Holiday from the US (not London!)

[americaninboston]

Hello! I live in the US with my husband and our 4 year old, but we really love the UK. I'm trying to plan a trip for next August. We'd likely be flying in and out of Heathrow, but we've been to London several times and would love to go elsewhere. I'm thinking of spending 3-4 days in a small city, and 3-4 days somewhere more rural or at the beach (ideally somewhere charming / not too touristy/kitschy). Also - we'd love to do this without renting a car - a bit nervous about driving on the other side of the road!

Some ideas I had are York + Scarborough, or Oxford + Bournemouth, or Chester + Llandudno. Thoughts? Other ideas? Are these terrible ideas? Thanks you!!

Bristol/bath and then 4 days devon?

Definitely Liverpool - it's a small compact city with lots to see and do; followed by the Lake District.

Do you definitely want / need August? Not sure what school age is in the US, but August is peak school holiday time in England - if you could go in June or September the weather isn’t too different and it’s likely to be quieter.

Out of your options I’d choose York - Scarborough. I’ve done that as a holiday before and really enjoyed it and there’s a lot to do for children. You could also potentially do Edinburgh - Northumberland coast.

Highly recommend Cornwall for the beach part or if you wanted stunning scenery and lovely towns near a beach I recommend either St David’s or Port Meirion if you fancied Wales instead of England .. (but I am biased as I’m Welsh!) lol!

In all honesty though, the UK isn’t what it used to be and it’s sadly going downhill. Coming from someone born here and loves America I feel like I am you, but opposite!! LOL

York then Whitby, you could get a nice bus run down to Scarborough, ( though it has gone sown hill in recent years)

Definitely York, especially if your DC is into trains etc as they have a great transport museum there. Then take a train to Edinburgh - the castle, Dynamic Earth, Camera Obscura.

What exactly are you looking for from the beach? I think I’d be inclined to suggest Newcastle and Northumberland as you’ll get a much prettier and historic coast line, but trains might be an issue.

Scarborough and Llandudno aren’t pretty coastal towns, they are quite run down with a nostalgic charm but I don’t know if that would translate internationally.

Avoid Bournemouth, you could do Oxford and Swanage which is great for a 4 year old, or Weymouth

I think Oxford followed by Devon or Cornwall rather than Bournemouth would be my preference.

Or Cardiff is a nice smaller city and obviously lots of beaches and countryside nearby.

Cornwall is beautiful but without a car could be a nightmare. Choose based on easy transport links. And if you can avoid August then do.

Oxford, Winchester, then, New Forest/ Isle of Wight ( not Cowes in August though unless you really like Yachts ) best stay in West Wight / Ventnor

Thanks, this is helpful! I'm picturing a nice sandy beach, fish and chips, ice cream, maybe some amusement games / mini-golf. Not sure if I'm imagining a version of the UK that actually exists :)

I second @CryMyEyesViolet: Northumberland would be nice. You could visit Durham and Newcastle then Hadrian’s Wall, Alnwick Castle, the Farne Islands, various beaches on the Northumberland coast and work your way up to Scotland.

I would suggest rethinking the car idea though. Public transport in more rural areas is nowhere near the quality you get in London. The plus side of Northumberland is that it isn’t massively touristy. The traffic should be okay.

I think you might struggle without a car. Driving on the other side of the road takes a bit more concentration but it's doable.

Id do Chester and Liverpool for cities, then go over to Wales for the beaches and scenery. But the weather may not be great.

If you want to minimise the chance of rain, do Cambridge and Ely, then head over to the Norfolk coast for lovely beaches. But it will be tricky by public transport

I was thinking the very first little bit of Cornwall - you could get a train from Oxford to Reading and then on to eg Looe or somewhere very easily.

But yes, I would second giving the car a go. I was really nervous before I first drove in France and it turned out to actually be really easy compared to what I'd thought it would be like.

That definitely exists, but not necessarily with the quaint / rural vibe you are looking for. You would probably get it from Scarborough or Llandudno.

Maybe look at somewhere in Norfolk and have a trip to Great Yarmouth (though I wouldn’t stay there). Or Swanage, as I think someone suggested upthread.

Wells, Somerset.

Have you considered Guernsey? I think even someone nervous would be OK driving there as the max speed allowed is 25mph. It is incredibly child-friendly, loads of history and also lots of beach, town and countryside activities.

If you want to minimise the chance of rain, do Cambridge and Ely, then head over to the Norfolk coast for lovely beaches. But it will be tricky by public transport

I’ve done the Norfolk coast without a car. Found trains and buses to be pretty good there, although you do have to plan.

Also, the whole island is tiny. You could perfectly well get around on bicycles if you wanted to. And there is a good bus network.

Whitby would tick these boxes I think, but so would Llandudno actually (but I’d much prefer Whitby). If I wanted that sort of a day they are the two places I would head, and Whitby is by far the more charming and stereotypically British of the two.

If I were you I would get a small car, and do York, Whitby, Newcastle and Northumberland depending on how much moving around you want to do.

What do you want from the city?

Bath, Bristol then Devon or Cornwall

I live in Northumberland and there is so much to see and do as a family but a car would help you make the most out of your stay and you may want to fly to Newcastle to cut driving times. From casles on the beach, to historic York and Beamish is a good day out too.

Newcastle/Northumberland coast would be my suggestion. Or you could do Edinburgh/Northumberland coast. As others have said it's reasonably easy to get the train from London up to the city part but the beach part you might want to consider car hire.

Alternatively, if you would consider Ireland, Galway + Connemara is really spectacular.