UK Holiday

2a. Surrey, Kent and Essex

MAIDSTONE for LEEDS CASTLE (from outside), and other nearby castles, e.g. DEAL.

CANTERBURY, ROCHESTER for lunch/pub.

WHITSTABLE for high street - a stone's throw from the sea.

SANDWICH, for a sandwich (Little Cottage Tearooms on The Quay).

DEAL: Castle and Timeball Tower at 1pm.

DOVER: Castle, but definitely white cliffs (guided walks?)

ROYAL TUNBRIDGE WELLS: 2 hours, springs (can drink) and walks)

SISSINGHURST: Nice gardens.

2b. Sussex

BATTLE: Battle Abbey, nr. Hastings.

SOUTH DOWNS WAY, nr. EASTBOURNE, esp. BEACHY HEAD for cycling on chalk cliffs. Drusillas Park - penguins! (maybe for kids though, boo).

BRIGHTON: Royal Pavilion, Palace Pier - visit for sheer tackiness, museum of penny slot machines, Jubilee library - nice building and free internet. Good nightlife, stay in hostel?

3a. Hampshire

PORTSMOUTH: Visit ships, get all inclusive pass, submarine/firepower museum, spinnaker tower - panoramic views. Southsea or old seafaring pubs for food.

WINCHESTER: Guided walks, free internet, nice cathedral / try to be there for evening - 5:30 (3:30 Sunday), guided tours on the hour.

NEW FOREST: Walk / ride at Lindhurst or Brockenhurst. Ranger-led hikes.

BOURNEMOUTH: Good nightlife, stay in hostel?

ISLE OF PURBECK: Beautiful castle (Corfe castle), Go from Poole or long road from Wareham (and use Harry's Bar - free net access). Beach at Shell Bay or Studland Bay - lovely. Places to stay at Swanage. Durdle Door - famour limestone arch. Many small towns in inland Dorset, e.g Longleat

3b. Wiltshire

STONEHENGE and AVEBURY

4. Oxfordshire / Cotswolds

WANTAGE: White Horse Hill (lovely views) near Wantage.

OXFORD: Excellent guided walking tours, several daily, book in advance. Loads to do. Classical / theatre for nightlife.

COTSWOLDS: Great Tew (nr. Chipping Norton) for the Falkland Arms pubs. Lots of villages.

5. Bristol, Bath and Somerset

BRISTOL: Lots of historical attractions, waterways, Clifton Suspension Bridge, Camera Obscura, good nightlife.

BATH: Roman Baths, pump room, Thermae Bath Spa - thermal open air pool etc., charged per time. Free walking tours or bus tours.

WELLS: 20m south of Bristol. Nice cathedral.

WOOKEY HOLE: Cave complex with deep pools/rock formations, spooky.

CHEDDAR GORGE: Great vistas.

6. Devon and Cornwall

BEER: On the coast.

TORQUAY: Marina, beach, Living Coasts - penguins!

PLYMOUTH: Views over THe Sound, inns.

DARTMOOR: 2 hour walking tours, perhaps drive through?

EDEN PROJECT: 10 - 4;30, 0.5 day, good food, accompanied rides nearby, happytrailbikerides.co.uk.

LANDS END / ST IVES: Art scene.

TINTAGEL: Nice, castle ruins.

7. East Anglia

BURY ST EDMUNDS: Pretty, first planned town, Britain's smallest pub.

SOUTHWALD: Non-touristy seaside town.

NORWICH: Many grand cathedrals, old places to walk around, do NOT go on Sunday.

BLAKENEY: Lovely. Nice harbour, seal colony, www.beansboattrips.co.uk.

CAMBRIDGE: Guided walks, colleges.

8. West Midlands

IRONBRIDGE GORGE: Shropshire, Ludlow, picturesque, good food.

PEAK DISTRICT and BUXTON: The crescent, fountain, good base for P.D (http://www.visitbuxton.co.uk/)

POOLES CAVERN and SPEEDWELL CAVERN near Castleton (mainly Blue John Cavern, (big limestone cave), http://www.bluejohnstone.com/).

9. East Midlands

LINCOLN: Nice cathedral, take the guided rooftop tour.

10. The Northwest

MANCHESTER: Imperial War Museum, Cafe society, clubs, Museum of Science and Industry (http://www.msim.org.uk/), Urbis (http://www.urbis.org.uk/)

LIVERPOOL: World Museum, dockside, Beatles tours

CHESTER: City walls, nice buildings, mini-courtyards. Guided walks on roman, historic or ghost trails, or river cruises.

RIBBLE VALLEY (inc Cliterhoe): Nice, small villages, little shops and old pubs.

ISLE OF MAN: Lovely scenery etc., but only if there is a lot of spare time left.

11. Cumbria and The Lakes

WINDERMERE: (Bowness-on-Windermere) Sail a catamaran on the lake. Go to Brockhole if they're open for the Lake District Visitor Centre.

GRIZEDALE FOREST: Aerial high-ropes adventure course

KESWICK: Castlerigg Stone Castle, prehistoric stones in the most spectacular of settings.

RANDOM PLACES near the Lakes, e.g. LANGDALE.

12. Yorkshire

LEEDS: Loads to do, great nightlife, coal museum.

YORKSHIRE DALES: Esp. MALHAM cove / tarn / limestone pavement, http://www.malhamdale.com/, Settle-Carlisle Railway, http://www.settle-carlisle.co.uk/, Black Sheep Brewery, Masham.

BEVERLEY: Twee, old streets, cobbled lanes etc.

NORTH YORK MOORS: Lots of little towns with castles etc.

ROBIN HOODS BAY and especially WHITBY: Scenic fishing villages, North Yorkshire coast, http://www.robin-hoods-bay.co.uk/

13. The Northeast

DURHAM: Walled city, canal walks, university, cathedral.

NEWCASTLE: Loads to do, great nightlife.

HEXHAM: Good base for Hadrian's Wall, abbey, http://www.hadrians-wall.org/

Places to visit in the North

Mother Shipton's Cave, Knaresborough, Yorkshire, http://www.knaresborough.co.uk/attractions/index.html

Northumbrian coast, Alnwick to Berwick, fantastic long empty beaches, sand dunes, catles, http://www.alnwickcastle.com/ http://www.bamburghcastle.com/ http://www.seahouses.org/

Holy Island / Lindisfarne, Northumbria, http://www.holyisland.org/ http://www.lindisfarne.org.uk/

Kielder Water (massive reservoir) and Kielder Forest (massive forrest), Northumbria, http://www.kielder.org/

Tramway Museum, Derby, http://www.tramway.co.uk/