Beyond London

I have met tons of people on my travels who've been to England and only visited London and Brighton. Nothing wrong with that at all, I'm just curious as to why so many people follow that particular itinerary. Is it because Brighton is close to London, or that Brighton is more of a British icon than I'm giving it credit for?

Sorry, absolutely not helpful. Well, you can't go far wrong with both Cambridge and Salisbury. If you plan on visiting the latter then it's best to go by car because there is glorious driving to be had round that way and you can see Stone Henge, the cathedral, and not to forget some cracking pubs. Cambridge boasts (or at least used to) having more pubs than days in a year. There are scores of charming Victorian real ale pubs full of Cambridge eccentrics.

 

A quick one hour flight to Edinburgh would do you good.

 

I'd recommend Bristol too, It's pretty near Bath (ish) and it's cheap if you book a few weeks in advance, being a pretty well used line. Cardiff too if you don't mind 3 hours there and 3 hours back.

Actually I would recommend a few days or a week even in Wales if you ever get the opportunity to come to the UK for more than a week (perhaps visiting Cardiff then on to Pembrokeshire and then up to Gwynedd if you have time). Booming beer culture, beautiful landscapes (beaches of Pembrokeshire and the mountains of Snowdonia) and amazing castles.

 

Yup, York would be an excellent choice! You can walk round the mediaeval walls, learn about the Romans and Vikings and visit the cathedral. And as for pub choices you'll get dizzy just trying to pick one....

Only 2 hours from London on the world's greatest rail service

 

Yeah, Cambridge and Oxford are pretty much the same thing. York is great. If you're prepared to travel farther afield I'd recommend Manchester or Liverpool as well.

 

You could try St Albans - 30 minutes north of London on the train. A fairly compact city with quite a lot of heritage and quite a few decent pubs in the city centre.

 

My favorite pub outside London is hands down Just Beer Micropub in the awesome town of Newark on Trent. Just a tremendous atmosphere, great people, beer and the owner Phil is tremendous. We were just in England and we took our third trip to Newark. A couple of regulars remembered us and even where we are from! I love the place. Thanks again to Marquis who mentioned Just Beer on this forum a few years back. Newark is a easy trip from London of just over 1 hour.

 

The day before we re-visited Newark we went to York. My lady's niece is living in York at the present time. We hit a bunch of pubs on a great crawl. Maltings, Brigantes, and The York Tap were among the pubs we hit.

 

I I took the time to write down all the towns we have visited on day trips from London I'd be here for an hour. Brighton is not one of them. For some reason I have no desire to go there.

 

And Newark is only half an hour's drive from Nottingham which has an amazing array of good pubs within walking distanc of the city centre. It also hosts the world's biggest cask ale festival in October.

 

Last night it was cask pints of Elgood Cambridge Bitter and Marston's Smash. Sadly, but not unexpectedly, they were both dreadful. Random old school cask brewing at its worst. Something more cheery tonight I'm sure.

 

Cornwall is a great spot for scenery and local cask beers. The drive is well worth it.

 

I never imagined I'd see someone recommend my home town as a beer destination. The Prince Rupert is pretty nice, too. Just a shame about the chavs.

 

Well kept Cambridge Bitter is a lovely beer.Makes a change from all these golden aleswhich I find tiresome.

 

For a day visitor Newark is excellent. An historic town worth a visit in its own right and near the castle are three good pubs a couple of minutes walk from each other; Just Beer,the Prince Rupert and the Castle.Plus lots of pubs elsewhere.

 

That's what I always assumed. But it was served far far too cold before it dawned on me that it had been pulled through a sparkler.

 

I do like the Prince Rupert, oozes history. Have had well kept beer there too.