Cornwall/other SW counties

You'll probably end up taking some buses.

I didn't go to any of the places on your list, but in other coastal Cornwall towns I found it difficult to get a table at dinnertime without a reservation. Too many Poldark and Doc Martin fans.

Cardiff and Weston are away from the other places on your list, so consider skipping them unless there is something special you wanted to see. Lands End is nice, but unless you plan on walking some of the trails, it’s a relatively short stop. We enjoyed St. Ives, and Port Isaac would be nice to walk around looking for the Doc Martin sites if you watch that TV series. If you enjoy old naval vessels, the Navy yard in Portsmouth with the HMS Victory is worth a half day ar least. Tintagel has a castle and its ties (legend) to King Arthur and the wizard Merlin’s cave. Plymouth has a marker from where the pilgrims departed as well as the inn they stayed in prior to embarkation. Since I had rental car when I visited I have no idea how well public transportation will serve your needs.

Check out the Minack Theatre. It is a really cool theatre built into the side of the cliff overlooking the water. Depending on your dates, you might be able to see some kind of performance there. Or you can tour it in the afternoons, I believe.

Also, we walked along the Southwest Coast Path from the Minack Theatre to Porthgwarra Beach. It was a beautiful walk, about a mile if I remember right. There's a little shop at Porthgwarra where you can get a snack.

Also, St Michael's Mount was very interesting.

On the south coast, Megavissey is really worth a visit.

I'd skip Weston-Super_Mare unless you're interested in depressing seaside resorts desperately clinging on to their former glory.

What do you have in mind for Portsmouth and the surrounding area? There are lots that I can recommend however as you're limited to public transport it might make some sights difficult to get to and won't make maximum use of your limited time.

I'll take your suggestion for Portsmouth. We're there for a few days. Right now we're thinking the HMS Victory, the Mary Rose, and a trip over to Osborne House.

I think that you should firstly check out the map of the rail system:
http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/static/images/structure/css/nationalrailnetworkmap.pdf
Please note that the lines are not as straight as they appear on the map. Note that going into the south-west that you have one main line west of Exeter with various spurs coming off it. People with cars would find it easy to reach the places on the coast that the railway does not reach - such as Clovelly. You can find buses here:> www.traveline.info

The Britrail Pass may not be good value for money if just making short hops. Check out times & fares here:> www.nationalrail.co.uk
Note that longer journeys have cheap advance fares for specific trains. These ‘cheap’ fares are loaded about 11 weeks ahead and price gradually rises - though even pre-booking the day before can save money.

I would not bother with Weston. The Severn Tunnel (between Bristol & Newport for Cardiff) is currently closed until July 9th 2018 for electrification and passengers are being bussed over the Severn Bridge. (London to south Wales trains are being diverted via Gloucester). Cardiff does offer several nearby places of interest that can easily be reached by public transport including St.Fagans Castle & Museum, Castle Coch, Caerphilly Castle, Dyffryn Gardens (requires 1 mile walk from village of St.Nicholas). The city centre does of course have Cardiff Castle and 1 mile to the south is Cardiff Bay - not a beach but a vast harbour with waterside restaurants etc. To see all that lot, you would need to stay in Cardiff for maybe 3 or even 4 nights.

You may also like to consider going to north Wales by train. The line from Shrewsbury (worth a look) to the west coast is very scenic. Porthmadog* would make a good base for the Snowdonia National Park. For bus travel in Wales - try this site:> https://www.traveline.cymru

• 2 narrow gauge steam railways go from Porthmadog into spectacular scenery. www.festrail.co.uk

Thank you everyone for your fabulous replies. They are very helpful and give us good food for thought. Thanks also for the link to the National Rail network and the bus lines - they will definitely go into my phone.