Day trips from London - the best journeys aside from the destinations

You could go to the Cotswolds, take the train from London Paddington to Moreton-in-Marsh. You could take the 8:21am train to Moreton-in-Marsh and arrive at 9:58am. There are trains leaving Moreton-in-Marsh at 5:32pm, 6:05, 7:26, and there are later ones. Evan if you take the train back at 5:32pm you would still have 7 hours to visit two or three villages. From Moreton-in-Marsh you can take a bus to Stow-on-the-Wold, Bourton-on-the-Water, Broadway and Chipping Campden. Go and enjoy the beauty of the Cotswolds.

Robin, I'm confused.

Once they arrive via train at Morton in Marsh how do they get to the other Cotswold villages? Buses as they aren't driving?

Bath makes a nice day trip, as does Cardiff Wales, York, Windsor, Stratford-upon-Avon, Winchester, Canterbury, Dover, and Brighton among many other places. All are easy train journeys of about 2 hours or less (except Windsor- it is only about a 30 min. trip - one easy change at Slough-) (Cardiff is a bit more) and I've enjoyed the scenery on all of the trips. Windsor happens to be my favorite castle, too. What are your interests? That might help us help you narrow things down. Example- for history Windsor, York and Dover ; for architecture, Bath;. Just let us know.

One of the nicest journeys near the edge of London is line from Guildford (connection Waterloo) to Redhill (Victoria or London Bridge). It's a pretty line which runs along the foot of the North Downs. Trouble is, apart from Dorking and a couple of the village stops, there isn't much reason to get off the train--unless you like walking as there are some good walks to do.

You won't see much of the Cotswolds in a day if you don't have a car and you aren't going on a dreaded organised tour, where you may spend longer on the bus than actually seeing places. But, if you want to go to the Cotswolds, then you could give it a try. I am bemused by the fascination of users of this forum by the Cotswolds - there are nicer places in England without the tourist hoards is my view, but each to their own.

Rye is a good place to spend a day as is nearby Lewes - both have a good mixture of history and nearby walks around the countryside. The train journey to both is mostly rural once out of London.

Wherever you go by train from London, if your journey is more than 40 minutes on a reasonably fast train, you will get to see the countryside. The countryside along the Bath line isn't that interesting IMO. Other posters have directed you to some large cities such as Bath and Cardiff, but it sounds as though you want something smaller scale and more rural.

Thanks, all. My husband and I are in our 60's. Not limited too much in walking ability, but not as energetic as we used to be. We expect to be spending much of our time in London visiting museums, such as British and Victoria & Albert, Tower of London. I love gardens and Kew is a must. We are not sure if we are going to make the trip this fall or next spring, which affects what gardens would be most worth a visit. We are not seasoned travelers, but made a trip to the Netherlands many years ago. Spent 3 days in Amsterdam, and 3 days driving to various sites around the country. We had enjoyed the drives and seeing some of the countryside, just the variety of the typical houses around the country, and getting out of the congestion of the city. Thought a break from London would be nice. Though the Cotswolds would be nice to see, if I have to sit on a crowded tour bus, or am pressured to try to fit in considerable distances in one day, and jostle with tourists, not sure if the experience is what I am looking for.

http://www.beenthere-donethat.org.uk/londondaytrips.html

Great resource...not sure how up to date they keep it, but can certainly get you started!

I know you have said you don't want a crowded tour bus tour of the Cotswolds but I have a suggestion for you.
I'm going to London in Sept and have booked the tour: Becky's Secret Cottage Tour of the Cotswolds. Google it or check for it on this Forum, people love it! Becky lives in a 400 year-old thatched cottage and serves you luncheon and afternoon tea there. They take you around in a minivan to remote villages that are accessible most easily by car. There is bus service but I believe buses are not frequent.
You take the train from Paddington station about 8 am and get off in Moreton-in-Marsh and Becky meets you at 10 am. Then your tour begins. It is recommended to go during the week as weekends get booked. I reserved my day about a month ago and I could see the weekends were not available.
A friend of my mine is going in June so I will pass along her thoughts.

Try looking at Day Trips from London Walks? Cotswolds are among the trips, though it all depends on your time of visit.

I have only done their Stonehenge and Salisbury trip. Enjoyable and trouble-free.

http://www.walks.com/other-tours/day-trips-from-london

Debbie

I'm with Jennifer on the fascination with the Cotswolds. Yes it's a scenic drive and there are some nice villages dotted about but you can say that about pretty much most of the UK. I can get in my car and within five minutes be in a lovely village full of thatched cottages, old churches and 300 year old pubs. From there I can drive in any direction and I will encounter similar villages and a variety of scenery all of which is comparable to what one can find in the Cotswolds, sometimes even better. Unless there's a particular reason for visiting a village there I see no reason not to visit any other part of rural Britain.

Great info and suggestions. Thanks, everybody.

I visited Windsor Castle in March. It is beautiful as is the town. However I am bemused by the people who say take the train with a connection in Slough. If you want a relaxing trip and want to pass through English towns I recommend taking the train from Waterloo Station. It is a direct trip with no connections although there are maybe 15 stops. You will see people's gardens and homes, the Thames river in a rural location, etc. Trip by train is about an hour.

I did a day trip to Oxford by bus (not a tour, public transit) and it was very cheap and easy. (I got tickets for £5 each way, a special they were running at the time.) Got off, wandered around, managed to get on a university tour though even without that I would have had enough to do.
There's a botanic garden there, established 1621. I was too late to get in but would have loved to.
https://www.botanic-garden.ox.ac.uk/visit-oxford-botanic-garden
I took the Oxford Tube, was a double-decker and quite comfortable. https://www.oxfordtube.com/
There is also the X90 but I haven't used it so can't say anything other than it exists.
https://x90.oxfordbus.co.uk/

You wrote, "If a person is going to have to spend travel time to get to some of the surrounding areas, are there day trips which would actually give you a glimpse of rural England, or something interesting, which would add to the enjoyment of the day trip, aside from the destination?"

You also wrote, "We are not sure if we are going to make the trip this fall or next spring." So, since you have not yet made plans or hotel reservations, I will throw out a suggestion."

Instead of just a day trip to the Cotswolds, I suggest that you take a train trip with great scenery, plus spend two nights away from London, in the countryside.

When we were in England last spring, we did the following trip.
1. Depart London; train to Stratford-Upon-Avon. Train goes through Oxford and some beautiful countryside. You pass through Warwick with its famous castle. Look to the right side of the train. You can get off and see Warwick Castle if you wish.
Then get back on the train, continue to Stratford-Upon-Avon. Check into your hotel, then go for a walk around the small historic center. See the Shakespeare sites, swans on the River Avon, and the Royal Shakespeare Theatre. Also Trinity church where he is buried.
2. The next morning, get up early, grab breakfast, and go on a tour through the Cotswolds. We did our tour with Go Cotswolds, run by Tom. He will pick you up at your hotel in his small mini van. The van is clean, comfortable and new. Tom will take you to several Cotswolds villages so you can get a sample of the Cotswolds. He parks the van, you are given a walking map of the village, with tea rooms and pubs marked. You are given time to walk around and enjoy the village. Not rushed. Then everyone boards the van, and on to the next village. We found the pace of this to be just right.

At the end of the day, Tom will return you to your hotel. Next morning, you can take the train back to London if you desire.

This was a perfect break from London for us. We scheduled this trip in the middle of our London stay.

"Go Cotswolds" Tour is highly rated on TripAdvisor, and received the Trip Advisor Certificate of Excellence.

Contact Tom through his website. http://www.gocotswolds.co.uk/
Click the red "Book Now" button on this page to sign up for the tour.
http://www.gocotswolds.co.uk/tour-details/
Or contact Tom at phone number 07786 920166 or email tom@gocotswolds.co.uk.
A reservation should be made for the tour. We booked one day before our tour.

Also see the following page, "Joining a Go Cotswolds Tour From London and Birmingham" to see how to do just that:
http://www.gocotswolds.co.uk/blog/joining-a-go-cotswolds-tour-from-london-and-birmingham/

You can read my full trip report I wrote here:
https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/day-tours/go-cotswolds-tour-with-tom-the-most-fun-we-had-while-in-england

Note that on certain days, Go Cotswolds picks up at Moreton-In-Marsh station:
Pick up times:

Wednesdays and Fridays
Moreton-in-Marsh rail station 9.45am

Sundays
Moreton-in-Marsh rail station 10.00am

This would make it possible to do this as a day trip from London. You could take the train from London to Moreton-in-Marsh station then be picked up by the tour.

See more information on train times out of London here:
http://www.gocotswolds.co.uk/blog/joining-a-go-cotswolds-tour-from-london-and-birmingham/

You could also spend the night in Moreton the night before and after your tour.
It's a pretty little village with several good B&B's.

One of my favorite day trips from London with guests was to St Albans. St Albans retains its Roman roots with a fabulous museum as well as some outdoor bits as well. Read up about Boudica - a Celtic queen who led an uprising against the Romans in 60AD. You can see her riding her chariot on the northside of the Westminster Bridge in London. There is a fabulous cathedral and a charming high street. Go on a Wednesday or Saturday and you will catch market day. This is truly an old fashioned market - everything from underwear, to bakery, to picture frames - you name it. This trip has never disappointed.

One of my favorite day trips from London with guests was to St Albans. St Albans retains its Roman roots with a fabulous museum as well as some outdoor bits as well. Read up about Boudica - a Celtic queen who led an uprising against the Romans in 60AD. You can see her riding her chariot on the northside of the Westminster Bridge in London. There is a fabulous cathedral and a charming high street. Go on a Wednesday or Saturday and you will catch market day. This is truly an old fashioned market - everything from underwear, to bakery, to picture frames - you name it. This trip has never disappointed.

Another good day trip from London is to Salisbury, to see Salisbury Cathedral and Stonehenge. You can do the trip on your own by train, or join a company that does trips out of London, London Walks. There would not be many on your London Walks trip, and you travel together on the train, not scrunched together in a bus.

Browse their website, www.walks.com

Evans Evans does very thorough day trips, in and outside of London. They offer many choices. We have done numerous trips with them, over many years.

We thoroughly enjoyed our day trip to Eastbourne. I don't know why more people don't suggest it. Sussex is beautiful with rolling hills dotted with sheep, but it's very accessible from London.

We took the train from Victoria station (about 1.5 hour trip) to Eastbourne in East Sussex. The train ride was lovely and it goes by a famous carving in one of the hills (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long_Man_of_Wilmington). We found Easbourne, a seaside city, to be a nice little place to explore. Our plan was to walk a circular route along the cliffs to the town of East Dean. We walked up a big hill from Eastbourne up to the cliffs above Beachy Head (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beachy_Head) on the South Downs Way and had lunch at the Beachy Head Inn. We had planned to walk on to Birling Gap (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/East_Dean_and_Friston#Birling_Gap) and then on the The Seven Sisters Sheep Center and on to the little town of East Dean where we planned on either getting a cab or bus back to the station, but I unfortunately starting coming down with a cold that morning and was not feeling up to the whole trek (about a 6 mile walk). So we called a cab after lunch and got a ride back to the station.

If you wanted to skip the walk up the big hill you could get a cab up to the Beachy Head Inn. It isn't far so the ride was not more than a few pounds.

We went in mid-September and only ran into a few people on the trail. It was kind of a misty day though so that might have kept people way. Still, we were never really rained on. I thought it was the perfect trip (aside from getting sick.)

If you are interested in the trip feel free to send me a private message for a link to my pictures.

This is a question to JC and Jennifer (and any others), but you both wondered about the tourist' fascination with Cotswolds. Being an American, seeking to gain knowledge about England, prior to my travel there, I am curious about your statements that there are better (or equally beautiful, but less crowded) villages near London, which you'd recommend over the Cotswolds. Could you be more specific about which ones you'd recommend and why? I have been planning for the Cotswolds because of the scenery, proximity to London, and walking paths. We want to walk the countryside while visiting a few picturesque villages. Can't wait to hear your recommendations. Thank you.

Here is a good link:
10 best Day Trips

ksb1949, you will get more answers if you start a new question. Copy and paste the question you just asked and start a new thread.

I've taken my wife to the UK a few times now. She loves London and Edinburgh. This last time was our first time adding a day in York. We have been kicking ourselves ever since for not having done it sooner. It quickly became a favorite destination. The lovely river Ouse, the parks, the minster and the shambles makes for a pretty full day trip.