England and Scotland 17 day trip itinerary help

I'm working on a trip of my own to much of that area for next year, but you have an advantage I don't: a willingness to drive. That will help. But still, I think you're trying to cover too wide a territory in too little time.

I'm curious about the 3 nights in Bath plus 2 nights in Chipping Camden. The two locations are only about 60 miles apart. You could see a great deal more of Scotland if you postponed Bath and the Cotswolds until your next trip. Five nights in that area vs. six nights for such a big chunk of Scotland seems sort of out of proportion. Three nights in London is also extremely short, but perhaps this is not your first visit to that city.

This is just the reaction of someone mired in her own guide books, however.

Ha! I'm in complete agreement that we are trying to squeeze in a lot so I appreciate the perspective of others! My family wants to see Stonehenge for sure so that's where Bath comes in...my husband and I have been to Bath but not my sons. I wonder if Stonehenge could be a day trip from the Cotswolds? From Heathrow to Bath to rent a car, then stay in Cotswolds for 2 nights? Any thoughts on that?That would cut out 3 nights in Bath but may be a rough first day? I hate to give up the Cotswolds but perhaps it's time to make a hard decision!

I'm not a Stonehenge kind of person; just have no interest in that sort of thing. But ViaMichelin.com will give you pretty decent driving times, I think. Just figure it's a bit optimistic. With a car you can see a lot of little Cotswold towns in one day. What you'd miss out on is the opportunity to do some town-to-town walking, which I'm sure is a really lovely experience if you have decent weather.

I think you are trying to do way too much. My advice would be to give something up so your trip is better and assume you will return. Since you said you already booked round trip from London I would say skip anything in Scotland and focus on England. Scotland deserves its' own trip anyway. So assuming you stick to England here is a rough itinerary based on one my sister and I did for 19 days last summer.

Land in London and head to Bath. 4 nights in Bath and do your Stonehenge trip/Glastonbury and Wells, Bath itself etc..., we headed up to Conwy for 2 nights, then to Keswick for 2 nights, and dropped our car in York for 2-3 nights, train down to London for the rest of your trip. You could also cut Conwy and Keswick and do your Cotswolds time instead taking a train to York from London and back.

You have many worthy destinations but a lot of driving time to get to them all, which will detract from how much you can actually see and do in a location. I would concentrate on Scotland and London. Stonehenge is an outlier in this itinerary and your kids might just have to see it “next time.”

From Heathrow and take the train to York. You do not need a car for York nor Edinburgh. Rent a car when you leave Edinburgh then return it in Glasgow and take the train to London. Something like this:

York - 3 nights

Edinburgh - 3 nights. On your way to Portree, about a 6 hour drive, there are many scenic stops.

Portree- 3 nights (not worth going so far for fewer nights)

Drive to Glasgow for one night and drop off the car. Take the train to London.

Now you have 6 nights for London and can contemplate a day trip to Windsor, the Cotswolds, or even to Stonehenge if you must. Look at London Walks for what you might do with them on a day trip.

I like Laurel’s suggested plan. The only thing that I don’t like is the travel to York on the day of arrival. You will save a lot of money buying discounted train tickets in advance, but this is tough on the date you arrive from overseas since you can’t predict whether your flight will arrive on time. I’d suggest spending the first two or three nights in London, even though it breaks up your time there.

There is lots of driving in your suggested itinerary. Please consider giving something up. You need a minimum of 3 nights on the Isle of Skye, as that only gives you one full day to, yes, drive the Trotternish peninsula. The other 2 days are driving/ travel days getting to the next place.

We planned to spend 4 weeks on a drive tour of England, Wales and Scotland for last October. The more we planned, the more I saw that we needed more time for the places in Wales and England, so we eliminated Scotland for another trip. Also, we had been to Scotland before.

If you drive, you will find that to go to scenic places like the Cotswolds, Yorkshire, South Wales or the Lake District that you will be driving through a lot of towns with a 30MPH speed limit. The traffic in Southern England is heavy, heavy.

We did 3 nights in Bath and 6 in Chipping Campden (used it as a base for Oxford, Blenheim Palace and Stratford Upon Avon. If you love Shakespeare, you must go to Stratford. The Brooks Guesthouse in Bath is great. Also, the Volunteer Inn in Chipping Campden is great.

York we did three nights and loved it there. Walk the walls, go to the Munster and Railway Museum among other things.

Don't drive from the Cotswolds to Edinburgh. Take the train.

Here is my detailed review of our trip:
28 days in Britain and Celebrity Eclipse home
https://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=599139

I so appreciate all of your expertise! You've given me food for thought and I'll continue to adjust my itinerary! Thank you for your suggestions!

Thanks again for your thoughts and suggestions. We've removed some locations and created a mix of busy and relaxing days that we feel good about. We reduced drive days and times too. My anxiety is down and now I'm knee deep in lodging research as well as making a wish list for our next trip!