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Itinerary & drive times - realistic?

Reasonable? Brutal? Laughable?

I'm stitching together plans for our trip to England & Scotland in Late June/early July. Have some of the bits nailed down, now trying to sort out the days in between. This will be our first trip to the UK, although we've traveled around the continent (and elsewhere) fairly extensively. We're pretty typical Rick-nics, usually up early and off on an aggressive pace most days, with some occasional more relaxed days scattered in. We have limited time, and I'm challenged (as we all are) to try and squeeze in all the things on our "must see" list without turning the trip into a miserable, grueling death-march of blurred sights glimpsed fleetingly through windows as we zoom by.

Here are a couple of specific questions about days I am trying to make work - are these doable, or a prescription for misery and failure?

  1. Heading out west from London, I'd like to do both Stonehenge and Avebury in a single day. We will have a car. I'm terribly cynical about crowds so I expect to be annoyed by them (and probably a bit bummed out) at Stonehenge, and am hoping to have a better attitude at Avebury, which I expect to find less crowded and more enjoyable. I'm thinking get to Stonehenge as early as possible to avoid the worst of the crowds, then head to Avebury for the afternoon for a more relaxing experience. We will probably spend the night somewhere around Avebury, before moving on north the next day. Is this doable in a day?

  2. To York, with stops at Warwick & Coventry. After our stone-circle day, I plan to make a beeline for York, but want to stop and spend at least a couple hours at Warwick to see the castle and perhaps a quickie visit to the remains of the cathedral in Coventry. I know this is a bit of a drive and a lot to do in one day. Am I crazy?

I'll have a couple other crazy itinerary questions later, but this should be good for starters. Thanks for any opinions.

Posted by
6811 posts

Yes. I survived a bit of driving in Australia. Hardest part was starting out from a dead stop, turning onto a perpendicular road (and shifting gears with my left hand). Parallel parking was a bit weird, too, but once the car got going I did OK.

Posted by
33992 posts

What days of the week?

Will you have your car the night before?

You're not doing the long drive and Stonehenge Avebury day right after you get off the plane while you are asleep are you?

Will you view Warwick Castle from the outside and move on after viewing the town or will you go inside and do the whole thing? Kenilworth Castle - ruins in sandstone of one of the most important Elizabethan castles - is 10 minutes down the road.

Parking in Coventry isn't trivial and the Coventry ring road is confusing. The lanes aren't always logical, the on and off ramps are very short, and the radius is very tight.

Posted by
6811 posts

What days of the week?

Stonehenge & Avebury are penciled in for a Tuesday, end of June (not right after the solstice)

Will you have your car the night before?

We could, but we will be wrapping up a stay in central London. I'm thinking we would get up painfully early, take a train out of the city toward the west, and grab our rental car someplace convenient. If it makes getting away from London easier, I'm sure we could arrange to get the car the night before (but I'm guessing that would not make getting away easier).

You're not doing the long drive and Stonehenge Avebury day right after you get off the plane while you are asleep are you?

Nope. I may be crazy, but I'm not stupid. We will have about 5 days in London before we head off to the hinterlands. I'll be well rested.

Will you view Warwick Castle from the outside and move on after viewing the town or will you go inside and do the whole thing?

Not sure. From what I've read, the castle is a bit Disney-esque (very touristy) but still impressive enough to make it worth a little time. How much time we spend there depends on how much of a drive the day requires, how interesting the castle is (I like ruins), and what our other options would be for the time we might spend there.

Kenilworth Castle - ruins in sandstone of one of the most important Elizabethan castles - is 10 minutes down the road.

Good to know. I had not heard about that one. Thanks for the tip.

Parking in Coventry isn't trivial and the Coventry ring road is confusing. The lanes aren't always logical, the on and off ramps are very short, and the radius is very tight.

Good to know. I suspect a stop in Coventry would be brief. Right now it's on the edge. We might just decide whether to stop or not based on how we're feeling that day. The plan would be to end the day and sleep in York.

Thanks for the feedback.

Posted by
1526 posts

I think that you need advance reservations for Stonehenge now; especially in June/July. If it is on your Bucket List save it for another time of year. Avebury is really interesting although it is hard to experience how big the circle is when you are there. There are other circles in this general area. Warwick is fun and tells history with wax figures like Tussauds. Coventry cathedral is a worthy destination. York is worth the visit for the Windows in the Minster. If I didn't have much time I would go to Salisbury Cathedral instead of Stonehenge. Check the National Trust UK , English Heritage, Church of England and World Heritage sites for site visit info. Some cost saving passes are available.

Posted by
3398 posts

You can easily see both Stonehenge and Avebury in one day provided you get a very early start from London. We have done it (out the door and on the road by about 5:30) and it didn't feel rushed at all.
Do make a reservation for Stonehenge. They have a new visitor center and you are no longer allowed to park near the stone circle as has been the norm for years. You have to park near the visitor center and either walk or take a shuttle to the stones. It's going to be crowded and you will be annoyed - just taking pictures without other people in your viewfinder is more than a challenge. That said, it's absolutely worth seeing even with the crowds.
I really enjoyed Avebury...the stones are incorporated into the village and it's interesting to wander about and find them as they circle through the buildings and open spaces that make up the town.

Posted by
111 posts

Stonehenge and Avebury are possible in one day. Do try to get a tour at Avebury. So much better that way. Also, there is a lovely manor house there that is interesting to walk through.

Posted by
2599 posts

What I find odd about your trip is that you are so close to Bath, the Cotswolds & Stratford-upon-Avon yet missing them out. (I would not bother with Coventry).

I see from your other post - which you might wish to in the under 'Scotland forum', that you are really keen on Megalithic monuments. You may like to know that when in the Avebury area, that nearby is Silbury Hill & the West Kennet Long Barrow.
http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/west-kennet-long-barrow/

Posted by
662 posts

Having driven tens of thousands of miles all over the UK, I find a good, safe, rule of thumb for times / distances, is 50 miles / hour. Sounds low I know, but if you allow that, you won't be late, won't have to rush and can do a quick stop every 2 hours.

Posted by
351 posts

I think you can do both Stonehenge and Avebury in a day. We stopped at Avebury after arriving at Heathrow last year, and at Stonehenge after arrival the year before. We had plenty of time at each and I think you can do them in one day. Avebury was fairly uncrowded, Stonehenge got progressively busier throughout the day. The drive to each from Heathrow was about half on motorways and drive time was less than 2 hours from Heathrow for each.

Look into English Heritage member ship. You get free access to many sites throughout the UK and Ireland, and can park at Avebury at no cost. For us, it paid for itself on each of our two trips, your visits to Avebury and Stonehenge alone will probably recoup the cost of membership. Also, since we visited two years ago, there is a new visitor centre at Stonehenge and I believe some limits on how many can shuttle to the site each hour. With English Heritage you can reserve a time slot in advance, I'm not sure if that is possible for non-members. You can check and reserve a slot through the English Heritage site.

Posted by
16895 posts

I'm sure that I've done similar days, and my B&B hosts marveled that I had driven "so far," but it did not feel like a hardship.