If you are looking for a two week UK itinerary which includes Ireland, you have come to the right place. This UK road trip itinerary has you starting in London, and using a rental car as the transportation method. It covers some of our highlights in the UK, including cities, castles, and stunning natural scenery.
I have spent a great deal of time living in and exploring the UK. I’ve drawn on my experiences travelling here to put together my perfect two week UK trip to help you plan your own trip. This UK itinerary (which also includes Ireland) covers England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales. It’s a self-drive road-trip, although could also be modified to support travel by public transport if you prefer.
If you haven’t driven in the UK before, do check out my guide to driving in the UK for helpful tips. We also have a guide to how much it costs to travel in the UK if you need budget planning help.
Without further ado, allow me to present my two-week UK itinerary.
Table of Contents
A 2 week UK Trip itinerary
This itinerary is very busy and fits a lot in, including time in Ireland. It is doable, but just be aware that it will be fast paced with quite a lot of driving. Naturally, you are welcome to take the itinerary and adjust it to meet your own interests and pace.
For example, many folks prefer to focus on the UK with their two weeks, and skip the island of Ireland, returning instead via the Lake District and Wales. However, if you want to see as much as possible, this itinerary is how to do it.
Days 1 & 2: London
The UK’s capital is one of my favourite cities in the world. It’s been hanging around for over 2000 years on the banks of the Thames, and there is just an incredible wealth of things to see, from historical sights, to amazing museums, to crazy street markets.
It’s a wonderfully walk-able capital, and you can easily take in the major central sights in a day or so, leaving you the second day to explore museums, art galleries, or go a little further afield and take in some of the other sights, from crumbling cemeteries to massive parks. And if all else fails, you will never be short on an incredible pub to while away some time before heading on.
For inspiration for your visit, take a look at our 2 day London itinerary, which covers the major highlights of the city, and also links to lots of other information about visiting, including tips on finding Harry Potter locations in London through to Winston Churchill locations in London – something for everyone!
My advice for London is to invest in an Oyster card to save money on your transport (don’t hire a car until you leave the capital – and check here for great rates on car hire), and if you think you’re going to use it, look into buying a London Pass to save money on London’s top attractions.
Available in 1, 3 and 6 day versions, as well as a version with an included Oyster card, the savings can really be quite impressive if you plan on visiting a few locations. You can read a full break down on when the London Pass is worth buying here, and buy one yourself here.
Finally, London is probably going to be the most expensive city in the UK for your accommodation. We recommend booking well in advance to get a good deal.
Some of our recommended accommodation options in London are:
The Walrus Bar and Hostel, The Z hotel in Shoreditch, Point A Hotel, Lime Tree Hotel and the Resident Victoria Hotel. You can see more London hotel listings here on booking.com. We also love the curated apartments available on Plum Guide.
Days 3 & 4: Oxford & the Cotswolds
One of the stipulations of the original question was the wish to avoid feeling too much like a tourist. Unfortunately, this is nearly impossible in Oxford, as nearly everyone there is either a tourist or a student. I lived in and around Oxford for a number of years, and generally felt like a tourist most of that time too.
Part of the reason for that is that this tiny city is absolutely jam packed with incredible buildings, largely in the form of the Oxford Colleges. These are seriously wealthy establishments, who clearly had no problem flaunting that wealth in an architectural fashion back in the day.
This means that yes, it is full of people wandering around, mouths agape, at quite how pretty the whole thing is. Yes, it’s jam packed with tourists. But for good reason!
So strap that camera on and snap away. Then go for a punt on the river, and enjoy some Pimms or a cream tea. Seek out the Harry Potter filming locations. Take a walking tour of the Universities. There’s no shortage of way to fill your time!
Read more tips for spending a day in Oxford, here.
From Oxford you are also well located to take in the incredibly picturesque Cotswolds area – all quaint villages and rolling countryside. The England that everyone imagines England to be like, with country pubs, village greens and cricket ovals. Lovely stuff. Check out hotel prices for Oxford here.
Days 5 & 6: Peak District and Manchester
From Oxford I’m going to suggest heading “up north”, towards the Peak District national park. Think rolling hills, quaint villages, and beautiful walks.
There are also some fabulous stately homes to visit, not to mention that on the way from Oxford you can stop off at Warwick Castle – one of the UK’s best-preserved castles.
Part of the request I was posed asked about the yarn industry in the UK – and Manchester is certainly no stranger to the fibre industry – in the 19th century she earned the nickname Cottonopolis. Plenty here for the yarn enthusiast in you.
Of course, if fibre isn’t your thing there are plenty of other reasons to visit Manchester, including excellent retail therapy and a variety of architectural highlights. Not to mention the music scene! See hotel prices for Manchester here.
Day 7: York
Not that far from Manchester (England is so quaintly explorable!), the city of York is another of my favourite UK cities. From the incredible Gothic York Minster (a climb to the top is highly recommended) to the winding, tumbled down alleyways of the shambles, to the Viking history – this is a city that just cries out for exploration.
It’s also an awesome place if you’re into ghost stories. There are a whole number of ghost walks that take in the spooky past of York, so if you want an evening of entertainment and intrigue, likely accompanied with a number of fine drinking establishments, an evening ghost walk is a great bit of fun. I’m not a great believer in this sort of thing usually, but I took a tour and thoroughly enjoyed it!
If you do plan on seeing a few things in York, you might save money with a York City Pass, which includes most of the attractions in the city as well as access to the York Sightseeing bus or York City Cruises. You can buy that in advance here.
For more York ideas, see our guide to spending two days in York, which has a comprehensive itinerary as well as tips on where to stay and how to get around.
For accommodation, you can check out and book the best York hotels here.
Days 8 & 9: Edinburgh via Northumberland
From York we’re going to wave farewell to England, and head up to Scotland’s capital city, Edinburgh. On the way though, you’ll be passing through some of England’s least travelled, yet stunningly beautiful, landscapes.
I am of course talking about Northumbria. From miles of deserted beach, to crumbling castles, to the Roman equivalent of the great wall of China, Northumbria really has a lot to offer someone looking for a slightly off the beaten track England experience. The rolling landscapes are breath-taking and you’ll find yourself alone much of the time. Worth taking a bit of time to explore, in my opinion.
Then of course, it’s up to Edinburgh, where you’ll not be short of amazing things to look at. From Edinburgh castle, to Arthurs Seat, from fine whiskys, to Princes Street, there really is enough here for a number of days of entertainment. And if you visit during the Fringe festival… well… plan on being entertained for a good many weeks!
See more ideas on spending some time in Edinburgh in this detailed two day Edinburgh itinerary that I put together, as well as our guide to things to do in Edinburgh, our tips on visiting Edinburgh in winter, and our guide to finding Harry Potter in Edinburgh.
Then check and book your Edinburgh hotels here.
Days 10 – 12: Ireland
Because the UK is an easily explorable place with decent roads and relatively short distances to drive, it is totally possible to include another country – Ireland! – in a trip like this if you’re up for it.
Do be aware that if you are renting a car, some car rental companies have restrictions on taking cars on ferries, or into other countries – so make sure you check before you go as there may be an additional fee to pay.
Of course, you could also fly to Ireland (Edinburgh to Belfast or Dublin for example), and use different rentals for different parts of your adventure!
If all that sounds like too much hard work, you could extend your time in Scotland, or alternatively, you could take in the west coast of the UK, including Glasgow, the Lake District, and Liverpool, as well as popping into Wales for the stunning Snowdonia national park, and rejoin this itinerary in South Wales or Bristol. The choice is yours!
If it is Ireland you want though, it’s a short ferry ride from Scotland (Cairnryan to be precise, which is 2-3 hour drive from Edinburgh) across to Belfast in Northern Ireland, from where you can spend a few days exploring the Emerald Isle.
We have previously travelled from Cairnryan with Stena Line, which has been a fast, comfortable and efficient service. You can book your ferry tickets here.
This part of the world has a lot to offer, and three days is quite a short amount of time. We can recommend spending some time in Belfast and driving north along the causeway coastal route to see such highlights as the Giant’s Causeway, ruined castles and spectacular coastline. Then, head south into Ireland, and see fabulous Dublin.
I’ve explored Dublin and her surroundings, taken a trip down to the Dingle Peninsula, kissed the Blarney Stone at Blarney Castle, gazed at the Cliffs of Moher, and visited the Dark Hedges of Game of Thrones fame – to name but a few of our wonderful experience on the Irish Isle.
In Dublin there’s the Guinness Factory, of course, as a popular highlight, but also oodles of Gaelic history and culture to get excited about.
There are also of course the Irish people, well known for their love of a good time! Personally, I’d head on down the coast from Belfast, through Dublin and down to the port of Rosslare, where after three exciting days in Ireland another ferry service will whisk you across to the last of the four countries to make up the UK: Wales!
Day 13: South Wales and Cardiff
In Wales you will arrive either at Fishguard or Pembroke – both excellent places to explore the Pembrokeshire Coast national park. Here you will find beautiful beaches, rugged cliffs, and fabulous opportunities for walking.
You’re also not too far a drive from Cardiff, the Welsh capital. Four capitals in a fortnight – not bad going! Here you’ll find castles, sporting venues and more Welsh based culture than you can shake a stick at. Plus, arrive at the right time of year and you’ll find the Great British Cheese festival in full swing. What’s not to be excited about? Find and book your Cardiff hotels here.
Day 14: Bristol & Bath
From Cardiff you’ll cross the enormous Severn estuary over the impress Severn road bridge and be back in the UK, or Bristol to be precise. Here you’ll find all sorts of interesting items of historical interest, largely running on a nautical theme, as well as some of the best street art in Britain.
For over a thousand years Bristol has been an important English port. From early explorers and traders, to the dark years of the African slave vessels, to filling Australia with immigrants, it is hard to understate the role that Bristol has played in Britain’s sea faring history. There is, after all, a reason for the expression “ship-shape and Bristol fashion” having a place in the English language.
I can highly recommend taking a trip round the SS Great Britain when you’re in Bristol. Built in 1843, and designed by the engineering genius who was Isambard Kingdom Brunel – the man who almost single-handedly revolutionised both engineering and public transport in the UK.
The SS Great Britain is notable as being the first steamer to cross the Atlantic – setting a record pace for the time of 14 days. An amazing bit of history. Note that tickets are slightly cheaper if you book them online, which you can do online here.
For more ideas in Bristol, check out our guide to things to do in Bristol, which should give you plenty of ideas to fill your time. Find the best prices on Bristol hotels and book here.
From Bristol it’s on to the Roman spa city of Bath, a world heritage site. Like Oxford, this is a difficult place to be anything other than a tourist, but it is so worth it all the same!
Day 15: Back to London, via Stonehenge!
Our last day of our just over two week UK itinerary takes us back to London. No trip to the UK though would really be complete without taking in perhaps our most famous monument – the circle of rocks known as Stonehenge.
There is just something about the place that makes you wonder. A circle of rocks, built by a people who had nothing but their hands and some bits of wood to help them out, in the middle of the Wiltshire countryside, hundreds of miles from an actual quarry, is just mind blowing.
Add in the pagan ritualism, the relationship between the rocks and the sun, and the sheer mystery of the place, and you have somewhere that is capable of really capturing the imagination. Worth your time to visit (see more thoughts from a trip to Stonehenge here).
Plus, while you’re there you can pop into Salisbury and enjoy the cathedral, which boasts the highest cathedral spire of any church in the UK.
And then… back to London, where this tour finishes!
2 Weeks in the UK: Road Trip Map
Here’s a map of the route, for your reference.
2 Week UK Itinerary Summary
- Days 1 & 2: London
- Days 3 & 4: Oxford & the Cotswolds
- Days 5 & 6: Peak District and Manchester
- Day 7: York
- Days 8 & 9: Edinburgh via Northumberland
- Days 10 – 12: Ireland
- Day 13: South Wales and Cardiff
- Day 14: Bristol & Bath
- Day 15: Back to London, via Stonehenge!
Can you do this 2 Week UK itinerary by public transport?
A popular question from readers is whether or not this itinerary can be done by public transport. I appreciate that of course not everyone wants to drive in the UK, and the answer, for the most part, is yes.
Certainly, between the major cities on the itinerary there are good rail and/or bus links, with the train usually being a little faster. The main challenge is the rural sections of the route – for example, exploring the Cotswolds, Northumbria or the Peak District. This is possible using local buses of course, but it can definitely slow you down a fair bit, and so you would need to adjust the itinerary a little to fit the schedule.
Another option is to add in some days in London or Edinburgh, and doing some specific day trips from these cities to take in the out of town attractions.
For example, there is this day trip from London that takes in highlights such as Bath and Stonehenge. Then, for Northumbria and the Scottish Borders, including beautiful Alnwick Castle, consider this tour from Edinburgh.
If you are interested in doing this itinerary by public transport, check out my guide to taking a 10 day UK trip by public transport, which as well as a route, has lots lots of ideas for how to book different forms of transport in the most effective and cost-efficient way.
What About Touring the UK With A Tour Company?
Another popular question is whether or not this sort of trip can be done with a tour company, and if we have any companies we would recommend for this.
So you have a few options for doing this which I have outlined below.
The first option is to take a group tour of the UK. There are a number of companies offering small group tours – we’d recommend finding a service which operates tours of 15 people or less. We usually use and recommend Rabbie’s Trail Burners, who operate trips around the UK and Ireland, and have a number of tour options to choose from.
We haven’t found a tour that exactly matches our UK wide itinerary, but we still have a solution for those of you wanting the do a similar trip as part of a guided tour.
First, we recommend you spend two or three days in London, following our suggested London itinerary.
Next, we recommend you take something similar to this small group tour, which takes eight days to take you from London to Edinburgh.
In Edinburgh, you can spend a couple of days following our Edinburgh itinerary, after which you can easily fly to either Belfast or Dublin direct from Edinburgh.
Here you can either explore these lovely cities, or take a tour to explore more of the country, we’d recommend either this three day tour of Northern Ireland or this three day tour of the southern and western coast.
Alternatively, if you’d prefer to skip Ireland, you could take something like this five day tour of the Scottish Highlands and Skye.
Finally, you can either return to London, or have your flights home depart from Dublin or Edinburgh, depending on your tour choice.
The other option is a bespoke tour company and/or a private tour guide, who will be able to put a tour together for you, including guiding, transport and accommodation.
Of all the options, this will generally be the most expensive way to travel, but it will also give you total flexibility in terms of your trip and schedule, plus you’ll have a guide with you every step of the way, taking all the hassle out of your trip.
For this sort of tour, we recommend the services of Robina Brown, who is a blue-badge guide offering tours across the UK. See her website here.
When to Visit the UK
You can visit the UK at any time of year, although for the best weather and longer daylight hours, we’d definitely suggest visiting in the warmer months – from May to September. May is probably our favourite time of year, the weather is usually quite reasonable but the tourist crowds are not too intense.
Christmas, and the period leading up to Christmas, can also be a wonderful time to visit, when the streets and shops are all brightly lit and decorated for the festive season. For a good example of this, check out our guide to visiting Edinburgh at Christmas.
Where to Stay in the UK:
For accommodation, there are a great many options to choose from, ranging from cosy B&B’s through to upmarket hotels, and everything in between. Finding the best deal on your accommodation is an important part of trip planning – helping you to get the most from your budget, as well as find the property that is right for you.
- We’ve tried a lot of booking sites, and nearly always find ourselves using Booking.com. They have an extensive selection of properties, many with no-fee cancellation policies, and often run discounts and special offers. Click on each city title to see their listings: London, Oxford, Manchester, York, Edinburgh, Dublin, Cardiff and Bristol.
- If you prefer an apartment or more of a hosted stay, then we recommend Plum Guide. We’ve tried all the others, and in our experience Plum Guide consistently has the highest quality options for the locations they are available.
- If you can’t find what you want on Plum Guide, or you want some new options to try out, we wrote a whole post on the best alternatives to AirBnB, as well as a guide to our favourite holiday cottage accommodation in the UK, which you should check out!
Between these options, you should find the best prices and places to stay for your trip, as well as a good selection of reviews and feedback to help you make an informed decision.
How to Get Around the UK
For this kind of trip I also obviously recommend that you look into renting a car. We have used and can recommend Enterprise Car Rental, they usually have great rates, especially for one way rentals. We also recommend comparing car prices using a service like Rentalcars.com, which compares prices across a range of providers to help you find the best deal.
A hire car will give you a lot more flexibility than public transport, and prices are generally fairly reasonable. However, if you would prefer to do a trip like this by public transport instead of driving yourself, check out our UK itinerary by public transport for ideas.
Another option for travelling in the UK is to hire a motorhome. Whilst this might not be practical for a city focused trip, you might prefer it if you are planning on visiting more rural locations.
For campervan rental we suggest checking out Motorhome Republic. They offer a campervans from a range of companies at different price points, so you can find the right one for you. You can see their UK listings here.
Further reading for your UK Trip
We’ve got lots of resources to help you plan your trip to the UK, from posts we’ve written ourselves to third party content we’re happy to recommend. Here it is:
- If you want a shorter trip, taking in some more off the beaten path destinations, check out this one week itinerary of the UK that I put together. If you’d prefer not to drive yourself, we also have a 10 day UK itinerary by public transport.
- To prepare for your trip to the UK, we’ve put together a detailed UK packing list which covers both London and the wider UK at any time of year
- This is a self-drive trip, so you should definitely check out our guide to driving in the UK for helpful tips.
- We also have a guide to how much it costs to travel in the UK which will help you cost out a trip like this.
- We have guides to many of the cities and sights in the UK for you to bookmark, including:
- A guide to driving Scotland’s epic North Coast 500, as well as accommodation options on the North Coast 500
- When you’re near Glasgow, you should check out the beautiful Devil’s Pulpit in Finnich Glen
- A two day Edinburgh itinerary & 21 Highlights in Edinburgh
- Edinburgh: Getting off the beaten path
- A Two Day Glasgow and Loch Lomond itinerary
- A guide to 10 of the best Stately Homes in England, to give you some ideas as you plan your itinerary
- For London, we have some detailed itineraries to help you plan your visit. These include a 1 Day London Itinerary, a Two Day London itinerary and a Six Day London itinerary
- The top Harry Potter sites in London
- The Best Photography Locations in London
- Tips on Buying and Using the London Pass
- Eight Things to Do in Kensington
- The Highlights of Oxford
- Our guide to things to do in Cambridge
- Visiting Blenheim Palace and the Cotswolds
- 20 Things To Do in Dublin, a 2 day Dublin itinerary and a 3 day Dublin itinerary
- A Guide to Touring the Scottish Borders
- Getting online when travelling in a foreign country can be daunting – check out our guide to getting online when travelling to help you figure out the best options for your trip
- If you’re interested in getting better photos when you travel, take a look at my online photography course, where I’ll teach you everything you need to know about getting better photos – whatever camera you have!
- If you want a physical (or digital!) book to accompany your travels, then Amazon do a good line in UK Travel Guides, and there is naturally a Lonely Planet and a Rough Guide to the UK available.
If you’re planning on visiting a number of historical properties, there are a couple of options you have for saving money as a visitor to the UK. Two main organisations exist to preserve these properties, the National Trust, and English Heritage.
Both of these organisations offer specific passes for visitors to the UK, which represent great value for money for visitors.
For the National Trust you can pick up a National Trust touring pass. This is valid for 7 or 14 days, and gives you access to every National Trust property in the England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
For English Heritage, you can get an English Heritage Overseas Visitor Pass. This is valid for 9 or 16 days, and gives you access to every English Heritage property in the UK.
Alternatively, you can also buy a full membership to these organisations, which will last a full year. You can buy an English Heritage Membership here and a National Trust membership here.
So those were my thoughts for taking in a slightly longer than two week trip in the UK. I’ve obviously missed out a great number of places, as no two week trip can possibly hope to see everything, but I’d like to think I covered a great many highlights of this truly fascinating country.
As always, if you’ve got any thoughts on this post, do hit up the comments below!
Vince says
Hi, what a great article! However, do you have any tips for hire car? Are there any fees/ extra charge or need to notice the supplier that the road trip route is involve Wales, Ireland and Scotland?
Laurence Norah says
Hi Vince,
Thanks very much!
For driving in Wales and Scotland it won’t matter because they are part of the united Kingdom, so it’s still the same country.
The republic of Ireland however is a separate country, plus you have to take a ferry to get there. So that would be something you would need to check with the rental agency.
S. Steinback says
Hi, my daughter and I are leaving mid August to the UK for 2 weeks. We are planning to start our trip in London. Then wanted to see Brighton, Cornwall, Wales and Scotland. We also want to see Bath and Oxford too. Is this doable using the train? We are unsure of how we should book our traveling using train, car or bus. Can you provide and manageable itinerary and recommendations on how we should travel from each place on a 2 week trip?
Laurence Norah says
Hi Sabrina,
So you should be able to see most of what you want to see by train. As an example, I’d suggest:
2 days in London
1 day in Brighton (train to Brighton takes about an hour, so can be done as a day trip from London or overnight)
1 day in Oxford (1 hour train from London to Oxford, overnight in Oxford)
1 day in Bath (1 hr 40 minute train from Oxford to Bath, overnight in Bath)
2 days in Cornwall (around 3 hours by train from Bath to Cornwall. You might want to take a tour in Cornwall as there is less public transport to get around)
3 days in Wales (train from Cornwall to Cardiff is around 3 – 4hours, but then you will have to plan how to get around Wales. Again a tour might be easiest)
3 days in Scotland (you can either fly from Cardiff to Glasgow / Edinburgh, or take the train, but the train will take around 8 hours)
I’d also suggest looking into Rabbie’s Trail Burners. They do a number of tours from London which might suit what you want to do and save you the hassle of planning. These cover the majority of the destinations you want to visit.
I hope this helps a bit with your planning!
Best
Laurence
Ed Hyland says
Thankyou for your guide it was really helpful
I am living in Argentina and j am planning on bringing Argentinian tourists to Wales and central England on a tour of castles and important historical sites .I plan on bringing groups of around 10 people and using a rented mini bus to move around.
Do you have any helpful tips as this will be our first tour ,we are planning on visiting early September
All the best .Ed,x
Laurence Norah says
Hi Ed,
My pleasure. So I don’t have any experience of running this kind of trip, so it’s tricky to give very specific advice. I am sure you have considered things like insurance and liability and so on, as well as any other legal requirements involved with running a tour.
THe only tips I have would be around admission to sights – there are usually group discounts available for attractions that you might be able to take advantage of, although you might need to call in advance to arrange these. I’d also advise to definitely book your accommodation in advance as you have a larger group.
Otherwise, I hope you have a great trip!
Laurence
Ryan says
I was planning this itinerary since I saw and had 15 days in the region. After more research I am now wondering what it takes to get a rental car from London to Ireland and back? Do you use the same car the entire trip, or would you switch cars at the water crossings in order to not have to pay to ferry the car across? Also I’ve heard rental agencies in England don’t really allow their rentals (or at least coverage) in Ireland? And yet another concern is time, I keep hearing that driving over there is quite a bit slower going than say the US, or by train, would this itinerary still give enough time to enjoy the locations or would it be quick stops and rushed in order to get to the next place? Sorry a lot of questions, just trying to decide if I need to break the trip up to just one or two countries. Thanks. And love you blogs and all the information and amazing photography.
Laurence Norah says
Hey Ryan!
So it is certainly possible to take a hire car on the ferry, it just depends on the hire car company, and some of them charge a fee for doing so. Here’s an example of the Enterprise UK policy: https://www.enterprise.co.uk/en/help/faqs/driving-across-borders.html
Obviously you also then have to pay the ferry fee for the hire car as well. So an easier option to be honest is just to fly, for example to take a flight from Edinburgh to Belfast or Dublin. You would drop off the hire car in Edinburgh and pick up a new one in Belfast.
I appreciate this might be a bit of hassle, so certainly adjusting the itinerary so you skip Ireland is another option. In this case, I’d suggest either spending more time in Scotland, or coming down the west coast of the UK, visiting the Lakes and Wales.
The roads in the UK are definitely a bit busier and can also be slower than roads in the USA. This itinerary is definitely doable, but I’m always a fan of slowing down and seeing more, so that is a good option too 🙂
Let me know if you have any more questions!
Laurence
David Cameron says
“You’ve packed up every possible solution in this one blog. I’m over the moon! I really am! How much would this trip cost, approximately? And if I’m going on this trip, Ireland will definitely be included coz from the moment I saw P.S I love you and Leap Year movie, I’ve been dreaming of visiting those places.
Thank you. Thank you so much, Laurence !”
Laurence Norah says
Hi David,
Thanks very much! So it’s hard to give an exact price as it will depend on your travel style. The best option is to cross reference this post with our guide to how much it costs to travel in the UK, which will let you come up with a budget based on your travel style 🙂
https://www.findingtheuniverse.com/cost-travel-uk/
Have a great trip, and let me know if you have any more questions!
Laurence
Usha Gupta says
Hi, we are travelling to London for a holiday from India. My 2 sons (29 & 27) and I are planning on spending 2 weeks in London and Wales.
13th-18th in London
19th-21st in Wales
22nd-26th in London
Please advice how best to spend our holidays?
We do not want to visit any of the normal places as we have seen n visited them all.
What are the best places in wales to see and visit? We have not been to wales.
Is it safe to take a road rrip from London to wales?
Are 3 days in wales enough to get around?
Pl advice
Laurence Norah says
Hi Usha,
Well, there’s a huge amount to do and see in London beyond all the normal tourist things that you have likely already done. I can advise visiting Greenwich for example if you have not been out there already, and perhaps some of the palaces out of the city, like Kensington or Hampton Course. Sometimes we like to pick up the London Pass and visit some of the many attractions we’ve not been to before!
Wales is lovely but it is quite big so you will want to consider visiting a region. My favourite part of Wales is the northern part, including the Snowdonia national park and towns like Caernarfon, but there are many nice regions and places to visit. If you want to see more you will likely want a few more days in Wales.
It is certainly safe to take a road trip from London to Wales, of course, I can’t guarantee your safety, but it is no less safe than travel anywhere else in the UK 🙂
I hope this helps – have a great trip!
Laurence
Usha gupta says
Ty for you advise. We decided to spend all our time in London and do day trips, theatre etc.
Laurence Norah says
My pleasure. Enjoy!
Darlene Williams says
Lovely ideas here!
My Granddaughter and I did a trip last summer to the Cotswolds, London and Paris. I’m thinking of a trip with my Granddaughter (18) in 2020 and would like to base myself in the Lakes District or Wales and take in Ireland and Scotland in a 2 week trip. Since I’ve been there I’ve decided I could probably drive it myself or possibly rent cars when needed and travel via train/bus/tours between Ireland & Scotland. I’m guessing the Highlands is probably out of reach for a 2 week trip? I would welcome your knowledge and suggestions.
Thank you,
Darlene
Laurence Norah says
Thanks very much Darlene!
I would definitely recommend hiring a car for the Lakes – it’s a more remote part of the UK, and there are fewer public transport options, both for getting there, and for getting around. I would say that it would make for a good base, but just to be aware that the roads are not very fast in either the Lake District or Wales, so it can take a bit of time to get from place to place.
The Highlands would be achievable, but it would involve a great deal of driving, and if you wanted to head up there i would suggest that as a standalone trip, perhaps flying to Inverness (or overnight train from London), and then renting a car from there 🙂
Do let me know if I can provide any more specific information to help you plan!
Laurence
Deep Shah says
Hello Laurence and Jessica,
It has been a pleasure reading about all your experiences in and around UK. I am planning to visit UK between April 22 and May 1. I am planning to start my trip from Edinburg cover a bit of scotland and than move on and end my trip in London.
Here is my itinerary Inverness (23 April) –> Isle of Skye (24 April) –> Fort William (25 April) –> Edinburgh (26 April) –> Jedburgh (27 April) –> York (28 April) –> Cambridge (29 April) –> Cotsworld (30 April) –> London (1 May)
Do you think this is doable? Or any particular section is too aggressive? Your help will really help me plan this better.
Laurence Norah says
Hi Deep,
This is in theory do-able, but you will be spending a lot of time driving. From Inverness to the Isle of Skye is a 2.5 hour drive for example, and then there’s a lot to see and do on the island which will also require driving. If you are ok with lots of time driving then yes, this is doable, I just wanted to be sure you knew 🙂
Laurence
Deep says
Hi Laurence,
Thanks for the reply. Yes, I am aware that we will have a lot of driving. But thats ok with me. Thanks again for your time. I have made the reservations to follow this itinerary. Will let you know how it goes.
Thanks for sharing all the information on your website.
Deep
Laurence Norah says
My pleasure – have a great time and do let us know how it goes! You can drop in here or in our facebook group 🙂
https://www.facebook.com/groups/travelloversandphotography/
Omker Mahalanobish says
Hello,
Thanks for your detailed itinerary. Looks exciting.
By the way, could you please let me know, what should be the expected cost for the said trip?
Further : I dont want to drive. Me and my wife would be travelling, and we would rather prefer a chauffer driven cab.
Thanks,
Omker
Laurence Norah says
Hi Omker,
I have a guide to how much it costs to travel in the UK here: https://www.findingtheuniverse.com/cost-travel-uk/
However, if you want to travel with a private guide, this will generally cost in the region of £500 – £800 per day for the car / driver guide, and then you would need to add accommodation expenses and so on on top of that. We recommend Robina Brown for this sort of trip: http://driverguidetours.com/
Best
Laurence
Heather Reid says
This site is the most perfect one for my needs. I am a solo traveler female aged 74 and I wish my 75th Birthday be spent on the next trip. If there be another solo person I would be happy to meet up before departure….male or female.
Laurence Norah says
Thanks Heather – have a great trip, and we hope you find someone to travel with!
Phillip Armanas says
Stumbled over your website while looking for ideas for a two week trip to the UK, glad I did. You’ve got a fantastic itinerary which includes a number of destinations my wife and I had in mind already.
We are a retired couple, living in Australia six months of the year, and Atlanta, Georgia the other six months. This gives us great flexibility in travel terms, both in SE Asia and from the USA to many places including UK/Europe.
A question I have is whether you have done any family history work on any of your travels? My ancestry is Scottish in the mid-1800s when my great-great-grandfather arrived into Port Adelaide, Australia. As yet we have been unable to track him accurately back into Scotland, but his surname is from a very ancient clan that can be traced back to the 13th century in Fife county. Have you any tips on places I might visit to pursue my elusive ghosts?
Phill & Patti
Laurence Norah says
Hi Phill & Patti!
We’re delighted you have found our content useful : ) So this isn’t something we have personally done, however I have some resources that might be helpful:
http://www.scottishgenealogyresearch.com/
https://www.visitscotland.com/see-do/research-your-ancestry/steps/
https://www.nrscotland.gov.uk/research/family-history
https://www.nrscotland.gov.uk/research/local-family-history-centres
It helps if you know the person’s name you are researching and where they lived before leaving Scotland. If you know this, you can look for a local research center or records office or clan center. The Visit Scotland link above is a good place to start. The Scottish Genealogy Research is a professional service that will do research for you for a fee.
Good luck, and have a great trip!
Laurence
Ronald Rieder says
My wife and I would like to take your “ideal itinerary” beginning Sept. 30, 2019.
Is there anyone or any group that we could join?
Laurence Norah says
Hi Ronald,
So this itinerary is a self guided tour for those wanting to drive themselves. However, we appreciate not everyone wants to do that, and we’ve put some suggested tours that will allow you to do a similar trip but in a group tour format. My suggestion for that would be to focus on England and Scotland, and to take this small group tour followed by this five day tour of the Scottish Highlands and Skye.
I hope this helps – let me know if I can offer any more advice!
Best
Laurence
Cass Baron says
Laurence and Jessica,
We are from Utah, United States and have never traveled abroad (except a short trip to Canada and a Western Caribbean cruise). It has been our dream to come to England and retrace our family history roots. We were looking for trip ideas that covered the areas for both a historical trip as well as a family roots trip. We found your site and loved everything that you have written about. We like the 2 week itinerary but don’t want to do the Ireland and Wales portion. We would like to include Nottingham and Hastings areas, do you have any suggestions to add these in for the same amount of time. We are planning on this May. Thanks!
Laurence Norah says
Hi Cass,
Certainly. I’d recommend Hastings first, then heading from there along to Stonehenge and Bath, then the Cotswolds and Oxford. From there, start heading north, with Nottingham your next stop, before continuing with the itinerary. You could even drop the car off in Edinburgh and fly out from there if you didn’t want to drive back down to London 🙂
I hope this helps – let me know if you have any more questions!
Laurence
Lashaun says
Hello.
If we skip the Ireland portion where should we extend our time or add another destination for the 2 week adventure? Also we’d like to see a football game, suggestions for city (Manchester, Liverpool?), tickets etc?
thank you!
Laurence Norah says
Hi there
I’d say you could extend by visiting the Lake District and northern Wales, or by heading further north into Scotland, where there’s lots to see. You definitely won’t have trouble finding places to see!
For football, if you don’t have a particular affiliate with a team, then Manchester will likely be a good option as they have the largest stadium. Tickets can be bought online in advance for any of the teams from their official websites, just be aware that they can sell out so you’ll want to book well in advance to be sure of getting a spot.
I hope this helps! have a great trip 🙂
Laurence
Steve Geller says
Hi there, Curious if this itinerary, or part of it, could be done in a motorhome (midsize RV) for a family of 2 adults and 2 kids. I’ve never been to most of these places, outside of some brief time in London and Dublin. For itineraries like these where there is a lot of moving around, I like the idea of a motorhome vs going from hotel to hotel (or apt to apt).
Thanks!
Laurence Norah says
Hey Steve!
So yes, it would be possible to do this is a motorhome. However, I’d probably advise modifying the itinerary fairly substantially, especially the city parts. Most UK cities don’t have centrally located motorhome camping locations, and the streets tend to be fairly narrow, which can make driving and parking a motorhome very challenging. I would instead suggest, if you wanted to do a motorhome holiday in the UK, to look at a driving route like the NC500 (see our camping itinerary for the NC500 here), or adjusting this route so it visits more of the countryside parts, like the Cotswolds, Peak District, Lake District and Northumberland.
Let me know if we can answer any more questions!
Laurence