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Category Archives: Miscellaneous

Fare-dodging on UK trains – what’s your view?

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Posted by admin on December 13, 2011 – 4:55 pm
Filed under Miscellaneous, Transport

An investigation is underway after a youth attempting to travel without a ticket was – almost quite literally – thrown off a  train by another passenger at Linlithgow Station. It was the Edinburgh to Perth Scotrail train and the youth in question was refusing to disembark despite not having a ticket, using some rather choice vocabulary despite young children being present and generally being antisocial. In situations like this, the train would usually be delayed until police arrived to take the individual off the train, but one disgruntled passenger wasn’t prepared to wait for all of that and helped to physically remove the passenger, to the applause of other passengers.  The incident happened last Friday and can be viewed here:

It’s been viewed more than half a million times already but that will no doubt escalate now that BBC and Sky News have covered it.

Anyway, what’s your take on it all? There’s rumour that the passenger who went to the aid of the conductor could face prosecution for taking the matter into his own hands? Is this unfair or should we all have a zero tolerance to individuals who have such little regard for the system and other passengers? Comments, please!

Useful links:
Linlithgow hotels
Linlithgow B&Bs
Linlithgow self-catering
Linlithgow  attractions

Top 10 Twixmas activities in England

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Posted by admin on December 11, 2011 – 9:52 pm
Filed under Miscellaneous

Wondering what to do between Christmas and New Year! Here’s our guide to the top 10 things to do in England:

1. Wild Winter Safari at West Midland Safari Park

2. Christmas at Muncaster Castle, Ravenglass, Cumbria

3. “Shhh… A Christmas Story”, Northern Stage, Barras Bridge, Newcastle

4. Jemima Puddle-Duck and her friends, Brentwood Theatre, Essex

5. Osbourne House, Isle of Wight

6. Guided Walk, Quarry Bank Mill, Cheshire

7. Snow Park, Strood, Kent

8. Turner Prize 2011, BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art, Gateshead Quays

9. The Nutcracker and Romeo and Juliet at the Brighton Dome

10. A winter’s stroll at Burghley, Stamford, Lincolnshire

Let Cumbria and the Lake District take your breath away…

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Posted by John Shimeld on December 8, 2011 – 12:13 pm
Filed under Miscellaneous

The English Lake District in the county of Cumbria is a truly wonderful place to visit for a day out, short break or an extended holiday.

The most famous part is the Lake District National Park, with its beautiful lakes and fells that are guaranteed to just take your breath away, and the always popular towns of Keswick, Windermere, Bowness and Ambleside. However in truth the whole of the county of Cumbria is a wonderful place and many areas outside of the National Park itself are well worth considering when planning your visit.

To the west is the Cumbrian coast with its fantastic views, sandy beaches, cliff top walks and quaint coastal towns. St Bees is famous for being the start of Wainwright’s long distance Coast to Coast walk, which finishes in Yorkshire on the east coast of England, however it also an ideal base for a family holiday. Ravenglass is also a superb place to visit or stay. Set on a river estuary where the rivers Irt, Esk and Mite empty into the sea, it was previously a Roman naval base and there is plenty of the history and heritage still to be seen.

Set on the Cartmel Peninsula to the south, the town of Grange-over-Sands in Morecambe Bay is another very popular destination with lots to offer the visitor, and was a very popular holiday destination in Edwardian times with plenty of the architecture of the time still evident today. It is also an ideal destination for ‘twitchers’ and nature lovers with flourishing coastal bird life and numerous nature reserves to visit.

To the east is the Eden Valley and the lively market town of Penrith which is just off the M6 motorway so very accessible, and has a range of shops, pubs and restaurants, plus of course the market. The world famous Settle to Carlisle railway also runs through east Cumbria which gives visitors other options for days out further afield and, if you get your timing right, a chance to see or even ride on a historic steam powered train.

The above is just a flavour of what the Lake District and Cumbria has to offer the visitor. It really is a fantastic holiday destination so start planning your visit – you will not be disappointed.

John Shimeld is Managing Director at Stayin the Lake District.

If you would like to be a guest blogger on the UKseries.com UK Travel Blog in order to raise your profile, please contact us.

Christmas trail through The Canterbury Tales

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Posted by admin on December 7, 2011 – 9:42 pm
Filed under Miscellaneous

Visitors on route from the Tabard Inn in London to Canterbury to visit Sir Thomas Beckett’s tomb will be challenged to complete a Christmas themed word search using visual and audio clues located through the various medieval streets – but the biggest test could well be finding the courage to locate the mistletoe above the Wife of Bath!

Everyone who successfully completes the word search will receive a small tasty treat and will be entered into a prize draw to win family tickets to The Canterbury Tales’ five award winning sister attractions including Kent Life near Maidstone, the Spinnaker Tower in Portsmouth, Oxford Castle – Unlocked in Oxford, The Real Mary King’s Close in Edinburgh as well as a new chocolate themed attraction opening in York next Spring. The winner will have a year to redeem their prize.

The Christmas Trail through the Canterbury Tales will start on 17th December 2011 and run through the Christmas holidays until the 3 January 2012. Visit www.canterburytales.org.uk for further information.

Useful links:
Canterbury hotels
Canterbury self-catering
Canterbury attractions

Devon’s award winners

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Posted by admin on December 2, 2011 – 4:35 pm
Filed under Accommodation, Attractions, Eating & Drinking, Events, Miscellaneous, Transport

The Devon Tourism Awards celebrates the best of Devon and this year’s awards sees a bumper crop of businesses offering outstanding service and unforgettable experiences. Amongst them, having picked up no less than three awards is Gidleigh Park Hotel. Also on Dartmoor and Silver Award Winners are Ilsington Country House Hotel and  Woodovis Park, and specialising in creating lasting memories is Aerosaurus Balloons and south Devon’s Pennywell Farm.

To find out more about the Devon Tourism Awards and the best of Devon’s accommodation, attractions and more click here.

Useful links:
Devon hotels
Devon B&Bs
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Devon attractions

Remaining Paralympics tickets go on sale

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Posted by admin on December 1, 2011 – 3:08 pm
Filed under Events, Miscellaneous

“Sport like never before.” That’s how London 2012 are billing the Paralympic Games.  And, if you’d like to get your hands on some tickets for this amazing sporting spectacle, then tomorrow is when the remaining tickets will go on sale. Unlike the fiasco of its able-bodied counterpart, these tickets will be available via this link on a first come first serve basis, starting at 1pm on Friday 2nd December 2011. Don’t miss out!

Useful links:
Hotels in London
B&Bs in London
Self-catering in London
Tourist attractions in London

Christmas in the UK

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Posted by Doug Scott on December 1, 2011 – 11:34 am
Filed under Attractions, Events, Miscellaneous

Christmas is a great time for holidays in the UK. There are so many places to go and enjoy winter attractions. Some people even choose to go and stay in an hotel or resort over the festive season, thereby avoiding the washing up that invariably accompanies the Christmas holidays.

One way of enjoying a Christmas break in the UK is to rent a cottage, apartment or house in the location of your choice. There are many websites helping you find the perfect accommodation. So, if you fancy a country cottage Christmas in the Cotswolds, then it is all possible. Some of these rental agencies specialise in renting large houses catering for large groups or several families. It is possible, for instance, to enjoy Christmas in a Scottish castle. The quality of many of these rental properties is exceptional and they offer really luxurious accommodation with well equipped kitchens, hot tubs and state of the art entertainment systems.

For some, no matter how luxurious the rented house, there is still a lot to do to make the perfect Christmas. Hotels run Christmas breaks to take all the strain out of managing the festive season. Many hotels have rural locations but provide everything you might need. Generally, these kind of hotel deals include Christmas Eve dinner as well as Christmas dinner. Many of these affairs are black tie and of extremely high quality. These quality hotels also have gyms, spas and swimming pools if you want to work off a little of the Christmas excess. There are many hotels offering these kinds of Christmas packages and each package provides something different depending on the location of the hotel.

Other people prefer to stay at home for the actual festivities but like to enjoy the holiday period at various attractions throughout the country. Christmas markets can be found in many towns and cities offering an array of goods from leather goods to Christmas biscuits. These are good places to try international foods and have a glass of mulled wine before tackling your Christmas shopping.

Popular local attractions often have Christmas themed activities to enjoy. For example, The Eden Project in Cornwall ice skating throughout the winter months to coincide with the Christmas holidays. National Trust and English Heritage properties throughout the country also have Christmas themed activities to enjoy. There are many companies that can organise whatever luxury Christmas extravaganza you have in mind, whether it is a small, intimate celebration or a huge party for a large group. You could try enjoying Christmas activities in an unusual venue such as a safari park.

Longleat, for example, has loads on offer at Christmas and is particularly good for families. Aside from the usual attractions, there is also an ice rink, a huge tree, the chance to meet some fairytale characters as well as Father Christmas, of course. Christmas is a time for splashing out so take the opportunity to enjoy some real luxury in all kinds of places throughout the UK.

Doug Scott is Owner of discountvouchers.co.uk

If you would like to be a guest blogger on the UKseries.com UK Travel Blog in order to raise your profile, please contact us.

Find a perfect Christmas present in The National Forest

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Posted by admin on November 27, 2011 – 11:21 am
Filed under Miscellaneous

For those scratching their heads about what to get friends and family who seem to have everything, The National Forest may hold the perfect solution for Christmas gifts.

Plant a Tree is truly a gift that grows. Each tree is £25 and in return for supporting the Forest, you (or the person receiving the gift) will receive an invitation to attend a special tree planting event, a choice of tree to plant (normally ash, oak or birch), as well as a personalised certificate commemorating the gift. And you can keep visiting the Forest to see how your little tree within the woodland is growing. Please note that the last date for Christmas purchase is 16th December 2011.

With a daily market, quaint courtyards and gift shops, Ashby de la Zouch is also a lovely setting to pick up a special Christmas gift. The castle is near the town centre, so you can combine a visit here with a leisurely lunch and a touch of shopping. Browse around the wonderful shops at the Ferrers Centre for Arts & Crafts, which is home to craft workshops and the Ferrers Gallery. You can hand-paint a present for Christmas both here and at Crackpotz Ceramic Café in Alrewas. Barton Marina also has beautiful shops along its waterfront promenade including The Butcher, Baker and Ice-cream Maker and the Toys of Yesteryear.

You can pick up pottery and crafts at Sharpe’s Pottery Museum and at Mount St Bernard Abbey, where a unique range of pottery is lovingly handmade by its resident monks. Or how about a gift voucher for one of the fantastic woodland craft and bushcraft courses in The National Forest. Greenwood Days, Woodland Ways, the Survival School and Woodland Survival Crafts all offer gift vouchers that make perfect presents. These can be used for a range of truly memorable workshops, day and weekend courses.

Useful links:
Ashby de la Zouch hotels
Ashby de la Zouch B&Bs
Ashby de la Zouch cottages
Ashby de la Zouch attractions

New guide to tracing your Scottish ancestry

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Posted by admin on November 26, 2011 – 12:34 pm
Filed under Attractions, Miscellaneous

Scotland has long been a country of rich history and heritage and has an estimated 50 million people from around the world who can lay claim to having Scots ancestry. In order to capitalise on the increasing interest in tracing family roots, spurred on by shows like BBC’s “Who do you think you are?” and countless radio shows, VisitScotland has launched a guide to tracing Scottish ancestry which will highlight the unusual and surprising places people can go to learn more about their ancestors. Launched to coincide with St Andrews Day, the guide is available to download from here from 30th November 2011. (Visitors downloading the guide will also be able to take advantage of over 350 money-off vouchers on accommodation offers on things to see, do, eat and drink across Scotland.)

The guide comes in an easy to use map format and is suitable for those just starting to trace their routes to the more advanced and experienced. It highlights a mix of Scottish visitor attractions, museums, libraries and research centres across the country and includes everything from the Scottish Fisheries Museum in Anstruther, Perth Museum and Art Gallery and Verdant Works in Dundee to a range of research centres including the Scotland’s People Centre based in Edinburgh, where the likes of Billy Connolly, Sir Alex Ferguson, Lulu and Gordon Ramsay have all had their ancestry traced. Also featured is the Highland Council Genealogy Centre in Inverness and the Mitchell Library in Glasgow.

Researching Scottish roots and ancestry couldn’t be simpler, it’s as easy as writing your name, date and place of birth and the family tree has started; adding in family members helps extend it and the new VisitScotland guide and Scotland’s world class depth of ancestral records showcases some of Scotland’s must visit genealogy and history hotspots, including:

Culloden Battlefield Visitor Centre, Inverness – There are many different stories about Culloden. Visitors often have their own views on the battle, the events that led up to it and those that flowed from it. Now, 250 years on, Culloden is still a site that connects visitors intimately with the past.

New Lanark World Heritage Centre, South Lanarkshire – Founded by David Dale in 1785, the village became famous as a model industrial community under the enlightened management of Dale’s son-in-law, Robert Owen, from 1800-1825. Owen transformed life in New Lanark with ideas and opportunities which were at least a hundred years ahead of their time. Child labour and corporal punishment were abolished, and villagers were provided with decent homes, schools and evening classes, free health care, and affordable food.

National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh – Scotland is a country with a remarkable history. So it should come as no surprise that Scotland is home to plethora of museums and heritage centres. These range from the major, internationally renowned collections in Edinburgh’s National Museum of Scotland to hundreds of small centres that specialise in the history of local communities.

Scottish Borders Archive and Local History Centre – Visit this centre to find out about Borders family history, communities, industries and people. Discover how the Scottish Borders has evolved and developed through the centuries in the state of the art archive facility.

Useful links:
Hotels in Scotland
B&Bs in Scotland
Self-catering in Scotland
Camping in Scotland
Tourist attractions in Scotland

Museum desperate to buy rare Charlotte Bronte manuscript

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Posted by trev on November 25, 2011 – 5:48 pm
Filed under Attractions, Miscellaneous

The Bronte Parsonage Museum dedicated to the life and works of the Bronte sisters and now they need help to buy an remarkable original miniature manuscript written by Charlotte Bronte when she was just 14 years old.

Entitled Young Men’s Magazine Number 2, the 4000 word, 19 page manuscript is part of a series of six, with four of the other publications in this series already owned by the Bronte Parsonage Museum.

Director of the museum is quoted as saying the manuscript is “the most significant [Bronte] manuscript to come to light in decades“, which is not surprising as it both contains hints towards some of Charlotte’s later work and is also rather amazing due to the tiny size of the publication at just 3.5cm by 6.1cm (1.4in x 2.4in).

Sotheby’s in London are due to auction Young Men’s Magazine Number 2 on the 15th December with a guide price of £300,000 although due to the rare nature of this item, the price may well go well above this.

So now the museum has the remaining 3 weeks to find £300,000 to have a chance of securing one of the most culturally important Bronte treasures to come onto the market in many years.

More Hayworth Resources:
Bronte Parsonage Blog
Visitor attractions in Haworth, West Yorkshire
Hotels in Keithley (close to Haworth)
Holiday cottages in Keithley
Southerby’s Auctions