We plan to rent a car & would like to stay on the coast as much as possible. Flying in & out of Gatwick. (Have already been to London & Brighton/Beachy Head.) We'd like to spend at least 2-4 nights at each stop & have 23 nights on the road. We'd like to see Wales as well as the south & west coast of England. Anyone know if this would be doable? Would there be time to stop while driving back to Gatwick, depending on where we drive across, of course, & any suggestions are welcome.
Posted by
Pantego, NC, USA
1014 posts
We have driven kinda what you are looking to do. Snowdonia Mountain range and park and accompanying beautiful small villages is worth a few of days. Cardiff is a neat town with a wonderfully restored castle. Area is interesting. There are Roman Baths close by that are the most complete in UK. While in Cardiff, partake of a Brains Beer. So dark it makes Guinness look like a pale ale.
Posted by
Washington DC
28247 posts
I spent some time in southern and western England in August and September, but without a car. There's a lot to see. My interest in stately homes is nil, but I love picturesque towns and gardens, so I was happy.
What time of year do you plan to make your trip? Cornwall was very, very busy in August. Someone mentioned in passing that the recent revival of Poldark has had an impact. Whatever it is, it is often difficult to find a restaurant where you can have dinner without a reservation. That makes it difficult just to bop casually around the countryside. I assume you are planning to book lodgings well in advance. It's a difficult area for folks like me who book just 1 to 4 days ahead of time.
Because of budget cuts, many of the local tourist offices in England have been shuttered. Sometimes there's a place you can pick up a local map, but it can be difficult to find that place once you arrive in town. A wild goose chase may ensue. Do as much planning as you can ahead of time so you are not so dependent on local advice. If in need of a map, you may find a vending box at the train station. Maps were £1 each, but the machines needed to be updated to take the new £1 coins.
Herewith some very cryptic comments on the places I passed through, with an admission that I didn't do adequate research ahead of time and may have missed the best sights (and remember that I do not do stately homes and the like):
Poole: I found it sort of depressing and do not recommend it, though there's a nice garden on the outskirts of town.
Bournemouth: Livelier, more upscale, and seemed much more interesting.
Weymouth: Seemed to be a very family-oriented beach resort. One or two good gardens and the jumping-off point for the Isle of Portland, but the town itself may not have a lot to interest folks without children in tow. Portland is hilly and probably best explored by car. There's a disused quarry with carvings scattered throughout (no printed map available on site that I could find); I really enjoyed wandering around, looking for the carvings.
Lyme Regis looked sort of interesting as I passed through it on the bus.
St. Austell has a couple of really major gardens nearby, the Eden Project and the Lost Gardens of Heligan. For lack of affordable lodging I had to stay in Mevagissey instead. It's a small town with traffic issues. Pleasant but didn't seem to have a great deal to do if you weren't going to the gardens. There is no ATM in Mevagissey at this time.
St. Ives I really, really liked for the good-quality art and craft galleries. It's very touristy and not a cheap place to stay, but I liked browsing the shops. The town is a bit hilly.
Ludlow is just east of the Welsh border. An attractive, half-timbered town that has become a magnet for foodies and is thus not a cheap place to sleep.
Chester is larger and has a half-timbered historic area. Good cathedral. Quite touristy. It's possible to day-trip to Wales from Chester, but with proper advance planning and a car there's no need to do it that way.
One thing about Cornwall is that there are often high hedges bordering the road. In many places you won't get a good look at the countryside except sporadically. Some of the bus companies serving the small coastal towns use double-decker buses, and the view from the top floor is far superior to what you'll have in a car. Just something to keep in mind when you plan out-and-back trips from your base.
As you travel north from Cornwall toward southern Wales you are not very far from the Cotswolds.
Posted by
Camano Island, WA, usa
1526 posts
The National Trust UK web site is a great resource for trip planning in Wales and Southwest England. You can become a member at a couples or family rate which will save you money on admissions and provide parking. English Heritage also has a membership ...it may be prudent to study which properties are covered by both organizations. We traveled in the shoulder months of April-May and September-October so had more flexibility in getting accommodations. It is sad that some of the Tourist Offices are closed now but you will find listings on-line now. Since you are staying more than one night you may be able to arrange some nice self-catered places. The National Trust has accommodations available in some lovely historic locations; these must be pre-booked. We stayed mostly in hosted B & Bs and small Family Inns in the countryside, and a friends timeshare at a resort. Business class hotels can be a good deal in the cities. As was hinted at by one of the others here...some of the beach communities are oriented to family style vacations and may not be that quaint anymore.
Posted by
2599 posts
On the south Wales coast, Tenby is the most attractive seaside town. West of the town are spectacular cliffs and beaches. This map link shows you the area:>https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.6701621,-4.8160847,23577m/data=!3m1!1e3!5m1!1e1
(Milford Haven is not particularly attractive). https://www.visittenby.co.uk (parking can be difficult in the town = narrow streets where cars are banned within the medieval walls).
http://www.visitwales.com/explore/national-parks/pembrokeshire-coast
Wales has its own forum on RS - suggest you read previous posts.
Most of the west coast of Wales is attractive. Most of north Wales is attractive -except for the north coast east of Llandudno - see Map:> https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@53.0332255,-4.0226757,91339m/data=!3m1!1e3!5m1!1e1
www.visitwales.co.uk
On the Dorset coast, Lulworth Cove and the walk west to Man O War Bay is the best bit. In south Devon, Totnes, Dartmouth and Salcombe I like but not keen on Torquay = too congested.
In Cornwall, Look, Polperro, Fowey, Eden Project, Truro, Marazion (view St.Micheal’s Mount), Minac Theatre, St.Ives, Padstow, Tintagel would be my choice. (Best to choose a central base).
In north Devon, Clovelly, Exmoor National Park, Lynmouth, Selworthy, Minehead, Dunster are worth seeing. (The coast east of Minehead up to the Severn bridges is not worth bothering with - same on the opposite Welsh side).
Google the places mentioned.