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Vacations in England seem to be amazingly popular this year, due to the economic downturn and the low value of the pound Sterling. The UK has many top tourist destinations including London (the English capital city) and other interesting cities plus a fine collection of seaside resorts such as; Blackpool, Southport, Skegness and Bognor Regis. One vacation resort often overlooked is Plymouth in the south of England.

When you first arrive Plymouth appears a little bland and primarily modern, but searching a bit deeper and you will very quickly find that Plymouth has a rich history and a long association with the sea. As far back as the sixteenth century there has been a port in Plymouth. In 1588 Sir Francis Drake set sail from the town’s port to defend the British from the Spanish Armada. Another historic moment occurred in sixteen twenty when the port served as the last embarkation point for the Pilgrim Fathers on their journey to North America.

It is possible to take cheap weekend city breaks in Plymouth by booking Plymouth bed and breakfast rather than booking rooms in a plush hotel. A quick look online will reveal that you can make a reservation from £29 a night and many establishments offer dinners at a very reasonable cost, commonly equal to, or cheaper than local restaurants.

Places To Visit In Plymouth

There are a great many places of interest worth visiting in Plymouth. Popular tourist attractions include; Smeaton’s Tower and Plymouth Dome, Sutton Harbour, the Mayflower Steps and the Royal Citadel. A trip on a boat around the port is a superb way to spend some time but if you discover that you have more time to spare why not take a day trip to places outside Plymouth, for example; Saltram House, Mount Edgcumbe or Buckland Abbey.

Saltram House is a fine Tudor Mansion which is found 2 miles from the town, Mount Edgcumbe is another fine example of a Tudor house with coastal paths, landscaped gardens and parklands, and Buckland Abbey, around six miles from Plymouth, is a Cistercian abbey which was at one time by Sir Francis Drake and was later converted into a family home.

If you and your family are in the process of deciding upon spending some time in the city of  Plymouth it is immensely important that you book your  rooms at the earliest moment as, unfortunately guest houses and hotels in Plymouth tend to be alarmingly busy and are frequently fully booked for weeks or even months in advance. If you have a large family you may find that apartments in Plymouth are a reasonable alternative to bed and breakfast accommodation in Plymouth. If you are visiting Great Britain from overseas then you could consider making a reservation for a room in London hotels to take in the sights of the English capital too.

Blackpool is an incredibly popular seaside resort built on the North West coast of England, which is intensely popular with visitors from the nearby towns and cities which include Warrington, Manchester, Liverpool and more. The town is also fanatically popular with Scottish folk who turn up in large groups in a similar fashion to the groups of factory workers of old on their company vacation. Occasionally it would seem as though the town is awash with hotels and entertainments and although there is an incredibly amount of bed and breakfasts in Blackpool it is better to make early reservations to be certain. Hotels varies from cheaper lodgings to five star. Many are situated on the sea front alternatively, if you prefer book somewhere more peaceful there are a few further inland.

Blackpool first started getting tourists in the 18th century who had arrived to enjoy the new craze of sea bathing. When the railway arrived, in 1846, the town witnessed more and more tourists arriving to”take the cure” as sea bathing was called then. Nowadays folk can travel to Blackpool by aeroplane, rail or road arriving there much faster than the Victorian tourists who would take up to two days from as close by as Manchester.

The Famous Blackpool Pleasure Beach

The primary attraction in the town of Blackpool, in Lancashire in the north west of England, which brings in roughly seven million visitors every twelve months, is Blackpool Pleasure Beach. The Pleasure Beach is a sprawling funfair with terrifying big rides, such as the Big One, Ice Blast, Valhalla, Grand National, Zipper Dipper and Wild Mouse, as well as many, many more thrill rides, sideshows, children’s rides, entertainments, roller coasters, games and sidestalls. The newest ride is Infusion, the world’s first to feature a coaster of suspended loops all of it being over water.

 A useful tip: If you are visiting Blackpool as a group of people you can make considerable savings by buying an unlimited ride ticket especially if you will be going on as many rides as possible as the cost of each ride soon begins to add up.

Getting To Blackpool And B&B Accommodation 

As mentioned earlier in this article, Blackpool is very easy to get to nowadays as it is possible to travel to the resort by train, automobile or aeroplane. If traveling by railway you will, more than likely, be arriving at Blackpool’s main station, Blackpool North found on Talbot Road. Not that fat away, just a little further down Talbot Road is situated the main bus and coach station. The other Blackpool train station, Blackpool South, is at Waterloo Road, South Promenade, which is far closer to the Pleasure Beach. Blackpool’s International Airport is found roughly 2 miles from the center of town and was previously known as, Blackpool Squires Gate Airport, one of the oldest airports in the UK.

Blackpool bed & breakfast accommodation is priced fairly low. Rooms are frequently cheaper in the off season and not such a bargain at weekends. Blackpool hotels are most expensive during the Illuminations, which is really Blackpool’s peak season.

Please note: Some B & B’s can be very busy especially those located close to Central and North Pier. If you rather stay somewhere less busy try booking a place beyond the North Pier.

Aberdeen is Scotland’s third largest city, in relationship to population numbers. Since the mid eighteenth century Aberdeen’s buildings have been built using local grey granite and the city has a sandy coastline. This has led to the city being nicknamed the Silver City with the Golden Sands and also the Granite City. However more recently the city has added the nicknames of the Energy Capital of Europe or the Oil Capital of Europe due to the discovery of oil in the North Sea. The city has benefitted greatly from the income generated by the oil industry and the support industries. Today Aberdeen is thoroughly modern and immensely vibrant with a wild nighlife.

Aberdeen hotels are often booked by visiting businessmen and businesswomen but also by various other types of tourists eager to enjoy the many visitor attractions Aberdeen has to offer. Below you will find details of three; Aberdeen Maritime Museum, Duthie Park Winter Gardens and Satrosphere Science Centre:

Aberdeen Maritime Museum

The Maritime Museum in Aberdeen is found close to the harbor, at the historic Shiprow. There are stunning panoramas of the harbour from the museum. The Maritime Museum occupies quite a few buildings, which include a former church and one of the oldest dwellings in Aberdeen. The museum has exhibits which cover everything to do with the oceanic environment, from fishing boats to the oil industry. In essence, the museum tells the  story of the city’s long relationship with the ocean. Some of the collections contain models, photographs, paintings and ship plans from the foremost of Aberdeen’s shipbuilders.

Duthie Park Winter Gardens

Lady Elizabeth Duthie of Ruthrieston,in 1881, gifted to the council, 44 acres of land. The land for the park was purchased, as a lasting memorial to her uncle and brother. In 1899, the gardens were ready, and were opened to the public. However, in 1969 misfortune occurred and the greenhouses had to be demolished and reconstructed. This was due to severe storm damgage. Today, one of Scotland’s favourite garden attractions are the David Welch Winter Gardens at Duthie Park, and also the largest indoor gardens in the whole of Europe. Each greenhouse has an important collection such as, the Victorian House, Tropical House, Temperate House, Japanese Garden, Fern House and Corridor of Perfumes.

Satrosphere Science Centre

One of the first science and discovery centers in Scotland was the, Satrosphere Science Center, in Aberdeen. This hands-on, interactive science center, has over 50 exhibits and live science demonstrations, and opened to the public in 1988. Although the center is aimed at primary age children, the appeal of the exhibits is universal. The center is found in the old tram sheds, close to the sea front, on Constitution Street. The aim is to inspire teenagers to become scientist’s, as interest in science courses in universities, is in decline. One of the best loved exhibits at the center is the famous giant soap bubble, where each child can be encompassed within a magic bubble.

There are a great many more tourist attractions in and about Aberdeen which are worthwile visiting and the three above were randomly chosen. If you are planning to take a vacation in Aberdeen, Scotland then you will discover numerous quality hotels in Aberdeen, or many other types of accommodation, available to book online.