Hello all! My husband and I are set to have our adventure in a few months and I welcome any advice for our plans! First, this is a trip not a vacation to we fully expect to be very busy in our days as we want to see and do as much as we can because we don't make it overseas a lot! Our firm plan is that we will arrive in London on Fri 11/21 and head straight to York via rental car. We have an air bnb in York for three nights. Our plan in York is to explore as much as we can. We are taking a side trip to Chatsworth House on Sunday for their Christmas market. Once we leave York on Monday we have an overnight stay at Thornbury Castle. We don't really have anything planned for Monday other than driving and exploring the hotel grounds while we are staying there. When we check out, we are headed straight to Stourhead to visit the gardens and possibly lunch in Bath. I am a huge Pride and Prejudice fan hence the Chatsworth and Stourhead visits. From Stourhead we are heading straight to the Cotswolds for two nights stay in Bourton on the Water. Those two days will be spent exploring as much of the Cotswolds as we can. Our final day is up in the air. We have thought of Blenheim Palace, Oxford, or Windsor Castle but aren't committed to any one in particular. We also thought about exploring London for our last day since all the Christmas festivities will be going on, but we have been to London twice and have seen the sites so wasn't sure if we should do that. We were just looking for advice for Cotswolds things to do (unique things beyond the tourist traps) and what to do on our last day and if there are any other sites we should include in between what we have planned. Thank you so much for taking the time to read alllll of this!! :)
Posted by
Chicago
1853 posts
Drive to York following flight? Probably overnight flight?? Quick adjustment to left hand drive out of London? Your trip, but I would consider the train from Kings Cross to York - multiple trains per day. Tube from LHR Piccadilly Line to St Pancras/Kings Cross/, train onward. Rent the car as you leave York.
Isn't Chatsworth on the route to Thornbury Castle? Is it worth re-juggling nights to avoid a round trip visit from York?
If you are a Jane Austin fan, there is a lot to see in Bath reminiscent of scenes in her books - and the TV and movie versions. More than a lunch stop might allow.
I suspect others would do this itinerary differently, but if you are happy with it, it is your trip! I, personally, think the Cotswolds are lovely, but over-hyped to Americans. I first visited decades ago before Rick took it on as a favorite of his. Subsequent visits haven't enamored me further, but I applaud your research. Best to be sure the area is truly your interest.
You can't lose with any of Blenheim, Oxford, or Windsor. I've been to London more times than I can recall and still haven't seen it all.
This board has several very helpful British posters. I hope they will weigh in.
Posted by
Preston UK
1659 posts
Firstly I must advise you strongly not to get straight into a car and drive for 3/4 hours on what for you is the wrong side of the road immediately on landing on a red-eye flight from the US. It really is a bad idea. As well as that a car is about as much use as a chocolate tea pot in York - you don't need one and it will be difficult and/or expensive to park. You can get to York from London King's Cross in about 2 hours by train and King's Cross is directly accessible from the airport by either tube (LHR) or train (LGW).
Secondly I would not be doing Chatsworth as a day trip from York. It will be close to two hours each way driving and you will be driving back past it the day after. Equally I don't think a day driving to Chatsworth, seeing the house and then driving to Thornbury Castle is very practical either on a Monday in November. I would take a train to Sheffield or Chesterfield on the Sunday afternoon/evening and then hire a car from there for the rest of the trip. You could hire a car in York and drive down but you might have difficulty doing that on a Sunday. Personally I would have two nights in the Peak District and cut at least one from the Cotswolds - it's just more beautiful, even in November.
edit:- looks like I already weighed in, thankfully with similar advice!
Posted by
Ontario, Canada
6614 posts
A couple of things jumped out at me when I read your plans. Thie biggest concern was your plan of driving 4 hours or more immediately after getting off a TA flight and being jet lagged. That isn't something many would recommend doing. You must already be aware of the likelihood of cold, wet weather at that time of year, and short daylight hours, so will pack and plan accordingly. You may want to have a plan B for rainy days when outdoor activities might not be pleasurable. You can visit Blenheim as a day trip from Bourton otW. Either Oxford or Windsor would be nice as a last day. What time of day do you fly out of Heathrow (assuming that is your plan)?
Posted by
Buckinghamshire
413 posts
Does the Aur BNB in York have parking? From memory, parking in York is expensive and hard to come by and much of the centre is pedestrianised.
Stourhead Gardens are beautiful in Summer but in November? If you do go there try to go on a day that is dry and bright as this will give the best impression although I worry it’ll simply show what you are missing. It’s a while since I visited but I don’t recall the house - which is a short distance from the garden - as being very interesting
Regarding your last day, what are your interests- religious sites, historical sites, things associated with WW2 or royalty or ??? If you give us an idea of what you like, people here can advise. From what you’ve said about Chatsworth and Stourhead, then Blenheim would seem an obvious place to go. But, when you were in London, did you go to Hampton Court Palace?
Posted by
Twin Cities of MN
7530 posts
I think it is unwise to drive 4+ hours after a flight. Especially so, when the train is so easy
That said, we just stayed at Arnot House in York and I highly recommend it. They do have street parking.
Posted by
Bristol, UK
1872 posts
It would make sense to stop at Chatsworth on your way from York to Thornbury to avoid backtracking. This would be a very long day and it will be dark when you arrive at Thornbury Castle so you won’t be able to see much, although even driving straight from York you will have very little daylight (sunset is around 4.15pm at that time of year).
I drive this route fairly often and it’s usually very busy so expect it to take longer than Google maps suggests.
I agree that taking the train to York makes more sense than driving there. It’s quicker and easier.
The grounds at Stourhead are gorgeous and worth seeing even in winter, although no gardens will be at their best then.
I do think in general lack of daylight is going to be a factor for you on this trip.
Posted by
OP
Indiana - USA
2 posts
Thanks everyone for your concerns and we appreciate it, but I am really looking at input on the last day lol To answer some of the concerns: my hubby will sleep on the plane. He can sleep soundly in any situation and will be fine with the drive. We have done this before so aren’t worried and we have experience with other side of the car/road driving. We can’t take a train to York because of the car drop fees and our air bnb has parking. We are planning on getting up super early to travel to Thornbury and anticipate being there around noon so we will still have plenty of time before sunset to explore. As far as the last day, we love history, pubs, people watching, and architecture.
Posted by
London
731 posts
I agree with what others have said about the train being an easier way to get to York, and that it makes mores sense to visit Chatsworth/the Peak District on the way to York. However I can see you have reasons for wanting the car from the start.
In terms of the extra day, I would highly recommend Lacock. It's about an hour drive from Bourton on the Water. If you are a Jane Austen fan, particularly of the BBC version of Pride and Prejudice, this is the filming location they used for the town of Meryton. Even if you're not interested in that series, it's a beautiful Wiltshire village that really does feel like stepping back in time. Good luck with the rest of your planning!