Ideas for Midlands to London Tour (American tourists)

[planesick]

We are visiting friends in the Midlands. We will be staying 4 nights near Chesterfield. We have a sample itinerary, but would like suggestions to help us maximise our time. Here goes;
day 1 hardwick hall,
day 2 celebration,
day 3 chatsworth
Day 4 Warwick castle
Day 5 Stratford upon Avon
Day 6 Stonehenge
Day 7 Leeds castle
Day 8 Windsor castle/london
Day 9 fly home at mid day.

All suggestions are gratefully received. What should we see, what should we avoid?
Apologies for lack of capitals, I am on a small phone with fat fingers
Thank you

I think only Hardwick from the list is a national trust property.

I would add Bath to your schedule and leave off Leeds Castle as you have other castles on your itinerary. From Bath go straight to Windsor.

If you skip Stratford upon Avon, you could catch The Globe Theatre in London for a Shakespeare experience? It's fairly close to other attractions and if I remember correctly there's a cafe, museum and you can go inside the reconstructed theatre.

You could probably combine it with the Tower of London or St Paul's Cathedral?

Otherwise if you're keen to visit Stratford then you could combine it with Warwick Castle as they're close together (or check out a theatre performance in Stratford at the RAC to make the most of the day?).

We found the Tower of London was better value for time and money though - we didn't find as much at Warwick as we expected.

Chatsworth and Hardwick Hall, we really enjoyed. I think there are ruins of the older hall at Hardwick so that's maybe something a little different, and the main building is full of tapestries and suchlike with interesting back-stories as well as being a notable Tudor building. Chatsworth is elegant and so recognisable from movies. It feels more like a typical stately home experience, I would say.

I’d go to York, Chatsworth, London. No point in going to London for less than a day, and I’d spend two days there at least (whilst there you could do Hampton Court Palace and Tower of London for castle box ticking). Stratford’s ok but not all that great, and Warwick Castle is very theme park.you could squeeze in Bath/Stonehenge it Salisbury/Stonehenge as well. I like Stonehenge, it is a bunch of rocks in a field but the new visitor centre is excellent.

Lincoln’s a great idea. A much nicer place than Stratford in my opinion & loads of history. The prison is great to go around.

York is good too but so busy whenever I’ve been. If you go there skip the overpriced Yorvick centre & go to the free railway museum (ok... maybe it’s not a top attraction if you’re not over for long but anyone else doing a day trip to York should go. It’s great)

If you’re looking at National Trust houses & gardens then maybe Waddesdon Manor?

Have a great time!

Oh yes, the ruin at Hardwick Hall mentioned above is good as you can go up a surprising amount of floors in it

Agree with ditching Stonehenge. It really is just a circle of stones that you can't get close to. Worth stopping if you're passing but not worth going out of your way for.

I'd stick to 1 or 2 castles. Do some research on the best ones within the areas you're covering. Hever Castle is interesting and was the home of Anne Boleyn (and is closer than Leeds castle).

Not been to S on A since I was on a school trip so can't comment on that. Bear in mind though that in May our weather is very hit and miss mainly miss so you might want to factor that in.

Oxford is beautiful and full of interesting things.

Definitely give 2 full days to London. I'd recommend thinking about what most interests you and doing a few select things rather than trying to fit in everything. Getting from A to B takes a while.

If you go Bath > Windsor, the stone circle at Avebury and Marlborough (lovely market town) aren’t too much of a detour from the M4. You can get right up close to the stones, which surround the village, unlike Stonehenge & it is a really impressive monument - scale, as much as anything. The National Trust visitor centre at Avebury has an interesting display of archaeology etc. West Kennet long barrow (excavated neolithic burial chamber) is nearby and you can follow the footpathup from the roadside parking and go inside. There are pubs/lunch options in Avebury and Marlborough if you break the return leg to Windsor there.

Ironbridge, Stoke on Trent... . Stoke is the birthplace of modern pottery and lots of them are still operational (+they all have factory shops where they can buy first class pottery much cheaper)

Why are people so obsessed with Stratford?

It's a waste of time, just a boring little town that has the good fortune of a dead famous author. I wouldn't birth unless you can combine with a play while there, seriously, it's dullsville. I speak as a local.

What about Blenheim Palace, that is on that same route and is lovely.

day 1 hardwick hall,
day 2 celebration,
day 3 chatsworth
Day 4 SonA birth place and Holy Trinty church, drive to warwick have lunch and look at castle from river bridge / drive past kenilworth and see the ruins cis they were always on the wrong side😳
Day 5 Stonehenge- then on to Windsor
Day 6 Windsor
Day 7 Hampton court or London
Day 8 London - book the London sky garden - check two Monday’s previous to your visit and grab a free slot- I prefer this to the London eye.
Grab an open top bus tour so you can see the sights trying googling London for free as there are many wonderful sights for free including National gallery, and many Museums
Day 9 fly home at mid day.

I’d try not to drive to other places such as Bath as it’s just more time in the car

Is Chatsworth in Derbyshire? If so, you’d be going back on yourself to do Kenilworth. It should be Kenilworth > drive-by Warwick > Stratford on Avon, and then on south.

From Derbyshire you’d get M42- M40 through to Warwick then A46 either way to Kenilworth or Stratford

Or you could get of the M42 and take the country roads through to Balsall Common on to Kenilworth and then through to Warwick

Warwickshire has some pretty countryside and if you do come of the M42 your near Meridan which is the center if England and has a memorial to cyclist who died in the 1st and 2nd world war

I think also don’t underestimate how different roads in the states and here can be. If you are from LA you migh5 find them refreshingly clear and traffic free....

But and hour and a half on a busy motorway is quit tiring, driving through London is not muc fun, most British roads take more concentration than driving between American towns and cities.

Frankly there’s a lot of driving and parking you’ve got going on there.

Estimate your distances as 40 miles per averages and that’ll allow for congestion, then finding parking

Leeds Castle is rather commercial and I found it underwhelming. I also recall there was a lot of walking which was time-consuming. It's in Kent (south east England and nowhere near Leeds) so quite a journey from London. The M25 is an awful boring drive too.

Hever Castle is doable.

Leeds Castle is very expensive too.

If you’re into Tudor history, it could be worth doing Warwick for the Lord Leycester Hospital (built by Robert Dudley) and the Beauchamp Chapel in St Mary’s Church where his tomb is.

I agree the castle is a bit theme parky, but second the river bridge view. I commute past it twice a day and it never gets dull.

(I can recommend the Rose and Crown pub in the town square for lunch, and the Thomas Oken tea rooms for, well, tea.)

Use the AA website to find directions and travel times between locations. I think the timings are real-time information, i.e. it varies throughout the day according to whether it's rush hour or not (obviously it's set to the UK clock, not the US clock!)

You may (check days / times) need a permit to drive into central London, for the congestion charge. Websites here and here.

If you’re in a hire car it would be best to take it back when you reach London- it’s easier to get round by other means a car is more of a hinderance