Everywhere is England is rammed

[Hyperfish101]

Maybe different elsewhere in UK but Covid has certainly wiped out options for a peaceful day out anywhere. Or so it seems.

Went to a local beauty spot for a walk yesterday. At 10 am cars queuing for the car park. All the NationL Trust type places swarming. Even little walks by our local river are overrun with people.

Had a week in a usually quiet place in the Scottish Borders. Nope. Jammed. The usual quiet beach was overrun. Car park rammed. Rubbish everywhere.

It’s horrible. I realise I was there too so limited grounds to complain but I’ve been going to these places for years and suddenly I can’t even park.

That’s even before mentioning the ‘wild camping’ we saw in the Lakes. Tents abandoned, rubbish everywhere.

I’m hoping when people can stop ‘staycationing’ and go abroad, things will settle down. I feel as if there are no unspoilt areas left now.

@topofthewardrobe why do people always have to get that little twatty dig in on here? What is lacking in your life that you couldn't just reply politely?

I'll be flamed for this, but I don't care! I agree with OP, it's all pretty miserable just now. My quiet little town is always rammed now because no-one is going to work. The dynamic of so much has changed.

Outdoors places near us were totally rammed before restaurants and the like opened up and people started holidaying in other parts of the UK. It was pretty rubbish and local beauty spots were treated appallingly :(
I've just resigned myself to pottering around doing smaller things near home and as I have small children it has actually reduced my stress a lot. I Ber it'll get quieter as the weather turns cooler and the kids return to school.
Has anyone noticed a pattern where threads are mean on Sundays?

Depends where you are trying, up in the ne the beaches were still quiet whereas anywhere in the sw is rammed. Hopefully will quieten down from today as school goes back on Wednesday if not already back

Ps our little bit of the sw is still quiet but not saying where in case the litter louts turn up in droves, however I did notice the premier inn car park was full so some people have found us. I'm avoiding the m5 though

@middleager

top Don't get me wrong, we do go elsewhere too at home and abroad, but I've not found anywhere yet that pulls me back like Cornwall does (I think part of this stems from happy childhood holidays there in the 70s and 80s).

😀

[quote MaxNormal]@topofthewardrobe why do people always have to get that little twatty dig in on here? What is lacking in your life that you couldn't just reply politely?[/quote]
My life couldn't be better, I've got everything in it I could possibly want thanks. Fortunately I'm easily pleased without ridiculous expectations.

It's the summer holidays and people can't really go abroad. It will stop soon. Let it go.

topofthewardrobe I'll be sure and let the people in rural areas whose areas who are enduring antisocial behaviour, littering, fires and abuse and watching the surrouding habitat destruction know that they have ridiculous expectations then shall I?

Anyway I don't really mind if you disagree with me, it's the snide way you did it. To be fair, it's not just you, it's half of Mumsnet, but I don't understand why so many people find it necessary to do this constant unpleasant, snidey, one-upmanship. But if you're happy to be like that, crack on, you're clearly not alone.

Try living by the Welsh coast..! Can hardly move (let alone socially distance) for crowds of tourists, and don't get me started on all the car parks being rammed full of motorhomes.

@MaxNormal

topofthewardrobe I'll be sure and let the people in rural areas whose areas who are enduring antisocial behaviour, littering, fires and abuse and watching the surrouding habitat destruction know that they have ridiculous expectations then shall I?

Anyway I don't really mind if you disagree with me, it's the snide way you did it. To be fair, it's not just you, it's half of Mumsnet, but I don't understand why so many people find it necessary to do this constant unpleasant, snidey, one-upmanship. But if you're happy to be like that, crack on, you're clearly not alone.

No, they don't have ridiculous expectations, the people who do are those who decide to go to Windermere, Chester zoo etc and find it nice and quiet.

Who expects to go to Chester and Windermere and find it quiet though? Talk about getting the wrong end of the stick. I made the original point that even out of the way places seemed very very busy. And I felt that was a shame for people like me who seek out quieter areas for a day trip or break. Though seemingly that’s not allowed on MN.

If you want to nitpick my sense of geography though

Berwick is in Northumberland

Hardly nitpicking to remind you the Scottish Borders aren't in England.

Visit Britain have been publishing weekly survey data all summer about people's holiday plans for the UK. The results have been covered in the national media. It's been consistent from Week 1 of the published data that the South West was going to be ridiculously popular. Reading it gives some suggestions as to where might be quieter, and when to travel.

A lot of inland destinations that primarily draw international visitors may be quieter than usual. I suspect Stratford-On-Avon and Shakespeare country could use some love right now. They've had cancellations from international groups affecting the next two years.

On the east coast the difference between packed and sensible can be less than 20 miles. In Norfolk, Brancaster and Holkham have had problems with over-popularity but less well known beaches or those with a bit of a walk to the sea have been much quieter.

Some of the prices for camping this weekend (I've seen >£50/night with a 3 night minimum stay reported for unserviced pitches over the Bank Holiday) are either going to cool demand or make the problems with wildcamping worse.

Like with working-from-home the Covid situation has presented the UK with an opportunity to fix a lot of the faults in the domestic tourism market. It remains to be seen whether any lessons will be learned.

www.visitbritain.org/covid-19-consumer-sentiment-tracker

@MintyMabel

If you want to nitpick my sense of geography though

Berwick is in Northumberland

Hardly nitpicking to remind you the Scottish Borders aren't in England.

If you draw a circle around Berwick, then near-enough 50% of "near Berwick" is in the Scottish Borders. The OP's geography is fine.

I hope that those who usually holiday abroad are finding it too horrible for words in the UK otherwise it will never be the same for us homebirds! Already finding it tricky to get campsites for September, normally no problem. I can foresee more crowded sites and increased prices if the situation continues next year. ☹️

I live near Rother Valley and people are wild camping in the fields surrounding and just abandoning their rubbish and tent! Several not just one someone even camped beside the bloody scrap yard

Yeah I've been going to starbucks drive thru for years and suddenly it's rammed. Probs feel the same as op re the beauty spots.

NEXT to the Scottish Borders then. 🙄

High demand is likely to continue for the next year or so, maybe longer.
Seeing how difficult this has made it for some locations, hopefully the infrastructure can be made more robust.
Temporary campsites, temporary parking in fields, more funding for bin emptying and provision of facilities for motorhomes for example.
There's benefits to be had for the canny here - but this year has shown we don't have the capacity to absorb the holiday makers who would normally go abroad.
We went away to a less touristy part of Scotland for a few days. It was really nice and I think the local businesses were open and cautiously welcoming the business.

yes we are finding it intolerable...gladly leave it to the homebirds as soon as I can!

@Hyperfish101

Who expects to go to Chester and Windermere and find it quiet though? Talk about getting the wrong end of the stick. I made the original point that even out of the way places seemed very very busy. And I felt that was a shame for people like me who seek out quieter areas for a day trip or break. Though seemingly that’s not allowed on MN.

People have posted on here about going to the zoo and thinking it would be quiet.

@giletrouge

I'm on holiday in Sussex and we've had three or four days out and I've been really surprised how quiet it's been. One castle with gardens, limited tickets, hardly saw anyone, one garden place, we were first there, almost empty, two galleries, limited ticketing, not crowded. plus meals out in places where everyone well spaced out. Nothing rammed at all. I've been pleasantly surprised. Where are you looking to go next OP, what area? Plus my DH has been on walks and seen almost no-one (I stay home reading when he walks for hours!).

Yes, there are still some relatively quiet, unspoilt places.

The North of Norfolk is good for that.

Yes, there are still some relatively quiet, unspoilt places.

The of is good for that.

Shhhh. Don't let everyone know.

There is nothing wrong with people visiting places, it's the rubbish and the destruction they leave behind. Many wildfires started by barbecues, animals harmed by plastic and rubbish.

Surely that doesn't need to happen?