Expert: David Stewart White - 8/31/2009

Question
Hi,
I am from Malaysia and will be on holidays in England from 10th to 1st December 2009. My kids are from 12 to 5 years old. We are thinking of renting a car to visit cities in England. Can you suggest suitable itinerary and places to visit especially for children. Thank you

Answer
Hello,

I am a bit unclear how many days you will be in England...did you mean 1st through 10th December?  I will assume that is correct and you will be in England for 9 or 10 days.

If your family has not visited the United Kingdom before, then you may wish to spend a significant portion of that time in London since it has so many sights and activities, especially for family groups.  You do NOT need a car for London--the public transportation system is very good and driving and parking in the city is a challenge, even for Londoners.  

Keep in mind that daylight hours are limited in December, so you need to plan your itinerary accordingly, both for driving and sightseeing.  

You could easily spend your entire visit in London, adding daytrips outside the city to nearby locations such as Windsor, Hampton Court, Greenwich, etc.  All of these can be reached by train from central London in 30-40 min¨tes.  Beyond London, I suggest you consider York, Bath, Cambridge, and Oxford as possible places to visit.  Again, if you intend to visit cities, you could drive or you could take a train.

York is a fine place to spend 2 days...this walled city has a wonderful cathedral, a Viking museum, and a fine transport museum (the latter a favorites with children).  Bath has the ancient Roman baths, fine architecture, etc.  Oxford and Cambridge are both university towns with a number of interesting sights.  You  could also consider heading further north to Edinburgh (about 4 hours by train) and seeing a bit of Scotland.  (Daylight hours are even shorter as you head north, and the weather can be nasty too).

I hope this helps as you start planning your visit.  Feel free to obtain my book (Let's Take the Kids to London) and/or look at my website (www.KidsToLondon.com) for more information that may be helpful too.

Regards,

David White