Destinations & ItinerariesBy Clever Tourists · Published · Last updated
We spent 19 days in England from 14 November to 3 December 2023: 7 days in London, 3 in Bath (with Bristol and Castle Combe on the way out), a night in Swindon, a night in Leamington Spa (via Oxford, with Kenilworth nearby), 3 in Castleton in the Peak District (Bakewell close by), a night in Shrewsbury, 2 in Rowberrow in Somerset's Mendip Hills for Cheddar Gorge and Wells, and a last night back in London. It is a loop west, north and back south-west, and it shows England in late autumn: short days, empty sights and low prices. Below is every stop, the trade-off between trains and a car, and what we would change.
• London, 7 days (14 to 21 November). Westminster, St Paul's, the free museums and the markets. See our London guide, 3 days in London and how many days in London.
• Bath, 3 days (21 to 24 November). The Roman Baths, the Royal Crescent, Pulteney Bridge and the abbey, with the Christmas lights already up. See our Bath guide.
• Stops on the way: Bristol and Castle Combe. Bristol is the city next door to Bath; Castle Combe is a stone village on the southern edge of the Cotswolds.
• Swindon, 1 night. A practical overnight on the GWR main line, in Wiltshire near the southern edge of the Cotswolds.
• Stop on the way: Oxford. The colleges, the Bodleian and the Radcliffe Camera.
• Leamington Spa, 1 night, with Kenilworth. A Regency spa town; Kenilworth Castle, a large red-sandstone ruin, is a few miles north.
• Castleton, 3 days (26 to 29 November). Peveril Castle, the Blue John caverns, Winnats Pass and Mam Tor in the Peak District. See our Castleton guide. Stop nearby: Bakewell, the market town on the Wye known for its Bakewell pudding.
• Shrewsbury, 1 night. A medieval market town in a loop of the River Severn, full of timber-framed buildings.
• Stop on the way: Leominster. A Herefordshire market town on the road south.
• Rowberrow, 2 days (30 November to 2 December). A small village in the Mendip Hills near Shipham and Dolebury Warren, and our base for Cheddar Gorge and Wells; see our Cheddar Gorge and Wells guide.
• London, 1 night (2 to 3 December). Back for the flight out.
Both work for parts of this route, and the honest answer depends on which parts you keep.
By train: London to Bath is about 1h15 to 1h30 from Paddington on GWR, and Bristol is a short hop beyond. Swindon, Oxford, Leamington Spa and Shrewsbury are all on main lines. For Castleton, the nearest station is Hope, on the Sheffield–Manchester line about 2.5 miles away, with the hourly 272 bus from Sheffield into the village. Leominster is on the line between Shrewsbury and Hereford. National Rail Enquiries covers all of it.
By car: the places without stations are the ones a car opens up: Castle Combe, Bakewell and the Peak District passes, and Rowberrow and Cheddar Gorge, which have no railway at all. Driving in the centre of London is not worth it; pick up a car on the way out and drop it before you return.
A practical split is the train for London, Bath and Oxford, and a car for the Peak District and the Mendips. In November, also allow for early darkness on narrow lanes such as Winnats Pass.
Late November is low season. The upside is smaller crowds at the big sights, Christmas lights in London (Regent Street lights up from 5 November in 2026) and in Bath, and cheaper rooms. Our Bath guide and Cheddar and Wells guide both rate late autumn and clear winter mornings as the best light.
The downside is daylight: sunset in southern England is around 4pm in late November, and highs are around 10°C. Plan outdoor stops, especially in the Peak District, for the middle of the day. Our Castleton guide notes the Winnats Pass road and the Mam Tor ridge are at their easiest from late spring to early autumn, so check conditions in winter.
Keep: three nights in Bath and three in Castleton. Bath is walkable and rewards evenings on the river; the Peak District needs the time because the weather picks your day for Mam Tor.
Keep: a base in the Mendips rather than a day trip. Rowberrow put Cheddar Gorge and Wells within a short drive, early in the morning before the coaches.
Change: the run of single nights in Swindon, Leamington Spa and Shrewsbury. Each was a stepping stone. With 2 weeks, cut London to 4 or 5 days, swap Swindon for a night in a Cotswold village, and drop Shrewsbury.
Change: London at both ends with only one night on return. If your flight allows, finish in Bristol instead and save the trip back.
• Entry: US and other visa-free visitors need a UK ETA before flying, £20 (≈ $27) since April 2026; see do I need a visa for the UK.
• London transport: contactless and Oyster charge the same fares, capped at £8.90 (≈ $11.9) a day for Zones 1–2; see our Oyster vs contactless guide.
• Caves: Blue John Cavern and Treak Cliff Cavern at Castleton and Gough's Cave at Cheddar run timed tours; check winter opening hours before you plan a day around them.
Ten days covers London and Bath plus one rural area such as the Peak District. We spent 19 days: London 8, Bath 3, the Peak District 3, the Mendips 2, and single nights in Swindon, Leamington Spa and Shrewsbury.
Not for London, Bath, Oxford or Bristol, which are well served by train. A car helps for Castle Combe, Bakewell, the Peak District passes and Cheddar Gorge, which have no station.
Take the train to Hope on the Sheffield–Manchester line, about 2.5 miles from the village, or the hourly 272 bus from Sheffield to Castleton.
For cities and villages, yes: fewer crowds, lower prices and Christmas lights. For hill walking it is harder, with sunset around 4pm and highs around 10°C.
Yes. Castle Combe, on the southern edge of the Cotswolds, is a short drive from Bath, and was one of our stops between Bath and Swindon.
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