The Tower of London on the Thames
All trip lengths

7 days

One week: 4 route options

A week suits three bases. Pick the cities that fit your interests; the legs between them are listed with National Rail times where we hold them.

London, Bath and Oxford

The capital, a Georgian spa city and a university city: museums and river in London, the Roman Baths in Bath, the colleges and libraries of Oxford.

Route
London (3) → Bath (2) → Oxford (2)
Pace
Steady. Three bases; the two train legs take part of two days.
Best season
April to September
Suits
First-time visitors, Rail travellers, History lovers

Months scoring 3 or more of 4 for comfort (temperature, rain days, sunshine) across London, Bath, Oxford, weighted by days. Met Office 1991-2020 averages, not a forecast.

  • Step-free access reported at 9 of 21 stops
  • 3 of 21 stops marked family-friendly in our guides

  1. Days 1 to 3 · London

    London: 3 days

    Base: London

  2. Days 4 to 5 · Bath

    Bath: 2 days

    Base: Bath

    Getting from London to Bath. By train about 1 h 14 min at the fastest, as published by National Rail. It fits around a day. Check times and changes before you go. Source: National Rail: Visit Bath by train (opens in new tab). All journeys between regions.

  3. Days 6 to 7 · Oxford

    Oxford: 2 days

    Base: Oxford

    Getting from Bath to Oxford. By train about 1 h 9 min at the fastest, as published by National Rail. It fits around a day. Check times and changes before you go. Source: National Rail: Visit Bath by train (opens in new tab). All journeys between regions.

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London, York and Edinburgh

Three cities by train: London, York’s Minster and city gates, then Edinburgh’s castle and Royal Mile.

Route
London (3) → York (2) → Edinburgh (2)
Pace
Steady. Three bases; the rail legs take up part of two days.
Best season
April to September
Suits
First-time visitors, Rail travellers

Months scoring 3 or more of 4 for comfort (temperature, rain days, sunshine) across London, York, Edinburgh, weighted by days. Met Office 1991-2020 averages, not a forecast.

  • Step-free access reported at 6 of 21 stops
  • 6 of 21 stops marked family-friendly in our guides

  1. Days 1 to 3 · London

    London: 3 days

    Base: London

  2. Days 4 to 5 · York

    York: 2 days

    Base: York

    Getting from London to York. By train about 1 h 46 min at the fastest, as published by National Rail. It fits around a day. Check times and changes before you go. Source: National Rail: Visit York by train (opens in new tab). All journeys between regions.

  3. Days 6 to 7 · Edinburgh

    Edinburgh: 2 days

    Base: Edinburgh

    Getting from York to Edinburgh. By train about 2 h 23 min at the fastest, as published by National Rail. Allow half a day. Check times and changes before you go. Source: National Rail: Visit York by train (opens in new tab). All journeys between regions.

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Liverpool, Manchester and York

Three northern cities by rail: Liverpool’s waterfront, Manchester’s libraries and music venues, then York’s Minster.

Route
Liverpool (2) → Manchester (2) → York (3)
Pace
Steady. Three bases; short train legs.
Best season
May to September
Suits
Music lovers, Rail travellers, Museum lovers

Months scoring 3 or more of 4 for comfort (temperature, rain days, sunshine) across Liverpool, Manchester, York, weighted by days. Met Office 1991-2020 averages, not a forecast.

  • No step-free information for these 21 stops
  • No stops marked family-friendly in our guides

  1. Days 1 to 2 · Liverpool

    Liverpool: 2 days

    Base: Liverpool

  2. Days 3 to 4 · Manchester

    Manchester: 2 days

    Base: Manchester

    Getting from Liverpool to Manchester. By train about 38 min at the fastest, as published by National Rail. It fits around a day. Check times and changes before you go. Source: National Rail: Visit Liverpool by train (opens in new tab). All journeys between regions.

  3. Days 5 to 7 · York

    York: 3 days

    Base: York

    Getting from Manchester to York. By train about 1 h 31 min at the fastest, as published by National Rail. It fits around a day. Check times and changes before you go. Source: National Rail: Visit York by train (opens in new tab). All journeys between regions.

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Edinburgh, Glasgow and the Highlands

Two Scottish cities, then the area around Inverness with Culloden, Clava Cairns and Urquhart Castle. Easier with a car.

Route
Edinburgh (2) → Glasgow (2) → The Scottish Highlands (3)
Pace
Steady. Three bases; the Highlands leg has no published time in our data.
Best season
June to August
Suits
Castle and history lovers, Drivers

Months scoring 3 or more of 4 for comfort (temperature, rain days, sunshine) across Edinburgh, Glasgow, The Scottish Highlands, weighted by days. Met Office 1991-2020 averages, not a forecast.

  • No step-free information for these 21 stops
  • No stops marked family-friendly in our guides

  1. Days 1 to 2 · Edinburgh

    Edinburgh: 2 days

    Base: Edinburgh

  2. Days 3 to 4 · Glasgow

    Glasgow: 2 days

    Base: Glasgow

    Getting from Edinburgh to Glasgow. By train about 45 min at the fastest, as published by National Rail. It fits around a day. Check times and changes before you go. Source: National Rail: Visit Edinburgh by train (opens in new tab). All journeys between regions.

  3. Days 5 to 7 · The Scottish Highlands

    The Scottish Highlands: 3 days

    Base: Inverness

    Getting from Glasgow to the Scottish Highlands. We hold no published train time for this journey (154 km in a straight line). Allow half a day and check National Rail. National Rail (opens in new tab). All journeys between regions.

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Other trip lengths

Journey times are National Rail fastest times where we hold them (retrieved 2026-10-25); real journeys vary, so check times and changes. Up to 2 hours is treated as fitting around a day, up to 4 hours as half a day. Best season uses Met Office 1991-2020 averages, not a forecast. Opening hours, prices and tickets change: check each official site. Independent and unofficial.