I’ve read through Rick Steves England and this website and am looking for some advice from those who have explored the area.
We will fly into Manchester (will have been in Europe) on June 1 and need to be in Glasgow on June 10, will be traveling this portion on public transportation, like to stay at least 2-3 nights in each spot, enjoy history, food/drink, walking, architecture, active 65/71 year olds. I know I want to spend time in York, Durham and Hadrians Wall. I’m not sure about the Lakes District.
How would you divide your time?
Thank you
Posted by
10300 posts
Consider Chester, York, Durham and Hadrian's Wall at Haltwhistle. York is my favorite city in the UK.
The Lake District is great for nature, not so much history.
Posted by
Camano Island, WA, usa
1761 posts
Chester is a great 1st night when you fly into Manchester. You can take a Taxi to and from Manchester, it is only about 30". A walk around on the Chester Wall is an easy way to exercise and see the sites. You can catch a train from here to Manchester City, Canals or Liverpool, Docklands and Beatles. But you are also very close to Conwy Castle in Wales. York also has a Wall and the Minster with the Fabulous Rose Windows. Durham also has a famous Cathedral with Fantastic Columns, each carved to show off the artist's skill. Hadrian's Wall is great fun to visit with the huge Roman Latrine and several miles of easy hiking on the wall. They have buses that pickup and dropoff. The Lake District is pretty and has many Day Trippers. If you have a chance, stop at New Lanark Scotland on the Way to Glasgow. It is an UNESCO site which celebrates the meeting of the Industrial Revolution with Popular Socialism. It is in a wonderful river valley location. You can actually stay in one of the Worker's Quarters if booked in advance. I, too, am Vintage, and I really enjoyed these locations for being more Authentic. PS we stayed in a Georgian style house in Dumfries. There is more to Scotland besides the "Highlands", which are scenic, but southern Scotland has more layers of History.
Posted by
513 posts
Chester is wrong direction if you want to move to York soon afterwards. And to make that worse the trains from Manchester Airport to Chester actually set off in the direction of Yorkshire before doing a huge U turn after 30 minutes!
There are direct trains from Manchester Airport to York, currently "only" one per hour due to massive engineering work on the route but there is a major timetable revision in December and the summer 2027 tweaks before you travel so it could improve.
Hadrians Wall might best be covered by calling in at a visitors centre.
The journey Manchester-York-Durham-Hadrians Wall-Glasgow works logically and is all easy going by train. People often say they never gave enough time to York, so go 4 there (or 5 with a day trip east to the moors/coast)
Posted by
Sidney, BC, Canada
1200 posts
Have you thought about southern Scotland. Dumfries and Galloway has a lot to offer in the way if history, everything from prehistoric Cairns to castles, gardens and more. The city of Dumfries has a foodie reputation and if course was home to Robert Burns.
Posted by
OP
Tacoma, WA, USA
764 posts
Thank you. I appreciate all your input and time. When I get it finalized, I’ll report back.
Posted by
Warrington, England
246 posts
As an alternative, you could take a train from the station at Manchester Airport straight to Chester. It is in the opposite direction to York though.
Liverpool is a great city with history not too far from Manchester. Half an hours train ride north you have the forests and sand dunes around Formby/Freshfield and Ainsdale. You can walk in them and not see a soul in hours.
Not far from Manchester is the Peak District and very easy to reach. The towns of Buxton, Matlock, Bakewell and the estate at Chatsworth house are all worth a visit. Plenty of hikes around there.