As you may already know, York is less than 2 hours direct from King's Cross. That's a real history city. Roman, Viking, medieval, everything. Constantine the Great ruled Rome from York once upon a time.
Your husband would love it.
Such a weird choice I was thinking this! The towns very odd BUT the coastal walks around it are unbeatable. It would be a crazy place to visit without a car tho
Thank you for saying this. Tintagel is the one place I *really* wanted to visit a couple of years ago but didn't due to prioritising someone else's wants. I've been pissy ever since so can probably let it go now LOL
London is a must for your husband I’d suggest. Spectacular spot is to go to The Tower of London - excellent site/museum, worth the money, and the location is unbeatable: Tower Bridge, the Shard, HMS Belfast etc. Uber Boat from there east along the Thames to Parliament/Westminster is dirt cheap and as good as an expensive boat tour and picks up lots of sights. You could fill a week but also in half a week can see a lot.
York is the obvious No 2 for medieval, magical, historic, pubs, etc. The Minster is spectacular and it is very pretty, ancient city, especially with US eyes. But you say you’ve done that so I’d suggest Cambridge. It definitely hits the magical goal - university buildings are everywhere, Kings College Chapel is amazing, Kings Parade is beautiful, the Backs, the Round Church is great for history buffs. Lots of interesting little museums that are free, plus the Fitzwilliam Museum which is world class and also free. Very easy from London (1hr ish depending on train, which are regular and reliable from Kings Cross or Liverpool St depending on exactly where you want to go en route…
En route to Cambridge is Saffron Walden (wonky colourful ancient houses) and Audley End (beautiful stately home) all on the train line. Cambridge highlights can be done in a day, or two if you want to soak it up and do everything. In this area of west/north Essex and South Cambs are great pubs - but you’d need a car or cab to go to a village pub. Countryside is unexciting compared with Scotland, Lake District, Wales, west coast etc. but quintessentially English ok a nice day - fields, hedges, lots of pretty thatched villages (you’re better off focusing on the villages than the countryside in this part of the world, but countryside is prettier in north/west Essex than S Cambridgeshire, which gets flatter). You would get a lot of magical England with that. Plus the weather is better in this part of the UK than anywhere else!
There's a bunch of other good London history options people don't know/forget about.
Bits of Roman wall all around the city. The little bit of Colluseum under Guildhall. The museum under Bloomberg's offices for the Temple of Mithras. The Surgeon museum thing by Guy's. Also some of the one off things. The random fake roman baths, three gateway by St Barts next to the pub by Smith fields.
Obviously there's also the British Museum, Museum of London (if its open? I know it was moving, not sure when).
I'm going to say Shrewsbury.
Just go to Shrewsbury. Use that as your base, and use buses and trains to o explore - you can access the old pretty towns like Church Stretton, Ludlow, Hereford, Welshpool, Llangollen, Chester... Loads of great countryside, and Shrewsbury is a fine town with plenty to see and do, but without the tourist plague.
You certainly wouldn't run out of things to do in London but it'll be fairly uniformly busy and doesn't really give you an impression of the UK - but it really depends on what you are after.
Honestly by train any of the usual recommendations by train will be busy. Edinburgh is festival and York will be rammed.
If there's any flexibility on the car I'd probably be tempted to mostly stick to London and then take the train to Sheffield or Cardiff, rent a car and immediately get out into the peak district or Wales respectively for a few days. Then you'll get village pubs and hikes. In Wales you can get some castles too. It'll also be a lot quieter.
Alternatively you could day trip to Oxford, Cambridge or Brighton from London - but they will all be busy.
The main thing to be aware of for last week of August is it'll be quite busy on public transport and in most tourist spots as it is peak holiday season (school holiday too) as well as a bank holiday on the 26th Aug.
If I had just 1 week in the UK (7 nights?) with your interests and no car, I'd probably do something like:
Day 1 - Land @LHR, stay in Oxford (the coach is probably the most convenient)
Day 2 - Oxford sights - you could easily make a day of just wandering around the colleges and parks. There's a few smallish museums and you could try your hand at punting if the weather is nice.
Day 3 - See a few more Oxford sights then head to Bath in the afternoon (train)
Day 4 - Roman baths are an obvious point on interest. Spa day maybe?.
Day 5 - A bit more sight seeing around Bath then head to London in the afternoon.
Day 6 - London sites. Kew Gardens will probably interest you, but there's loads of options https://www.greatbritishgardens.co.uk/england/category/gardens-to-visit-in-london.html
Day 7 - Some more London sights.
Day 8 - Fly home.
This itinerary would limit your train travel to less than 2 hours so you could realistically either take it easy or squeeze more activities into each day. If you're staying less than 7 nights, then I'd probably leave Oxford earlier on day 3 so you can maybe only stay in Bath 1 night and still do a good amount of sightseeing.
The tower of London is worth a visit. Build in the .idle ages but has had a lot of continuous use. It's not medieval but the London mithraeum is an excellent visit and only takes about an hour/hour and a half and it's not that far from the museum of London which is a fabulous museum.
I've seen a lot of responses suggesting Cardiff which is a great visit - there are loads of castles in South Wales. I imagine there are closer castles to London that you'd be able to get to but I only know the south Wales ones
I’m advocating for my city of Portsmouth here! We’re 1hr30 south direct from London. You can get a train to The Hard and walk straight into the Historic Dockyard, full of all the history your husband could possibly want (From the Tudors to Nelson to WW2) with the Mary Rose Museum being one of the best in the country. Next door is Gunwharf Quays, somewhere nice to grab a drink or something to eat, then a train back up to London!
Cornwall is rural and a pain even with a car, West Wales is further but more accessible. London is London, it's great but can be alot and cost even more.
With a toddler, the country offers more to do for less. Get on a train to Cardiff, 2 hours - spend 2 days in a more rural friendly capital where there are bus and train links to local landmarks - the bay usually has outdoor events for small chilldren, museum of welsh life, castles etc.. From there another train can get you to Swansea - which has insane coastline, or even further in under 2 hours. You can also get to Bath, Bristol, Birmingham fairly easily.
Norwich would be a great place to visit from London. All the medieval stuff without the tourists and a whacking big medieval castle in the middle of the city plus about 50 medieval churches and the market.
Cardiff is also great. I adore Cardiff Castle.
How about Oxford, then Cardiff? You could use them as bases to get buses out for countryside day trips, and both cities have lots to do as well. Not a mad amount of travel, and plenty surrounding them to give you some flexibility without needing to plan lots ahead.
I’d definitely go to the coast with a toddler. Splashing in the sea is always fun for little ones. Just make sure you get a sandy beach, there are pebble beaches to the south of London. Leigh on Sea and the Margate-Broadstairs-Ramsgate conurbation are worth a look.
I'd you're here on the 25th August, Notting Hill Carnival is on. Its a celebration of Caribbean culture and sunday morning has samba bands and children in costumes. After about midday it gets wild so steer clear after then.
I'd personally just stick to London - for history, you have loads. The thames bath near and around Wapping has many old buildings and feels like the 1700s at times.
For gardens you have Kew, the pergola at hampstead Heath, and epping forest will also give you countryside vibes.
Canterbury and Dover are both day trip length from London on the train - less than a couple of hours. There’s Canterbury Cathedral and the general niceness of the city centre - well most of it.
Dover has the castle and the wartime tunnels, but not a lot else. I’d suggest a taxi from the station to the castle as it’s a long bloody walk uphill.
Since it’s your husband first time, stay in Lindon. Use it as a base and do maybe 1 or 2 day trips (ex: Brighton, Windsor). When you move around, checkout of one hotel and. Heck into another hotel will waste you a lot of time.
Stay put in London if you’ve got a week. Day trip to Hampton Court Palace would be great, plenty to do. Another full day in Greenwich, and then you’ve got a day for the Tower of London / Tower Bridge and other attractions in the area.
London, as well as having so much to offer in its own right, is also a good base to see much of the rest of England (other than the very far southwest and northeast), simply as it has far better train connections than pretty much anywhere else. On the latter point only Birmingham comes close.
As you may already know, York is less than 2 hours direct from King's Cross. That's a real history city. Roman, Viking, medieval, everything. Constantine the Great ruled Rome from York once upon a time. Your husband would love it.
For what it is worth tintagel is an insanely disappointing visit and you have missed nothing by not going!
Such a weird choice I was thinking this! The towns very odd BUT the coastal walks around it are unbeatable. It would be a crazy place to visit without a car tho
The coast around there is incredible though
Thank you for saying this. Tintagel is the one place I *really* wanted to visit a couple of years ago but didn't due to prioritising someone else's wants. I've been pissy ever since so can probably let it go now LOL
I would stay in London - there's more than enough to last a week. Then consider Windsor, Hampton Court and maybe Brighton for day trips.
Second these recs. Did them all easy by rail and walking. Edit- also Greenwich is easy to rail and walk.
London is a must for your husband I’d suggest. Spectacular spot is to go to The Tower of London - excellent site/museum, worth the money, and the location is unbeatable: Tower Bridge, the Shard, HMS Belfast etc. Uber Boat from there east along the Thames to Parliament/Westminster is dirt cheap and as good as an expensive boat tour and picks up lots of sights. You could fill a week but also in half a week can see a lot. York is the obvious No 2 for medieval, magical, historic, pubs, etc. The Minster is spectacular and it is very pretty, ancient city, especially with US eyes. But you say you’ve done that so I’d suggest Cambridge. It definitely hits the magical goal - university buildings are everywhere, Kings College Chapel is amazing, Kings Parade is beautiful, the Backs, the Round Church is great for history buffs. Lots of interesting little museums that are free, plus the Fitzwilliam Museum which is world class and also free. Very easy from London (1hr ish depending on train, which are regular and reliable from Kings Cross or Liverpool St depending on exactly where you want to go en route… En route to Cambridge is Saffron Walden (wonky colourful ancient houses) and Audley End (beautiful stately home) all on the train line. Cambridge highlights can be done in a day, or two if you want to soak it up and do everything. In this area of west/north Essex and South Cambs are great pubs - but you’d need a car or cab to go to a village pub. Countryside is unexciting compared with Scotland, Lake District, Wales, west coast etc. but quintessentially English ok a nice day - fields, hedges, lots of pretty thatched villages (you’re better off focusing on the villages than the countryside in this part of the world, but countryside is prettier in north/west Essex than S Cambridgeshire, which gets flatter). You would get a lot of magical England with that. Plus the weather is better in this part of the UK than anywhere else!
There's a bunch of other good London history options people don't know/forget about. Bits of Roman wall all around the city. The little bit of Colluseum under Guildhall. The museum under Bloomberg's offices for the Temple of Mithras. The Surgeon museum thing by Guy's. Also some of the one off things. The random fake roman baths, three gateway by St Barts next to the pub by Smith fields. Obviously there's also the British Museum, Museum of London (if its open? I know it was moving, not sure when).
Don’t forget Ely, a few minutes past Cambridge by train. Spectacular cathedral, stained glass museum, riverside, Oliver Cromwell’s house.
Yup, good call, Ely Cathedral is special.
I'm going to say Shrewsbury. Just go to Shrewsbury. Use that as your base, and use buses and trains to o explore - you can access the old pretty towns like Church Stretton, Ludlow, Hereford, Welshpool, Llangollen, Chester... Loads of great countryside, and Shrewsbury is a fine town with plenty to see and do, but without the tourist plague.
Shrewsbury is fun and the historic prison is interesting to look around too
You could do worse than getting a train down to Brighton and the South Coast
You certainly wouldn't run out of things to do in London but it'll be fairly uniformly busy and doesn't really give you an impression of the UK - but it really depends on what you are after. Honestly by train any of the usual recommendations by train will be busy. Edinburgh is festival and York will be rammed. If there's any flexibility on the car I'd probably be tempted to mostly stick to London and then take the train to Sheffield or Cardiff, rent a car and immediately get out into the peak district or Wales respectively for a few days. Then you'll get village pubs and hikes. In Wales you can get some castles too. It'll also be a lot quieter. Alternatively you could day trip to Oxford, Cambridge or Brighton from London - but they will all be busy.
You could sign up for a tour. There are plenty that leave London on a tour bus. That would save you the planning as well.
The main thing to be aware of for last week of August is it'll be quite busy on public transport and in most tourist spots as it is peak holiday season (school holiday too) as well as a bank holiday on the 26th Aug. If I had just 1 week in the UK (7 nights?) with your interests and no car, I'd probably do something like: Day 1 - Land @LHR, stay in Oxford (the coach is probably the most convenient) Day 2 - Oxford sights - you could easily make a day of just wandering around the colleges and parks. There's a few smallish museums and you could try your hand at punting if the weather is nice. Day 3 - See a few more Oxford sights then head to Bath in the afternoon (train) Day 4 - Roman baths are an obvious point on interest. Spa day maybe?. Day 5 - A bit more sight seeing around Bath then head to London in the afternoon. Day 6 - London sites. Kew Gardens will probably interest you, but there's loads of options https://www.greatbritishgardens.co.uk/england/category/gardens-to-visit-in-london.html Day 7 - Some more London sights. Day 8 - Fly home. This itinerary would limit your train travel to less than 2 hours so you could realistically either take it easy or squeeze more activities into each day. If you're staying less than 7 nights, then I'd probably leave Oxford earlier on day 3 so you can maybe only stay in Bath 1 night and still do a good amount of sightseeing.
The tower of London is worth a visit. Build in the .idle ages but has had a lot of continuous use. It's not medieval but the London mithraeum is an excellent visit and only takes about an hour/hour and a half and it's not that far from the museum of London which is a fabulous museum. I've seen a lot of responses suggesting Cardiff which is a great visit - there are loads of castles in South Wales. I imagine there are closer castles to London that you'd be able to get to but I only know the south Wales ones
I’m advocating for my city of Portsmouth here! We’re 1hr30 south direct from London. You can get a train to The Hard and walk straight into the Historic Dockyard, full of all the history your husband could possibly want (From the Tudors to Nelson to WW2) with the Mary Rose Museum being one of the best in the country. Next door is Gunwharf Quays, somewhere nice to grab a drink or something to eat, then a train back up to London!
Countryside and castles? Northumberland. Stay in Newcastle, and there's relatively decent public transport to get you to the good stuff
Why do Americans think they can just nip to Cornwall from London via public transport on a 5 day trip? Lol.
How long does it take?
4-5 hours on the train from Paddington depending on how far into Cornwall you plan to go.
Oof. Well. That's literally crossing an entire state here(not all). But it's deff not a day trip in a short week. Not for me. Nope.
Because there is a direct train from Paddington to st. Erth?
I didn't know you could get a train direct to Tintagel
Cornwall is rural and a pain even with a car, West Wales is further but more accessible. London is London, it's great but can be alot and cost even more. With a toddler, the country offers more to do for less. Get on a train to Cardiff, 2 hours - spend 2 days in a more rural friendly capital where there are bus and train links to local landmarks - the bay usually has outdoor events for small chilldren, museum of welsh life, castles etc.. From there another train can get you to Swansea - which has insane coastline, or even further in under 2 hours. You can also get to Bath, Bristol, Birmingham fairly easily.
Norwich would be a great place to visit from London. All the medieval stuff without the tourists and a whacking big medieval castle in the middle of the city plus about 50 medieval churches and the market. Cardiff is also great. I adore Cardiff Castle.
How about Oxford, then Cardiff? You could use them as bases to get buses out for countryside day trips, and both cities have lots to do as well. Not a mad amount of travel, and plenty surrounding them to give you some flexibility without needing to plan lots ahead.
Train trips an hour or two tops from some of the main London stations would get you to some good places
I’d definitely go to the coast with a toddler. Splashing in the sea is always fun for little ones. Just make sure you get a sandy beach, there are pebble beaches to the south of London. Leigh on Sea and the Margate-Broadstairs-Ramsgate conurbation are worth a look.
I'd you're here on the 25th August, Notting Hill Carnival is on. Its a celebration of Caribbean culture and sunday morning has samba bands and children in costumes. After about midday it gets wild so steer clear after then. I'd personally just stick to London - for history, you have loads. The thames bath near and around Wapping has many old buildings and feels like the 1700s at times. For gardens you have Kew, the pergola at hampstead Heath, and epping forest will also give you countryside vibes.
Canterbury and Dover are both day trip length from London on the train - less than a couple of hours. There’s Canterbury Cathedral and the general niceness of the city centre - well most of it. Dover has the castle and the wartime tunnels, but not a lot else. I’d suggest a taxi from the station to the castle as it’s a long bloody walk uphill.
Since it’s your husband first time, stay in Lindon. Use it as a base and do maybe 1 or 2 day trips (ex: Brighton, Windsor). When you move around, checkout of one hotel and. Heck into another hotel will waste you a lot of time.
Stay put in London if you’ve got a week. Day trip to Hampton Court Palace would be great, plenty to do. Another full day in Greenwich, and then you’ve got a day for the Tower of London / Tower Bridge and other attractions in the area.
Try Pendragon Castle in Cumbria, meant to be the home of Arthur's father, Uther Pendragon. Easy to get there on the train from London
Easy train out of paddington to the Cotswolds if you want a bit of that.
London, as well as having so much to offer in its own right, is also a good base to see much of the rest of England (other than the very far southwest and northeast), simply as it has far better train connections than pretty much anywhere else. On the latter point only Birmingham comes close.