Home Base near Reading, England

Posted by Mme Eli (XXX) on 02/03/08 01:58 PM

We will spend a week in England, and though we plan to be in France and Italy the rest of the time (three weeks), we would like to make the most of our time in England.

Besides, Oxford, would you recommend spending a day in Bath and another in the Cotswolds? Are there busses to these places or trains? Do we purchase tickets the day before (is that cheaper), or same day? Not sure hubby will want to drive to these places as he hates driving and my sense of direction is awful even at home!

Would we be able to get to Scotland for a day trip, or will that be too far?

Looking forward to your input and guidance.

Eli

Posted by Norma

Montreal, Quebec, Canada

02/03/08 05:32 PM

8293 posts

I think you need a map of the British Isles, if you think a day trip to Scotland is feasible.

Posted by Tom

Danville, VT

02/04/08 04:12 AM

12040 posts

You can easily catch a train from Reading to Oxford, they sit on the same line coming from London. Likewise, Bath should not pose a problem. The Cotswolds are a series of villages spread over a fairly large area, so if you want to see more than one, you may need to rent a car or find a bus tour.

And finally, yes, actually seeing and doing anything in Scotland besides crossing the border, saying "Here we are!", and leaving immediately, requires more than a day.

Posted by Al

Nottingham, UK

02/04/08 04:43 AM

658 posts

Reading is really a joy to have as a base for travelling. It has access to both a really good rail service and a really good coach service. The Rail Station and the Coach Station are opposite each other and are located in the centre of town on a road called 'Station Approach'.

You can get to both Oxford and Bath very easily and relatively cheaply either by rail or by coach. I'd take whichever costs less and I'd try to book a few days in advance.

The Cotswolds is a big area and it is served by local buses from Oxford but they aren't really structured for tourist sight seeing ( they tend to be more of a means of getting granny home with her weekly shopping ). One thing you might like to consider is exploring the Berkshire Downs and the Oxforshire borders. It would be a great shame to miss Henly-on-Thames, Pangbourne and Dorchester on Thames and they are just a local bus ride from Reading town centre.