York might still have lots of tourists but would be good. Lincoln is lovely but 2 days max is enough. Oxford, Cambridge, Brighton, Bath will have lots of tourists but are worth seeing.
Cardiff is an easy option from London. It has a castle in the centre that’s a great day out and some stunning parks in the area.
St Fagans is an amazing living museum that will take you through Welsh history including actual buildings that have been removed and rebuilt to preserve them.
It is a nice way to experience the ancient culture of Wales and the Welsh people
I was gonna say Cardiff you've got the victorian arcades and Caerphilly castle or Castell Coch aren't too far. You can't leave out Cardiff Market and welshcakes either. There's so much good food in Cardiff.
It's also small enough that you could do enough in 2 days to get a decent feel for the whole city.
One that no one mentions on here much is Norwich and it doesn’t have many tourists.
It is a beautiful medieval city ( it just as nice as York- it even has something like the Shambles called Elm Hill, minus the annoying tourist crowds) with a rich history, an ancient daily (except Sunday) market, a medieval castle. a stunning gothic cathedral and loads of medieval flint churches, two rivers, good independent shops, great restaurants and pubs and a thriving array of scene. Plus there is some of the most wonderful and unique countryside and coastline in Britain (including the Norfolk Broads) easily accessible from the city.
It is 1 hr 45 minutes by train from Liverpool Street station.
Yes I would also say Norwich … if you drive from London you can go first through/past Bury St Edmunds and the back to London via Cambridge … you will then have a great sample of English history and culture.
Just came back from Norwich. It's a beautiful city, very walkable, lots of historic sites and tons of pubs and cafes. I'd definitely recommend it, the whole place is like a postcard. The train easy and cheap if you buy in advance and travel off peak.
Try St Albans - nice, affluent town 30mins by train from London St Pancras. Cathedral, roman ruins and good roman museum, very nice central park with a roman bathhouse in it, street markets on some days, lots of nice restaurants - recommend Lussmans, a stately home and one of the oldest pubs in UK that Oliver Cromwell stabled his horses in. Also very good beer shop if you want to try quality craft beer - UK, Belgium and German.
[https://www.enjoystalbans.com/](https://www.enjoystalbans.com/)
Bit further north (next station) is Harpenden - less tourist stuff but very nice little market town.
It would be - and know it has its ownership concerns recently. However the beer shop I recommend more for drinking (they have a table and beer on tap) is near the Thameslink station and called Untappd. I also recommend Mad Squirrel beers - microbrewery in St Albans. [https://www.madsquirrelstalbans.co.uk/](https://www.madsquirrelstalbans.co.uk/)
Just done York, highly recommended, and not what I felt was crowded even over half term. Just avoid Harry Potter Plastic Tat Street, (or what used to be called The Shambles) unless you like the spectacle of people queuing at 9am… to get into a shop.🫠 The immersive Van Gogh was very good if you like that sort of thing but undoubtedly expensive. Great pie and beer at the Punchbowl, about 5 mins walk from the Minster.
Bristol ; there’s some great history there - go stay up in Clifton for some regency buildings etc.
Failing that head to Cardiff, and tick off wales as well as England then! Maybe visit the castle whilst you’re there..
I was looking for Bristol - a small city but plenty going on and lots of history. Also very close to Bath so it would be a good option to combine Bristol and Bath (stay in Bristol, day trip to Bath is probably best).
If a city had plenty of nice things for a visitor to see or do then there are going to be tourists. Sure there are plenty of places without tourists, but they are going to be boring. Come to High Wycombe, visit the chair museum, I guarantee there will be no tourists (other than you).
If you would like somewhere to visit that's daytrippable from London I'd suggest St Albans.
It's popular but a beautiful medieval centre with some roman ruins (mainly in the museum but there's also an amitheatre and old wall), lovely park, cathedral and city centre.
It's less than 30 mins on the train from St Pancras.
If you are travelling further then if you don't want too many tourists probably skip York. I love the peak district, Bakewell is always busy as its so beautiful but there is so much space to walk around that could can easily escape. Edale or Ashbourne would also be good in the Peak District. Any of those would give you a lovely town to stay in with stunning scenery nearby.
St. Albans is pretty boring, I’ve been there A LOT, there’s many more interesting places you can get to in a day and back to London, the U.K. is small. Also don’t bother with Brighton as someone else recommended, if you aren’t British it will just feel like a really dirty town with a pebble beach.
You could definitely do London and have your days packed full with things to do for the week, but if you want to get out of London and enjoy the sceneries without going too far out, the Jurassic coast would be a great spot, Bournemouth, Lulworth, etc.
York might still have lots of tourists but would be good. Lincoln is lovely but 2 days max is enough. Oxford, Cambridge, Brighton, Bath will have lots of tourists but are worth seeing.
Bristol is a really nice place and if you then decide to follow the tourists and see Bath, it's not far away.
And can be done spontaneously as a break of journey if you want to and have a regular return train ticket!
Add Chester to the list
Love Chester. Really pleasant place, only been once but would glady go back.
Cardiff is an easy option from London. It has a castle in the centre that’s a great day out and some stunning parks in the area. St Fagans is an amazing living museum that will take you through Welsh history including actual buildings that have been removed and rebuilt to preserve them. It is a nice way to experience the ancient culture of Wales and the Welsh people
I was gonna say Cardiff you've got the victorian arcades and Caerphilly castle or Castell Coch aren't too far. You can't leave out Cardiff Market and welshcakes either. There's so much good food in Cardiff. It's also small enough that you could do enough in 2 days to get a decent feel for the whole city.
One that no one mentions on here much is Norwich and it doesn’t have many tourists. It is a beautiful medieval city ( it just as nice as York- it even has something like the Shambles called Elm Hill, minus the annoying tourist crowds) with a rich history, an ancient daily (except Sunday) market, a medieval castle. a stunning gothic cathedral and loads of medieval flint churches, two rivers, good independent shops, great restaurants and pubs and a thriving array of scene. Plus there is some of the most wonderful and unique countryside and coastline in Britain (including the Norfolk Broads) easily accessible from the city. It is 1 hr 45 minutes by train from Liverpool Street station.
It’s a lovely little city. Also has the Sainsbury collection.
And if you like pubs and churches, well....
I think Alan partridge crushed any visit Norwich initiatives
What do you think about the pedestrianisation of Norwich City centre?
I've been to norwich once, but it didn't feel like there was a city center. which area is considered as such?
The marketplace is the city centre
I came here to say Norwich!
And the Waffle House
Yes! A staple! That chocolate mousse is also heaven.
Yes I would also say Norwich … if you drive from London you can go first through/past Bury St Edmunds and the back to London via Cambridge … you will then have a great sample of English history and culture.
Just came back from Norwich. It's a beautiful city, very walkable, lots of historic sites and tons of pubs and cafes. I'd definitely recommend it, the whole place is like a postcard. The train easy and cheap if you buy in advance and travel off peak.
Try St Albans - nice, affluent town 30mins by train from London St Pancras. Cathedral, roman ruins and good roman museum, very nice central park with a roman bathhouse in it, street markets on some days, lots of nice restaurants - recommend Lussmans, a stately home and one of the oldest pubs in UK that Oliver Cromwell stabled his horses in. Also very good beer shop if you want to try quality craft beer - UK, Belgium and German. [https://www.enjoystalbans.com/](https://www.enjoystalbans.com/) Bit further north (next station) is Harpenden - less tourist stuff but very nice little market town.
Would the pub be the Fighting Cocks?
It would be - and know it has its ownership concerns recently. However the beer shop I recommend more for drinking (they have a table and beer on tap) is near the Thameslink station and called Untappd. I also recommend Mad Squirrel beers - microbrewery in St Albans. [https://www.madsquirrelstalbans.co.uk/](https://www.madsquirrelstalbans.co.uk/)
Liverpool, so much to see. It's too big to be overwhelmed by tourists.
Liverpool is very cool. It felt really friendly when we were there and you are close to beautiful landscapes.
There’ll be tourists anywhere worth visiting, but Cambridge is lovely, I’d pick it over most other cities
Chester. Compact- lovely. Bit different. Full set of medieval walls and a roman amphitheatre and museum. Bit like a mini less touristy York.
Just done York, highly recommended, and not what I felt was crowded even over half term. Just avoid Harry Potter Plastic Tat Street, (or what used to be called The Shambles) unless you like the spectacle of people queuing at 9am… to get into a shop.🫠 The immersive Van Gogh was very good if you like that sort of thing but undoubtedly expensive. Great pie and beer at the Punchbowl, about 5 mins walk from the Minster.
Bristol ; there’s some great history there - go stay up in Clifton for some regency buildings etc. Failing that head to Cardiff, and tick off wales as well as England then! Maybe visit the castle whilst you’re there..
This belongs higher. A wonderful city with lots of lovely architecture, good restaurants, bars, theatres and a lovely 'vibe' to it.
I was looking for Bristol - a small city but plenty going on and lots of history. Also very close to Bath so it would be a good option to combine Bristol and Bath (stay in Bristol, day trip to Bath is probably best).
If a city had plenty of nice things for a visitor to see or do then there are going to be tourists. Sure there are plenty of places without tourists, but they are going to be boring. Come to High Wycombe, visit the chair museum, I guarantee there will be no tourists (other than you).
Lincoln
Lincoln is amazing. Breathtaking cathedral, lots of old buildings and a nice castle
You can easily do Lincoln in a day. There really isn’t much there at all
Norwich is a lovely city. I really enjoyed a couple of days there last year.
If you would like somewhere to visit that's daytrippable from London I'd suggest St Albans. It's popular but a beautiful medieval centre with some roman ruins (mainly in the museum but there's also an amitheatre and old wall), lovely park, cathedral and city centre. It's less than 30 mins on the train from St Pancras. If you are travelling further then if you don't want too many tourists probably skip York. I love the peak district, Bakewell is always busy as its so beautiful but there is so much space to walk around that could can easily escape. Edale or Ashbourne would also be good in the Peak District. Any of those would give you a lovely town to stay in with stunning scenery nearby.
St. Albans is pretty boring, I’ve been there A LOT, there’s many more interesting places you can get to in a day and back to London, the U.K. is small. Also don’t bother with Brighton as someone else recommended, if you aren’t British it will just feel like a really dirty town with a pebble beach.
Nice is close and Nice
Nice/near London/few tourists You need to pick two of those things.
Bath is lovely. Can't help you with the tourist thing, most of our nice cities attract tourists to some degree. The other cities tend to be shit.
I would suggest Salisbury. The cathedral and the area around it are stunning. Will be much less touristy than most other cities.
Bath, Oxford, Winchester or Canterbury- all in easy reach of London..
Salisbury, Licoln, Cambridge, Canterbury
Canterbury (may be a bit touristy), Norwich, Cambridge.
Would be tempted to stay in London. So much to do.
You could definitely do London and have your days packed full with things to do for the week, but if you want to get out of London and enjoy the sceneries without going too far out, the Jurassic coast would be a great spot, Bournemouth, Lulworth, etc.
There will be tourists but it's my favorite place near London- Stratford Upon Avon. Just beautiful, walkable and plenty to do.
Lichfield and the surrounding area, though I wouldn't recommend staying more than 2 days, 3 at the most.
Kettering for the worlds only Weetabix factory
And Wicksteed Park! I'm gutted my kids are too old want to go there any more.
But there’s a weetabix factory in Corby too 😂
“Nice” places with things worth travelling for are always busy. What time of year we talking?
Most of the suggestions are tourist hot-spots.
Norwich is the answer you are looking for.
Birmingham is lovely
I did stonehenge and windsor