recommendations for a year in England or Wales from abroad....

[Winterdown]

Hello, we have dual citizenship (Canadian and British) and are going to be doing a year abroad in the UK. This will be to determine whether or not we want to move to England or possibly Wales.

We have four small children (also dual citizens) and will be home schooling the two eldest during this year.

What area would you recommend? We want access to natural beauty, walks, market towns, museums, National Trust days out, drivable to the sea, etc.

We were considering the Severn Valley / Welsh border area.

Any recommendations on where you would take a vacation in England or Wales would be appreciated. It's possible we could break it into chunks several months long.

Thank you!

Hay on Wye is my favourite place in the world and meets all your requirements. Bit of a drive to the sea but you can be there in an hour and a half. Abergavenny too.

I would join the national trust and work your way through their guidebook of places to visit, we saved loads of money doing this and also camped (it was summertime though). Definitely go to Scotland it’s absolutely beautiful. Also consider living somewhere with good transport links to an airport for cheap European flights. We loved the Lake District and also from Wales you can get the Car Ferry over to Ireland quite cheaply.

Chester.

@BestIsWest Funny you should mention Hay on Wye, I was there once, many years ago for about two hours... it is the place w/ the book festival, correct? Those two hours have stayed with me, what a beautiful place. And my Welsh grandfather is from Abervagenny, to boot. Thank you for your referral.

@InspiredByIntegrity Chester is his pick, thanks for the recommendation!

Yes, it’s the place with the festival. I adore it there.

Cardiff would be a brilliant base...beaches, countryside, mountains, culture, museums, city etc right on your doorstep.... can travel further afield from there very easily.

Your travel plans sound really adventurous and exciting....I wish we were brave enough to do it.

Personally I would stay somewhere like St David's or the Gower. You'd need to travel to museums but you'd be v close to beaches and natural beauty.