Escape from the City (Short Breaks from London)

Member Name: skittle

Product:	Short Breaks from London
Date:	16/07/04 (213 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Getting away from it all

Disadvantages: The cost

If you?re tired of the big smoke and all that the city has to offer (and who could blame you if you are) then you?re probably desperate for some peace and tranquillity, far from the sounds of car engines, nightclubs, drunkards, all night supermarkets? Need I say more? Thought not.

Personally, when I want to soothe my soul, I head for the sea. From London you?re within very easy reach of Brighton, but if you fancy somewhere a little less cosmopolitan (and a lot more sandy) then Southend is also only an hours drive, depending on traffic, from the centre of London.

At Southend you?ll find the longest pier in the world? But don?t worry, you don?t have to trek all of the way to the end of it on foot if you don?t want to! There?s a train on the pier which takes passengers to the end, and back again if you wish, and leaves every few minutes. Tickets for the train are very cheap, though I can?t remember exactly how much they cost. It?s well worth getting the train at least one way, especially if you have kids with you, as they?ll absolutely love the experience of chugging along above the waves. To be honest, there isn?t really too much in the way of entertainment at the end of the pier ? a small arcade, a few stalls, a café, the all-important lifeboat station and the theatre (which never seems to be open when I visit!) But for the fishermen amongst you, I?ve seen guys fishing off the end of the pier struggling with remarkably large fish (and not just the ones they?ve bought in batter from the chip shop!)

Still, in Southend you can also sample the delights of fish and chips, play some bingo, spend all of your money in the arcades or an exciting few hours in the adventure park at the entrance to the pier. There is ample car parking, with car parks right along the sea front, and the parking charges are reasonable for a seaside resort? Just don
?t forget to buy a ticket, as the car park attendants in Southend are extremely vigilant and they?ll certainly catch you if you forget!

If you like your day at the seaside to be a little more organised, then you could always spend a day at Butlins in Minehead from only £9 a day for kids and senior citizens, £12 for adults or £34 for a family. Not all of the attractions are available to day visitors, and day visitors are not allowed into the park every day, so it?s best to check the website for availability first. Whilst at Butlins, however, you can have a game of pool, bowls or ten pin bowling, take a spin around the go kart track, eat at a selection of cafés and restaurants or swim away the calories in Splash Waterworld amongst many, many other attractions available to you.

Of course, if you drive out of London in almost any direction and just keep driving, you?ll eventually find yourself in some beautiful countryside. Living in the capital you?re within ridiculously easy reach of the home counties and all that they have to offer. Kent isn?t called the ?Garden of England? for nothing and is full of perfect places for a picnic, if that?s your thing.

And whilst you?re in Kent anyway, why not take a trip out to Dover and spend some time at the famous White Cliffs. Of course, as you?re in Dover already it would be a shame not to hop on a ferry across to France for a little bit of culture, and to stock up the drinks cabinet on the way back, perhaps! Two people in an average sized car can make a one-day return trip to Calais for under £30, if they were to travel today ? that?s a bargain in my book!

Of course, if you?re a non-driver, or just without a car at the moment, you can catch the Eurostar to Paris from London ? however, in my opinion the price (at approx £300 return per person, when I checked on the website) i
s absolutely extortionate, and you?d probably be better off financially hiring a car and taking the ferry! Still, the Eurostar does give you the opportunity to relax and watch the scenery go by in comfort as you travel, and at six hours from London to Paris, you?ll be there in less time than it would?ve taken you to get to Scotland!

If you travel north a few miles up the A1, or jump on a WAGN train out of King?s Cross, you?ll soon find yourself at Hatfield, where you can spend a lovely day wandering around Hatfield House, home of the Marquess of Salisbury. The entrance to the house is located directly opposite the train station, so it should be difficult to miss. Both the beautiful house itself and the wonderful gardens are open to the public. Whilst it?s free to wander the grounds, there is a small entrance fee for the house. Regular events are held at Hatfield House including Craft Fayres, Country Living Fayres, Book Sales and very soon they?re having Shakespeare in the park (I only hope the weather picks up before then!)

And if Shakespeare is your thing, then you could always make the trip up to Stratford Upon Avon, the home of Shakespeare. However, this is quite a distance to travel for a very short break?

You could, of course, remain in the Hatfield area if Hatfield House has given you a taste for all things grandiose. Brocket Hall, one time family home of the infamous Lord Brocket of ?I?m a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here? is also located just outside Hatfield, and can be booked for private events such as themed weekends, weddings and parties, though I dread to think how much this would cost! Brocket Hall boasts not just one, but two 18 hole golf courses! They also have the Faldo Golf Institut
e and their much acclaimed lakeside restaurant, Novelli at Auberge du Lac.

If you?re desperate to run away from the hustle and bustle of the city, but don?t have the time, energy or money to actually get out of London, then there are plenty of places you can ?escape to? even in the heart of the city. For example, London Zoo or any one of the gorgeous London Parks would give you a feeling of freedom and getting back to nature without actually leaving the big smoke. The parks are ideal for a picnic, reading a book in the open air or just lazing on a blanket so long as the weather is nice, and a short break here needn?t cost you a penny!

But if money is no object, then you?re really spoilt for choice as there are several wonderful health spas located within easy reach of London where you can allow yourself to be pampered to within an inch of your life! Champneys Health Resort in Tring, Hertfordshire, or Henlow Grange in Henlow, Bedfordshire are only a short drive North, either could be reached in a little over an hour, driving conditions permitting. A little further away to the South West, close to Liphook in Hampshire, is Champneys Forest Mere. Here you can experience a healing circle, and therapies from Reiki to Graphology, amongst many other pampering delights.

And whilst you?re out in the South West anyway, a trip to Stone Henge on Salisbury Plain is highly recommended. There?s something eerie; a mystical feeling emanating from the stones - stark as they are against the openness of the plain. This isn?t spoilt by the coach loads of tourists snapping pictures of each other in front of the stones, the Henge is so mesmerising that it blocks out all interruptions as you gaze up at it in wonder. Believe me, if you haven?t seen Stone Henge it is much more awe
inspiring than you can imagine. Even just driving past on the A303 you can feel a resonance from the stones that usually wakes me up if I?ve fallen asleep (that?s in the passenger seat, not behind the wheel!)

Visiting Stone Henge is not cheap, with prices from £2.60 for children between 5 and 15 years old, up to a whopping £5.20 for an adult ticket. However, it is definitely one of those places that must be visited at least once in your life, if only so that you can say that you?ve been there. Stone Henge is open every day of the year except Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year's Day, until 16:00 every afternoon during the winter, though it stays open as late as 19:00 in summer.

During the Summer months the South of England is home to more music festivals than you can shake a stick at, the vast majority of which are within easy reach of London. The Reading festival is probably one of the most well known, and it takes place in late August (27th to 29th August 2004). The V Festival in Chelmsford can be reached very quickly from London too, and this year takes place the weekend before Reading, on 21st and 22nd August 2004. Unfortunately you?ve missed the Isle of Wight Festival for this year, along with what is probably the most well known British Festival of them all, the fantastic Glastonbury Festival ? but there?s always next year!

However, if you?re cheesed off with this Country in its entirety and just need to get away, you?re in absolutely the best place to do that from. Fast trains with comfortable seats and dining cars leave from London stations for Wales and Scotland many times a day, at a price. But if that isn?t far enough for you, then you can always escape to practically anywhere in the world from the London airp
orts. That is as long as the baggage handlers don?t go on strike!

Short break to New York, anyone?

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