In no particular order:
Aberystwyth - spectacular view of the sea, and lively, wonderful town
Tenby - like a postcard
Cardiff - so much to see and do in so small a city
Bath - Jane Austen fantasy land
Oxford - name says it all
Chester - like being on a movie set
York - a romantic, gothic bustle
Durham - castle and cathedral are spectacular
Newcastle - my favourite city
Edinburgh - everything about this place is great
[b]Alternative list:[/b]
Tintagel - King Arthur & other, more empirical history
Salisbury - [i]that[/i] commercial
Bradford-on-Avon - Saxon church; whole village is gorgeous
Hay-on-Wye - books and a ramble
Hebden Bridge - a congenial former mill town
Haworth - windswept gothic, and very beautiful
Ripon - the cathedral is beautiful, and the town lovely
Barnard Castle - a gem in county Durham
Hexham - you'd be suprised
Alnwick - 'nuff said
Come to think of it, it's very hard to limit the UK to ten cities/towns. 8)
Another vote for Cambridge, but throw in Oxford so that you can compare and contrast. Avoid Newcastle/Gateshead though, there's nothing there but nice little bars and pubs, reasonably friendly people and some decent shopping and sights. No need to go there at all.
Add York to your list though.
There are some pretty good lists there considering I didn't give any criteria. To be honest the criteria are pretty vague - food, history, stuff to look at, stuff to do, interesting things.
If I actually get myself planned enough I will post up where we are planning to go on various weekends and I am sure MrsWCA would be delighted to meet other STWers* as she always enjoys that at the BBB.
**That may not include a whiskey fuelled Binners who tries to ride over policement on the way home (real policemen, not sleeping ones)
Chalke Valley history festival is interesting and different. Could combine with a visit to Salisbury or Shaftesbury.
What about one of the towns on the Jurassic Coast?
I could give her some amazing trips to business parks and souless Travellodges but I suspect she wants more.
Take her to the [url= http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_Review-g187067-d1840703-Reviews-The_Restover_Lodge_Hotel_Doncaster-Doncaster_South_Yorkshire_England.html ]Doncaster Restover [/url]- does wonders for restoring your faith in travelodges.
I think a sign of a good town for a short break is if you eye gets drawn to estate agent windows
My list in no particular order.....
Liverpool
Edinburgh
Glasgow
Hastings
Newcastle (and take the metro out to the sea)
Keswick
Hebden Bridge (with a train ride into Manchester)
Bristol
Stromness
St Ives.
Newcastle (and take the metro out to the sea)
If you do this:
a.) take a kite.
b.) dinogolf is essential.
c.) Cullercoats bay is nicer to sit on than Long Sands
Next year, you'll be in Leeds on the 5th July.
Blackpool
Morecambe
Preston
Barrow in Furness
Millom
Ulverston
Workington
Salford
Bolton
Follow 'The Trip' with Steve Coogan & Rob Brydon
Other than that, if I was doing my top 10 would be, in no particular order
Durham
York
Whitby
Keswick
Near Sawrey
Ilkley
Bristol
Beaumaris
Rye
Ludlow
Rhosneigr
Alnwick
Buxton
Ullapool
Berwick
Portree
Machynlleth
Aberdyfi
Plockton
Oxford
dartmouth/ kingswear
bath
harrogate
cardiff
Oxford
Winchester
Bath
Canterbury
Ludlow
Chester
York
Ross-on-Wye
Salisbury
Shaftesbury
@DT - you missed one
Blackpool
Morecambe
Preston
Barrow in Furness
Millom
Ulverston
Workington
Salford
Bolton.....
..... Maryport
Durham
Newcastle upon Tyne
Poole
Woolacombe
St Davids
Brighton
Birmingham
Whitby
Winchester
Bath
Leyland as an optional extra
Oh yeah...and WTF's wrong with Ulverston, cheeky c**t
I'll add another:
Exeter.
Really rather lovely and a good zip down the road for you WCA. Lovely City, bit of a Church there too.. then hop down the coast to Teignmouth with the top down and head into Dartmoor on your way home.
Say Hi to Cara for me, phah.
Edinburgh
Glasgow
Manchester
Bristol
Keswick
Hay-on-Wye
Machynlleth
Hebden Bridge (say hi if you do 🙂 )
Kirkby Lonsdale
Settle
Oh and for those dissing Morecambe: yes the town is depressed but on a nice clear day you'll struggle to find a more beautiful promenade and more dramatic sunsets.
York and go to KraKatoa Restaurant. Sorry shameless plug for my mates place.
Liverpool
London to see how bad life can get.
Salisbury - that commercial
?
Braemar
Ballatar
Dinnet
Aboyne
Kincardine o' Neil
Lumphanen
Torphins
Banchory
Drumoak
Aberdeen
Everywhere else is crap.
For a fairly small place on the grand scheme of things, Durham crops up a lot, can't imagine why....
[url= http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7194/6792691192_2089610f53_z.jp g" target="_blank">
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/jimmygrainger/6792691192/ ]002[/url] by [url= http://www.flickr.com/people/jimmygrainger/ ]jimmyg352[/url], on Flickr
Anyway here's my top 10.
Durham.
York.
Harrogate.
Newcastle.
Edinburgh.
Just do them twice. 😉
Another vote for the Jurassic Coast, I would choose Lyme Regis - you can find fossils a few mins walk from the town, if you get the right time for the tide and good for a wander around.
Hexham I would also second, good for a couple of hours and cup of tea, we went there this year and then visited nearby Vindolanda by Hadrian's wall, amazing to walk down the same streets on the same flagstones as people did 2,000 years ago.
In both cases reasonable weather helps!
If you go to London, IMHO it's well worth doing one of the tourist bus rides.
At least that's my idea of a good time...
No one's mentioned Mansfield yet?
Barnsley has everything you need. Great pubs and restaurants, fantastic people and amazing culture.
Edinburgh
Glasgow
London
Stamford
Bath
Ambleside
Salisbury
Chester
York
St Andrews
Edinburgh
Bath
Ludlow
Pitlochry
Stratford
York
Betws-y-Coed
Dartmouth
Lincoln
Oban
Shrewsbury as its the 'capital' of the largest in land county in England.
Goole
Redcar
Ashington
Chopwell
Ashford Middlesex
Tottenham
Nelson
Oldham
Hattersley
Dagenham
Shropshire is a great place to start........
Shrewsbury - birthplace of darwin
Much Wenlock - birthplace of modern olympic games
Ironbridge - birthplace of industrial revolution
then theres always Ludlow, Church Stretton and surrounding areas with great scenery and pretty good places to ride yer bike.
Some good suggestions here.
I'd go for
Alnwick
Durham
Inverness
Cambridge
Edinburgh
Tenby
York
Belfast ( remember NI is part of UK!)
Brighton
Don't be tight. Take her on a world cruise.
Add some voices to the Northumberland stuff, Alnwick (castle, gardens, beaches nearby - stay on the coast) couple it in with Rothbury/Hexam and Newcastle for a long weekend
Keswick/Cockermouth lakes without the hoards
Shrewsbury nice place
Glasgow
Edinburgh
Liverpool, it really is the best place in the uk.
(You would expect anything else from me though would you...)
