UK Holiday
Surrey, Kent and Essex
MAIDSTONE for LEEDS CASTLE (from outside), and other nearby castles, e.g. DEAL.
CANTERBURY, ROCHESTER for lunch/pub.
WHITSTABLE for high street - a stone's throw from the sea.
SANDWICH, for a sandwich (Little Cottage Tearooms on The Quay).
DEAL: Castle and Timeball Tower at 1pm.
DOVER: Castle, but definitely white cliffs (guided walks?)
ROYAL TUNBRIDGE WELLS: 2 hours, springs (can drink) and walks)
SISSINGHURST: Nice gardens.
Sussex
BATTLE: Battle Abbey, nr. Hastings.
SOUTH DOWNS WAY, nr. EASTBOURNE, esp. BEACHY HEAD for cycling on chalk cliffs. Drusillas Park - penguins! (maybe for kids though, boo).
BRIGHTON: Royal Pavilion, Palace Pier - visit for sheer tackiness, museum of penny slot machines, Jubilee library - nice building and free internet. Good nightlife, stay in hostel?
Hampshire
PORTSMOUTH: Visit ships, get all inclusive pass, submarine/firepower museum, spinnaker tower - panoramic views. Southsea or old seafaring pubs for food.
WINCHESTER: Guided walks, free internet, nice cathedral / try to be there for evening - 5:30 (3:30 Sunday), guided tours on the hour.
NEW FOREST: Walk / ride at Lindhurst or Brockenhurst. Ranger-led hikes.
BOURNEMOUTH: Good nightlife, stay in hostel?
ISLE OF PURBECK: Beautiful castle (Corfe castle), Go from Poole or long road from Wareham (and use Harry's Bar - free net access). Beach at Shell Bay or Studland Bay - lovely. Places to stay at Swanage. Durdle Door - famour limestone arch. Many small towns in inland Dorset, e.g Longleat
Wiltshire
STONEHENGE and AVEBURY
Oxfordshire / Cotswolds
WANTAGE: White Horse Hill (lovely views) near Wantage.
OXFORD: Excellent guided walking tours, several daily, book in advance. Loads to do. Classical / theatre for nightlife.
COTSWOLDS: Great Tew (nr. Chipping Norton) for the Falkland Arms pubs. Lots of villages.
Bristol, Bath and Somerset
BRISTOL: Lots of historical attractions, waterways, Clifton Suspension Bridge, Camera Obscura, good nightlife.
BATH: Roman Baths, pump room, Thermae Bath Spa - thermal open air pool etc., charged per time. Free walking tours or bus tours.
WELLS: 20m south of Bristol. Nice cathedral.
WOOKEY HOLE: Cave complex with deep pools/rock formations, spooky.
CHEDDAR GORGE: Great vistas.
Devon and Cornwall
BEER: On the coast.
TORQUAY: Marina, beach, Living Coasts - penguins!
PLYMOUTH: Views over THe Sound, inns.
DARTMOOR: 2 hour walking tours, perhaps drive through?
EDEN PROJECT: 10 - 4;30, 0.5 day, good food, accompanied rides nearby, happytrailbikerides.co.uk.
LANDS END / ST IVES: Art scene.
TINTAGEL: Nice, castle ruins.
East Anglia
BURY ST EDMUNDS: Pretty, first planned town, Britain's smallest pub.
SOUTHWALD: Non-touristy seaside town.
NORWICH: Many grand cathedrals, old places to walk around, do NOT go on Sunday.
BLAKENEY: Lovely. Nice harbour, seal colony, www.beansboattrips.co.uk.
CAMBRIDGE: Guided walks, colleges.
West Midlands
IRONBRIDGE GORGE: Shropshire, Ludlow, picturesque, good food.
PEAK DISTRICT and BUXTON: The crescent, fountain, good base for P.D.
POOLES CAVERN and SPEEDWELL CAVERN near Castleton.
Others
Durham?
Places to visit in the North
Malham cove / tarn / limestone pavement, in Malham, Yorkshire Dales, http://www.malhamdale.com/
Robin Hoods Bay, scenic fishing village, North Yorkshire coast, http://www.robin-hoods-bay.co.uk/
Whitby, scenic fishing town and home of Captain Cook, North Yorkshire coast, http://www.whitby.co.uk/
Mother Shipton's Cave, Knaresborough, Yorkshire, http://www.knaresborough.co.uk/attractions/index.html
Settle-Carlisle Railway, Yorkshire Dales, http://www.settle-carlisle.co.uk/
Northumbrian coast, Alnwick to Berwick, fantastic long empty beaches, sand dunes, catles, http://www.alnwickcastle.com/ http://www.bamburghcastle.com/ http://www.seahouses.org/
Holy Island / Lindisfarne, Northumbria, http://www.holyisland.org/ http://www.lindisfarne.org.uk/
Hadrian's Wall, Northumbria, http://www.hadrians-wall.org/
Kielder Water (massive reservoir) and Kielder Forest (massive forrest), Northumbria, http://www.kielder.org/
Museum of Science and Industry, Manchester, http://www.msim.org.uk/
Tramway Museum, Derby, http://www.tramway.co.uk/
Urbis, Manchester, http://www.urbis.org.uk/
Buxton, market / spa town in the Peak District, http://www.visitbuxton.co.uk/
Blue John Cavern, Castleton, Peak District (big limestone cave), http://www.bluejohnstone.com/