# Planning a trip to England/Ireland/Scotland (first time overseas) **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 7, 2003, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-trip-to-england-ireland-scotland-first-time-overseas/217466 "2003-12-07T01:02:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![born\_too\_late](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ba9def/32.png) [@born\_too\_late](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/born_too_late)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2003, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-trip-to-england-ireland-scotland-first-time-overseas/217466/1 "2003-12-07T01:02:36Z")
I’ve always wanted to go to see some of the fascinating culture and countryside that is the British Isles. I’ve got a brand new passport just begging to be used and I’d like some advice. I’m thinking of coming over (from the US) around about late May/early June and staying for about 2 or 3 weeks. I’m more interested in seeing a variety of climates and landscapes, and some indigenous architecture, cuisine, and pastimes, but I would rather avoid obvious tourist attractions. I’m thinking of renting a car (or taking a train or bus) and traveling to some of the smaller big cities (I don’t have anything against London, but I’d rather go there when I can devote a whole week or two just for that city, and at this point I’d rather get to see more of the country than get lost in a place with lots of people). At the risk of dispelling and/or making stereotypes, I’d much rather experience a comfy pub than Buckingham Palace. However, I am interested in soaking up some good music, so I might be interested in checking out some clubs and maybe a show or two. So, Brit dopers, tell me about the points of pride in your corner of the world. And US dopers, if you’ve been there, share your travel anecdotes and advice! ---
**Author:** ![Soup\_du\_jour](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/848f3c/32.png) [@Soup\_du\_jour](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Soup_du_jour)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2003, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-trip-to-england-ireland-scotland-first-time-overseas/217466/2 "2003-12-07T02:49:44Z")
US Doper here. I can’t speak for the Brits, but I hear that it’s awfully poor form to attempt to mimic the native accent. Foreigners always get it wrong, and it sounds just stupid. A Briton will back me up on this, right? ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2003, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-trip-to-england-ireland-scotland-first-time-overseas/217466/3 "2003-12-07T02:55:35Z")
Another Yank here. I can only tell you what I enjoyed: First, roaming around London. Riverboat ride up the Thames, toward Hampton Court. The Scottish highlands. Gorgeous. The Lake Country, north of London, also gorgeous. The old, old, old graveyards: I mean _old._ But then, I’m a graveyard groupie. ---
**Author:** ![ruadh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d2c977/32.png) [@ruadh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ruadh)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2003, 8:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-trip-to-england-ireland-scotland-first-time-overseas/217466/4 "2003-12-07T08:53:24Z")
The first thing I’ll advise you is that Ireland is not part of Britain, or part of the UK (exception: the six counties of Northern Ireland are currently part of the UK). You’ll get along with people here a lot better if you don’t refer to the population as “Brits”, and even the term “British Isles” is frowned upon. ---
**Author:** ![Lola](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ed655f/32.png) [@Lola](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lola)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2003, 12:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-trip-to-england-ireland-scotland-first-time-overseas/217466/5 "2003-12-07T12:47:49Z")
Get yerself to The Crown pub in Belfast. Or the Duke of York in Whitby, North Yorkshire. ---
**Author:** ![everton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ecb155/32.png) [@everton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/everton)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2003, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-trip-to-england-ireland-scotland-first-time-overseas/217466/6 "2003-12-07T12:48:06Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Soup\_du\_jour \* > I can’t speak for the Brits, but I hear that it’s awfully poor form to attempt to mimic the native accent. Foreigners always get it wrong, and it sounds just stupid. > > A Briton will back me up on this, right? Right. You weren’t planning on doing that, surely? **Eve’s** advice is all good, but I hope she’ll excuse me for finding “north of London” a hilarious description of the [Lake District](http://www.cumbria-the-lake-district.co.uk/). On that subject, the only argument against that area is that it’s very popular with tourists and gets too full during the summer. You might consider the [Peak District](http://www.peakdistrict-nationalpark.com/content.php), [Snowdonia](http://www.snowdonia-wales.net/) or [Northumberland](http://www.northumberland-national-park.org.uk/default.htm) as alternatives. The Scottish Highlands can’t be beaten for mountain scenery and is the only part of Britain where you can feel at all far from towns and cities. Cities worth a visit would include my home town of [Liverpool](http://www.visitliverpool.com/) as well as [Manchester](http://www.manchesteronline.co.uk/tourist/), [York](http://www.york-tourism.co.uk/), [Bath](http://www.visitbath.co.uk/), [Glasgow](http://www.seeglasgow.com/) and [Edinburgh](http://www.edinburgh.org/). Most places will be easier to navigate by public transport than by car and you may find places slower to reach than you would be used to back home, even though the distances will seem very short. [Here’s](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=227578) a thread suggesting a few things to do in London (for future reference perhaps, or in case you change your mind). The reason why we have so many museums and galleries here is because we can’t guarantee good weather – we had a wonderful summer this year but that might be our ration for the decade. I’ll also post a link to this thread rather than duplicate the advice given in it: [I may be going to Ireland in April](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=227150). That will do for a first post. I’ll be back when I think of some more advice. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2003, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-trip-to-england-ireland-scotland-first-time-overseas/217466/7 "2003-12-07T13:01:52Z")
Cities worth visiting (no particular order) - York, Edinburgh, Brighton, Belfast, Durham, Bath. Things to avoid (overrated, overpriced or just full of Americans 😉 )…Buckingham Palace, Trafalgar Square, Windsor Castle, any ‘day trip’ from London, Oxford… The Highlands are certainly beautiful - but North Wales is equally so, and often overlooked. It’s also much easier to get to from SE England. And it has castles ‘n’ history ‘n’ stuff all over the place. If you’re planning on driving around, i’d recommend the Good Pub Guide - not all pubs do great food or a friendly athmosphere, but those that do are more than worth an extra few miles journey. ( [http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0091888972/ref=sr\_aps\_books\_1\_1/202-2887549-6209425](http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0091888972/ref=sr_aps_books_1_1/202-2887549-6209425) ) Ireland is absolutley worth visiting - although again, to escape the tourist hoards, get out of Dublin and don’t head for the south-west. Better to go across to Galway, up to Derry and back via Belfast. To save too much driving (motorways can be horrendously busy), you can get cheap internal flights - the no-frills carriers are all listed here: [http://www.whichbudget.com/](http://www.whichbudget.com/) ---
**Author:** ![ruadh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d2c977/32.png) [@ruadh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ruadh)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2003, 1:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-trip-to-england-ireland-scotland-first-time-overseas/217466/8 "2003-12-07T13:18:26Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by GorillaMan \* > **Ireland is absolutley worth visiting - although again, to escape the tourist hoards, get out of Dublin and don’t head for the south-west. Better to go across to Galway, up to Derry and back via Belfast.** Right, 'cause if there’s one place that doesn’t have tourists, it’s Galway. Try Donegal instead. It’s that much more off the beaten track, and very convenient to Derry (a recommendation which I second). Also try the Glens of Antrim, north of Belfast. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2003, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-trip-to-england-ireland-scotland-first-time-overseas/217466/9 "2003-12-07T13:29:07Z")
Clearly I had the luck to hit Galway off-season 🙂 … A few helpful links: [Book trains](http://www.thetrainline.com/) before you arrive, to get the cheapest tickets [Look like a Londoner](http://www.going-underground.net/tuberules.html) on the tube Culture outside London: [http://www.scottishopera.org.uk/](http://www.scottishopera.org.uk/), [http://www.operanorth.org/](http://www.operanorth.org/), [http://www.bridgewater-hall.co.uk/](http://www.bridgewater-hall.co.uk/), [http://www.waterfront.co.uk/](http://www.waterfront.co.uk/) ---
**Author:** ![Caprese](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a9a28c/32.png) [@Caprese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Caprese)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2003, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-trip-to-england-ireland-scotland-first-time-overseas/217466/10 "2003-12-07T14:02:18Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Eve \* > \*\* > > The old, old, old graveyards: I mean _old._ But then, I’m a graveyard groupie. \*\* All right! Me too! **Eve** , have you had the opportunity to check out Glendalough in Ireland? That is the most amazing cemetery I’ve yet seen, though the one in Key West was definitely absorbing. Then there is Pere LaChaise… We too had a good time in Galway, and enjoyed music and Guinness. We were there in March, several years ago, maybe it wasn’t so touristy then. I agree that Wales has beautiful scenery, and some of the most fascinating ruins in the UK. Talley Abbey is very atmospheric, and we had the entire place to ourselves. For interesting climates/landscapes, the northwest coast of Scotland offers the north Atlantic drift: palm trees in the quaint harbor town of Plockton, and subtropical Inverewe Gardens in Poolewe. [Inverewe Gardens](http://www.undiscoveredscotland.co.uk/poolewe/inverewe/) ---
**Author:** ![born\_too\_late](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ba9def/32.png) [@born\_too\_late](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/born_too_late)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2003, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-trip-to-england-ireland-scotland-first-time-overseas/217466/11 "2003-12-07T14:09:58Z")
Thank you for the great suggestions!! Um, what term _should_ I use to refer to people from the UK, **ruadh**? ---
**Author:** ![ruadh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d2c977/32.png) [@ruadh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ruadh)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2003, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-trip-to-england-ireland-scotland-first-time-overseas/217466/12 "2003-12-07T14:17:18Z")
Um, I don’t really care what term you use to refer to people from the UK. If you’re talking about people from _Ireland_, however, use “Irish”. ---
**Author:** ![born\_too\_late](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ba9def/32.png) [@born\_too\_late](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/born_too_late)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2003, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-trip-to-england-ireland-scotland-first-time-overseas/217466/13 "2003-12-07T14:30:19Z")
Ah, I see. I apologize for my indiscretion. Good to know, **ruadh** , thank you. ---
**Author:** ![Avenger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9de0a6/32.png) [@Avenger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Avenger)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2003, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-trip-to-england-ireland-scotland-first-time-overseas/217466/14 "2003-12-07T14:57:09Z")
Most people in the UK would identify themselves first as English, Welsh, Scottish and Irish rather than British. And using ‘Brits’ to describe the inhabitants could be seen as insulting by some, especially amongst those of a celtic bent! ---
**Author:** ![Violet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/ebca7d/32.png) [@Violet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Violet)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2003, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-trip-to-england-ireland-scotland-first-time-overseas/217466/15 "2003-12-07T17:57:21Z")
You might benefit from browsing the travel books section of a bookstore. Rick Steves has diagrams of car and train travels for ideas. FWIW: Although Edinburgh (Scotland) is a city and often has many tourists, I think you would find it fascinating. ---
**Author:** ![Loneraven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c0e974/32.png) [@Loneraven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loneraven)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2003, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-trip-to-england-ireland-scotland-first-time-overseas/217466/16 "2003-12-07T18:44:36Z")
No-one’s mentioned Liverpool yet? I feel offended on the behalf of my home city. A very good place for music, for obvious reasons, but even apart from that it’s a wonderful city, particularly in summer when it’s not so cold by the water. It’s also much, much closer to the Lake District than London! You can also get down to North Wales pretty easily. And if you’re into that kind of thing, as so many people seem to be, the graveyard is nice. Which might sound utterly ridiculous, but it is. It’s so old that people who died of the plague are buried there, and the gravestones are covered in trailing ivy and the engraving is wearing away. There’s also a Wiccan coven who meet there and a martial arts school who practise there. ---
**Author:** ![everton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ecb155/32.png) [@everton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/everton)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2003, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-trip-to-england-ireland-scotland-first-time-overseas/217466/17 "2003-12-07T19:12:02Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by everton \* > Cities worth a visit would include my home town of [Liverpool](http://www.visitliverpool.com/)… Can’t hurt to repeat it, though, eh **Loneraven**? ---
**Author:** ![Ukulele\_Ike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/df788c/32.png) [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2003, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-trip-to-england-ireland-scotland-first-time-overseas/217466/18 "2003-12-07T19:32:23Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Soup\_du\_jour \* > **I hear that it’s awfully poor form to attempt to mimic the native accent. Foreigners always get it wrong, and it sounds just stupid.** I’m sorry, this concept just spoiled the whole thread for me right off the bat. I’m still giggling. “Hey, in preparation for my trip to Atlanta, I think I’ll brush up on some old ‘L’il Abner’ comic strips!” “Before I board the Paris plane, I guess I’d better rent some _Pink Panther_ videos!” ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2003, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-trip-to-england-ireland-scotland-first-time-overseas/217466/19 "2003-12-07T19:55:48Z")
Don’t bother with public transport; rent a car. Public transport is far too restrictive. Great Britain has so much history it’s difficult to know where to start. Pick some areas and get guidebooks. ---
**Author:** ![fortytwo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f9ae1b/32.png) [@fortytwo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fortytwo)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2003, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-trip-to-england-ireland-scotland-first-time-overseas/217466/20 "2003-12-07T20:56:36Z")
I’d like to recommend Liverpool too. That’s because it’s very easy to get to North Wales from there.🙂 V [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-trip-to-england-ireland-scotland-first-time-overseas/217466.md?page=2)