4 day Itinerary outside of London

Opinions will vary on time spent in Bath and the Cotswolds. When time of year are you going? What are you interests? Museums? Hiking? Archeology? History? Also are those a full 8 days or do those days include arrival and departure travel? Are you driving or depending on public transport? A bit more information would be helpful.

Why not just stay in London the whole time and do several day trips by train? That's what we've done several times. Bath is an easy day trip (about a 1 1/2 hour train ride from Paddington station- though you may want to buy your tickets about 12 weeks in advance as 'day of' tickets are very expensive on that route). We went to Stratford-upon-Avon and then took a 1/2 day tour through part of the Cotswolds from there. Windsor is a wonderful and extremely easy 1/2 to whole day trip (about a 25 min. trip from Paddington with one easy change in Slough). In fact, here is a link to an article I wrote about my favorite sites in London and my favorite do-it-yourself train day trips.

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Travel-g186338-c176673/London:United-Kingdom:London.And.Day.Trips.html

Rita, my wife and I stayed in Bath for 3 nights and took one of the days and did a driving tour of the Cotswolds in 2012. Bath is a great home base for a stay outside of London (which I would recommend). Bath is very well connected to London (less than 2 hours by train from central London), so it is easy to get to after landing at Heathrow. If you have a car, exploring the Cotswolds from Bath as a home base is very doable (about 90 minutes drive one way to Chipping Campden for example). If you don't have a car, that is tougher. In my opinion, it would be ideal to have 1.5 or perhaps 2 days at most touring Bath (others will tell you a single day is enough). I could easily spend 2 days touring the Cotswolds (especially with the hiking around there), but you can do it in a single day trip from Bath (it will leave you wanting more though). Other cities you could visit on a day trip from Bath would include Cardiff (about 1 hour by train from Bath - revitalized waterfront and fun Welsh history), Salisbury (1 hour by train from Bath - amazing cathedral), or Oxford (1 hour by train - cool university areas). Cheers and happy travels!

I would stay in the Cotswolds, then take train from Moreton-in-Marsh to Bath for a few hours or a day. The Cotswolds are so beautiful that you really need more then a day to see it. You could make Chipping Campden, Broadway, Bourton-on-the-Water or Moreton-in-Marsh as base. There is some bus services between these villages. We spent 10 days in the Cotswolds in September walking the Cotswolds Way, there are no words to describe how fantastic it was.

Just returned Monday from 9 days in London/Paris where we did a day trip to Oxford & Cotswolds. I agree with suggestion of staying in a Cotswolds town for a couple of nights or more and exploring from there, even to Bath (which was never terribly interesting to me). From Cotswolds base you can see the great countryside, as well as Stratford, Warwick Castle, Blenheim Palace and Oxford per your interest. If this is your first trip to London, I would move another day to London.

Thank you for all the wonderful suggestions, and for the time you took to reply. Yes, this is our first trip to London so perhaps we do need an extra day there? We had planned on renting a car for the first four days. We plan to be there in October. My husband is interested in WWII museums but we both need some relaxing time, driving around the countryside. Any other tips are most appreciated. Rita

First trip? Are you sure you want to rent a car and drive? I lived there for three months and have been back a few times and still, I don't try to drive.

For the Cotswolds and Oxford, my family hired a private day tour from kookycotswoldtours.com. It really covers a lot of ground more efficiently than you can do yourself.

Just a suggestion but how about spending the first part of your trip in London, then renting a car and to visit the Cotswolds. Go from the the urban to the rural. I adore London but it can overwhelm the senses so think about decompressing in countryside. As its your first trip I suggest 4 full days in London. Given you DH's WW2 interest Churchill War Rooms are a must see. Imperial War Musuem as well. Out of town but reachable by rail and bus, the American Air Museum in Duxford might be something to consider. As far as London sites, Westminster Abbey, Tower of London, theatre, Liberty, Leadenhall Market, Borough Market, the Sir John C Ritblatt gallery in the British Library as well enjoying a pint and pot pie at the Blackfriar pub are "must" visits in my humble opinion. Walking thru Hyde Park. Evensong at St. Paul's. walking along the Thames. Visiting Parliament. Museum of London. Ceremony of the Keys ( if tickets still available). I don't work for Rick but truly believe his guidebooks are excellent investments for first timers. Clear, concise explanations, practical info that helps ease angst. Have a wonderful time.