Hello, we are in the process of planning for a trip to England, Wales and Scotland.
i will start that I am an expat of 56 yrs!
planning late May to June for about 4 weeks or so. Retired.
flying into London from Chicago or Detroit.
want to visit family in Bristol and he will take care of Devon and that next of the woods. Plan on train to Bristol after plane trip.
places of interest:
North wales and Snowdonia area.
lake district
Derbyshire for a stop to see old friend.
Yorkshire area
Scotland never been, so need to see the highlights.Esp want to see Glasgow as genealogy shows connections nears there.

Plan to hire a car as it maybe easier than climbing steps at railway stations.
Would like to stay in b and bs or guest houses for local flavor. ( assume we should book early)
Don’t want to have to drive everyday.
interested in scenery, sights and quaint towns.
small walks, as I cannot walk too far.
Any tours that might be good for us to take a break from driving?

sorry it’s a long list, but although familiar with some areas as a child, it’s hard to plans guessing the driving times.
Any input would be appreciated.
thanks

I use Google maps and add between 25 and 40% to their estimates.
Yorkshire, has a fair range of things to see. The Dales and the North Yorkshire Moors are pretty good with ancient ruined abbeys, country pubs, restaurants and BnBs.

A few random thoughts - will try to post more later.

• "Plan on train to Bristol after plane trip."

Do you mean a train from LHR to Bristol? If so, there ain't one. It is either Elizabeth Line in to Paddington and then another train to Bristol, or a bus to Reading and a train from there. Mich easier than either option is taking the Express coach right from LHR to central Bristol. Plus you woudn't need to schlep any luggage on to trains - bags are stowed below.

• 4 weeks may sound like a lot of time but it really isn't when one is trying to visit friends/relatives plus Devon, the Lakes, the Peaks, Yorkshire, and Scotland. Yorkshire alone is a massive place -- and even if you just mean North Yorkshire there are a good 5 to 7 days worth of sites like York, Castle Howard, Whitby and the Moors, the Dales, gorgeous Abbeys, castles, Herriot sites and more. So you will have to be pretty selective what you include/omit.

• "Scotland never been, so need to see the highlights.Esp want to see Glasgow as genealogy shows connections nears there. "

'Near Glasgow' could be a lot of places -- in the city or any number of rural areas, small towns and villages, Loch Lomond, etc. Do you have a more specific location than that?

The 'highlights' of Scotland are MANY. You could easily spend the full 4 weeks there and really only see some of the major sites. So again with the 7 to 14 days you are likely to have after your other touring you'll have to be pretty selective. One thing I'd look into are some of the offerings by Rabbies. Small group tours never more than 16 passengers and often fewer. Lots of options from one day to multi day trips. https://www.rabbies.com/en They leave from several locations but most start in Edinburgh with several out of Glasgow. AFAIK All of the tours longer than 3 days do leave from their main office in central Edinburgh.

Good idea on the express bus to Bristol. Not sure if we will fly into Heathrow or Gatwick.
looks like as far as I can trace back a few relatives were from Paisley Scotland. Just a curiosity mainly.
the Rabbies tours sound a great idea.
Lake Windermere is of interest and the Herriot sites.
Thank you for your help.

Thank you . Will definitely need the gps. Assuming they are standard on car rentals, or will have to use phone.

We are thinking of flying into London and departing from Edinburgh by the way