Feeling stuck/Pls assist with how to think London & highlights

Been visiting London and surrounding villages, towns and cities for decades.

London never disappoints as I always discover somewhere new to explore; last trip (2024) it was the Walthamstow Wetlands, Parkland Walk between Finsbury Park and Crouch End, London Fields tennis courts, Hunterian Museum, Crouch End’s Blue Owl Cafe and meeting The General and Roxy at the Seven Stars pub by the Royal Courts of Justice.

Honestly I’d just do Bath and London but I’m biased.

There's no right or wrong answer to this question. Some of it depends on the time of year you plan to go and if you want to spend more time in cities vs countryside and if you prefer car vs public transport. If it were me, I would consider:

-Edinburgh and York (York is really not that far, something like two hours from London- not that much more than Bath)
-York and other places around Yorkshire- either the coast or the dales
-The Lake District- you can get the train to Kendal or Penrith very easily from London
-Devon- train to Exeter, you can also visit Dartmoor or Exmoor
-Northumbria- from Newcastle or Berwick-upon-Tweed you can visit the coast or Hadrian's Wall
-North Norfolk- one of the most beautiful parts of the UK, tho easier with a car
-Oxford and Thames Valley area

Good luck deciding!

A couple questions: (1) How many nights in total do you have? (2). How many are in your family? The more members in your family, the more time you need each day to move from location to location. If you’re renting a vehicle, consider how much storage space you will need for your family’s luggage as cars there have quite limited space for luggage if there are more than three travelers.

With a total of seven or eight days, you already have three or four days spoken for in London. it’s unclear from your post.

Since you’ll already be going to Bath for one to two days, you have only two or three nights remaining. The Cotswolds are close to Bath and the many small villages can easily take the rest of your time. Keep in mind the area called “the Cotswolds” covers a large swath covering about 800 square miles so you really need to figure out what towns you want to see.

I did a similar trip years back that included London, Bath , the Cotswolds, Oxford and found staying just one night anywhere made things too hectic. I would have liked to have skipped Oxford and stayed more than one night in Bath. It was just too hectic to include a string of one nighters while also adapting to driving the car on the left side of the roadways. And I was not quite ready for the driving on England’s high-speed motorways. ( Hint: there were many speed demons on the motorways).

For proximity to the towns we wanted to see, we stayed in Stowe-on-the-Wold one night and moved on to a charming village called Blockley for another night.

If you choose two bases, try to limit the plan to just a single one-night location.

To minimize your changing hotels & travel (even with day trips) I would suggest just London & Bath, maybe 4 nights in London, 3 in Bath. While staying in Bath, I would recommend the Mad Max day tour which takes you to Stonehenge & southern Cotswold's towns. I took it from Bath in 2022 and saw SO much. It is in a large van. If you do stay 4 nights in London, you could also do a quick day out via train to Windsor. However, there is SO much to see and do in London you may decide not to do day outs from there. I'd research and come up with your top 5 sights in each town & then give everyone an opportunity to say which they prefer. Don't just try to do "must see" places, but try to include sights that interest your group.

Thank you so much for replies thus far. Let's assume we'll have 7 nights total. Four of us in our family. We've seen major sights in London before, but I think we'd like at least three days to check out some spots we've not been to, go to the theatre, etc.

It sounds as if there are children? What are their ages? We travelled in 2001 with 3 kids - 17, 14 & 11. York and Bath were both highlights, although I'd guess York would edge out Bath if they needed to choose.

How long is your transit to London? i.e., how much jet lag to expect?
Will you rent a car or travel by train?

Great question - sorry, I forgot to specify: Two middle-aged adults and two "teenagers" --- 15 and 20.

My oldest and youngest just responded to my enquiry. York was their top choice---walking the city wall, a couple of memorable museums and an nightwalk with a guide. The middle child did not have strong memories either way. Our youngest (now 36) has visited both York and Bath in recent years. She said she would still choose York. However, it depends on interests.

My husband and I will be back in Bath for the 4th time (actually staying in Wells, near Bath) this holiday season. Any Jane Austen fans?

Also, I think it may be easier to add an extra stop here or there to Bath.

York is a real winner for everyone I know who has been there. On one trip I stayed there three nights. It’s quite small, but jam-packed with historic sites and medieval architecture. York still has its fortified walls which you can walk and four of the original city gates built into the walls centuries ago. By taking one of the two-hour high-speed trains from London, you can overnight in York and return to London the next day.

You can save a boatload of money if you buy your London-York return train tickets months in advance.
Otherwise, the tickets can be quite expensive.

Thank you! Any off-the-beaten path or lesser-known York experiences I should be aware of? Are the aforementioned night walks like ghost tours?

There are many ghost tours offered in York. You might take a look at what is offered through www.GetYourGuide.com

Aside from the obvious attractions—York Minster and the amazing “Undercroft Museum” underneath the Minster, a medieval street called “the Shambles, a related series of ancient alleyways called “the Snickelways” the world-class National Railroad Museum— York has Clifford’s Tower with its alarming history, the Yorkshire Museum with its gardens, Roman ruins and abbey. There is the York Cold War Bunker, and the Yorkshire Aviation Museum.

Hard to believe this small city was once England’s number 2 city and the city that inspired the name of America’s “New York.”

York stands out as our favourite place after London. There are so many historic places to visit, and it's so easy to get around on foot. Depending on time of year (I may have missed your proposed dates of travel) Rabbies has a couple of full day tours- one to the Yorkshire moors. And one to the Dales, including a stop in Grassington, which is where the Darrowby exteriors are shot for All Creatures Great and Small

Thank you. Great to know. Do you have a favorite place (moors, Dales?) to pair with York, and if so, what do you do there? Thank you.

I advocate arriving London and immediately going to York via train for the purpose of getting maximizing the day of travel effectiveness. York is wonderful and does offer a variety of different experiences in and immediately around the area. I counsel to create a separate post focused solely on learning from forum members of their recommended experiences via York.
At the end of three or four nights I advocate heading to London in the evening to maximize effective use of the daylight for visiting the York area.

Thank you for all of the advice. I'll create a separate post on all things York.

And, Betty’s Tea Rooms! Freshly brewed tea and scones with raspberry jam and clotted cream……such great memories of York!

England
London - if your first time you may want to consider an open top hop on/off bus tour round central London that covers the main sites. This will give you a good overview and help you decide which locations you want to spend more time at (plus you avoid using the subway).
My favourite - take an uber boat from one of the Thames piers to explore Greenwich. Take a tour of the cutty sark and Old Naval College grounds - as a family I personally like the Greenwich Treasure Trail (on questo) - it's narrated well and covers the sights in a nice order that you explore on foot (flat ground). You have the option of solving puzzles at the stops you visit which makes it more entertaining for the family and as it's one you download from an app you can start at any time you like and not get stuck in a big group. Visit Greenwich Park for the amazing views and greenery - option to visit National Maritime Museum and Observatory.

I would also consider a day trip to Old Portsmouth. By train from London Waterloo its about 90 mins. Old Portsmouth on the seafront is beautiful and rich in history with lots of quaint houses, old inns and 18th century history during the time was Nelson was a seafaring captain then Admiral. You can walk along the sea walls and discover the tales of the sea wolves of Portsmouth Harbour. Also rich history about the author Charles Dickens. Visit the D Day museum (watch the Nolan Dunkirque movie starring Cillian Murphy, Harry Styles, Ken Branagh, Mark Rylance and Barry Keogh and/or Pressure with Andrew Scott and Brendan Fraser before/after visiting) and experience a walk along Southsea beach.