Dp's 50th birthday - dumfries and galloway, Somerset or Whitby ?

[Batholemubrecht]

Dp's 50th birthday in April and hoping to go away for a few days without the kids. We live in the NW near Manchester. He's not fussed as he's not been to any of them. I know Whitby and surrounding area very well and love it, been to Bath in the SW but that's about it. We love walking, visiting NT properties and pottering in bookshops/antique shops. Just wondered if anyone would recommend one over the other two ? We are happy to drive 3 or 4 hours if necessary. TIA !

I live in Somerset and it is great for what you have said you like. Clevedon has a lot of antiques and walks or Frome, Bath etc

Thanks ! Always fancied Tyntesfield - anyone been there ?

Dumfries and Galloway has beautiful walking country and coastal paths., also Wigton is the book shop capital of Scotland.

As @Beebumble2 has said, beautiful walking opportunities in D&G, also the stunning Caven Country House hotel, and nearby Port Patrick is a tiny piece of heaven. The Samye Ling Buddhist Monastery in Langholm is the most peaceful place ever, though out of courtesy do let them know if you want to visit.

Somerset had a lot of national trust properties with in easy reach. It could easily tick all your boxes.

I live very close to D&G and it’s pretty boring I’ve got to say.
Because it’s a very rural area there isn’t much there to do.
Beautiful beaches though.

Love Dumfries and the whole of that area. Whitby is always, always, rammed packed to bursting (live nearby), but outside Whitby might be an option, and then you've got York etc to explore. Can't comment in Somerset. But I'd be having to Dumfries!

We visited tyntesfield when we had a weekend in Bristol, and loved it. There was a volunteer piano player in the hall and it seemed to really bring the house to life.

@SnoozeAllDay

I live very close to D&G and it’s pretty boring I’ve got to say. Because it’s a very rural area there isn’t much there to do. Beautiful beaches though.

Depends on what interests you. Kirkcudbright, the Artists town and the ancient history around it might be interesting to some people. And then there’s the wild life, red squirrels, deer, Red Kites and other raptors.

Dumfries and Galloway is lovely and a bit of an undiscovered gem in the UK - I moved away from there quite a few years ago but it is a great place for pottering in small towns (e.g. Castle Douglas - which is officially a Food Town - Kirkcudbright which also has some art galleries, Moffat); it has Scotland's Book Town (Wigtown), some beautiful gardens, NT for Scotland have some sites there, there are coastal walks, hillwalking (no huge peaks but some lovely walks up e.g. Criffel, Screel, Merrick), and the Galloway Forest Park has dark sky status. From Manchester it's a pretty easy drive as you'd be going against any traffic unless in school holidays. There's a handy stop at the Tebay services with their farm shop if you need a break. You would probably end up doing a lot of driving if you choose D&G as it's a semi-rural area and the towns and sights are quite spread out. But it's a lovely part of the UK.

If you do go to D&G you have to go to Hazel's antiques place, in Castle Douglas. I remember it as a big outbuilding crammed with antiques and junk. I used to visit & poke around in there whenever I passed through the town and I wish now that I'd bought more things there - it was extremely good value at the time. Not sure if the original Hazel is still there now (it was a long time ago) but I just checked online and the shop still seems to be there!

@timtam23 the distances seem pretty big in Dumfries. Apparently it would take us 4 hours to get there which I was surprised about. Agree re Whitby being packed (grew up quite close too).
Has anyone been to Wells, that looks lovely !

Wells is lovely but it is tiny, not great for walks and has 1 or 2 antique shops.

Whitby.
I'm biased because I live in Yorkshire though.
Used to live in Dumfries and Galloway. It's also very pretty in places

Wells is lovely. All of your options sound good. Why don't you start looking at accommodation options for all of them and see where you could get the best deal.

@thefirstmrsrochester

As *@Beebumble2* has said, beautiful walking opportunities in D&G, also the stunning Caven Country House hotel, and nearby Port Patrick is a tiny piece of heaven. The Samye Ling Buddhist Monastery in Langholm is the most peaceful place ever, though out of courtesy do let them know if you want to visit.

Samye Ling is still not open even by appointment. Lots of great places in D&G though.

How about Northumbria? Nice walking, some good castles and NT properties. Nice bookshop in Alnwick.

Wells has got the most tremendous cathedral, the Bishops Palace (complete with moat), and a nice Saturday market. You could have a good weekend including Wells, Frome (quirky shops) and there's also Stourhead with its amazing gardens or Glastonbury for hippy madness, but also the Tor and ruined Abbey. However, its a bit of a slog down the M6/M5 from Manchester, and then nearly an hour's drive off-motorway to get to Wells or Frome. I think you'd struggle to get there in 4 hours from the North West. If you were keen on Tyntesfield you could be based in Bristol, which is pretty funky, and would save you an hour's drive!

Thanks everyone ! Lots to think about.