3x young Swedes going to England last week of June, suggestions?
Replies: 14 - Last Post: Jun 7, 2012 3:54 AM Last Post By: Fwoggie
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3x young Swedes going to England last week of June, suggestions?
Hi,We are three Swedish guys (25, 23, 21) arriving in Stansted Airport June 26. We thought of renting a car and go north to Nottingham and York. It would be cheaper than bus or train from what I have seen (which never would happen in Sweden).
I suppose that I will have to drive since I am the only person over 25 so it will be a cheaper insurance? I guess I will have to practice driving on the left side at the airport before hitting the road... ;-)
What companies are the better out of those where you can pick up and leave the car at Stansted?
I heard that YMCA have low price hostels but I only find hostels for homeless people (using Google), I suppose that isn't what we looked for. Anyone knows anything about that? Are there other low cost organisations when it comes to accomodation?
If we should not go to Nottingham/York, where should we go? To save some petrol and costs, what could be nice sights closer to Stansted? I suppose we want places with young people, friendly people, picturesque views, and not too expensive places either, and some good beer.
1
Hi! Thank you for replying!I was thinking of Cambridge myself yesterday as I saw it being close to Stansted, I don't know why I overlooked that.
The universityrooms.co.uk website seem to have some very cheap hostels listed there as well, found eg. one in York for £16.20
You or someone else know any trustworthy car rental companies in Cambridge?
// Dan
2
Just question, but if you are visiting Nottingham and York have you looked at Flying into East Midlands Airport...!?3
Or perhaps Leeds or Newcastle airports - Newcastle to Nottingham is no further than Stansted to York, plus you get the chance to visit Durham and the Yorkshire Dales or North Yorkshire Moors for some excellent scenery.4
Try this website for car hire http://www.vroomvroomvroom.co.uk/5
Well, no airport here has flights to Newcastle, Leeds nor East Midlands airports. I would then have to change flights in either Amsterdam or Frankfurt and pay 5 to 10 times more. One option was Manchester, but it was outruled cause of the price those dates we are going.Stansted is already booked.
6
Regarding trains : as you're all under 26, you're all eligible for 18-25 rail cards. They cost about £28, and a passport photo, but chop a third off most train tickets ( Being British, the pricing structure's a little strange, tickets for trips which start before 10AM on a weekday won't be reduced to less then £12. Apart from in July and August ).You can also use them when buying Advance tickets off the internet. They remain valid for a year - so if you decide you want to come back next year, they can be re-used.
Don't know if we're allowed to post links here : but enter "16–25 Railcard" into Wikipedia or Google, and you should find more information.
8
Don't forget coaches as a consideration for cheap transport - www.megabus.com is good for pre-booked tickets which can be as low as £1. Also National Express and Greyhound.I would personally avoid car hire, but that's a matter for you.
www.hostelworld.com is one place to find hostels, however you may prefer to book direct once you've identified a hostel you want to stay at.
11
Southwold is nice but as Fwoggie says very much the preserve of monied weekenders. The same goes for Aldeburgh. Still in Suffolk, Orford is a bit less gentrified but doesn't as far as I can recall have a beach, as such.Into north Norfolk, Wells-next-the-Sea and Sheringham are good options. The beaches are generally better in Norfolk than Suffolk. Avoid Burnham Market ("Chelsea-on-Sea") at all costs. Cromer is a pleasant little seaside town, or there's Great Yarmouth for the full-on British seaside experience - highly tacky but fun enough for a brief visit.
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Hi all,Thank you for all tips. Anyway we decided after much discussion (and a very strong will from especially one person in the group who have visited England before) to take a train to Nottingham the first day, stay two nights, then take a train to York and stay two nights, and then leave with a National Express bus in the middle of the night arriving in the morning at Stansted.
Transport was in total 159,1£ which is a bit more than car hiring would cost us, but then petrol, parking would be added and I've never been driving in England before and haven't been driving for over a year here in Sweden, so I think it's for the best not driving the first time :)
So tips for Nottingham and York are strongly appreciated!
//d
13
For York see the city's tourism website http://www.visityork.org/ . There's enough to keep you busy there for a week or two. I live between Nottingham and York and of the two York has much much more of interest. The city's tourism website is http://www.experiencenottinghamshire.com/ but there is probably more of interest in the surrounding countryside than in the city. Hope that gives you a start.14
Why are you staying in Nottingham for 2 days?
