England in July - reservations needed?

Some people like the security of knowing where they are going to stay, while others like the spontaneity. Only you (and the other couple) will know which group you belong to. It also depends on the sort of places you like to stay in, and how much you want to spend. Many places get fully booked, and the prices rise as the rooms are taken. Booking very early can sometimes get you real bargains, while you are likely to pay full whack if you just turn up at the door one evening. Conversely, if business is poor, hotels will sometimes offer reduced rates to those who just turn up. If you don't reserve in advance, then it may take several hours to find a place with vacancies, and you are presumably looking for two rooms. British places rarely have rooms which can take four adults - it is not the sort of thing we do.

If I were out in the country in July- especially if you are looking for 2 rooms in the same establishment (and maybe even the same village) I would book ahead at least for weekends (Friday and Saturday nights) and any public holidays. Sometimes even one room in a location with things going on can be difficult. And i assume you will be going to the more popular areas.
*Yes- i have had to drive 30 or so miles away to find a room at times)

July is high tourist time, plus lots of local folks will be out and about on weekends. My suggestion is to book ahead for weekends and, if you want to be spontaneous, book 24 hours ahead for the other days. That is, decide tonight where you want to stay tomorrow night and call ahead. Small towns can draw lots and lots of travelers. For example, all the towns in the Cotswolds are small, and it's one of the most heavily traveled regions in the UK.

We have traveled to the UK in July and the nights that we prebook is our first night and the last night. When we decided we want to stop for the night we look for B&B signs. We have never spent more then 15 minutes finding a room. When you see a B&B that you think you would like to stay at, stop and ask if they have a room, must of the time they offer to show you the room before you agree to take it. You can also go to the tourist information center in each town/village and they can book you a room...they can even book nights ahead if you want. There are pubs that rent rooms also. There are hundreds of B&B's that do not advertise and depend on their signs to get people to stay. Also, we've had four people in our group on different trips and still never had trouble finding rooms.
If you book everything a head then you have to be at X on this day by X time, so if you come to a village that you think you would like to visit you might not have time to stop since you have to be at x by a certain time. We love the freedom of having time to stop and sightsee and not having to worry about getting to a certain place at a certain time.

Reminder:
being "spontaneous" is easier when you are only looking for one room. With 4 of you it makes it much more stressful.

Yoiu've got me curious. I never knew that London or England had a "mid-west". When I hear that I think of Kansas or Iowa. What did you mean by Mid-west?

I always book our rooms for summer trips to Europe when traveling with more than 2 people. Well, not always - and the 2 times I did not book ahead were the places that I least enjoyed. We spent an hour one day in south Wales looking for a place to stay - and ended up in a Holiday Inn - completely unlike the charming B&B's I had booked for our other nights. But I will admit that I truly enjoy looking at all the choices of places to stay far ahead of time and picking the "right" one. The planning ahead for me is part of the fun of the trip and I don't feel like I've sacrificed anything by needing to be in a certain place on a certain day. If there is a really great place that I wish I could stay longer, I know I can return.

Re: the phrase "mid-west" Nigel, I had to chuckle to myself when I read that. I meant to write north-west. Thanks!

yes for sure!

Being spontanious with 4 doesn't make it stressful (unless if you the type to get stressed out easily)...we have done is several times and it wasn't stressful at all and it was in June and July when we were there with 4.

Robin, much depends, I suspect, on where you travel and when you start looking for a place to stay. I've been burned looking for places to stay at the end of the day. In the summer, I'd wait until it started to get dark 8, 9, 10 pm only to find no room at the inn. I don't like wasting my time looking for a room at the end of the day. I'm tired and hungry. Finding the place I booked the day before is bad enough. Running around in the dark looking for a room for the night is not my idea of a good time. To each his own, of course. But, I've been happy with my book-a-day-ahead approach. Don't find it hinders my spontaneity. I'm spontaneous all day, and then I head off to the place where I know a bed awaits me.

I must agree with j.c.'s two posts, and Karen's second paragraph. It really pays off to do your homework ahead of time. There are so many online resources and books available to use in your planning, so why not start making a file right away of interesting places to stay in your area you want to visit. I would definitely make a reservation for the first two nights. Have you chosen a city yet to be your starting point? When you refer to "the North-west", do you mean the Liverpool/Manchester/Cheshire area, or are you talking ALL the way up in the extreme north-west near the Scottish border-Cumbria, Carlisle, Hadrian's Wall area? If you would be a bit more specific, people could suggest some good B&B's. Like Karen, I enjoy making some reservations ahead of the trip, so I can choose where I land for the night, instead of taking a chance that there will be no rooms available at the first 6 places I stop to check for a room. My time is more valuable than that when I am on a trip, because I've paid a lot of money to get there. Two hours driving around looking for a place to stay every night, if it comes to that, is very frustrating, and wastes some time you could have otherwise used to see one more sight, or relax in a pub, or go to bed early to be fresh for the next day. Just my preference.

If it were me, I would definitely book in advance. I just finished doing such for 4 people who will be traveling in August and September, and it wasn't real easy even this far in advance getting places I wanted. I love to do the planning upfront - where I will be and what type of accommodation I want. I have gone without reservations and it worked at the time. I have used the Tourist Offices, and it worked at the time, though both took more time than now when I have my reservations firmed up. I always allow plenty of time in each location, so I've never felt rushed to move on.

I usually make reservations (I have to travel during the peak season) but only those that I can cancel a day or two in advance. That way I have the security of a place to stay, but can still change my plans.

J.C.......we always start looking for a room between 5-6pm., so we can have dinner and look around the village, we have traveled all over the UK...and never had a problem finding a room for the night. Everyone is different, a lot of people fell more comfortable knowing where they are staying each night, and there is nothing wrong with that. We just like to find them as we go.