Wow, this is random, gonna do something I never thought I would. Go on a cruise. We’re booked the first week of January. Also going to launch out of the US, so I guess I’m entering the US which is another thing I wasn’t planning on doing. Fortunately, it’s just passing through.
It’s been too long since I’ve had a decent vacation with my spouse. A buddy hired my wife to do his admin work in about a week because he booked a last minute cruise. We got talking, turns out last minute cruises are absurdly inexpensive. Like, stupid. I got looking, it cost me $1000Canadian for a 5 day cruise. That’s $1k for 5 days of sun, and 5 days away from work. Both of which I’m sorely in need of. I wouldn’t have done it for $3K, but at a grand…I just can’t turn it down.
Well in their defence, they’re also the worst polluting industry on the entire planet and they’re a very effective covid distribution center. So they got that going for them.
It’s just…it was $1000. For 5 days. Hard to turn that down.
I have and will make an exception for destinations that are best explored by boat. Did a Galapagos family and friends cruise earlier this year. One still on my list is Alaska. Not exactly a cruise, but another I have on my list is chartering a barge with family/friends in French wine county.
The closest I ever got to a cruise was an Atlantic crossing from New York to Southampton on the Queen Mary 2. It was something my wife had wanted to do as her family always travelled by ocean liner for their home leaves from Europe in the 1950s, including on the original Queen Mary.
I enjoyed it as well as there was a lot of educational stuff to do on board. The highlight for an old rock music fan like me was meeting Roger McGuinn at his lecture.
i was thinking of building my own tour of ireland.
not sure how many days in a location, what is needed, etc. most places I plan to visit have…really good beer. So Dublin, Carlow, Kilkenny, Cork are on the list. From there, i suppose movin up the west coast before returning to dublin for the trip home (or more days touring).
so, open to cities to visit and # of days to stay in each.
If you want to nip over the border to Northern Ireland, I would suggest an overnight in (London)derry. The town has so much history and the top of the walls of the city make for a great walk.
Folks are friendly and the beer is good. Locals are willing to talk about their life during the Troubles if you are interested and if you are a sensitive listener.
I just booked a flight for September 15-25 into London and out of Dublin. So far I’m thinking Liverpool, then back to Edinburgh (didn’t get a proper look with my old friend who couldn’t walk much) and then fly to Londonderry, and train to Belfast and finally Dublin. I might add in another England stop as well.
I was a huge Beatles fan in the 1960s but didn’t make my first trip to Liverpool until I was almost 70. My maternal grandmother lived in The Liverpool Sheltering Home for Orphan and Destitute Children before she was shipped out to Canada: I visited it and The Cavern. I would not have visited Liverpool without those reasons. The historic area of Liverpool was lovely but two days there was enough.
In contrast, Edinburgh is my favourite UK city and I never pass up an opportunity to visit it.
As mentioned elsewhere, I liked (London)derry very much.
Any other cities between London and Edinburgh worth visiting? Glasgow is the home of my favorite band, but I’m not completely convinced that is a must-do. Liverpool seemed very colorful based on some random photos, but I’m not any sort of Beatles fan, and not dead set on my lower England agenda yet. Perhaps Newcastle with its iconic bridge and silly Angel of the North statue is right on the way? I do love a bit of Ant & Dec. I could spend more time in Ireland too but those three cities seemed conveniently aligned and sufficient.
I am a big fan of York and it is convenient by train on the way to Edinburgh. It is worth two days. I also love Cambridge and it is also a convenient train stop.
I have never visited Newcastle but my son enjoyed it a few years ago when he visited a friend there.
I found it unremarkable compared to both Edinburgh and London, had a worn down industrial town feel to it, but it had a few blocks of entertainment district that looked like it could have been fun on a Saturday night. It was mostly a check the box stop on a road trip and a few hours of walking around seemed sufficient.
Lake district or peak district between the two could be a scenic stop for a day or two.
While I wouldn’t do this as a “city visit while going from London to Edinburgh”, but assuming I go into my office in Lonon this spring, I am intending on taking a day to go visit Bletchley Park.
If you’re interested in urbanism / urban planning, Milton Keynes (one stop northwest of Bletchley) is probably worth a visit, but if you’re not…well, Milton Keynes seems to be a place the English love to hate.
Lake District is more accessible by train and bus than the Peak District. Take a fast train to Penrith from London snd catch one of the frequent shuttle buses to Keswick. My wife and I did it in September last year and the weather and views were gorgeous. Keswick is delightful and full of good restaurants. I no longer rent cars in the UK so appreciated the good public transit.
I like the York and Cambridge suggestions, think I will skip Liverpool now. We passed by York en route to Edinburgh on the train last time. I think Cambridge will take priority but we’ll see if York or Newcastle fits in.