Please help me plan four weekend trips

February 28, 2008 10:54 AM

Overwhelmed with possibilities for traveling in England. Please help.

Starting next week I'll be stationed near Coventry for business and will have four glorious weekends to burn. I've never been to Europe before, so there are Tons of things I would love to see. Everyone is telling me to go to London and Paris. There are several previous AskMe's about traveling in the UK. Loch Ness. The Cotswolds. Llangolen canal. Thomas Hardy tour. Castles and other medieval times stuff. Dover cliffs. Someone I know suggested Normandy, France. The travel books at Borders are all 500 pages long. I am completely overwhelmed with possibilities, and the trip is less than a week away. (oh, pity me!)

Here is what I would really like to do. Wander through the picturesque countryside without a backpack. Stop every two hours hours to explore a cool village. Stay at nice yet reasonably priced inns. See at least one historical thing of interest.

How can this best be accomplished, given that I have to be back in Coventry each Monday morning? I will be relying on trains, since I don't dare risk driving on the wrong side of the road. Thank you!

posted by proj08 to travel & transportation (19 comments total)

Look for any English book which does specifically walks (or "pub walks") in the Cotswolds, these show info about times, historical sights etc, and all you need is a map. And don't go anywhere near Stratford-upon-Avon, unless to see a play and then LEAVE.
posted by Claypole at 11:03 AM on February 28

Normandy was ok. You can take a tour of Omaha Beach for what was 70 Euros in 2003 (but is likely more expensive now). I also really enjoyed the Bayeux Tapestry in Bayeux. I will say that I had a great deal more fun in England than in France. (Though, France wins out in creperies!)

I liked Edinburg a great deal, despite it's slightly touristy nature. It was beautiful to me and the train ride was beautiful as well.
posted by santojulieta at 11:10 AM on February 28

From Coventry and for a weekend trip, you can pretty much scratch off all of them except Cotswolds and London by car, and Paris by air. Everything else is just miles of driving. England is pretty long winded for travelling in, and you need to very much half or quarter the reasonable distances you can drive in a day if you want to have anything approaching fun. I would try and limit yourself to three hour trips at most (the Canal may just fall into that, but not going through Birmingham on a Friday night...)

Have a look around Warwick and Warwick castle.
Oxford is fantastic for a weekend away, as is London (you can do all the central stuff briefly in a weekend).
Gloucester/Cheltenham/Stroud/Bristol are great and very much Cotswoldsy, as is due east of Cheltenham/Gloucester towards Oxford.
If you like outdoorsy stuff, The Peak District is north of you and pretty.
York is a nice place for a weekend too and easy enough to get to from there, as is anything predominately Motorway (the blue roads on Google maps). Don't underestimate how long it takes to get to places on A-roads, though. Especially on a Friday night.
Any National Trust property within 100 miles or so is worth investigating.


You can do Paris for a weekend, but it'll be expensive and you will only get about 18 hours there. I'm not sure it's worth it. Stick to England, is my advice.

To be honest, there's so much around there, going far is not worth the effort for just a weekend. It's no fun sitting in a car all weekend and going to work afterwards.
posted by Brockles at 11:12 AM on February 28

Oh, I just saw the bit about trains.

I very much strongly advise you forget that idea pretty much straight away. Our rail system is rightly lambasted and mocked mercilessly. The rail stations are generally nowhere near anything nice, and buses are at least twice as comical as trains.

Get a car. Seriously.

The one (8-9 month period) I tried to do weekend trips by train to try and save money all fell through for utterly inconvenient scheduling. If you were travelling and didn't have somewhere to be, then it'd work, but if you are trying to fit it around a job, it has every chance of being crap. Get a car and don't go too far. It's really not that hard to drive on the other side of the road.
posted by Brockles at 11:15 AM on February 28

Stroud railway station is quite pretty still Brockles, though probably a sod to get to from Coventry. The Derbyshire Peak District is pretty lush too, and there's some suggestions for short breaks there at this tourism site.
One bit of vicarious cultural immersion that might be fun (I accept it might be hell for some too) would be to do like the locals and spend Saturday afternoon at the football. I won't suggest you follow up with a fight in a kebab shop in the evening though. :p
posted by Abiezer at 11:27 AM on February 28

Stroud Railway station? Are you nuts?

Methinks you have the wrong town. I used to live there and there is nothing at all of note to it. It's a boring, one story little building.
posted by Brockles at 11:33 AM on February 28

It's won prizes, has hanging baskets and was designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel, you Philistine! :P (I lived in Stroud too)
posted by Abiezer at 12:11 PM on February 28

Seconding being brave and getting a car, unless you wish to spend your weekends standing in train stations in the rain, after spending hours crammed into a train that is going about 300 miles in the wrong direction because its as close as you can get. Plus also spending money hiring endless taxis to get you places because the trains won't get you close enough. Its really not that hard to drive on the other side.

Any chance there will be other business travellers in Coventry with you, to share the driving/expenses with? I wouldn't discount Paris either, if you set off on Friday night immediately after work, took the train to London and took the chunnel you would be able to have Sat and half of Sunday there.
posted by Joh at 12:13 PM on February 28

Warwick is a nice place but the castle is pretty expensive for what it is, Stratford is a good place for a wander round too, better now than in the summer when it gets really busy. Leamington Spa is quite a nice town centre, and easy to get to on buses from Coventry.

Kenilworth has a few nice pubs, and a castle that's less impressive than Warwick's (it's basically a ruin) but is a lot cheaper. Walking in the grounds is quite nice, and walking to Kenilworth from (South) Coventry is quite pleasant.

Driving from Coventry down into warwickshire is pretty much all on roads with a central reservation, so if you managed to get on the wrong side it would be quite impressive. I'd definitely reccomend looking at hiring a car though, most villages won't be served by rail, and the towns that are won't have a very frequent service, especially on Sundays.

I currently live in Warwick, and before that lived in Cov for 4 years, so any questions feel free to message me.
posted by gregjones at 12:19 PM on February 28

Abiezer: The station buildings, although based on a Brunel design, are rather disappointing being of low frontage..

It sure as hell isn't worth any sort of trip, that's for sure (hanging baskets!!), and it just came off a pattern design from what I can tell - more of a format than a one off. Nice tourist office work, though ;) The goods shed is more of an impressive construction, but it's....well. It's a goods shed.

Kenilworth castle is nice, but I think Warwick Castle is worth the money if you've never seen a proper one. The age, longevity and sheer scale of the building work is superb. Basically, to get a feel for England, go and look at 'Old Stuff'(tm). We have lots. With four weekends, you'll only do a small part of England justice, and I'd save a Europe trip for later and spend longer on it. Skimming over the top of both may be unsatisfying.
posted by Brockles at 12:31 PM on February 28

Ok I'll rent a car. You might see me on the evening news. "American tourist fucks up at the intersection. Two dead, three wounded."
posted by proj08 at 12:43 PM on February 28

I'd try trains out at least, its far far nicer to go anywhere by train and you get to see much much more of the pretty countryside than you do in a car. Sometimes the trains aren't too bad. Sometimes.
posted by criticalbill at 12:45 PM on February 28

note to self: Think positive.

Thanks everyone for the advice!
posted by proj08 at 1:13 PM on February 28

Oh, I'm not suggesting a trip merely to see the splendours of Stroud station Brockles (marvel that it is :p), but it could be the gateway to a nice weekend in the west end of the Cotswolds, matbe checking out the Arts and Crafts legacy of Morris and the Barnsleys in the area, or just some pottering about the hills and pubs. It could be split with some hanging about in Cheltenham, maybe a walk to the hill fort at Crickley Hill.
posted by Abiezer at 1:16 PM on February 28

Warwick, Cotswolds, Oxford: yes. The trebuchet at Warwick is something to see. I was quite unimpressed with Stratford generally but the hop-on, hop-off bus tour provided some really interesting trivia.

Don't overlook Battle, though. A bit of a drive but within reach if you have a car.

Speaking of, it only takes about 10 minutes to acclimate to driving on the wrong left side of the road. Helps some if you ride along in the passenger seat a while first. Most of the traffic signs will make sense but it helps to have someone explain a few of them.
posted by trinity8-director at 2:56 PM on February 28

I don't know Coventry specifically, but some general advice. I was always terrified of driving in Europe because of the "wrong side of the road" thing. It's really not bad, and I might be biased, but the English countryside is still a relatively genteel place to be in a car.

Also, although the trains are a standing joke here (I spend 4 hours a day on them if I'm lucky) you'll probably find a trip to London or the nearby countryside is painless as long as you aren't working to some amazingly strict itinery. If you just want to see some nice villages and stay at a good pub/B&B then ask some locals in Coventry. Such things a ten-a-penny here (really).
posted by brighton at 4:05 PM on February 28

you'll probably find a trip to London ... is painless

Actually, that's a good point. If you are on a direct line, London is the one place to get to and from that makes sense to take a train. Especially with the horrific traffic in London and the parking issues. Save your hire car money that weekend and take the train down to our Fine Capital Of Much History.
posted by Brockles at 4:58 PM on February 28

What about renting a barge on the canal for a weekend, they drive on the right and are a fine way to wander from pub to pub. They are also pretty historic and fantastic themselves. Top speed of 4mph means you don't get far, but they're easy to drive.
posted by itsjustanalias at 3:11 AM on February 29

Alternatively, you could get (buy cheaply or rent) a bicycle, and use that to zoom around the countryside. I went on a cycle trip from Nottingham to Bristol (passing coventry) a few years back, and it was great fun.

In my experience, I could simply cycle from one village to the next, and come about five to six o'clock in the evening, I'd start looking for a B&B to stay in.

Advantages:
* It's cheaper than a car.
* You get to be outside, and going slowly enough to actually notice the country you're travelling in. If you go by car, you'll have put a wall of glass, metal and speed between yourself and the countryside.
* It's fast enough to get to places.

Disadvantages:
* You need to enjoy cycling as an activity.
* In the time frame given, you won't be able to visit many specific sights, but you will get a pleasant coasting-through-the-countryside experience.

Seriously. Get a bike. Driving through a country is like being stuck in a stuffy room with footage of countryside displayed on the wall. Cycling through means you get to experience it, and you'll have tons of flexibility.
posted by Zarkonnen at 4:14 AM on February 29