Feeling the holiday blues, dreaming of where to go next? We’ve listed our top 5 destinations to visit in the UK. From Padstow to
Peaceful ancient estuaries beautifying its southern coastline; rough rocky crags and stacks of rock making the northern coast majestic. In between, yellow gorse on the moors, red rhododendron in semi-tropical gardens, and pineapples growing out of the grounds within the sci-fi domes of the Eden Project. Cornwall is year-round eye candy and has soft sands, surf, pasties, chunky chips and castle that the tourist office at Tintagel says *might* have belonged to King Arthur.
Standout places to visit: Padstow, Porthcurno Beach, Kynance Cove, Pentewan Beach, Eden Project, Lost Gardens of Heligan, Tate St Ives art gallery.
London
London has long been one of the greatest and most cosmopolitan capital cities of the world.
This translates into bucket loads of tourist attractions, hip hot spots, glitz, landmarks from blockbuster movies and an incredible range of restaurants.
It needn’t cost £££. A budget-priced 007 experience can be had by topping up an Oyster transport card: use it to whizz up the Thames on a high-speed water bus, and then to buy passage on the Emirates Air Line – a cable car link over the river with spectacular views of the 02 Arena.
In London, the wealth of retail experiences on offer is wide and varied: the markets in Camden, Brick Lane and Petticoat Lane are world-class for furniture, clothes and cuisine. A visit to Harrods is still on the list of many shoppers. There are neighbourhoods for specialist goods – for example, the Hatton Garden jewellery quarter – and hundreds of niche stores. These include Duke of Uke for ukuleles, Hoxton Street Monster Supplies for all things scary, and Spy Shop… for spy equipment.
Standout places to visit: Tate Modern, Camden Market, Hyde Park, Greenwich, Horniman Museum and Gardens, Hamsptead Heath, The View From The Shard, Houses of Parliament, God’s Own Junkyard (gallery of neon signs), The Viktor Wynd Museum of Curiosities.
England’s largest National Park has England’s highest mountain (Scafell Pike), its deepest lake (Wastwater) and some of the country’s prettiest scenery. No wonder it was loved by Wordsworth – one of England’s most romantic poets.
Some of its place names sound Hobbity – Borrowdale, Red Pike, Bassenthwaite and Derwentwater, for instance. You can walk for miles across land that could be from a Tolkein novel; land unmarked by fences, stiles and habitation.
As well as boating, walking, climbing and hiking there’s bike hire for the adventurous and coast line to explore – much of it by train. The views from the carriages on the Cumbrian coast line are spectacular.
It does take a while to get from A to B – many of the roads are steep and winding. But the drives are lovely.
Standout places to visit: Skiddaw Massif, Coniston, Windemere, Derwent, Buttermere, The Fells, Thirlmere, Helvellyn.
The terrain in this county is the opposite of the Lake District in that it’s either gently undulating or flat – very flat. It’s also very beautiful.
It has stunning historic houses in the forms of Holkham Hall (with its 3,000-acre deer park), Somerleyton Hall and royal residence Sandringham. The county town is Norwich, whose castle looks like no other in the UK and whose graceful cathedral has the UK’s largest cloisters.
It’s blessed with animal centres including Oasis Camel Park, the UK’s only camel collection, the centre for rescued horses at Redwings Aylsham and one of the UK’s largest marine life centres at the seaside resort of Great Yarmouth.
Water is the big feature of the county and it comes it two forms. The first is the North Sea coastline. Most of its beaches are wide and sandy – Waxham and Horsey are particularly wild and unspoilt. The second source are the freshwater Norfolk Broads, which are a glimmering network of rivers and lakes that are home to otters, rare butterflies, wigeon and sedge warblers hiding in swaying bulrushes.
Standout places to visit: Theatre Royal Norwich, Norwich Castle, Sandringham, Norfolk Coastal Path, Winterton Dunes, The Broads.
You’ll find it difficult to walk around the centre of Bath and find a street that doesn’t have an elegant look. Perhaps you might find it impossible: Bath is uniquely attractive; it’s a UNESCO World Heritage site for its classy sandstone buildings.
But it’s not just the Georgian architecture that makes this city’s walks to-die-for. Wander the pretty Kennet and Avon canal towpath or the Bath Skyline on the hills that surround the place; stroll (and picnic) in its great Victoria Park.
And Bath can get bang-up-to-date in terms of arts and culture, with a thriving local music scene fuelled in part by student bands from the performing arts-led Bath Spa uni. The covered market is good and the shops on Walcot Street are quirky. Acorn is one of the best vegetarian restaurants in the UK. The pubs are genuine and welcome all ages.
Standout places to visit: Roman Baths, Thermae Spa (to soak in), Theatre Royal, Bell Inn/Walcot Street, Victoria Park, Royal Crescent, Acorn restaurant, Bath Abbey, Bath Komedia (for gigs, food, gallery and comedy).
