I have just received as a gift a ticket to “Hogwarts in the Snow”at the studio on Jan 15, as well as hotel on Jan 14 and 15 (Earls Court) from a slightly dotty - but sweet - relative “because you are going to be in Europe.”

Not a truly strong grasp of geography, but as I said sweet. I will be in southern Spain on Jan 7(Alhambra tix) but could certainly get to the UK by, say, Jan 10. And I fly from LHR on the afternoon of Jan 16 anyway (flight from Spain to UK needs to be booked in the next couple of days) so the tour works well. I don’t especially feel the need of time in London, as I have been there often and spent a week there earlier this month . (Alas, I did not get tix to the BL Magic exhibit.)

But, Harry Potter! I haven’t read the books in years, so my thought is to find somewhere cozy or interesting to spend, say, the nights of Jan 10, 11, 12 and 13 binge-reading, preferably in front of a fire in a overstuffed armchair (that’s probably a fantasy) and taking walks if it isn’t raining much.

So, in other words, turn this 36-hour gift into a Harry Potter adventure, if you will.

Nightly budget is $150 USD.

First thought was Edinburgh — where JKR wrote — and take the train to London on Jan 14. A bit gray and dark, but fitting?

Next thought was London, stay in a private room at a hostel or other in-budget digs, and bounce among various reading rooms / locations during the day (google “ best places to read in London ... many suggestions, so,e charming)

York? Canterbury? Lake District? Keeping in mind that we are talking about midJanuary ....

Or perhaps somewhere a bit more rural or small town or, dare I say, hygge? 1-4 hours from London by train or coach?

Thoughts? Wild brainstorms? Imagination? Conjure up an image ....

My fallbacks are London or Edinburgh, but I would love other ideas.

Cheers!

If you are binge reading it doesn't matter where you are, but my idea would be an old country hotel where you can read in a lounge with a roaring fireplace. Even better if the village was a location for one of the Harry Potter films. Not sure whether it will fit your budget, but The Swan in Lavenham is one of my favourite hotels, and scenes from Deathly Hallows Part 1 were filmed in the village:
https://theswanatlavenham.co.uk/expl...film-location/

Lavenham is about 75 miles from London, not the easiest place to reach, but may be worth the effort:
https://www.rome2rio.com/s/London/Lavenham

I didn't know it was Lavenham that stood in for Godric's Hollow; it's truly a lovely village (as are many others nearby) but probably a bit difficult to reach without a car. I'd also be concerned that it might be a bit small on the food and bev front for 4 days. Still, a great idea.

Other thoughts:

- Windsor is picturesque and very convenient; there are lots of walks - the castle and Great Park, along the river... and of course London is easily reached if you want to day trip.

- Cambridge. Beautiful, dynamic - visit some of the colleges' chapels or great halls and presto (as some might say) you're at Hogwarts.

...But then I thought, hmm... Edinburgh, writers... and it came to me: the Hawes Inn in Queensferry. https://www.vintageinn.co.uk/restaur...uthqueensferry

The Hawes Inn is located in South Queensferry, more or less beneath the Forth bridges. It's a short bus ride or taxi from Edinburgh airport, from which you can take the tram into town. Queensferry itself is very picturesque; there are walks and views in abundance. Note it's far from a silent place as the railway bridge is overhead. The literary connections are also excellent; allegedly the Hawes Inn was where Robert Louis Stevenson wrote parts/most of <i>Kidnapped.</i>

Anyway, just top-of-the-head thoughts.

Stay in Alnwick https://www.yha.org.uk/hostel/alnwick

Hang out in barter books https://www.barterbooks.co.uk/

Walk on the beach at Alnmouth and go for a pint at The Red Lion

http://www.redlionalnmouth.com/about/

Take the train to Newcastle and visit the Lit and Phil

http://www.litandphil.org.uk/

I was thinking of one of the colleges in Oxford (I like Keble myself) but there is no availability for your dates. There is one college in Cambridge with space:

https://www.universityrooms.com/en-G...ge/westminster

Mind you, in January I'd just stay in Spain and go to Cadiz rather than heading to another country just to go to some show.

Full Disclosure - never read, seen or have ever had the slightest bit interest in 'arry Potter

For ease of travel to London and Potter connections -- Edinburgh or Oxford would probably be the easiest. Oxford has an express coach to LHR. But you'd need to be IN London the day you go out to the studio. Otherwise there'd be convoluted multi change train journeys.

What is your budget?

>> rather than heading to another country just to go to some show.<<

It isn't a 'show'. It is the studio out in Watford.

Thank you all for the suggestions. I will dig into them, as well as the possibility of staying for a couple of nights on the grounds of Canterbury Cathedral.

@thursdaysd — an interesting suggestion but Alas I spent three very cold winters in an Oxford college (Jim Callahan was PM, so not the best of times), so I can’t quite “warm up” to the idea....but it certainly is a good one.

@sofarsogood, thank you for helpful reply despite your lack of interest in Harry Potter. Having grown up on the Enid Baytown genre (very autonomous kids at boarding school or on holiday, no grown-ups or authority figures in sight) the books amuse me as a modern twist on that theme. And they really are very well constructed and well written. But I admit it baffles me when I see a 40-something sporting a Hogwarts t-shirt and waving a wand.

The studio tour to see the special effects should be quite interesting.

That said, I could do the tour while following my original plan of returning to the UK on the 14th to catch my 16th flight but.... I have been in Spain (Madrid, now Toledo) for several days and am simply not enjoying it. I find myself counting the days (in Cordoba, Ronda and Granada) until my Alhambra visit, and then find myself very inclined to skip Cádiz and Jerez, and return to the UK a few days early, with binge- reading and getting into the HP mood as a “reason.”

But I am open to being persuaded that binge-reading (and eating seafood) in Cádiz is a better plan than returning to the UK four days earlier than originally intended .... ;-)

Sorry that you are not enjoying Spain. Must admit I don't care for Madrid (much prefer Lisbon) but I enjoyed Toledo and recently had a great time in Salamanca. If you are on a HP kick you might consider Porto, since that's where it started.

Sorry @janisj — we were writing at the same time.

Because I had already planned to return to the UK on the 14th anyway for my 16th flight, I have booked into the London Court Hotel I. earls Court for two nights — easy access to LHR, and simple enough to get to Euston on the morning of the 15th to catch a 9:45 train to Watford Junction. So that’s sorted.

The question is, I’d I return to the IK earlier — say the 10th— where to go. My budget is up to $150US per night, though I’d like to stay below that to help defray transport costs.

It looks like I can get a train ticket from Edinburgh to London for 45GBP on Jan 14. HVent looked into any other transport.

Argh .. typos on my iPad! And we cannot edit on this forum.

Return to the UK, ... and London Court Hotel in Earls Court... and haven’t looked into ...

@thursdays — Porto? I had no idea of the connection ( I am not _that_ deeply into HP) but Porto (Portugal in general) has been on my list to visit. January? I suppose I could fly Granada to Porto, and thence to UK. Hmmm.

Can’t put my finger on why I am not enjoying Spain. Perhaps it is because it is the holiday season and Madrid — which I really did not care for— and Toledo — which is historically quite interesting — are absolutely mobbed.

Maybe my timing is off. Maybe it will be better after Jan 6.

$150 / £110 is a little low for something in central Oxford -- but maybe plug your dates into booking.com and see what you find.

You could also perhaps look for a B&B in say Woodstock which is an easy bus ride (maybe 30 minutes) from Oxford. Or in Charlbury which is about a 15-17 minute train ride from Oxford.

See, for instance, https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/on-t...ration-1437720

@janisj — I returned to Oxford for the first time in nearly 30 years in 2015, and was appalled at the HP-induced tourist mania. Fortunately I had my OU member/alumna card with me, so I could enter colleges —including mine — but i was struck by the defensive —almost siege — position that the colleges have had to take against the tidal wave of tourists.

@thursdaysd — you may have found the winner! I could go from Granada to Seville (or Cádiz) by train the day after my Alhambra ticket, spend one or two nights, and then fly SVQ to OPO very cheaply, have three or four nights there, and fly on to LHR on the 14th as originally planned.

Meanwhile, my Alhambra ticket is for the 7th — the earliest date available when I booked. Tickets are now available on the 5th — so if I shift to the 5th, that gives me more flexibility (at the cost of buying a new ticket, but that is minimal)

Only issue will be printing the new Alhambra ticket if I purchase it online in the next couple of days ....

Do they do the evening tours of the Alhambra this time of year? If so, I highly recommend them.

Also, if going to Porto don't miss the port caves on the south bank - especially Taylors.