Help with an itinerary

Start by doing some homework. Read Europe Through the Back Door, and a variety of guidebooks. ETBD will give you the basics about traveling, and the guidebooks will give you an idea of what you might like to see where. Once you have some idea of how long your trip will be, what time of year you will travel, what you might like to see, whether you want to use public transportation or rent cars, how much you are willing to spend on lodging, and who will be traveling and how old they are, then come back with specific questions and we will be better able to help you narrow it down.

Do you have RS Great Britain Guide Book yet? Or his Ireland Guide Book? If so, great. If not, I suggest you get them and read them to better refine your trip and then come back to this web site with detailed questions which will get you better answers.

Thank you both for your responses - I'm sorry, I wrote the post in a rush at work! I realize I gave absolutely no details - hard to make suggestions without info, isn't it? I have travelled to England and Ireland, but my companion hasn't. We're not sure what time of the year we might go - thinking in the fall of next year. I would love to show him around London and Oxford, where I was the last time I visited. Same thing with Ireland. However, we'll only have 10 days and I don't want to rush through it all just to say we did it. I'd like to think - as Rick suggests - that we'll go back again and see more. Scotland is a must for both of us and we're looking at renting a car in addition to trains, buses, etc. I think we're more interested in the countryside, gardens, walking trails, etc though we'd like to see some of the fantastic history, too (a castle or two would not be amiss). Really, any suggestions would be welcome - like "X place is awesome in the fall - don't miss it!" It's been ages since I've read ETBD, but I do intend to hit the library and start brushing up on the travel books - excellent suggestions. Thanks again for any help you can provide!

Heather, I would recommend that for Scotland you explore the website http://www.undiscoveredscotland.co.uk/. I like Rick's books, but I find his coverage of Scotland to be a bit limited. You don't say how much time you have, so it's likely most of us can go overboard on our favorite spots. I certainly can when it comes to Scotland. But bearing in mind, gardens, history and castles, here are some ideas. Borders: Visit at least one Abbey (Melrose, Jedburgh, Kelso, or Dryburgh. Central Belt: Edinburgh - the Castle, Holyrood, The Georgian House and the Royal Botanic Gardens. Stirling - the Castle and Argyle's Lodging. Stop off at Bannockburn if you have time. Perthshire: Pitlochry, The Explorer's Garden. Blair Castle. Inverness: Culloden Battlefield, Fort George and Clava Cairnes. Urquhart Castle on Loch Ness. Cawdor Castle for the gardens! Aberdeenshire: There are lots of castles and beautiful gardens on Deeside. West: The Inverewe Gardens are quite wonderful. They are near Gariloch on the west coast. I love the Isle of Skye, but I might be inclined to recommend Mull. There is so much history there and even more castles. ; ) Also, you could keep driving south and explore Kilmartin Glen. I don't think I've left time for England or Ireland. ; ) Pam

Ah, Pam you're a lifesaver! Those sound excellent, and just what I was thinking of. I'll check out the website you suggested, too. We do only have 10 days so we'll be limited as to how long we can stay at each place. But thanks again for your excellent suggestions!

Heather, with only 10 days, I'd be inclined to concentrate on England and Scotland, and save Ireland for another time. Even that amount of time will only allow you to scratch the surface. And what better excuse for another trip!!!

Pamela has given you some excellent ideas. Undiscovered Scotland is a great place to start looking, too. If you only have 10 days total then you really only have 8 days (you use one getting there and one getting home). If you can add even 2 more days you'll get to do alot more. Here's an idea- fly into London- 3 days - include 1 day trip for Oxfors OR other - might want to stretch to 4 days train to York- 1 night train to Edinburgh- 1 night train to Inverness- 3+ nights- possible day trips to Isle of Sky with Eliean Donnan Castle and nearby gardens (forget the name at the moment), Cullodan and Clava Cairns and cruise up Loch Ness with stop at Urquart Castle, Great Glen, Glencoe, Orkney, etc. If you could skip London and York you could really see a good bit of Scotland.
Alternatively you could stay in London for the whole time and do several day trips- maybe even a long weekend in the Cotswolds. This article might help you http://www.aaacarolinas.com/Magazine/2008/Jan-Feb/britain.htm?zip=28105&stateprov=nc&city=matthews We've been to the UK more than 40 times- feel free to PM me if I can help with any questions.