What do you do holiday in the UK?

[Antiqueanniesmagiclanternshow]

With it looking unlikely that we will get a holiday abroad this year, i was wondering about whether to try and book something in the UK despite the prices being horrendous.
However, looking out of the window as the rain lashes down , i am wondering what do you actually DO on holiday in the uk?
We don't have small children so the attractions that you would take them to are out, I'm sick of going for walks, you can't do museums every day.
If the weather is like this, do you just stay indoors and read a book or watch tv? So like being home but more expensive?

Abroad, you can go the beach or the pool and just enjoy being warm to your bones or take a boat out etc on days you don't want to go sight seeing etc

Where do you live?
Why not do a city break?
Go to Edingburgh, York, London? Go and do the sights whilst there aren't hoards of foreign tourists?
I've got Stonehenge on my list as last time we went we were surrounded by Chinese tourists taking pictures of themselves.

Have you got any hobbies or interests OP?

We love being outdoors and active so always have brilliant holidays in the UK. We like visiting places too - cream tea at a National trust property? Yes please! Week on a canal boat? Yes please! Have a mooch around art galleries or villages? Lovely!

I get a sense from your posts that you are more interested in cities, could you pick one you haven’t been to and plan nice dinners, spa visits etc? Bath, York?

bored of thinking what to cook or where to eat.

Looking for somewhere nice to eat is part of the pleasure of being on holiday for us.

Looking forward to a couple of weeks AI somewhere hot.

AI with mediocre food is not my idea of a holiday at all. I love hot weather though.

Yes, our rule of thumb is to not book any kind of accommodation that isn't as nice as our own house

Yes, that is exactly our criteria for choosing UK holiday accommodation as well BigusBumus (titters at your user name).

One of the many reasons why I won't go camping.

I book somewhere with a sea view and walk if it's dry, watch the waves if it's not

Museums, castles, wine tasting, swimming in the sea (take a wetsuit) book a hotel with an indoor pool and spa. Eat and drink, lots!

Look at Wales for instance, lots of historical sites, attractions and natural beauty.

I quite like doing what we do at home elsewhere. A change of scenery is always nice.
Walking and exploring the local area- even if we just drive around and bring a picnic.
Watching films or playing board games together with no distractions.
Having lie-ins and late nights.
Museums, galleries, etc.
Trying new cafes and restaurants.
When it's raining DH and I love driving to the coast or to a lake and having a flask of tea between us, enjoying the rain and cosiness in the car.
Our most recent trip was to North Devon where we spent a week in a static caravan, wandering to the beach 3 or 4 times a day, cooking together, watching films together and going to a different cafe every morning for breakfast.

@RampantIvy

Loads. We love exploring and sightseeing. Do you not do this abroad? We are members of the National Trust, we visit gardens, caves, wildlife parks/zoos, go on scenic rail journeys, other places of interest, museums, art galleries, boat trips, brewery tours etc.

There are loads of options. Just google "things to do in (place of interest) and see what comes up. The only constraints will probably be that you will need to pre-book.

I agree! I LOVE UK holidays and we do all those things and more. The best bit is getting a bit lost and finding new places. I mean, what do you do abroad?

Thanks for the Birmingham support! Especially as I really like social history and didn't know about the back to backs.

I think we could have a really good week & take DD to the space museum in Leicester on the way home.

@BigSandyBalls2015

I don’t mind a UK break but it’s so bloody expensive eating out. Can’t do that every night like we do abroad. Plus accommodation is dear, cottages etc.

Our last holiday abroad was a Greek Island and we never paid more than 30 euros for an evening meal in a beautiful harbour-side taverna - starter, main, couple of beers and a carafe or two of wine ..... try doing that in a pub in the UK. You’d be lucky to spend less than £80😳

Totally agree the food is totally overpriced here. I'm vegetarian and live in a big cosmopolitan UK city so am spoilt for decent food choices. Vegetarian food in UK country pubs and cafes is mediocre to average much of the time and costs £££ with very little choice. That's one of the things that is hard work about UK based holidays. We can't eat out every night because of the cost and I resent paying £12 for a vegetarian main course of "mushroom Wellington" or some such thing that's basically been taken from the freezer and heated in a microwave. So we end up meal planning, shopping and cooking. Also the accommodation is very rarely as nice as our house. Moaning now.. just done with the damp, drizzly, cold UK!

To be honest any holiday with kids is hard work and I used to wonder sometimes why I bothered. Pre kids our UK breaks were great!! ☺️

We went to Dorset 6 years ago, lovely cottage.
Arrived Monday (did the Tank Museum en route)
Tuesday - Monkey World
Wed - Bournemouth
Thurs - a place with shire horses (best day of the week)
Friday - a steam train
Saturday - back to Bournemouth beach
Sunday - pissed down, went to a public pool and cinema.
We had a different themed meal each night too.

@PurpleWh1teGreen if the Black Country museum (highly recommend) and the back to backs appeal to you, check out avoncroft if you’re taking a car avoncroft.org.uk/avoncrofts-work/

I agree that visiting places of interest in the UK is expensive. We are NT members so always make full use of it when we can.

@PurpleWh1teGreen

Thinktank in Birmingham is excellent

Also Sealife and a boat trip up the canal.

Beach days - swimming, reading a good book, sunbathing etc
BBQ on the beach (designated areas only obviously)
Walking
National trust/English heritage sites (eg- tintagel castle etc)
Relaxed Pub lunches with a view of the sea,
Mooching around shops (more independent style rather than chains),
Fish and chips in the evening looking at the sea,
Live music in pubs / pub gardens,
Days out attractions (if there are any we fancy)
Museums,
Travelling to other nearby towns/places of interest (eg lulworth cove for the day etc)

British staycation break versus exotic far flung adventure.

Pre Covid era many overseas tourists enjoyed British hospitality, unique historical and cultural delights, luxury retail therapy and generally challenging variable crap weather!

Post Covid or current pandemic times gives us locals an opportunity to explore the delights of the British Isles and to find renewed interest in sometimes quirky festivals (should they be operational) and support the local economy but needless to say pay more for less exotic offerings compared to far flung places. Within the UK there is the reassurance of relative Covid security and an all inclusive health service to fall back on if required with no international logistical Covid quarantine and testing palaver.

Many enlightened insightful posters up thread have listed many excellent suggestions for those not as accustomed to the art of the staycation. Should budgets permit taking into account surge pricing, then naturally select a package that offers something above and beyond your daily at home environment. Luxury spa country retreats with traditional pursuits or gastronomy and wineries tours and learning new culinary arts would be ideal. Lots to see and do but yes one would probably need to pack sun glasses as well as waterproofs. It is Britain after all so potential heat waves as well as cold, wet and windy spells. Enjoy and staysafecation!

www.goodhousekeeping.com/uk/lifestyle/travel/g34842793/staycation-uk/

www.theresident.co.uk/lifestyle-london/staycation-ideas-uk-lesser-known-holiday-spots/

www.vogue.co.uk/gallery/best-weekend-breaks

To me it s the fact that it is the same culture that is the problem. I like new foods, language, facts, customs, etc.

I went on holiday in England last year for the first time in a while. I went paddle boarding, on a cave tour, a boat trip, a couple of massive walks, pottered around a few little villages and towns, pun lunches, cafe lunches. It was nice, it would have been even better if I’d gone the week later as then the inside and outside pool would have opened up (closed due to COVID).

@OneKeyAtATime

To me it s the fact that it is the same culture that is the problem. I like new foods, language, facts, customs, etc.

As much as I agree with your statement generally, the UK has so much cultural variation and local customs, dialects, dishes etc. Yes they may not be as immediately obvious as foreign ones but they’re there. It’s a shame (and this isn’t aimed at you personally) that it’s so often overlooked in favour of looking abroad, mainly because of the weather as far as I can tell.

Everyone likes different things. I wouldn’t enjoy many of the things listed on here. Especially not in the rain/cold.

I can’t think of anything worse than going to a public indoor pool on holiday. I’d rather just stay at home.

Beach days would be lovely if the weather was reliable. But you’re invariably sat there shivering trying to shelter from the wind.

Abroad: boat trips, snorkel in coral reefs with fish, fresh non breadcrumb coated seafood, eaten alfresco late into night, visit inland waterfalls. If in cities, lots of sightseeing, trying interesting food, and getting lost.

The only thing I enjoy in UK is walking with pub after, UK has it's natural beauty as with every European country (although I prefer proper mountains to ski etc). Also the cold and wet miserable grimness of UK weather makes it feel more like a Everestesque survival challenge even if just tackling a fell... and thus more deserving of a drink at the pub after. UK weather is very unreliable, it's either too wet, windy or spells of heatwave.

I have no interest in typical UK attractions... castles, stately homes/gardens, zoos/farms and afternoon tea, theatre or quirky museums.

To me it s the fact that it is the same culture that is the problem. I like new foods, language, facts, customs, etc.

Those are all things we look for in a holiday abroad as well. One of the reasons why I wouldn't do an AI holiday. However, we look for local specialities whe we holiday in different parts of the UK. I mean, you can't go to Cornwall and not eat a cream tea or a Cornigh pasty

Also if u have kids u most likely already do national trust and nearest beaches on weekends or half terms, why pay exorbitant amounts during school holidays in sub par accommodation (just look at the prices in summer for a caravan or similar, it's outrageous)

Picnics, walks, attractions (national trust, museums, wildlife parks, site seeing) shopping, cinema, dinner/lunch out, drinks out, train/boat trips, relax at the cottage (reading, napping, music on, films) if at the sea side we like a trip to penny arcade. If you are active then you could look at things like climbing & canoeing activities.

Visit castles and standing stones/ancient burials. Some beaches, hike, canoeing, riding...

We go hill walking, mountain biking, canoeing, canyoning, trail running, climbing, abseiling, paddle boarding, sailing, surfing, wild swimming...pretty much any activity that’s ok offer in the area we go to. We love beaches too (the UK have some of the most bespoke the world) and if the weather’s good we’ll spend all day there and into the evening. I couldn’t stand a beach/pool holiday abroad and loathe hotels (too many people and no privacy). The only time I stay in a hotel is either for work or on the occasional weekend away just the two of us somewhere very special.