Feedback on itinerary for self-drive two days, one night

Where are you hiring the car from? Leaving central London to head south to Winchester could take a very long time.

I am picking the car up at Heathrow.

Are you picking the car up after a flight? Other posters here have cautioned about this.
Anyway, that's about four hours driving (excluding any traffic delays) on day 1, not counting finding parking, which is difficult in Winchester and Salisbury.
You probably want to see Stonehenge near Salisbury - the traffic there can be bad (A303).
Day 2 - visit the attractive small towns and villages near |Cirencester.
Provided you are happy with the amount of time you spend driving vs walking around. it's doable.

I am picking up the car three full days after arriving; I will go back out to Heathrow very early on that morning from my hotel in London.

Stonehenge is not a priority for me on the Salisbury visit, so I don't have the challenge of adding that in to the itinerary.

If anyone has further input on my original question and/or alternative itineraries, I'd love to hear ideas.

Thanks again.

It can be done but as has been advised securing parking in each area might prove frustrating.

Why these areas?

Have you considered traing from London to Oxford and getting the rental there?

Hi RC, as Lin mentioned, the itinerary is doable, and if that's what you want to see, then go for it. I've driven through Winchester and Salisbury before, although it's been a while, and you shouldn't have any problems driving. It's good that you're picking it up from Heathrow, as it's definitely easier than picking one up even on the outskirts of London.

That said, if it was me, I would probably stop in Salisbury and stay there the first night. That will give you plenty of time to explore Winchester and Salisbury. Then the next morning you can get a fresh start driving to Cirencester. Driving takes a lot out of you, and I speak from experience. Just a suggestion, but that's what I would do. 😊

Have you checked out how long it will take you to drive from Heathrow to Winchester to Salisbury and then Cirencester?

You will be picking up the car and leaving London in the rush hour, so it will take longer to drive to Winchester than expected. You need to allow at least 90 minutes for the drive. Factoring time to park in Winchester could take that to 2 hours.

Winchester to Salisbury is going to be another hour plus.

Salisbury to Cirencester is going to be another 90 minutes plus and could take a couple of hours depending on what time you leave Salisbury.

You need to allow 2-3 hours to sightsee in both Winchester and Salisbury as there is a loit to do and see in boith places. Don't forget to add in time for lunch etc.

That is going to be a long day. Think seriously abnout MArdees suggestion of staying the night in Salisbury. There are lots of attractive small n villages you could explore from Salisbury on your way back to Heathrow. There is the New Forest (with its ponies) or the South Downs areas.

What made you decided on Cirencester and what villages are you thinking od seeing that day?

Winchester is a lovely small city to explore. There's a park and ride on the outskirts where you could leave your car. Alternatively, I've used a multi storey car park in the centre that had lots of spaces on a Sunday, not sure about other days. I think it was on Chesil Street.

Thanks to all so far for your input!
I had thought of staying in Salisbury and I appreciate the suggestion to do so; I may do this and then perhaps look into what I have time to see of the Cotswolds starting early the next morning.

Another possiblity I would welcome feedback about would be an alternative itinerary:
In an effort to see areas tourists seem less acquainted with and out of great interest as well, I thought of driving to Norwich and exploring there, staying over the night. The next morning, I would go to the Walsingham shrine and Sandringham, and then head back to London. Norwich, and Norfolk, really looks interesting to me. I had been interested in seeing Ipswich and Colchester, but in an effort to have a more compact route, I thought what I said above might work well, too.

Thanks for any additional input people may have about this Norfolk-centered idea.

March is a bit early for the Norfolk coast, especially north, and the Norfolk Broads - otherwise you could have a great non international tourist experience surrounded by Brit tourists.

Sandringham is an experience - a little early for walking because of the very high levels of mud and water this year, some additional congestion may occur depending on current affairs relating to Andrew previously known as Prince.
A bit early for the fab National Trust properties in Norfolk.

I just returned from a drive to near Ipswich in Suffolk and drove inland along the Suffolk Norfolk border - the millions of potholes and so much water on the roads made the drive much less pleasant.

I think I've had enough of this winter and daily rain.

Nigel, I know exactly how you feel- we are so sick of the rain, too.

Regarding Norfolk- this is one of my favourite parts of the UK, but as Nigel says it might be too early in the year to fully appreciate it. The north Norfolk coast is amazing- especially around Holkham/Blakeney/Cley. It's called "big sky country" because everything is so flat. You get seascapes and marshes and at night you can hear the wind howling thru the marsh grasses which is quite dramatic. Holkham (in my opinion) is maybe the best beach in the UK, and you have the nearby house, and other stately homes at Blickling Hall (where Anne Boleyn was born) and Felbrigg Hall. Tho I have not been in March we had a wonderful time walking the coast path in early November.

Norwich is a nice town as well and has one of the UK's best cathedrals. Elm Hill has some nice historic buildings and you can walk along the river.

Wasleys:

I had chosen Cirencester because I was curious to see it, however, I'm just as enthusiastic to see other towns. If I go to the Cotswolds, I wanted to see Bibury and Chipping Campden, or drive through the Minchinhampton or Malmesbury areas.

I'm an urbanist at heart so part of the thrill for me is seeing the urban environments and thinking about how they developed over time as I view them. This was partly why I was so interested in seeing Salibury, or Winchester, or Norwich for example that seems to have an "old" business district next to a postwar redevelopment business district but all of it seems to still be busy.

Norwich's Anglia Square is in the process of being demolished. They were pulling down the first building last week - the multistorey car park.

You have an interest in urban geography; that being so, you might like to consider seeing how a former industrial waterfront is being transformed in Cardiff? https://www.rioarchitects.com/project/atlantic-wharf-masterplan/
https://www.visitcardiff.com/bay/

Cardiff Castle is at the centre of the city and a fort was originally established here by the romans. At the centre of the castle today is the Norman Keep built about 1087. In the 1800’s, the Marquess of Bute made additions to the castle. https://www.cardiffcastle.com

Three other castles are found within 8 miles of the city centre:> Castell Coch, Caerphilly and St.Fagans (1500’s) which includes the museum of Welsh History. All the above can be reached by public transport - although Castell Coch would be a 17 minute hike up a steep hill. High speed trains link London (Paddington) to Cardiff in around 1 hour 50 minutes.
https://cadw.gov.wales/visit/places-to-visit/castell-coch
https://cadw.gov.wales/visit/places-to-visit/caerphilly-castle
https://museum.wales/stfagans/

For small cities with more medieval architecture remaining, Winchester & Salisbury are good choices.

If you want to visit Winchester then I recommend parking in the Park and Ride on the outskirts of the city. There is a multi-storey car park in the centre and a couple of other 'hidden' parking spots but if you're not familiar with the city it can be difficult and frustrating to locate these spots and with much of the centre being one way streets you can easily find yourself going round in circles and wasting a lot of time.