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Old 01-22-2015, 04:55 PM   #1
Alaskan Mom
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Debating..... any advice?

Am deep into planning Europe trip for DD's high school graduation trip and am trying to decide whether to take 4-5 out of 11 days in UK to travel on train to Glasglow and Edinburgh or use those days as day trips from London to Bath/Stonghenge, Dover/Leeds/Canterbury etc. I'm really torn and cannot do all. If you've been to these places can you tell me how you enjoyed them? Or if you have any advice? thanks bunches
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Old 01-23-2015, 01:39 AM   #2
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We've done them all and I think to be fair, they're all well worth visiting. I think my advice would be to base it on what you're most keen to see. For example, I know a lot of Americans who come here want to visit Scotland, because they have family links there and so it's really important to them. However, others desperately want to see Stonehenge and, if you want a castle, you can't go wrong with Leeds Castle.

There are travel operators, who do Leeds Castle and Canterbury visits in a day - I'm not sure about Dover and, to be honest, apart from the White Cliffs and the castle there, there isn't that much to see in the town itself. Equally, there are also day trips that take in Stonehenge and Bath.

One option you may want to look at is flying to Glasgow and/or Edinburgh. You can easily head up there for the day from Gatwick, which is easy to get to from central London, as we've done that before. Check out Easyjet for cheap flights to see the cost - I bet it won't be that far off from what you'd pay on the train (unless it's peak UK holiday season - then Easyjet prices go through the roof )
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Old 01-23-2015, 03:20 AM   #3
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Well I'm biased but I totally love Edinburgh it is vibrant and beautiful and full of history, but then so is Canterbury, Bath is fabulous. You can't go wrong with nay of them.

I would do train though. Train will lose a day. Easy Jet flies from Gatwick to Edinburgh cheaper than the Train.
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Old 01-23-2015, 08:47 AM   #4
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I love Scotland, and Edinburgh in particular, more than London and England, but I still would choose to do just England on this trip. As you said, you can't do it all, and I think on a short trip I'd rather base myself someplace and take short trips than to pack up and move from place to place. That's my travel style, though, and it may not be yours. As Cheryl said, it's very easy to get tours from London to any of the "famous" locations within a day's drive. On the other hand, if you have a longing to see Scotland, and think you'll be disappointed if you don't get there on this trip, do it! As Hazel says, you can't go wrong with either choice and you have a great trip ahead of you!
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Old 01-23-2015, 09:32 AM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Alaskan Mom View Post
Am deep into planning Europe trip for DD's high school graduation trip and am trying to decide whether to take 4-5 out of 11 days in UK to travel on train to Glasglow and Edinburgh or use those days as day trips from London to Bath/Stonghenge, Dover/Leeds/Canterbury etc. I'm really torn and cannot do all. If you've been to these places can you tell me how you enjoyed them? Or if you have any advice? thanks bunches
I've also been to all of those places and would personally choose Bath/Stonehenge, Dover/Leeds/Canterbury. Scotland is interesting and beautiful, but I found Bath/Stonehenge more interesting.
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Old 01-27-2015, 05:25 PM   #6
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Thanks so much for all your advice and insight, I hadn't considered flying to Scotland which would be much shorter than the train.
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Old 04-02-2015, 10:35 PM   #7
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I know it's been awhile since you posted, but I thought I'd chime in if you hadn't booked any flights. We went to England last fall and then to Paris via air and I had an awful experience with an online booking company and don't recall the name of it BUT I would suggest that you be very careful with watching the fine print. This was a company that searched all airlines and you selected the best one for you BUT by the end of the checkout process the price had gone up significantly with extra costs. I went ahead booked thinking that lower price seat had sold out but then went over the details and saw it had not and fees had completely eaten up the savings.
However if you have not gone yet, I just wanted to say that a day trip to Bath was fabulous. I went there on the train by myself while my DH was conducting business in Glouchester for the day and I literally just walked rfrom the abbey and Sally Lund's to the Assembly Rooms and the Circus. It was so amazing to see the places where Jane Austin lived and wrote about, literally walking in her footsteps and even sitting on the steps of one of her homes eating a "bath" bun. If you did go on your adventure, I'm sure we would love to hear how you liked it and what you decided!
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