need hotel, beautiful view, no car, 5-7days

[want2go]

Please recommend where you would go in the UK to enjoy 5-7 days with beautiful view, walking to dining/shopping, public transportation to a little sightseeing... without a car.  Just interested in a relaxing time and primarily a beautiful view.  In mid-July. 
Thanks for your help!

[Post Captain]

4 hours ago, want2go said:

Please recommend where you would go in the UK to enjoy 5-7 days with beautiful view, walking to dining/shopping, public transportation to a little sightseeing... without a car.  Just interested in a relaxing time and primarily a beautiful view.  In mid-July. 
Thanks for your help!

 

That's an extremely broad question, and all the answers/suggestions you receive are going to be highly subjective. By "beautiful," do you mean natural beauty (hills, rivers, valleys, the sea, etc.) or architectural beauty? How far from London are you willing to travel? Also, do you mean the view from the window of a particular hotel, or the views you would see when you go for a walk from wherever it is you're staying? To what extent does local "atmosphere" enter into your question?

 

With that said, here's my spontaneous and highly personal list:

 

--- Cornwall, especially the south coast (although some people prefer the north coast).  I had a beautiful view of St Michael's Mount from my bedroom window when I lived near Penzance, but the Fowey river estuary is very high on my list of beautiful places in Cornwall. Or the River Fal valley (Falmouth or St Mawes).  But there are several practical drawbacks to Cornwall:  1) It's a long and fairly expensive train ride from London Paddington (about 5 hours).  2) July is the busiest time of the year, and I would expect that most of the most desirable hotels/ guest houses/ holiday cottages will be booked up long in advance.  (Also depends on any Covid restrictions in effect at the time--who knows what things will be like in July, anywhere.)  The counties of Devon and Dorset also have many beautiful places.

 

--- Yorkshire (aka God's Country).  There are more beautiful places in Yorkshire than I can list here.  For architectural beauty and lots of things to do right in town and in the surrounding area, it's hard to beat York.  The Yorkshire Dales are gorgeous (in good weather!), but many villages aren't served by train. Harrogate is a quite attractive town, as is Knaresborough; both are near each other, on the rail line between Leeds and York.

 

--- The Lake District.  Far from London, but worth the trip.  (London Euston > Penrith, then bus to Keswick.  Keswick makes a good base, and is on a bus route that will take you to several villages set in beautiful countryside and on the lakes. (Grasmere, Ambleside, Coniston. In my younger days, I walked from Keswick to Buttermere and back a few times--about 16 miles round-trip through some stunning countryside!)  Avoid Windermere. 

 

--- Bath has tons of architectural beauty, and views of and from the hills surrounding Bath (and "in" Bath) are quite beautiful. Easily reached by train from London Paddington. However, the town centre is quite busy, especially in the height of summer, and accommodation in Bath is some of the most expensive outside of London.

 

--- There are many beautiful places in the Cotswolds, although, again, few of them are directly on a rail line, and bus service can be spotty.  Small towns like Broadway, Chipping Camden, Stow-on-the-Wold, the Slaughers (hamlets rather than villages, let alone towns), Painswick, and Winchcombe, to name a few off the top of my head, all have natural and architectural beauty.  But again, these places will be busy in July.

 

--- Some quieter, off-the-beaten-track (though not "hidden") gems:  Stamford; Ely; Lincoln; Bury St Edmunds, Rye.  The South Downs (Lewes?).  Sherborne.  The Malverns.  The Marches (esp. towns in Shropshire, on the rail line between Hereford and Shrewsbury, near the Welsh border, such as Ludlow and Church Stretton. But some distance from London, if that's where you're starting from.)

 

Close to Southampton there's the New Forest; some of the regulars on this forum can tell you more about that area than I can. The Isle of Wight also has places with beautiful views; I only have experience of the southwest corner of the island (Totland/ the Needles/ Freshwater Bay).

 

You'll also find plenty of ideas on the website of the National Trust (full name: The National Trust for Places of Historic Interest and Natural Beauty).  Also, search Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty, which covers areas of Britain that have officially bear this designation.

 

So many places, so little time...  Enjoy!

 

Edited February 3, 2022 by Post Captain

[want2go]

10 hours ago, Post Captain said:

 

That's an extremely broad question, and all the answers/suggestions you receive are going to be highly subjective. By "beautiful," do you mean natural beauty (hills, rivers, valleys, the sea, etc.) or architectural beauty? How far from London are you willing to travel? Also, do you mean the view from the window of a particular hotel, or the views you would see when you go for a walk from wherever it is you're staying? To what extent does local "atmosphere" enter into your question?

 

With that said, here's my spontaneous and highly personal list:

 

--- Cornwall

 

So many places, so little time...  Enjoy!

 

Thank you for your detailed response.

Natural beauty is what I was after... and a view from my room would be especially nice, or some portion of the hotel where I could sit and enjoy! Would love to be able to walk to shop and restaurants... and then take public transportation to nearby areas should I need a little adventure.  But all staying in a home base hotel.

In my search I had Cornwall on my brief list.  If I can find something, you may have just confirmed that's what I'm after! 🙂  I will study your other suggestions as well.  But for some reason an ocean always calls my name for relaxation!

Thanks again for all the great info!

[Post Captain]

17 hours ago, want2go said:

Thank you for your detailed response.

Natural beauty is what I was after... and a view from my room would be especially nice, or some portion of the hotel where I could sit and enjoy! Would love to be able to walk to shop and restaurants... and then take public transportation to nearby areas should I need a little adventure.  But all staying in a home base hotel.

In my search I had Cornwall on my brief list.  If I can find something, you may have just confirmed that's what I'm after! 🙂  I will study your other suggestions as well.  But for some reason an ocean always calls my name for relaxation!

Thanks again for all the great info!

 

Glad to be of service!  We've been confined to virtual travel for the past couple of years, so questions like yours give me an excuse to "revisit" some favorite places where I haven't been in a while.  Just be aware that my experience pre-dates the pandemic, so in some cases certain things may no longer be exactly the way I remember them.  Some hotels, guest houses, restaurants, shops may have closed; train and bus service on certain routes may not be as frequent as in the past.  But again, who knows what things will be like come July?...

 

I've never driven in the UK (and I'm talking about nearly a half century of visiting and sometimes living there as an adult). I've traveled all over England, Wales, and Scotland by train, and my wife and I have always traveled by train and/ or coach/bus and gotten to many out-of-the-way places, including all the places mentioned in my earlier note. Some smaller destinations take a little more planning to reach than others. All of those towns and villages meet your requirement of having a decent variety of shops and restaurants within walking distance of where you would be staying--almost always right in the town/ village center. Of course, some of these places are more built-up and bustling than others.

 

Re. Cornwall:

 

If Fowey interests you, there are two largish, old-style hotels there that might be exactly the sort of place you're looking for, in terms having views and where you could relax in comfort:  Fowey Harbour Hotel and Fowey Hall. I've not stayed in either of those, but we've enjoyed tea and lunch in the informal restaurant-bar of the Fowey Harbour Hotel, with large windows giving a terrific panoramic view of the harbor and the hills in the middle distance.  Fowey Hall is set in its own grounds just above the town.  There are also several historic pubs/inns that offer guest rooms--the King of Prussia (upstairs rooms facing the front have views of the harbor and the hills across the river), the Ship, the  Safe Harbour, the Galleon, and the Old Quay House come to mind.

 

There are quite a few very scenic (if hilly) walks in the area, and two small ferries continually criss-cross the harbor--one to the attractive village of Polruan, where there are several pubs and a small shipyard, other to the hamlet of Boddinick.

 

Fowey is reached via train from London Paddington; alight at Par, from where it's about a 15-/20-minute bus or taxi ride to Fowey itself.

 

 

Falmouth is another possibility.  It's larger though less "quaint" than Fowey but is on a stunning harbor--the third-largest deep water harbor in the world.  Mind you, just about every town on the coast of Cornwall is "touristy" to one degree or another. I've never stayed overnight in Falmouth, but the town has more hotels and guest houses than you can shake a stick at.

 

A regular ferry runs between Falmouth and the smaller, quieter, upscale town (village?) of St Mawes directly across the harbor.  St Mawes has several inns/ small hotels (the Idle Rocks, the Rising Sun, the Ship & Castle, the St. Mawes Hotel, the Hotel Tresanton), as well as several smaller guest houses.  Most of these are right on the waterfront, in close proximity to one another, and will almost certainly offer views of the harbor.

 

Falmouth is reached by train from London Paddington; change at Truro (an interesting and pleasant town in itself) to the short branch-line train to Falmouth.  (As I recall, there are three separate railway stops in Falmouth, all within reasonable walking distance of the others; the Falmouth Town stop generally is the most convenient for the town center.)  St Mawes doesn't have any train service from Truro, and I'm not sure about buses, but the ferry from Falmouth is quite convenient and very scenic!  

 

Falmouth, St Mawes, and Fowey are important yachting centers. Smaller cruise ships occasionally anchor in Fowey Harbor. Falmouth Harbour plays host to larger cruise ships.

 

Travel tip:  If you choose any of these destinations, book your train tickets in advance.  Walk-up fares between London and Cornwall are rather exorbitant; you'll save quite a bit of money by booking Advance tickets (up to 12 weeks before your trip).  For train times, fares, and tickets, use the journey planner at the National Rail website:  https://ojp.nationalrail.co.uk/service/planjourney/search

 

If your research brings up other places in Cornwall that interest you, feel free to ask questions.  I'm quite familiar with Penzance and the nearby towns and villages in the far west of Cornwall; a bit less so with places along the north coast (many of which are difficult to reach by public transport anyway).  

 

 

 

[John Bull]

We need to know whether you're flying into a London airport or an airport elsewhere in the UK. whether this is combined with a cruise (iin which case, departing from which port), and your attitude to a long train journey to start & finish your stay.

 

The train network is excellent for cities, and some routes are scenic. But services to stations convenient for natural beauty are pretty limited and for days out you need to be convenient to one with a few train options or good local transport or tours. 

 

Here's a map of the entire network, including every station

https://www.nationalrail.co.uk/Blue route AS and Metro map v23(1).pdf

It's schematic, so lines are shown as straight (they're not). And consequently station locations aren't precise - for instance Falmouth Docks in Cornwall is shown some distance from the coast - which of course it isn't.

Timetables & prices for the entire UK at https://www.nationalrail.co.uk/ It only goes out about 3 months, so check services & prices using a date in April, and check in a few months time. Frequency on some lines is currently reduced by staff shortages (Covid isolation), the situation is improving daily.

 

Here are a few suggestions, with approx train journey times from central London.

All have a train station,  decent-to-excellent range of earteries, pubs, shops & other facilities.

 

Scotland

Near Edinburgh or Glasgow (5 hrs). IMHO Edinburgh is a far better & more historic city to explore, but Glasgow has the better train services to the Scottish highlands, islands & lochs (lakes) - and those routes are scenic. But both are large cities, I don't know the area well but attractive rural or coastal locations will be quite limited.

Fort William (12 hrs +) is deep in the highlands. I rate this highly, but a long train journey (overnight trains have sleepers). There are van /coach day'trips eg https://www.highlandminitours.co.uk/ and the (admittedly quite expensive) Jacobean steam train and probably cruises on the loch.

 

Wales (4 hours+) - North (eg Conwy or Llandudno) or North-West (eg Aberystwyth or Harlech).

Or for something very scenic, very different,  and very special stay at Portmerion (a 10-miniute taxi ride from Porthmadog station) - we did and it was a highlight.

https://portmeirion.wales/

Castles (eg Conwy, Harlech, Caernarfon), mountains (including a hike or little train up Snowdon), the "little steam trains of Wales" https://www.visitwales.com/inspire-me/days-out/narrow-gauge-and-miniature-railways-wales  , slate mine tours & living museum, coastal walks.

There's a gap of about 9 miles between the north & north-west lines, so you'd need a short bus or taxi ride  to visit sites in one part from a base in the other. But not a big deal.

 

The Lake District.  (3.5 hours). Probably the most scenic part of England. Windermere is a tourist hub, with all the facilities plus lake cruises and a range of coach day-trips.. eg  https://www.viator.com/en-GB/Windermere-tours/Day-Trips-and-Excursions/d22565-g5  For hill-walking you'd need to start & finish with a local bus service.

 

 

There are plenty others - for example

The North Yorkshire moors & the Yorkshire Dales (probably day-trip coaches from there to the Lake District and vice-versa).

The Peak District

The Cotswolds

Coastal Somerset

Devon (south or north)

Cornwall

I've relegated these to just a list because touring options are limited by poor local transport limits the  sight-seeing options.

 

All the places I've mentioned would benefit from renting a car, even if just for a day.

And with seven days you might want to consider a two-centre stay - for instance Wales, the Lake District & Scotland (any two out of three) would tie in

 

To check on day-trips by coach, google " DayTrips from *****"

(but beware its likely to include "day trips TO ****** or 5-day tours 🙄)

 

Google all those places to see what appeals.

 

If you use the trains for long or frequent trips, it's well worth paying £30 for a two-together RailCard, which saves you up to a third of most fares (not on the historic Heritage railways).

https://www.twotogether-railcard.co.uk/

Alternatively if you're aged over 60 you can get Seniors' railcards, but you'd both need cards (ie 2 x £30), so if you travel together just one "TwoTogether" card does the job.

It  can be pre-purchased, but I think you can just buy at the station.

 

For researching hotels we use   https://www.booking.com/ which has the most comprehensive  information  - prices, locations, full details, photos, genuine reviews,  distance from rail stations, etc.

On any property in a chosen area, click on "show on map" - this will show all properties on a map - those on a coast or riverbank for instance wll likely have good views.

We usually - not always - find booking.com's prices cheapest. The vast majority of hotels are listed,, but not all. 

 

Brew a coffee, open a large bottle of headache pills, and start sifting. 😉

 

JB 🙂

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited February 5, 2022 by John Bull

[Cotswold Eagle]

15 hours ago, John Bull said:

It  can be pre-purchased, but I think you can just buy at the station.

Yes, it can. You’ll need passport style photos of both travellers (it’s for two specific people together). But easiest is a digital railcard, if you have a smartphone. 
 

Railcard discounts are valid on Advance fares, but the savings will be smaller as the fares are often dramatically cheaper. Check your prices and do the maths! They are good for bringing First Class tickets into the realm of affordability and I highly recommend that option on long journeys. 

[Harters]

The Lake District and North Wales, as already mentioned by John Bull, would be my recommendations. We visit both regularly - they are near enough to home for day trips but often we stay overnight.

 

Both have great scenery. Stay in Windermere/Ambleside for the Lake District and Llandudno for Wales. Both large enough towns to fill some time. Bear in mind that, apart from the immediate urban area, this is rural Britain, so not well endowed with frequent public transport. You'll need to plan (always fun in itself, IMO).