Where to go solo for two days either UK or Europe?

[Roxie99]

Good morning!

I have searched the threads and there are a few I've looked at but I have two midweek days to myself. I have been researching and researching places within 2 hours away and the UK and at this point my brain is saying sod it don't bother for 2 days! I am a mum and I work and just wanted to get away to another city I've never seen before , I like walking and would like some scenery and good food! The lakes and peak district, Snowdonia all about 5 hour drive for me. A city like Barcelona would be 2 hour flight but factor in getting there and to the hotel/apartment 4/5 anyway! I have been to Barcelona, Amsterdam, Paris , Denmark several times. I was thinking York or Bath to stay in the UK too. I just wanted some suggestions from lovely mumsnetters otherwise I could just save the money (saved ironically for a mini break) and spend it on the house ha

Florence or Lucca
Malaga
Bath

Avignon. I got the train, but I see you can fly. It’s a beautiful little town.

Apart from you have to faff around at St Pancras...

@EBearhug the check-in time is shorter and liquids are allowed, so security is quicker. Also no passport control when you arrive back in London.

Palma is my fave city for a solo break. Beautiful, great food, good shopping.

Innsbruck ? Easy airport, gorgeous old town,spectacular scenery

Bath and York are both lovely , plenty to see and do, easy to walk around and great to get to by train which makes the transport less stressful and tiring and for 2 days I would stay in uk as you lose hours at airports even if the flight and transfers are short

Seville Valencia Nice Milan or Copenhagen

Still quicker than airport faff
By the time you’ve done that you’re well on your way to Paris!

Bilbao North Spain (flights from Gatwick - lovely city for a couple of days)
Isle of Wight for UK
One of the channel islands (Jersey)

Can be expensive but you could sleeper train it and do Inverness or Fort William.

Lots of scenery and stunning walks in both.

Malta, Valetta. Gorgeous this time of year. You can sea swim, but also super historical, loads of interesting walking

Hi. I live very near Gatwick. Suggest you fly to Newquay (about 50 mins) or Guernsey (same). If you do the latter, the bus services round the island are brill so if you stay nearish St Peter Port, you can get a bus to anywhere on the island. Loads to do, lovely walks, fab beaches. Pm me if you want info on where to stay.

Copenhagen is 1.5 hours by plane and the airport is a 20 minute train ride from the city. Very walkable city.

Just back from Florence. So easy to do. Tram right outside the airport. Takes you straight into historic centre in 15/20 mins. Tiny airport so landed and on tram in 15 mins. Can’t go wrong. Very walkable city. Lots to do and see. Weather was 23/24. Perfect x

I'm going solo to Chamonix next month. Leaving Friday morning and returning Sunday morning. People think of it as a ski resort but its really beautiful out of season. Loads of walks, nice restaurants and scenery.

Flights are to Geneva which are quick, frequent and reasonable. Then book transfer bus via the omio app (approx 1 hr transfer to the mountains from the airport) .

It is true, it's more of a faff since Brexit 😪

Although from what I hear airport faff has also increased similarly, so the gap between airport faff and Eurostar faff has remained constant, IYSWIM.

(I would say that the ideal window for presenting oneself at the Eurostar check in is between 45 and 60 minutes prior to departure- still an improvement on a flight. Gates close 30 minutes before departure, and there are staff stationed to sweep latecomers through. But I strongly recommend aiming to arrive at St Pancras well in advance of that- there are lots and lots of decent places to eat, drink and stock up on supplies there. Other Eurostar terminals differ in their timeframes).

I did Brussels by myself last year, by Eurostar. The city centre is very walkable and there's a fantastic art gallery. I booked a guided walking tour of the city centre which was a great way to see lots in a short amount of time.

Dorset's always nice. Thomas Hardy country. Trouble is, you can't rely on the weather. Where I am (South West London), it's supposed to be good for next week, but I don't know about elsewhere.

Thank you so much everyone . I have looked into quite a few now Málaga seems a hit ! I should have said I'm being organised and not going until start of July! So some places will be even hotter! Yay to England basking in sunshine next week. Thanks again all!

Palma (Majorca) is about 2 hours from Gatwick. It's sometimes called Barcelona's little sister. It's 15 minutes from the city to the airport.

@samarrange yes my initial thought when planning was Majorca and I had the flights in my basket ! Love all the ideas. Thanks everyone again

I remember the faff last October with DC getting on the Eurostar. I wished that I had booked flights instead! It was pandemonium. Lots of queueing and people pushing etc.