Great Britain for the first time and need suggestions.

I can understand your dilemma because the amount of choices in Britain is huge. What I would recommend is to spend some time in London, perhaps 4 or 5 days depending on how much you want to see. I have to admit I have not worked out what the best pass for London transport is. I always buy a day pass after 9.30 to get the off peak fare.

In your position I would go straight to Newcastle by train or coach. The latter is cheaper but slower. If you are able to spend more than 2 nights with your daughter, then it would be good to use Newcastle as a base, doing day trips from there. You can also use London as a base for seeing the south.

Nancy,

Don't be nervous! Travelling in the U.K. is very easy (albeit sometimes a bit expensive), and you won't have any issues with the language (except of course for the aspect of "two peoples separated by a common language").

Is there a particular day that you have to be in Newcastle to visit your daughter, or can you fit this in anywhere in the 18 days? If you could provide more specific details on your trip, it would be easier to offer more specific advice.

Have you bought your air tickets yet? I have a suggestion on that also.

For an 18-day trip, I'd suggest visiting London (5 days including flight time), Bath (3 days), York (3 days) and Newcastle (2 days). You could take short day trips from some locations, depending on your interests.

Travel by Rail or Bus would be the least complicated, although British rail costs are usually considered a bit pricey. With only 18 days for travel, minimizing time between locations would be a good idea to allow more "touring time".

I'd suggest picking up a copy of the England 2009 Guidebook (the 2010 edition won't be released until Nov.). You should be able to find it at your local Bookstores or you can order from the Travel Store on this website. It will provide you with a wealth of information on everything you'll need for travelling in England, including transportation, lodgings, restaurants, sights to visit, etc.

If you're going to be travelling with electronic/electric devices, Cellphones, etc. you'll need to have Plug Adapters and perhaps a Voltage Converter. If you need further information on that, post another note. Also, which Cell network are you with in the U.S.?

You'll also need to consider "finances" and obtaining cash at ATM's. Your travel finds must be in a chequing account with a four-number PIN. It's a good idea to take at least one backup ATM card and at least one credit card.

Happy planning!

Even cheaper buy an unlocked Pay As You Go (PAYG) phone in the UK for £14.95, includes £10 airtime, from the Carphone Warehouse. Stores all over the UK, see the store locator in the link below.

No need for a separate phone card, you should be able to get a plan (included in the £10 airtime above) with calls to the USA for 5 pence per minute. Just discuss your calling needs with the store assistant Remember it costs nothing to receive calls in the UK on UK handsets. Maybe your daughter could buy one for you ahead of time?

http://www.carphonewarehouse.com/mobiles/pay-as-you-go/by-price

We have a cheap handset kept just for travel, then it's no biggie if it gets lost etc.

Ken's suggesstions are excellent. I'd suggest day trips from London: Windosr, Cardiff Wales, Stratford-Upon-Avon, Bath and possibly Dover and Canterbury. I'll put a link at the end of this post to an article I wrote about doing just that. If you have time, you could also go on up to Edinburgh for a few days. Train travel is VERY EASY in the UK. We get BritRail passes so we have flexibility about travel days and times. We also get a travel card (Oyster cards are good too) for travel in London. The Tube is wonderful and makes walking so easy. If you give us more details about what you like, we can make more detailed suggesstions about what to do/see, etc. (gardens, history, arts, etc.) Theatre in London is great, by the way.
Here is the link to the day trip article, if it asks for a zipcode use 28208 and if it goes to current issues, just click on archives and select Jan/Feb 2008 http://www.aaacarolinas.com/Magazine/2008/Jan-Feb/britain.htm?zip=28205&stateprov=nc&city=charlotte Feel free to private message me!

Thank you for your help. You mentioned the BritRail and I noticed there is flexible and consecutive days. What is the best way to purchase it and/or the Oyster card? I noticed there are three days plus. As far as our interest, my husband loves history and I love the culture itself. And of course, we love food!!! We do have some points to use for lodging, approximately 4 to 5 nights. Thank you again and any suggestions will be appreciated. Great article!

History would make a great focus as it "supports" the culture. With that in mind, I'd suggest the following: London- 6 nights (could be at beginning or end of trip). Day trips to Windsor, Stratford-Upon-Avon, and Dover& Canterbury combined in one day. Do Windsor on a day when you have theatre that night. Train to York- 3 days. Train to Newcastle 2 or more nights. Train to Edinburgh- 2 nights. Train to Inverness 3 or more nights . Either fly home out of Inverness or train to either London, Glasgow or other city for flight home. You could get a 8 day flexible out of 15 days BritRail pass (we like getting 1st class passes). While in London get a 7 day travel card (either paper or load one on an Oyster card). In London we like to stay at the Victoria Thistle/Grosovenor as it is inside Victoria Station. In York we stay at the Royal York and in Edinburgh the Royal Brithish and in Inverness The Highlander- all are rail station hotels. In Newcastle there is a Thistle across the street from the station, if you won't be with your daughter. I love train travel in the UK- I watch the scenery and sketch. Hubby watches the scenery and listens to his old rock music (he's Queen's biggest fan). He is also a great photographer. We love theatre in London. Feel free to private message me or ask more questions here. All of the cities I mentioned have great history and culture 'sites' and good food, wonderful places to walk, etc.

Nancy,

Some comments on some of the points you mentioned in your last post.....

Regarding the BritRail passes, have a look at www.ricksteves.com/rail/howrailworks.htm as it provides a good analysis on the differences between the Flex and Consecutive passes. Which pass to choose will probably become apparent once you've worked out your Itinerary. After you have an Itinerary, you might want to send a note to the Rail Dept. (click the Contact Us link at the bottom) and they'll help you determine which Pass would be most suitable.

The Oyster Card for transit in London is a very convenient method for getting around. You can purchase the cards at stations in London and "load" these with £10 or whatever you think you'll use. As I recall, there's a refundable £3 charge for the card. There's a good analysis of the various transit cards in the England Guidebook (I'm assuming this is in the Great Britain book as well?).

You can purchase Railpasses directly from this website (I believe RS is the largest seller of passes in the U.S.) from the RailEurope website or other travel sites. I believe the cost is the same regardless of where this is purchased. I've found that delivery is VERY quick once they're ordered.

You mentioned that you "love food". For great Italian food in London, you might try Santiini's on Ebury Street in the Victoria Station area (however, you'll need a "generous budget" to dine there).

If you're interested in musicals, there's LOTS to choose from in London!

Cheers!

I've always found trains to be the most effective way to get from A to B in Britain. Motorways (what we call interstates) aren't much fun. Smaller roads, the "A" and "B" roads -- e.g, the A33 or the B2146 -- can provide really nice rural and coastal drives. Driving in the UK is not that much of a challenge especially if you spend the first day or so in uncrowded country. Rentals can be expensive.

Buses, often referred to as coaches, go everywhere, are cheaper than trains, but are almost always slower.

The sooner you buy train tickets, the cheaper they are. Several websites let you do that online. Check else here for that info.

The Oyster Pass and the Travelcard are discount deals that apply to Tube and other travel in London. Many questions have been asked about which is best, but I recommend not sweating the difference. Both are good deals. Just tell a ticket seller how long you'll be in London. If you'll be seeing the usual sites, odds are you'll buy an Oyster Card.

Don't rush. Take a train to a location. Spend a leisurely day or two there, maybe rent a car if the countryside is appealing (if usually is), then move one.

October is my favorite time to be in the UK. Weather should be in the 60's and 50's, and cooler in the evening. But, it's 71 today in London. Night will come early than in Texas, but it won't be dark at 5pm like it is in the dead of winter. Bring comfy and trustworthy walking shoes. Unless you're planning on dining at elite restaurants, dress can be pretty casual: jeans, casual slacks, sweaters, windbreakers, etc.

Important: As soon as you decide on a firm itinerary, book your hotels or B&B's. That especially applies to London. Elsewhere, in October, you should be OK booking a place to stay as you go, preferably one day ahead.