loch Awe, for a walk out to Kilchurn Castle and Inverary, at which guests have the option of going into town or touring the castle. Oh - and Luss for Loch Lomond, as well as a quick photo opp looking up at Stirling Castle.

Doune Castle was very interesting, and I'd love to have had more time to explore all the nooks and crannies, but it was fun to see nonetheless. The walk to Kilchurn Castle was flat and very easy, and we had plenty of time to walk around the castle (you can't go into it currently, but as it's just a ruin I'm not sure what there would have been to see anyway), taking lots of photos and just enjoying the scenery. When we stopped at Inverary, Franny dropped some of us at the Castle and drove others into the village, then returned to pick us up at the Castle about an hour and half later. It wasn't a lot of time, but we managed to have a very nice lunch at the castle's café before taking a rather quick tour of the castle's interior. Mom and I both agreed that Inverary was our favorite stop of the day - again, possibly not what everyone would say after seeing the dramatic highland scenery, but the scenery around Inverary was gorgeous, and we both found the castle to be very interesting.

We returned to Edinburgh a little after 6:00 p.m., with Franny never missing a beat in her story and us feeling quite pleased with our day. This was probably the day we had burgers on the way back to our apartment - fixing our own meal just didn't sound appealing after such a full day.

BBgt - it's about 45 years since I went to Edinburgh the first and last time [it was a family holiday with my parents] but you are bringing the memories back, mainly of walking up and down those hills with a versa on my foot!

Perhaps that's why I've never been back.

one year DH and I should do the festival, if we ever organise ourselves sufficiently in advance.

May 17 - Another Rabbie's tour: St. Andrew's and the Fishing Villages of Fife. This tour had a later start (9:30), and we arrived at Rabbie's Café early enough to enjoy a pastry and a chat with some fellow Americans who were taking the same tour. This would be a good time to mention that one of my favorite aspects of travelling is simply meeting lots of interesting and friendly folks from all over the world. It's fun to realize how much we all have in common, regardless of our origins.

The tour started out well enough, with a stop near Queensferry to see the Firth Bridges, which really are quite amazing, and a drive through the pretty little village of Queensferry itself. Unfortunately, the tour took a bit of a turn for the worse when our young, apparently unexperienced (but sweet) guide took a few wrong turns when heading into Fife. I'm not entirely sure if this is what she'd planned, but we ended up in a tiny carpark at Lower Largo, near a dreary public restroom and with a so-so little beach. After 20 minutes of the group wandering around trying not to look underwhelmed, our guide (I'm not using her name because I'm sure she'll improve with time, and I really don't want to bash her) suggested a quick stop in Crail to make up for the disappointment of Lower Largo. Now, Lower Largo itself may be a very nice village, but this part of it certainly wasn't.

We proceeded to pass Anstruther, which at least half the people on the tour had hoped to see (including us), and made a very quick stop at Crail, which was indeed very pretty. We had time to make a quick dash down to the harbor followed by a quick dash back to the bus, which had my mom panting and me worrying, but at least we got to see a pretty fishing village. Not ideal, and from what I've read of Rabbie's reviews, not at all typical.

Things improved a bit after that, with our guide depositing us in St. Andrew's near the cathedral for a nearly three hour break off the bus. I should mention here that by "bus", I mean a Mercedes 16-seater van - Rabbie's tours never take more than 16 people on a tour.

Mom and I loved St. Andrew's, and again, the fabulous weather didn't hurt our opinion one bit. We ate lunch at a very bright, casual restaurant on the main street (name of which I don't recall). What I do recall is that the staff were very friendly and the only people sitting with us in the back part of the restaurant were students working on their computers, so it had the feel of being a very low-key local place. We grabbed a gelato at a nearby shop (couldn't resist) and walked the very short distance to the Cathedral.

Some places just hit you right in the heart - anyone know what I mean? St. Andrew's Cathedral was like that for me. It could have been the beautiful, gently sunny Scottish day, or the backdrop of the North Sea and fresh sea tang in the air, or possibly the wonderful juxtaposition of the relatively "new" tombstones scattered throughout the ancient cathedral ruins, but whatever it was, I wandered around the ruins snapping photos like crazy and saying over and over, "This is SO beautiful!". We wandered around there for perhaps half an hour before moseying down the path that leads to the castle, enjoying the views along the way. We decided we had enough time to visit the castle, and spent another 25 minutes or so wandering around the castle ruins and enjoying the views from various points. Our guide had arranged to wait for all of us near the golfing museum, and our time worked perfectly to end our leisurely stroll at the appointed time. For anyone considering visiting St. Andrew's - do it. You'll be glad you did.

Nothing else of note that day (that I can remember) - it seemed a long drive back to Edinburgh, but it was probably due to the traffic. I believe we stayed in with dinner at our apartment that evening - typical ending to a day for us.

Ann - we both thought Edinburgh was beautiful, and I'd certainly visit again if it fit neatly into a trip, but I'd not put it first on my list simply because there are still so many places I'd like to see. I'd also like to see the Tattoo - I believe Janisj is headed there this August?

One thing about Edinburgh that really struck me was its beautiful setting - actually being able to see the sea (or Water of Leith or Firth of Forth - whatever the appropriate term), and the surrounding hills. Arthur's Seat, especially, was RIGHT THERE - right at the foot of the Royal Mile and verdantly green and covered in blooming gorse - gorgeous!

BBgt - a couple of years ago DH's sis went to the Tattoo and had a terrific time; still not sure it's for me though. Trouble is there is just so much to see just about everywhere, isn't there?

>>for a walk out to Kilchurn Castle <<

Oh -- is there access again? It has been about a year since it was closed to visitors. I don't mean going inside -- just the walk out to the castle has been off limits pending some sort of land sale??

Too bad about missing Anstruther and the short stop in Crail -- but I can understand a newbie driver/guide getting turned around in some of those villages. lots of narrow, winding streets. Lower Largo does have some interesting bits (but not my favorite of all the villages) but it looks like you missed them :(

Yes I'm going to the Tattoo again this year. Do hope we have as nice weather as you did . . . the friend I'm traveling with thinks "Its August, shorts and T-shirts is all I'll need" . . . and no amount of 'persuasion' on my part has convinced him otherwise yet. He will be VERY sorry - but he can always buy warm and waterproofs there. His partner is also trying to convince him - but I don't think we are making a dent.

I wasn't sure what was meant by "closed" when I looked at the website for Kilchurn Castle, but we were definitely able to walk out to and around the castle, and I didn't see any evidence of closures. One of the Rabbie's people had already told me we couldn't go inside, but I wasn't expecting that anyway, so wasn't disappointed. I felt a bid bad for the guide - she really seemed to get flustered, especially when one man on the trip expressed his disappointment in her not following the itinerary exactly as presented on the website. Poor girl - she did say something about heading straight to the pub after our tour. :-)

I would never - and I mean never - travel to Britain without layers of clothing. But then, I'm pre-conditioned, since where I live is just as variable weather-wise. Hope you can talk some sense into your friend!

The walk out to the castle was blocked and the sign removed. But it does sound like access has been restored.

>>Hope you can talk some sense into your friend!<<

I'm not going to sweat it -- we are staying on the Royal Mile and I can direct him to lots of shops >)

I'm taking short sleeves and long sleeves and sweaters and a scarf and cashmere socks . . . and NO shorts :D

the friend I'm traveling with thinks "Its August, shorts and T-shirts is all I'll need" . . . and no amount of 'persuasion' on my part has convinced him otherwise yet.>>

lol, JJ, that'll be the day, though it will be funny if we have a heat wave and he ends up being right.

I do actually remember it being quite hot my very first time in London, back in August of 2001. The English friend I was with nearly melted. :-)

I think I have another day or two in me yet this evening... sorry if this is too wordy. I always think I'm going to be concise in writing, but there's just so much to say!

May 18 - We had designated this as our "off" day and made no plans. On the day, we decided to visit the National Museum of Scotland, which was only a 10-15 minute walk from our apartment (probably a fair bit shorter at a brisk pace, but we were casual strollers by necessity). We didn't get there until nearly lunchtime and decided to eat at the museum's café before starting our exploration of the museum. As a side note, we have found with few exceptions that any sightseeing attraction worth its salt in Britain has a good to exceptional café.

The museum interior is striking for its unique Grand Gallery, which is quite lovely. We were a bit overwhelmed with our options, and decided to stick with the Scottish History galleries. We were also both a little tired and footsore, so we only stayed for a couple of hours.

We had a rather amusing experience while at the museum in the form of a very attentive docent. We first met him on the lower level, where he directed us to the early Scottish history displays, and we both commented on his wonderful brogue. Awhile later, when we'd moved on to the first floor displays, the same docent magically appeared when we alighted from the elevator - again giving us helpful direction. Finally, when we'd finished with what we wanted to see on that floor, he somehow appeared again and suggested we visit the rooftop to enjoy the views - which we did, and they were wonderful! Then, I swear he appeared out of nowhere to bid us goodbye as we were leaving. I dubbed him our personal museum guide, but I don't for the life of me know how we managed to run into him so many times in our short visit.

After finishing at the museum, we walked back to the Royal Mile and enjoyed the touristy atmosphere for awhile, poking our heads into souvenir shops and watching street performers before taking a short respite in St. Giles' Cathedral. Then it was back to the apartment for dinner and an early evening.

May 19 - Our last full day in Edinburgh and final (for this trip) Rabbie's tour. This was the only day we experienced rain, but most of the day was just overcast and cool. We had signed up for the Rosslyn Chapel & Scottish Borders short day tour, and it was a perfect ending to our time in Scotland.

Our driver/guide, Tony, was wonderfully endearing in his introduction to all of us, explaining that he'd been called while having porridge that morning and told he needed to stand in for a sick driver. He claimed to be in "a bit of a state" and then proceeded to deliver an incredibly informative and entertaining tour of the Borders. We stopped to take a short walk through pretty woodland to see the "original" Wallace Memorial, which was itself not very exciting, but the walk was lovely and relaxing, with no one else around aside from our small group. We then drove to Scott's View, which looks over the Tweed Valley toward the Eilden Hills. In spite of the hills themselves being somewhat obscured by mist, it was a gorgeous scene, and we got some great photos of ourselves backed by blooming gorse and misty Scottish Border scenery.

Next was a visit to Melrose, with time to visit the ruined abbey and have lunch. By this time it was lightly drizzling, which only added to the melancholy atmosphere of Melrose Abbey. I climbed a tower in the ruins and gazed out over the surrounding countryside, and it was easy to imagine the abbey in its heyday. We left the abbey and walked to the town center, with its market cross and pretty main street, then ate a very good lunch at a tiny café before going back to the bus.

Our final stop was Rosslyn Chapel. We arrived in time to catch a very informative talk being given by a chapel guide, then spent a half hour or so looking for carvings described in the brochure we'd been given. Fascinating place. I especially enjoyed meeting the chapel cat, who was so old and mellow that I had to check to see if he was really breathing.

This was probably my favorite day of our time in Scotland - largely because the lushly green, rolling hills are so different from what I see in my everyday life. Most people rave about the beauty of the Highlands, and granted we only saw a tiny sampling of the highlands and it was indeed gorgeous. But I live in a very scenically dramatic part of the world, with very dramatic weather, and to me the Borders have a more subtle beauty and are therefore very appealing. The weather only added to the day's beauty. I would happily go back to spend more time exploring the Border towns and abbeys.

We were back in Edinburgh by 4:30, giving us plenty of time to eat dinner (I think this is the night we had Italian food very adventurous, I know) and pack our bags for an early departure the next morning.

Just realized that I left out one of the stops of the St. Andrew's & Fishing Villages tour - We stopped in Falkland before heading back to Edinburgh and had just enough time for a very quick tour of Falkland Palace. Rushed though we were, it was worth seeing. With more time, we'd have learned a lot - the docents were very friendly and well informed.

Very much enjoyed the Edinburgh and day trips portion of your trip report.

You left just as we were arriving. :)

Looking forward to the rest.

Thanks, LCBoniti - I hope you enjoyed your trip as much as we enjoyed ours!

May 20 - Off to beautiful York! First a note on pre-trip logistics: I had taken advantage of advance train fares on our previous trip, but when I plugged in dummy dates for the three days of train travel for this trip, the fares I came up with were pretty high. Granted, I was looking at first class fares because two of our journeys were going to be pretty long and I wanted to treat Mom to a little splurge. By comparison, a 3-day 1st class BritRail Pass (available only to non-UK residents and purchased in advance) was considerably less expensive than individual first class tickets, and I liked the convenience and flexibility of the passes. I was still able to make specific seat reservations in advance, which wasn't necessary - it just made me feel better.

Anyway - we took the early-early train from Edinburgh to York (6:45 a.m.) so we could make the most of our one day in York. We had originally planned to either fly to Cornwall or take the train straight through, but were able to move our Cornwall cottage reservation to free up a night in between - hence our one night in York.

The train journey was wonderful - gorgeous views of coast and countryside, and a hot breakfast served at our seats. We thoroughly enjoyed the trip and felt just a little posh. :-)We arrived in York before 9:30 and grabbed a taxi to the Hazelwood Guest House. I can't say enough nice things about this guest house. Emma greeted us warmly on arrival and we were actually able to go to our room, as it had not been booked the night before. The room was a lovely twin on the lower floor, immaculately clean with beautiful hand-carved furnishings and a large, sparkling bath/shower room.

We left our luggage, took the map and advice offered by Emma and set off on foot to explore. The guest house is barely a five minute walk from Bootham Bar, which is where we headed to walk the city walls. We had a lovely walk on the wall to Monk Bar. It was another beautiful day, and I took some wonderful photos from the wall looking down into the gardens and across to the Minster. It was the perfect introduction to York!

From Monk Bar, we walked to the Shambles (saving the Minster for later) and then to the York Castle Museum. By the time we got to the museum it was nearly lunch time, so we had a delicious soup, bread and tea (funny how I remember some meals and not others) at the museum café. Feeling restored, we set off to explore the museum. We especially enjoyed the Victorian Street and WWI exhibit. I had to chuckle in the 1960's exhibit when I realized I wasn't the only one singing along to the 1960's music being played. We spent a very pleasant couple of hours at the museum, then decided we'd better move along.

We took a different route back toward the Minster, stopping briefly in the All Saints Pavement church, but still managed to pass through the Shambles again. I had high expectations for that "wow" moment of Mom seeing York Minster for the first time (I'd visited on my first trip to England 16 years ago), and I have to say we were very disappointed to find that the scaffolding for the York Mystery Plays completely obscured the view of that wondrous nave. I'm certain that the plays would be wonderful to see, but for someone who'd been so looking forward to seeing the Minster in all its glory, it was quite a let-down. We pressed on past the scaffolding, though, and spent a good hour and a half exploring the rest of the Minster, including the Undercroft museum. We had timed our visit to attend Evensong, and in this we were not disappointed. It was magnificent.

Feeling satisfied with our day, we left the Minster in search of dinner, and on the way back toward Bootham Bar happened upon the very atmospheric Hole in the Wall pub. We liked the looks of it, went in and were very promptly served one of the best meals of our entire trip (this one I remember!). Mom had ham and something (okay, I remember mine better than I do hers), and I had perfectly prepared Scottish salmon and new potatoes. Perfect ending to the day.

We returned to the Hazelwood to be greeted by Sharon, Emma's equally charming counterpart. As we were planning to leave before breakfast the next morning, Sharon asked what we would like to take with us on the train. She packed us the kind of to-go breakfast your mother would pack you - a little too much of everything (extra croissants and jams and yogurts!) with lots of napkins and utensils. It was just a lovely gesture and oh-so-nice to find in the guest fridge the next morning when we left. My tip for York - stay at the Hazelwood. They will definitely take care of you.

York has been on my to-see list for a while now and obviously I need to move it further up. Hazelwood sounds perfect.

Love the first class trains! I did it from Edinburgh to Newcastle and then Newcastle to London. Purchased as soon in advance as available, it was not that expensive and well worth it, IMO. Love feeling posh. :)

Dang, the scaffolding! I know it has to happen, but dang! We had it on Glenfinnan Monument - not as upsetting as yours, but still.

What a nice place you found in York - and how lovely of them to give you a picnic to take with you.

Cornwall next??

Yes - Cornwall next! But no time to start right now - sorry Ann. :-) Probably tonight...

About the first class trains - one nice bonus was that there were very few people on our car on any of our train journeys. Very quiet and comfy!

I agree about First Class, BBgt - I usually go that way when I get the train to Plymouth for work as I can read my papers in peace and quiet - and get my free coffee and biscuits too!

And they have power points for laptops and mobiles with free WiFi. Post Plymouth I gather that there is a trolley service but not while I'm on the train.

<i>...the friend I'm traveling with thinks "Its August, shorts and T-shirts is all I'll need" </i>

LOL. When we first moved to Edinburgh we would wait on a newsagent's steps waiting for the afternoon paper to arrive; it was the one that contained ads for flats and houses. On one very pleasant August afternoon we were commenting on how nice it was when the bundle of papers arrived, the headline reading "Sizzling Seventies Continue - No Relief in Sight."

Ann - we had trolley service from York to Penzance and from Penzance to Newbury, but it was not complimentary. The breakfast on our Edinburgh-York journey was complimentary (well, part of the fare, anyway). My understanding was that the "free" catering isn't available on weekends.

Gardyloo - loved the headline. It's not too different where I live in the mountains. We hit 80 degrees the other day and everyone talked about how hot it was (and that was unusually warm for a June day), but the Denver folks all flock to the mountains for relief from the heat - 90's down in the city!

BBgt - I didn't know that it's not free at weekends but then I rarely get the train then and probably wouldn't go first class unless I was going a long way. [and if I were I'd probably fly!]

You usually get a hot drink and biscuits or cake - in the mornings I generally have coffee and croissants which get me going nicely.

>>My understanding was that the "free" catering isn't available on weekends.<<

Sort of, IME. Took First on a Saturday last August and will again on a Sunday this summer and neither had/has the full catering but I did get beverages and packaged biscuits/rolls.

Gardyloo - it is amazing how hot 70° can feel. Here at home it is 75 today and folks are talking about how cool it is, while when in Edinburgh or St Andrews, 75 feels quite hot.

Now that you both mention it, I guess we did get beverages and the offer of biscuits. They just didn't serve a full hot meal on the weekend journeys like they did on the Friday trip from Edinburgh to York.

It's amazing how the atmosphere affects the "feel" of the temperature. At 9500 feet in elevation (where I live), 80 degrees and sunny feels like you're cooking, but as soon as the sun goes behind the clouds or goes down for the evening, the temperature drops dramatically. Humidity seems to make cold feel colder and warm feel warmer, in my experience.

Depending on the wind, it often feels warm here if it's over 60F!

tonight for example, it's not that warm, but there is no wind at all so it feels quite "close".

And finally, to Cornwall:

May 21 - Fortified with our picnic breakfast from the Hazelwood, we left York on the 7:45 a.m. train. It was a good thing we had that picnic, too, because the train manager announced that the catering staff would not be joining us until Birmingham. One of the staff brought tea through, which we enjoyed with our fruit, croissants and yogurt. We had opted for the early train because it ran straight through to Penzance with no changes. The journey was uneventful and passed quite pleasantly, and once the catering staff joined us we were able to purchase sandwiches for our lunch.

We arrived in Penzance a little before 4:00 p.m. and took a taxi to our cottage in Marazion. The driver was a very affable man from Belfast who obviously loved his adopted home of Cornwall. Upon arrival at the cottage, he helped us unlock the rather stubborn keysafe and bid us a happy holiday. Our cottage, Gwelfor, was the last in a row of mid-19th century granite fishermen's cottages, with a walkway to the beach right outside the door. We were absolutely delighted when we saw the interior. The owners had done a fabulous job of maintaining the historic character of the cottage while appointing it with local art, comfy furniture and all the modern conveniences. And when we walked down the walkway and got that first view of St. Michael's Mount - WOW! What a gorgeous view. I had seen lots of photos, but in real life it was just so much prettier and more impressive.

After settling in to the cottage, we walked down to the Godolphin Arms and enjoyed a delicious (and enormous) dinner of fish and chips, complete with an amazing view of St. Michael's Mount. We went back to our cottage stuffed full of fish and chips and ready to savor our week in Cornwall.

May 22 - We had designated this as our "explore Marazion" day, partly out of necessity, as it was a Sunday and we couldn't pick up a hire car until Monday, but also to give us a chance to become acquainted with our home base for the week. We ate breakfast at the Godolphin Arms since we still had no food at the cottage, and were quite pleased to find that breakfast was as delicious and satisfying as dinner had been the evening before.

The tide times worked out perfectly that morning, allowing us to walk across the causeway to St. Michael's Mount mid-morning shortly after we'd finished breakfast. I had purchased the National Trust Touring pass for two people for one week, and it proved to be a great deal. We were able to validate our passes at the Mount and used them to visit National Trust sites all week.

Once again, Mom proved her mettle by making the climb to the castle that day, and boy, were we glad she did - the views and the castle itself were just gorgeous. We had another perfect day - sunny and just cool enough for jackets. Someone down below had informed us that a church service would be starting in the chapel at 11:15, and we arrived just a few minutes late and took a seat in the back. It was the first service being held at the Mount for the season, and a local children's group sang after the vicar's short (and very enjoyable) lesson. It was quite a nice thing to experience, and quite unexpected.

After the service, we toured the castle interior and gawped at the spectacular gardens below from the exterior. Once again, everything was made just that much more beautiful by the amazing weather. Perhaps I have Annhig to thank? :-)

We left the Mount in time to cross the causeway again in the early afternoon, then spent some time browsing through Marazion. A few shops were closed (perhaps waiting for the Bank Holiday to open?), but there were several nice shops open, including one with lovely sterling silver jewelry that we visited again later in the week so Mom could buy me a pair of darling earrings (thanks Mom!). We stopped at Cobble Corner, a convenience shop with a bit of everything, and bought enough supplies to hold us until Monday. On the way past the King's Arms, we saw a board advertising their Sunday roast and stopped in to make reservations for that evening, then headed back to the cottage to relax before dinner. The Sunday roast proved to be delicious, and was a perfectly fitting way to end our first day in beautiful Cornwall.

Once again, everything was made just that much more beautiful by the amazing weather. Perhaps I have Annhig to thank? >>

of course, BBgt, who could you think otherwise?

i'm interested to see how you filled your days in Marazion without a car - it's not a place that would immediately strike me as a good centre for that so it'll be fascinating to see how you achieved it!

Well, you had your fingers crossed, didn't you? Whoever had their fingers crossed, it worked!

With regards to a car - we got a car on Monday. The car-less day in Marazion was due to the fact that we arrived on a Saturday afternoon, so had to wait until Monday morning to pick up a car.

aha - that as probably just as well.

I'm still looking forward to reading about your week in Marazion, even with a car.

I'm looking forward to everything!

As I told you on my Scotland thread, I'd love to visit Cornwall but it will probably not happen until Lee Mead schedules a concert there. ;)

And I have to say, how lovely to travel with your mom. Such precious memories!

You are right, LCBoniti - it was very lovely to travel with my mom and the memories will be priceless.

Monday, May 23 - We had arranged to have Enterprise pick us up this morning, and at 9:30 sharp, the friendly assistant manager, Sharon, arrived at the cottage and drove us to the office, barely five minutes away. After setting us up in a Hyandai something-or-other (very nice automatic, whatever the model), we set off to visit Trengwainton Garden. I had thought about visiting Penzance this day to check out some of Annhig's suggestions, but we just gravitated toward the garden and never quite got around to seeing Penzance - sorry Ann!

I'd driven once in England before during our week in the Wiltshire and Dorset countryside, and had even made a few brief (thank goodness) forays into Salisbury, Winchester and - yikes - Bath. So I wasn't as nervous about driving as I might have been, and we made the short drive to Trengwainton without incident. This garden is a National Trust property, so we got to use our N.T. touring passes again. We arrived pretty right at opening and made the full circuit of the gardens, which involves a slightly inclined walk along a wooded path up to a lovely park-like area with fabulous views out to Mount's Bay, then an easy walk along a flower-lined drive leading to the kitchen gardens and café. It was a beautiful day (of course), and we thoroughly enjoyed the amazing collection of exotic plants. We had a very nice lunch in the café and finished our visit at the gift shop. I'm not much of a shopper, but I have to say - the National Trust shops are hard for me to resist. They just have such lovely things - and mom bought me a beautiful bag with floral print that will remind me of our trip in years to come.

When we got back to our car, it was still early afternoon and we had no plans, so we rather randomly decided to go to the Minack Theatre and spend some time on the coast. The drive to the Minack was rather exciting (in that my heart rate doubled at least a few times!), but by the next day, I was more accustomed to the windy Cornish lanes. I kept remembering the admonitions I'd received on this forum about those pretty green hedges, and stayed well clear of the stone walls beneath. Actually, the whole driving on the other side of the road thing didn't bother me much at all (and anyway, there was no other side of the road - just enough room for one car!) - it was the unexpected appearance of oncoming cars on windy roads with limited visibility that kept me on my toes - and I believe led me to blurt out an expletive or two that probably had my mother blushing :-).

We made it in one piece to the Minack and spent a very nice hour or so visiting the exhibit and watching a rehearsal for the current show (name of which I forget). The views were as amazing as we'd been led to believe, the sea was even bluer/more turquoise than I'd imagined, and the theatre itself was indeed a living testament to a very determined and imaginative woman. We topped off our visit with a pasty in the café overlooking the sea and cliffs.

After leaving the theatre, we drove up to Sennen Cove and had a look at the wide, sandy beach, then drove back to Marazion on the A30, which was a bit anti-climatic after my first taste of driving in Cornwall. We stopped at the Sainsbury just outside of Penzance and stocked up for the week, then returned to Marazion, paid the weekly parking fee (35 GBP) at the Slipway carpark by the Godolphin Arms, and carried our bags back to our cottage. The only downside to the cottage was that it had no parking, but it really wasn't much of an inconvenience, and was more than made up for by the views of a floodlit St. Michael's Mount from our cottage windows that night.

I had thought about visiting Penzance this day to check out some of Annhig's suggestions, but we just gravitated toward the garden and never quite got around to seeing Penzance - sorry Ann!>>

oh no, say it ain't so!

You'll just have to come back then. It seems as if you had a pretty adventurous first day, getting as far as the Minack and Sennen.

Where next I wonder?

Tuesday, May 24 - Port Isaac and Lanhydrock:

I'd received very helpful advice on this forum from JanisJ, Annhig and others suggesting that it was very doable to combine Port Isaac and Lanhydrock in one day trip, and they were absolutely correct - it was a very nice day and the drive didn't seem burdensome at all.

Port Isaac was high on the list of places we wanted to visit in Cornwall, mostly because we'd seen it featured in Doc Martin and Saving Grace and it looked like the quintessential Cornish fishing village. Early in our planning, though, I was discouraged by mention of the steep hill in and out of the village. Since Mom has a hard time walking uphill and I wasn't at all keen on driving into the village (which I later saw would have been a terrible idea!), I wasn't sure it was a good idea for us to visit. With a little more research I learned about a shuttle service between the main car park above the village and the village itself. Problem solved.

On yet another glorious morning, we headed up the A30 toward Port Isaac. The drive was under an hour and a half, with the last bit being a narrow, twisty (but beautiful) B road. We drove straight to the main car park and suddenly realized we had no pound coins between the two of us - not a one. Note to drivers: Make sure you have plenty of coins in the car for pay-and-display parking! Not a problem after all - a lovely older couple just parking had a jar full of coins and were happy to make change for me. This would be a good time to mention that we met lovely, friendly people everywhere we went in Cornwall. I'll mention it again, I'm sure, because it's true - they were everywhere!

Having paid for and displayed our parking ticket (the only one we purchased the entire week), we walked into Port Isaac. It was indeed a very steep hill, but Mom has no trouble downhill. I'd have been quite worried about our return if I hadn't known about the shuttle. The village is very recognizable if you've ever seen Doc Martin, but aside from its TV associations, it's a beautiful old fishing village in a gorgeous spot on the coast. We wandered around for the better part of an hour, then decided to have lunch at the Old School House, the iconic high-windowed building overlooking the harbor. It was an excellent lunch, too - delicious soup and bread for mom, and a cream tea consisting of warm, freshly baked scones with jam & clotted cream for me. We finished our lunch, walked out to the spot where Louise, the shuttle owner, was just pulling in, and hopped a ride up to our car. Perfect.

We retraced our drive on the pretty, twisty B roads to meet up with the A389 for an easy, 40-ish minute drive to Lanhydrock, a beautiful Victorian country house with extensive gardens. Lanhydrock is another National Trust property, so we were again able to use our touring passes. The walk from the car park to the house takes several minutes, but gives you a view of the huge, idyllic estate - complete with a small group of cows lazily grazing near the path when we were there. As we were admiring the exterior view, a man approached us and asked where we were from. We spent a few minutes chatting with him and learned he was a Methodist minister who'd grown up in Cornwall and spent a few years living in the States. Just another example of the friendly people we met in Cornwall. :-)

We toured the interior, which was fascinating both because of its beauty without opulence (well, not on the Blenheim or Chatsworth scale) and relatively "modern" appearance. The house displays many features which were considered quite progressive in the late Victorian period, but visitors also get a look at the "below-stairs" lives of servants and children. When we'd finished touring the house, we walked out to the gardens and stopped into the small church in time to hear some of the local church ladies singing for visitors. By this time we were a bit peckish, so stopped into the café (set in the old stables) for a sandwich and tea. There was a handy little shuttle tram running between the house and car park, and Mom opted to take this while I walked. We drove back to Marazion - very easy drive on the A30 - and enjoyed a light supper at our cottage.

what a delightful day, BBgt - and I'm so glad that the advice you received about how easy it was to combine the two places proved correct.

In case others are intending to visit Lanhydrock in the spring, one of the most striking features of the garden is the long display of daffodils just above the house - they are quite spectacular. The camellias, Magnolias and Rhododendrons are wonderful too, but for me, the daffs are the reason to visit in the spring.

Those who would like to stay [or eat] nearby could do a lot worse than the Lanhydrock Hotel and Golf course - I have stayed a couple of times and the rooms are absolutely fine, and very quiet, and the food is good too - they have a very nice bar with a view of the course, and serve food all day, which is a bonus. Highly recommended.

http://www.lanhydrockhotel.com