Great Tips for an English Vacation

The Megabus not only runs buses but also provides trains throughout England and is the best option for cheap travel throughout the.
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This is particularly galling on weekends and public holidays, when the whole network can go to pieces for repair work, and achingly slow 'rail replacement buses' take the place of the trains. So is hiring a car a better bet then? If you're planning to stick to the countryside, then certainly, but in urban areas, a car is a massive liability.

What You Need to Know Before Traveling to England | HuffPost

A network of towns and cities born before the advent of the car, tiddly narrow spaces in multi-storey car parks and inevitably choked ring-roads don't to endear themselves to visiting drivers. Scottish and Northern Irish banks issue their own notes, which are perfectly legal tender, but inevitably invoke suspicion in English and Welsh shops. Be prepared to stand your ground, and expect a severe struggle to exchange them outside of the UK….

Perhaps more than anywhere else, the UK has an inexplicable love of pre-packed sandwiches.

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It's not just convenience stores that sell them — you'll find them in newsagents', pharmacies and supermarkets too. Freshly-made sandwiches seem to be regarded as pushing the boat out a bit. Sandwiches aside, food in the UK has come on leaps and bounds in the last couple of decades. Whisper it, but quality is often is at least as good as in the more fabled France or Italy, while the globe-spanning variety makes eating out far more interesting than in most of Europe. Whereas in Australia a cheap Thai is usually reliable and good Indian food can be hard to find, it's the other way round in the UK.

But many of the classic dishes — especially Balti and chicken tikka masala were invented in the UK. Oh, and most 'Indian' restaurants are actually Pakistani or Bangladeshi. While Australia concentrates on big cities, the UK is a country made up of a patchwork of large towns and smaller cities.

And each one has an irrational hatred of another one, largely based around football. Some rivalries — Liverpool vs Manchester and Glasgow vs Edinburgh are well known. Others, such as Portsmouth vs Southampton, Ipswich vs Norwich or Nottingham vs Derby may come as a befuddling surprise. This collection of hundreds of distinct local identities often shows in the accent — which can undergo a complete change within the space of 50km.

England Travel Guide

Only a select few of them tend to make it overseas in TV and films, although credit is due to Littlefinger in Game Of Thrones for attempting to run through every single one of them within a single episode. In short, expect to think: Despite a football-mad reputation, many Brits only have a slight interest in the sport. But British men, in particular, learn to be able to bluff about football from a very early age, even if only for the purposes of default pub conversation.

Just because someone is talking football doesn't mean they really want to be. Where to find the best pub and pie in England See also: How a rural English village became a foodie mecca. Previous slide Next slide. The astonishing local landscape that can only be visited by ship or seaplane Contains: In Turkey, fantastic rose-scented soap. We were in Morocco during Ramadan, so most places were closed for lunch; we ate a ton of olives, soft cheese and pita that we got from markets. These are great tips, and I really love your blog. This is a practice that I follow. When I am on a tour, I send an email to my family everyday.

In this I include all that we saw during the day. Once I am back from, say a 7 day tour of Kenya, all the details on the email can be consolidated into one document which then becomes the travel details that one could refer to at a future point of time when we may tend to forget details of which hotel we stayed in or which place we visited.

I make a point to get at least a few of my own pictures processed near the middle of my trip, slap a postcard backing to it http: Hi David, I have subscribed to your blog and its good to read your posts on Thailand. I am going to Phuket for 4N5D. Have heard that Phi Phi Island sound very common and has crowds where as Phra Nang is more peaceful and scenic. Pls help me with this as I am flying today eveing. The costs are very high for both nothing less than THB pp, so need to freeze on one.

Our plan also has one eveing of Fanatsea show, one day City tour, ONe days any island trip, and one day we have kept for ourselves to expleore the place. Any suggestions on what we can do on 4th day? I would definitely do the Phra Nang tour as yes, Phi Phi is a bit overrun.

I also bring a multivitamin. Italian food is risky as well unless you like ketchup on your spaghetti. Rent is very high on corner spaces. They need your business every bit as much as someone in the middle of the block. Restaurants near or in train stations and airports have a captive audience and often let the quality slide. I adore the list.

I have some few rules myself.


  1. Legally Lucky?
  2. Thrilling and Amazing Travel Tips!.
  3. Food and Drink?
  4. UK Travel Tips!

I actually enjoy traveling alone. No need to wait for someone and I really get to do what I want. I alo do not spend so much in hotels because I really want to experience the destination: I did not travel to stay the whole day stuck in a hotel. I totally skipped the Louvre when I visited Paris. Had much more fun for me poking around in shops devoted to music boxes! Might I add never book a room in a hotel or resort you find out about merely because they posted a generic comment on a blog, with a link in their name back to their site. Koh Samui is beautiful by the way.

Try Rocky Resort, we loved it. I like this blog very well. Self-righteous nationalists are very boring, no matter where they come from. I never even thought about 3…from now on…i promise!

Follow the tourist trail

Great advice overall, but as for 2, do not eat Chinese food in Cremona, Italy. OK, it might be Colgate, but the foreign-language tube will be a great souvenir. If you are lost, ask directions from an old lady with a dog. A dentist friend also clued me in on the fact that outside the US, the toothpaste has a higher fluoride content.

The regular toothpaste overseas has elevated fluoride content and costs way less. Now I always do that when on the road. And in 10, one statement informs a percentage of the potential audience the author does not want them to read the blog. I do agree it was a cheap shot and if creating the biggest blog possible were my ultimate goal then it would probably be wise to leave opinions off the page.

ENGLISH VOCABULARY

One of the more interesting things about the Fox News set is the persecution complex. Want to know another news outlet that attracts the occasional derision? The likes of Us Weekly and celebrity tabloids. Black pudding is a form of blood sausage that many British people adore. A "full English" or "fry up" refers to breakfast and often includes eggs, bacon, sausage, black pudding, beans, fried bread and fried tomatoes.

The bacon in England is similar to Canadian bacon with very little fat. If you want American-style bacon, ask for "streaky bacon. In England, sodas are often served at room temperature without ice. Definitely be prepared for a few strange looks if you ask for iced tea. It's rarely, if ever, available in England. Driving in England can be a challenge to visitors. The driver's side of the car in England is on the left and the British drive on the left side of the road. Remember that driving on the left necessitates passing on the right. The majority of rental cars in England are manual transmissions, so be prepared to shift gears with your left hand.

Pick up a copy of the "British Highway Code" to familiarize yourself with the driving laws in England. This handy guide is available at most newsstands and in gas stations -- known in England as petrol stations. On a positive note, there's no need to obtain a driver's license in England. You're fine to drive with your American license for up to 12 months.

Good manners are a must, particularly in England. The reserve of the British people is not a myth -- it's a fact. Speaking loudly -- particularly in public, criticizing the queen or any other facet of the British lifestyle, or asking too many probing questions will immediately get you labeled as a rude American.