2 weeks driving from England to Scotland - Itinerary help needed!

We did a four week driving tour of Wales and England last October in a rental car. Here is my story and review.
https://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=599139

Originally, we planned to visit Scotland as well. However, the more we researched, the more we realized that there was so much to see in just Wales and England that we skipped Scotland for another trip. Also, we had been to Scotland before as well as England and Wales.

Here are some tips:

1) Traffic in Great Britain is far more congested than what you have in Australia. We have been to Australia twice and there is no comparison. Traffic is especially heavy anywhere near London and heaver in the South of England and the Midlands around Birmingham, Manchester and Liverpool.

2) Don't plan on driving more than about 2 hours a day for most of your travel days. We only had three days of 28 where we did so. One day we went all the way from the Lake District to Winchester, but it took up most of the day.

3) Buy the Back Roads of Britain, it is a great book for driving around the country.

4) Be sure you have a GPS or Nav system with your car, finding your hotels or B and Bs in the cities can be hard without it.

5 The first part of your trip in England includes:
Stonehenge
Bath
Cotswold District - have read great things about it being very quaint, scenic and picturesque
Liverpool
The Lakes District

We saw Stonehenge and Salisbury in one day on our trip in 2013, in one day. We spent 3 nights in Bath and six nights in Chipping Campden in the Cotswolds (we used it as a base to see the Cotswolds (that takes about 2 days to do well on its own) then visited Stratford Upon Avon, Oxford and Blenheim Palace as well. We didn't go to Liverpool on this trip, but on our 2013 trip and cruise we had a day there and did a great tour to North Wales.
The Lake District is beautiful and we spend three nights there.

We spend 11 days in the places you want to see in England, not sure how many you plan on. You don't include York, which, I think was our most favorite spot in England. Also, Durham was great.

Cambridge is on the east side of London and probably out of your way, but it is great.

Stay away from the London M25 Orbital, it is one huge traffic jam or parking lot.

You are trying to cram too much in, particularly if you want a relaxed pace. You have it very late to be looking for accommodation for 4 people in peak season in places such as the Lake District, the Cotswolds and Glencoe. Sorry, forget Edinburgh, as the fringe festival takes place in August and places are booked out a year in advance.

I would suggest that you cover either England or Scotland.

Drive to Stonehenge then onto Bath for 3 nights. Have 3-4 nights in the Cotswolds (most Brits would recommend that you visit elsewhere, particularly in August, such as the New Forest or Rutland which are just as pretty but less busy), then drive to Liverpool for 3 nights, taking a day trip from here to north Wales. Have 3 nights in the Lake District then 2 nights in York where you should drop the car and take the train back to London. Cambridge is an easy day trip from London by train.

Or

Fly to Scotland or take the train, although the best train seat prices are 11 weeks before travel. Have 3 nights in Glasgow including a day trip by train to Edinburgh, then hire a car and drive through the Loch Lomond area to Glencoe for 4 nights, taking a drive one day on the Ardnamurchan peninsula - stunning. Drive to Inverness (avoid the tacky Loch Ness as there are far prettier less congested lochs that won’t be full of children trying to see Nessie) and stay for 3 nights and see Culloden etc. Drive to Grantown on Spey in the Cairngorms for a day of hiking and stay 2 nights. Last night in Strirling then a train or flight back to London.

Ok, thanks everyone! We all really want to try and see England and Scotland during the trip.

I think for the England leg, we will;
Do a day trip while in London to Stonehenge,
Spend the first day of the trip in Bath, up the next day to the Cotswold District for 2 nights, after that to the Lakes District (possibly stop somewhere in Wales for a night to break up the drive), stay 2 or 3 days in the Lakes District

Have trouble working out the Scotland leg though,
Will cut Glasgow, Loch Ness & Newcastle - think we have all decided we would rather stay out of the cities.
So would like to see Edinburgh, Glen Coe, Loch Lomond and the Cairngorms. (maybe Inverness?)
I have read that the Highland games will be on as well so would love to see that.

Does anyone have any good routes or suggestions to see those places or any comments about those places?
Is so hard to get an idea by reading things on the internet!! I am also not sure if we should spend a day in the Cairngorms or just drive through?

Thanks again!

also, not sure on whether or not to include the Isle of Skye?

If your goal is to truly not feel like you will need a vacation from your vacation, you will absolutely want to follow the advice to spend at least 2 nights in each location - 3 is preferable. Absolutely try to limit your driving to no more than every other day and less than 3 or 4 hours at a time.

Also, put your itinerary into Google maps. You have planned for nearly 1,500 miles of travel and 24 hours of driving in 2 weeks. Similar to driving from NYC to Chicago and back. Or, San Francisco to Seattle and back. Those can be epic road-trips, but make sure you align your expectations accordingly.

Look at the last part of Jennifer's post above for a great recommendation for the Scotland itinerary order.

Great advice about not trying to cover too much ground on your two weeks driving.
We did 1700 miles in four weeks on our drive tour, and we didn't go to Scotland. We did have a few nights where we only stayed one night, those were Warwick, Pickering (Yorkshire Moors) and Haltwhistle (Hadrian's Wall). For those days, we planned well on what we wanted to see, since the travel time cuts into your fun time.

Also, don't stay on the M highways if you want to really see the countryside. All you will see there are a lot of lorries and cars. Of course, getting off those highways will amount to slower speeds overall.

It sounds like too much to fit into one trip. There is always so much to see and do, you have to start out recognizing that you can never do it all. We tend to visit the same place for a few years in a row so we can absorb it all without being rushed each time. Last summer we went to Great Britain and rented a flat in London for a week and one in Edinburgh for a week using the train to go inbetween (we stopped one night in Robin Hood's Bay going North and one night in York coming South) we still didn't see everything we wanted, so we are coming back this summer to self drive and fill in some of the countryside.
we have 12 days to tour (with an added day at each end for flying in and out)
We will land in London on a friday night and spend the night at the airport hotel, picking up our car in the morning
We will overnight - 1 or 2 nights in each of the following locations:
Startford-Upon-Avon (stopping at Avebury on the way),
Chester,
Keswick,
Edinburgh (we love that city and are seeing the Tattoo - again),
Perth,
Craster,
Robin Hood's Bay (also loved it enough for a redo,)
Back for another night at the airport hotel before flying home.
Next summer we will concentrate on either the Highlands or Southern England
Enjoy your trip