| UK Travel Guide | | | | the immense old-growth forest of Robin Hood tales. |
| Wales | | | | You'll also find dozens of castles and castle remains |
| The rough beauty of Welsh landscape, with its high | | | | from a millennium of history, ranging from the |
| mountains, deep valleys, rivers, and marshes, is as | | | | concentric rings of earthwork foundations left over |
| well-known as the Welsh language's lack of vowels. | | | | from the wooden fortresses of Saxons, to the |
| Wales is completely unique, with its own deep, rich | | | | relatively new castles of the Normans. Many castles |
| history and heritage. Wales is the homeland of | | | | are still lived in, and there are castles in England you |
| Arthurian legend, and any visitors interested in Camelot | | | | can spend the night in, others that you can tour during |
| should visit the many landmarks in Wales associated | | | | the day. |
| with Arthur, including the tree where Merlin is supposed | | | | Southward still is Salisbury Plain, the austere green |
| to lie sleeping. Wales is often called the land of song, | | | | meadowland on which stands Stonehenge. Visitors are |
| and if you visit, you should not miss attending a | | | | not allowed to get close enough to touch the ancient |
| cymanfa ganu ("singing festival"). And you should visit | | | | standing stones, but you can still feel the history that |
| Tintern Abbey, made famous by William Wordsworth's | | | | permeates the countryside around them. |
| poem; Tintern is one of many (mostly ruined) abbeys, | | | | And on the south coast of England, Bath has an |
| priories, and castles scattered across the Welsh | | | | amazing variety of architectural treasures, ranging |
| countryside. | | | | from the still-usable Roman baths to the proud |
| Scotland | | | | Georgian townhouses that line its streets. Bath has |
| Where does one start? Scotland is lowlands and | | | | more protected historical buildings per capita than any |
| highlands and islands, a land of rugged rustic beauty | | | | city in England. If you visit, you should not miss the |
| and the intellectually-renowned colleges of Edinburgh. If | | | | Roman baths; the Pump Room, center of Georgian |
| it's monsters you like, you can look for Nessie in the | | | | society; and the Royal Crescent, lined with elegant |
| Loch Ness; if you prefer more down-to-earth pursuits, | | | | Georgian homes from the 19th century heyday of |
| Scottish men and women are friendly, hospitable, and | | | | Bath. And from Bath, you can take the 2 ½ hour |
| kind. Scottish cuisine is unique, to say the least, but | | | | bus trip to London, surely the crowning glory of any |
| much better than the descriptions of things like haggis | | | | tour of England. |
| (sheep's stomach filled with a meat and oatmeal | | | | London |
| mixture and boiled) would lead you to think! Bagpipes | | | | London is one of the premier cities of the world, |
| and kilts, Highland games and Scottish single-malt | | | | populated by more than seven million people. And it is |
| whiskey (the name comes from the Gaelic | | | | filled with history, with art, with culture. It is not to be |
| uisge-beatha, meaning "water of life") are only part of | | | | missed, no matter what your interests. If you like |
| the culture you can experience in Scotland. | | | | nightlife, London has some of the best nightclubs in the |
| The large cities in Scotland have marvelous art and | | | | world, ranging from tough punk bars to |
| culture museums, and there are dozens of excellent | | | | celebrity-haunted clubs. In the day, you can get free |
| historical museums and sites. In Edinburgh Castle, don't | | | | admission to the British Museum, the British Library, the |
| miss the famous Stone of Scone, over which all the | | | | National Gallery, the National Portrait Gallery, and Tate |
| Scottish kings were crowned, or the ancient Scottish | | | | Gallery; admission to many, many other cultural |
| crown jewels. And in the countryside, some of the | | | | attractions is inexpensive. |
| historic castles are available as lodging; speak to your | | | | There are dozens of walking tours of London, both |
| travel agent for information. | | | | self-guided and using a guide; if you look online, you can |
| Cornwall | | | | find many of the self-guided ones for free. Almost |
| Cornwall is the historic birthplace of King Arthur, and it's | | | | every guidebook to London also has its own |
| easy to believe in Arthurian legends when you stand | | | | self-guided tours listed. |
| on its high cliffs. It's mostly rural now, but has a unique | | | | If you want to visit some of the admission-charging |
| culture and a strong seafaring tradition. Many British | | | | attractions (for which students and seniors may be |
| emigrants to the Americas set sail from its port | | | | able to get "concessions," or discounts), consider |
| Falmouth. | | | | Westminster Abbey, the Cabinet War Room, and St. |
| England | | | | Paul's Cathedral. Covent Garden, once a |
| Northern England is the home of the famous Lake | | | | pleasure-garden for the rich and not-so-rich, has |
| District of Cumbria, from where the English Romantic | | | | evolved into a boutique filled shopping district. And if |
| poets Byron, Wordsworth, and Shelley often drew | | | | you hang out around Buckingham Palace, you can see |
| their inspiration. Much of Northern England is historically | | | | the Changing of the Guard, and maybe even a |
| heavily industrialized, but you shouldn't let that deter you | | | | member of the Royal Family or two. |
| from visiting; the countrysite is beautiful, and the coast | | | | Travelers to London, in short, may wish they had a |
| nearby. You'll also find dozens of sites in the | | | | month or three to just tour London; two millennia of |
| countryside where standing stones were erected in | | | | history is a lot of layers to dig through. One word of |
| the past, as well as museums filled with archaeological | | | | warning: London does have problems with pickpockets, |
| treasures from Britain's past. | | | | especially in the more tourist-haunted sections of town. |
| When you move southward, you can find the | | | | Avoid showing money around, and keep your pockets |
| remnants of Sherwood Forest, only a pale shadow of | | | | guarded. |