Cotswolds,Western England,& possibly Cornwall

When I saw this originally I thought it was unanswerable, and still do. I am a bit confused at the difference between Cornwall and South Western England, as the former is a part of the latter. So I don't really know what you call South Western England.
The same is true of Eastern Wales- I am not trying to be obtuse- I'm just not sure where that is, it is a 160 mile long border north to south and the attractions/points of interest are both sides of the Border.

If I set #3 as Devon, Somerset and Dorset, and #4 as the South Eastern Borderlands between Offa's Dyke and the River Severn then I think you could easily spend a week in any of #2, #3 and #4 and am not sure you can adequately combine even 2 of the 4 areas.

It would be really useful to us to get clearer definitions, and really for you to determine which of these areas you want to be in. Cornwall in a week is not too ambitious. It is most of a day each way, and a degree of thought would be needed for a reasonably central base for your 5 days there.

Any town or city in the UK is walkable at night- we don't really have the kind of places where you need a car to drive 100 yards to the restaurant due to multi lane highways and no sidewalks.

With only 7 1/2 days I’d drop Cornwall. There are plenty of villages in the Cotswolds and it would be easy to spend 3-4 days there. Then there is the Cardiff, Tintern area of Wales. That could be another 3 days. Near the Cotswolds, but southwest of it is the Bath, Stonehenge, Salisbury, Wells, Glastonbury, etc. area. There are more than enough places to visit in a relatively small area to occupy the time you have. Good luck choosing.

and this is why I asked the question..... I realize it seems rather vague, as I am just beginning my research. I asked to be able to start narrowing down the areas that are reasonable.. I became quickly aware that Cornwall was not going to be in reach(nor anywhere else I mentioned), with just 7 days on the ground. I am pretty naïve with my UK travel planning, having only been there once before and that was by train(Oxford, London, Yorkshire). I do appreciate the forum's advice. I never would have had the courage to plan my own trips, if it had not been for the kindness of some forum members sharing with me their vast experience. So here I am again, 9 trips later, trying to piece it together. I am sure we will have a great trip. We always do.

Thanks Jamie, this is helpful

With only 7 days, my vote is for dropping Cornwall. It is beautiful, but I can speak from the experience of travelling last year in October around Western England including Bath, Devon, Cornwall, Salisbury, Glastonbury etc. ( part of a 5 Week trip around England and North Wales), that with only 7 days you will probably feel cheated trying to see all that you mention. Another factor is the weather. I had several days ( not consecutively) where the rain poured so hard the only thing to do was sit in the hotel and drink coffee- wasted days, but with 5 weeks I could overcome the delays. Coming from the US or Canada we tend to look at how tiny England is and it’s tempting to think the travel times are are the same as home. But in my experience, the roads are smaller and travelling anywhere that’s not on the motorway/ freeway takes a lot longer than it would at home in the US or Canada.

Greg I find your reply helpful. We will be 5 days in Bath the last week of Aug. Maybe weather then is less a concern….but still…to lose a day or two to rain always a possibility. Last summer I remember proved that there. I am glad I booked our inn that many days. A cushion for bad weather days. Public transportation, maybe a tour and using Bath as a base for the Cotwalds, Salsbury/Stonehenge and more…if possible.

Thanks, Greg, This is also helpful info... I am narrowing it down very quickly

For “all2aob”
Rather than using expensive Bath as a base for day tripping, might I suggest cheaper Bristol instead? It’s just ten or so minutes from Bath on the train and has better bus and train connections. Last year I used it to see Glastonbury and Wells which are on a regular bus route from Bristol (just in front of train station) and I stayed at an Ibis just a short walk from the train.It was cheaper than staying in Bath, and Bristol itself is worth a day or so sight seeing ( I followed Rick Steve’s Bristol walking tour in his England book)

That rain could happen anywhere in the UK-:in the Cotswolds just as much as in Cornwall. It is odd to stigmatise one County like that, and is not well informed.
That is the risk of travelling in the UK in October- the autumn or fall.
In a different year even or especially Cornwall could have had a month of record breaking sunshine and heat.
At least you will have a car to help to mitigate such weather if it happens.
There is an o!d saying about its not bad weather it's bad clothing.
The whole of the UK is just coming out of a seriously bad winter of incessant storms and rsin, nowhere has been immune.

isn... We'll will be prepared for rain.. Maybe it's the reason for the great airfare, lol. We certainly experienced it in Ireland in October. Still managed to have a great trip... Greg.... i like your idea of Bristol as a base in the south... I see parking is a problem in Bath.

I just noticed in my Rick Steves book that he says Bristol is a pain for drivers (doesn’t give any specifics) so perhaps any money saved over Bath might not be worth it the hassle.