Discover the best of England, Scotland and Ireland according to the English, Scottish and Irish!😀
I did this tour in 20 days, including arrival and departure. But if you have less time, you can do the same itinerary in 15 days. For those who have less than 15 days, I recommend a shorter tour, leaving out some places, so you can enjoy each tour more without rushing around. Check it out!
Great Britain, United Kingdom or British Isles?
First it is important to understand the difference between each place, it’s easy, look:
Reasons to visit the UK and Ireland!
Spectacular architecture: get ready to see medieval, Roman and Gothic buildings all at once. And it’s not an easy thing. It’s the building of an emperor, an absolutist king, a Tudor dynasty, and so on. It’s truly out of the ordinary.
Top-quality whiskey and beer: do you know the legend of whiskey that is filtered who knows how many times and leaves the drink fuller-bodied, purer and with better flavor? Well, this legend exists, and it corresponds to the best whiskeys in the world. You can also get to know great brands of beer, including Guinness, which is produced in Dublin.
History: It doesn’t matter how much you hated history in school. The history of this place is so fascinating that you’ll end up getting into it and becoming a lover of it, whether it’s the themes of tyrant kings, endless wars, legends or great heroes. You’ve probably heard of the movies Braveheart, Queen Victoria or The King’s Speech, right? Well, they’re Hollywood productions that only became famous and won awards for the amount of history this place contains.
Have you heard of William Wallace? Winston Churchill? Adam Smith? Oscar Wilde? Queen Elizabeth I? Just walk through the streets of this place and you’ll understand every character and you’ll go home eager to study history and understand everything you saw on your trip to the United Kingdom and Ireland.
20-day itinerary in the UK and Ireland
1. London
Land in London. Your first day MUST be there. In fact, London is a city to spend as many days as possible. There is so much to see and see that you won’t be able to do everything on this itinerary, so get used to it now. But start there. In addition to the tourist attractions in London that are available in any travel guide, Londoners recommend: go to at least one art museum – if possible the National Gallery. Go to Camden Town, a crazy neighborhood that will break your paradigms, and once there, find Camley Street Natural Park, which stays open until 5:00 pm, the English love it. Go to at least one electronic club like the Back Room at the Aquarium Club and have at least one tea at 5:00 pm (ok, this is not an English recommendation, it’s just mine). Oh man, who has never wanted to have five o’clock tea in London?! Set aside between 3 and 5 days for London.
2. English countryside
After London, take a tour of the English countryside. I went to York, a city where the most English people in all of England live. Trust me, it’s where almost all the most traditional food in the country is concentrated. You can also visit any of these cities: Birmingham, Leeds, Liverpool, Newcastle, Cambridge. In any of these cities, eat fish and chips, which is nothing more than fried fish with French fries, but the English love it. Also try to find Yorkshire pudding, which is a wheat flour dumpling that goes with both sweet and savory dishes. To drink, English beer, don’t even try to order Guinness here! To get there, you can use either the train or the bus. The country is small, and in a few hours you can see from north to south of England, and it is very safe to travel there. Set aside between 2 and 3 days for the English countryside.
3. Highlands
The Highlands are the northwest region of Scotland, home to mountains, lakes and spectacular landscapes. It is sparsely populated, has its own cultural identity with Celtic influences and is spoken in Gaelic, as well as English. It is also an agricultural region and a producer of Highland Cattle, a type of cattle that is typical and native to the region. The Highlands are also home to the famous Loch Ness, with its legend of the monster and everything. The capital is the charming Inverness, with around 50,000 inhabitants, surrounded by the River Ness. The Highlands are the pride of Scotland, and if you meet someone from there, ask them to tell you a Celtic legend. It will give you goosebumps.
4. Cliffs of Moher
The Cliffs are the part of the west coast of Ireland where you can find the beautiful Cliffs of Moher, near the city of Galway, an Irish recommendation. Some of the cliffs are as high as 220 meters, and it is scary to get close to them. It takes about 2 hours to get there from Dublin, and you can do the tour on a day trip. There are several tour companies that do the route leaving Dublin early in the morning and arriving in the city at night. If you want to do the route independently, there are several bus schedules that leave Dublin for Galway, daily. To see the Cliffs, 1 day is enough. Reserve an extra day if you want to see Galway, which is a super pretty city and a summer paradise for the Irish.