I would like comments on tentative itinerary and especially suggestions for our additional week outside of Greater London. My brain is trying to wrap around the reality that our trip is much closer than I’m admitting. I’m Princess Procrastination with a little New Year brain fog. Perhaps it’s perfectionism paralysis, and I just need to make the decision. We do expect to return! I appreciate perspective provided by anyone who wades through my ramble.
My husband (72) and I (66) will go to England in May. We will split just over a week total in the London/day trips and will have a week left for our ‘plant ourselves in a village and day trip’ location. Public transportation in London. Car rental at location, or vicinity of weeklong location. My DH has over 5000 m UK/Ire driving under his belt, and we want to drive while we can.
We’ve seen many major London sights, and have visited Bath, Durham, Cardiff, Cornwall, the Cotswolds, York, and several ancestral villages in Essex, Cambridgeshire, & Suffolk. Of course, all have many more treasures to discover.
Initially, I was seduced by Mardee’s planning of her visit in Yorkshire area. Since we’d already identified that as a possible location for future focus, we figured we would spend some time in London then head up to do some All Creatures Great & Small touring (self or group) along with other villages. We also thought some friends (with roots in that area) might join us. Turns out, they won’t.
*****Now, I’m wondering if there’s another area that we should consider for a spring trip instead of Yorkshire at this time. Would there be another area to maximize the visual delights of spring, since probably most future visits will be fall, winter, or earlier spring??
We like quaint villages/towns, markets in villages/towns, bookstores, history, cathedrals & churches, gardens (especially me), ancestral locations, old stones, charity/vintage shops/vintage/city markets? (me:).
My husband would like to return to the British Museum, Westminster Abbey, and St. Paul’s, with the museum being the most important. (My husband wants to climb St. Paul’s, but we need to be in better shape. We did climb the Arc de Triomphe in 9/22, which has a few more stairs than to the Whispering Gallery.)
*****Does anyone know how the size of St Paul’s stairs compare with those in Arc de Triomphe? In the photo, they look wider than other castles or cathedrals we’ve climbed; I can’t tell the depth.
We plan to day trip to Canterbury. We would also like to visit the Imperial War Museum, and I’d be happy visiting a gallery or two. Though we feel museums and galleries would also be good to visit during a winter trip. It’s possible we will go our separate ways for a morning or afternoon in London.
Here’s what we have so far:
Saturday, May 4– 8:30 AM - flights from local airport to Seattle; Seattle to Denver to Heathrow
Sunday, May 5 – arrive in UK 10:35 AM
Go into London (National Express). Walk. Check in to hotel early if possible. Eat. Wander and see what we can see.
Probably too late for 3 PM Evensong at W Abbey..
Monday, May 6 – Walking & wandering London choosing one or two of the following: Imperial War Museum, St. Paul’s? (cooler to climb stairs than later in month), W Abbey (maybe Evensong), British Museum? *****Do we want to avoid all of these because it’s a holiday, or will they be less busy than a week and a half closer to the summer?
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