by James Clarke

Created on: January 04, 2007   Last Updated: May 08, 2007

The United Kingdom on Great Britain? First thing to get your head around is how long you've got. There are a lot of amazing things to see and do, it's tempting to want to do them all. Like all places, it's an easy place to do quickly, and badly. You need to figure out how long you can tally in these isles, and plan around that. If you've got a week, think small, you can really see some amazing things in 7 days. If you've got longer, fantastic! Live the dream! But this is how to enjoy the isle on a limited time scale.

There is a great temptation to want to tick every box the Iconic Location Check-list, but that probably involves a LOT of travelling, and let me tell you, the motorways aren't worth spending THAT much time on. So if you have a few days, I reckon stick pretty close to London. Spend the first day on one of the tour buses and seeing the obvious things, The Eye, the Tower, the Palace, Trafalgar Square, the River & Bridges, the Houses of Parliament, maybe go to a gallery or take in a show on the West End. All the usual London Naff, but you've got to do it, don't you?
Then spend a second day just pottering around, poking your nose into any shop or museum that takes your fancy. Just walk the streets and get a feel for the city. Stop for lunch somewhere with a nice view or somewhere with a nice atmosphere. London's a great place, you won't be disappointed with where you're nose leads you.

Depending on how much extra time you have, start tripping out from London in day trips. Get out to one of the University Towns, Cambridge or Oxford. If you've got a car, drive out to the Cotswolds, a picturesque slice of pre-war rural England. If you don't have access to a car, definitely hire one. A day or two rolling through these green hills is the England of picture books, and something that you'll never forget. Stay in some lovely old pub somewhere to soak it all up. Alternatively, the Devon & Sommerset areas are great too, lovely coastlines and sweeping moors. If you can fit it in, do both! Because halfway between the two is Stonehenge, a sight worth visiting on it's own.

If you're trying to get as much out of England as you can in a small amount of time, I reckon that if you mix and match between the things I've listed here, you'll have an amazing short trip to England!

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