The UK is a place we will return too but not because we really would love too…mostly because it is out of the Schengen Visa Region. It was a great trip but its not our vibe, at least not Amber’s.
Cost Per Day
$217.30
Number of Days On Trip
7
Total Trip Cost
$1,521.107
We didn’t eat out much because of the price! We did have a London chinatown meal coming in at almost $40 for the two of us for a small entree…
Bristol is like a punk kid with a big heart. Bath is like a roman goddess. The Cotswold district has so much history and masterfully done gardens and buildings. There’s nothing like it anywhere else.
The airbnbs we stayed at were okay….but we went cheap. We had three people so naturally, it was a bit tight. We felt safe in every city including the punk, Bristol.
Ohh gosh, where do I begin. Driving in the UK as an American is backwards in every way. They drive on the wrong side of the road, on the wrong side of the car, and have radar and fines for EVERYTHING, but use miles instead of Kilometers! I got a ticket for driving in a bus lane within 2 hours of getting the car. -_- There’s so many dang Ovalabouts and roundabouts and roundabouts within roundabouts…it’s the most confusing google maps directions you’ve ever had. But….the roads were great, the car worked, and there was public transportation that was reliable so 9 stars.
Itinerary
Upon arriving in Southampton after our cruise across the Atlantic Ocean, we were heading to Bristol! If you haven’t reviewed our cruise breakdown yet, check it out here. We took an Uber from the Port to the airport to pickup a rental car. Lucky for Amber, she got to practice manual driving again! After a slight concern on the rental agents face, we were off. A quick stop at Stonehenge was a must do although a very expensive entrance ticket at £29 each. Continuing to our airbnb in Bristol. We used Bristol as a home base to explore the Cotswolds and Bath.
We woke up early one morning to drive the 40 minutes to Bath. Parked on a steep hill, we then walked into town. River Avon flows around the city has some beautiful bridges spanning it. Although we didn’t pay to enter to Roman baths, we could feel the intense bath culture.
Continuing on with the day, we drove up to the Cotswolds region. It was a beautiful day to do a loop hitting Bourton on the Water, Bibury, and Grittleton. We wanted to stop at Castle Combe but we did not have any cash to pay for parking so we moved on.
Within Bristol, we were inclined to indulge in the beer culture….a little to many times. Brew Dog, Left Handed Giant, and Zerodegrees have amazing beer though! We climbed Cabot Tower; an absolute great viewpoint!
After 4 days, we drive to London and dropped the car off. Thank god that was over. From there, we were using public transportation to explore London. We stayed in Belsize park on the northern side of London. We did all the London things and suggest you check out this post about the attractions we got up to and our suggestions.
After our stay in London, it was time to head to the Netherlands! Checkout that expense report here.
Unique Opportunities and Experiences
Since we had a car, we were able to explore the Cotswolds on our own. There are not alot of public transportation options within the Cotswolds so it is basically a necessity. If we took a tour, we wouldn’t be able just stop at any town that looked interesting, like Grittleton!
Trip Expenses Breakdown
| Item | Category | Cost |
|---|---|---|
|
AirBnB |
Hotel |
$145.29 |
|
Enterprise Rent a Car |
Rental Car and Taxi |
$252.85 |
|
Foreign Transaction Fee |
Service Fee |
$18.70 |
|
Brew Dog Bristol |
Alcohol and Bars |
$7.46 |
|
Sainsbury's Market |
Groceries |
$54.80 |
|
Stonehenge |
Museum |
$59.67 |
|
Zero Degrees Bristol |
Restaurants |
$8.15 |
|
Left Handed Giant Brewery |
Alcohol and Bars |
$5.39 |
|
Reimbursement |
Hotel |
-$107.21 |
|
Ristorante Venezia |
Restaurants |
$7.53 |
|
3 Locks Brewery |
Alcohol and Bars |
$5.64 |
|
Boots |
Pharmacy |
$5.64 |
|
Budgens Belsize Park |
Groceries |
$41.74 |
|
Budgens Belsize Park |
Restaurants |
$7.51 |
|
Enterprise Rent A Car |
Rental Car and Taxi |
-$250.55 |
|
Motor Fuel Limited |
Gas and Fuel |
$63.03 |
|
TFL Travel |
Public Transportation |
$7.02 |
|
Fitzrovia Belle |
Restaurants |
$37.77 |
|
Reimbursement |
Hotel |
-$32.18 |
|
TFL Travel |
Public Transportation |
$10.15 |
|
New Young Cheng |
Restaurants |
$62.49 |
|
TFL Travel |
Public Transportation |
$20.32 |
|
Boots |
Pharmacy |
$7.49 |
|
Nisa Local |
Groceries |
$6.87 |
|
Tesco Stores |
Groceries |
$12.75 |
|
TFL Travel |
Public Transportation |
$10.12 |
|
AirBnB Bristol |
Hotel |
$355.08 |
|
Booking.com - London |
Hotel |
$649.20 |
Cost Saving Opportunities
We chose to stay in Bristol because it is slightly cheaper then Bath and has a lot more to offer. Bath is very historic but not alot to see or do for free. If you feel confident, manual cars are way cheaper….like 50% cheaper than automatic. That applies across most of Europe so learn how to drive manual!
If you want to enjoy breweries but want to cut the cost in half, most breweries had coolers of canned beer that you could buy for half the price of draft. Just take the beer with you and drink it anywhere you’d like!
