Planning to visit UK is it safe

[jonnyx]

Hi,
Me and my wife has been travelling in most of the countries in Europe but never UK. We are now planning to correct this. As we living close to Malaga in Spain its very easy for us to grab a flight to England. We would like to visit London but also see something on the countryside. We intend to make a 14 days trip.

What part of England is worth seeing? What about public transport, do we need to rent a car? Anything we should avoid? And finally is it safe in UK, any special precautions needed, some areas to avoid?

[jim25]

I wouldnt reccomend renting a car if your visiting London it will be quicker to walk, as for is it safe? Yes it is every where you go there will always be undesireables but this shouldn't stop you doing anything you want to do. I see you live in Mijas, I used to have a timeshare in Mijas Golf at a place called matchroom, are you anywhere near there?

[paul]

Hello Jonny and welcome to the forums.

I would second not hiring a car for whilst you are in London... the London Underground should be able to get you everywhere you want to go much more easily.

I find myself saying this a lot on forums, but I would also urge you to explore places beyond London (and beyond just the usual day trips that people seem to do from London) and it sounds like you plan to do that. There are many other areas to explore and if you just go to London, you're not really getting a proper insight into what most of the UK is like.

14 days won't give you all that long so I would suggest focussing on two or three of the following:

West Country (Cornwall, Devon) - some nice coastal towns/villages/walks to explore (see http://www.aardvarktravel.net/chat/viewtopic.php?t=41786 )

Cotswolds - traditional English villages - rather pretty and quaint

Peak District - a bit more rugged... wouldn't be top of my list (see next item) but nice nonetheless

Lake District - beautiful scenery... one of the prettiest corners of England (although I am biased) (see http://www.aardvarktravel.net/chat/viewtopic.php?t=11800

North-East England - above Newcastle-upon-Tyne - great stretch of coastline with various coastal villages - very friendly people (see http://www.aardvarktravel.net/chat/viewtopic.php?t=31563 )

Scotland - particularly the Highlands and islands on the west

I hope this gives you some ideas.

Paul
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[paul]

I forgot to address the issue of safety. So long as you apply the usual laws of common sense that you would adopt at home, then I think you will find the UK perfectly safe. I'd say it's at least as safe - if not safer - than Spain.
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[jonnyx]

Hi,
Thanks for all the information about England, and I think we will head for it next August. That is the main vacation period for us her in Spain, and besides it is to hot here during August. We are hoping to get some rain and fog, sounds maybe crazy but after a burning hot July it would be very nice with some change.

To jim25:
Yes we live just 5 km uphill from Matchroom (the road towards Coin).

OK I can understand that its no use with a car in London, but how is it on the countryside. Are there public transports enough or shall we rent a car for that part of the trip?

[jim25]

Rain and fog shouldn't be a problem in the UK

Public transport isnt that great for the countryside so hiring a car would be a good idea.

[jonnyx]

Thank you for the answers,

Have a nice day,

[paul]

It would really depend on where you want to go but I would personally opt for the independence and flexibility of having your own car.
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[trev]

In terms of hire cars - you could do quite a bit of it by train, but wouldn't really rely on anything beyond that. To be honest bus services especially out in the sticks (of which we have a lot) aren't that brilliant.

In August you could get anything from 30'C to 10'C and fog although the further south you are the more likely it is to be warm and dry.

If it's your first time then I guess London has plenty to offer and gives you easier transport options. But don't base your opinions of the UK purely on London. It's a bit busy for my tastes and everyone seems to be in a hurry (I guess like most major cities), but the rest of us tend to be a bit more laid back....queue protests from Londoners.

Don't forget Scotland in the list if you're leaving London. If you want to stick to cities then Edinburgh is ok and Inverness (think it's a city) is very nice, just avoid Aberdeen. Midges do tend to be a bit of a problem also on the west coast of Scotland during the Summer.

On the safety front - it's pretty safe although there are places I'd avoid like Kings Cross at night in London. Oh and try not to look like a tourist...

Trev
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[jonnyx]

Hi again,
From your answers I can understand that there are more things to see in UK than England. But I think we will concentrate on England this time and go to Scotland and Wales some other time. We now planning taking the a flight to London and staying there for some days. Then renting a car and exploring the countryside as you have advised us. My wife would also like to see the Sherwood Forest where Robin Hood lived, where can I find that forest ( if it still exist)? I think she would like to see much of the historical places she has been seen in English soap operas and other films.

Best regards from a today rainy !!! Costa del Sol.

[jim25]

Sheerwood Forest is in Edwinstowe, just down from Ollerton roundabout about 20 minutes from where I live It certainly still exists and is extremely popular especially when the festival is on. The Major Oak has a fence round it these days and is heavily supported with steel struts so you cant walk up to it like you used to be able to years ago, but it is still great to look at.

Plus its free admission, I think the car park is about £3.50 or something, there is a cafe that serves roast dinners and such like.

[jonnyx]

Thank you for all the answers, we will absolutely show up in UK next August. Both in London and in the Sherwood Forest. I think I will start preparing already this weekend, having a Carling in Fuengirola. Maybe we later on shall try some British food (fish and chips?).

Best regards from Spain,
Jonny

[AndyPLP]

Good luck with your plan, and fingers crossed that the weather's good during your visit next august

[SimboSmith]

if you're going to be here for 14 days, then i defintely would get a hire car rather than relying on the trains. have you seen the cost of train tickets these days? wow. it can work out extremely expensive if you're getting them every day. a return train ticket to from london to nottingham will probably set you back the best part of 40 pounds per person.

but if you're getting a hire car, make sure you dont base yourself in central london, because you'll have to pay the congestion charge every time you drive in and out.

best thing to do is stay outside london and drive everywhere, but get the train into town on the 1 or 2 days you visit london.

by the way, i went to university in nottingham, and its not really worth a day trip. nottingham castle is not even a castle, it's more like a small stately home on top of a hill.

[jonnyx]

Are here any particular town you can recommend as base for this journey.


Bes regards from a sunny Spain,
Jonny