England Things to Do

One of England’s most beloved childrens’ authors, Beatrix Potter has been enchanting readers with her animal storybooks since she published her first book in 1901 and those looking to uncover the landscapes that inspired her artistry will find plenty to marvel over in the idyllic Lake District. Potter and the Lake District remain inextricably linked – the landscape that inspired many of her drawings owes a great debt to Potter, who purchased vast amounts of land in order to preserve it and bequeathed fourteen farms and 4000 acres of land to the National Trust upon her death.

With miles of dramatic coastline and world-famous seaside resorts, what England lacks in tropical weather, it makes up for in rugged scenery and seafront entertainment. If you’re choosing to hit the beach in the UK, you’ll be in good company, as many cash-strapped Brits are choosing to holiday on home turf and coastal resorts will be putting on plenty of summertime entertainment to keep the masses happy. Whether you’re looking for a relaxing getaway or dazzling party hub, these are some of England’s best seaside towns.

With excellent marked trails and camping facilities, and the Countryside Rights of Way Act allowing walkers to walk freely on over 2.1 million acres of land, England belies its small size with an incredible variety of hiking opportunities.

The UK’s renowned National Parks provide the backdrop to most excursions, with the dramatic landscapes of the Peak District and the Lake District’s high mountain passes drawing thousands of hikers. Further north the windswept Yorkshire Moors and the misty marshlands of the Yorkshire Dales offer hikers the chance to explore ‘Bronte County’, made famous by the legendary sisters, and in the south the lush woodlands and open plains of the New Forest, Exmoor and Dartmouth National Parks offer a network of trails that snake through paddocks of free-roaming native ponies.

The southernmost islands in the British Isles, England‘s aptly named Channel Islands lie in the English Channel near the French coast and include the bailiwicks of Jersey and Guernsey. As the closest British territory to France, the islands have long been a strategic gateway to continental Europe and remain a fascinating focal point of Britain’s military and naval history, including being the only British territory to be occupied by German troops during WWII.

From the eerie wilderness of the Yorkshire moors as brought to life by the Bronte sisters’ novels, to the medieval architecture lining the cobbled streets of York, the northern England county of Yorkshire is one of the best reasons to leave London.

Yorkshire encompasses a large territory of northeastern England, including the South Yorkshire cities of Sheffield and Leeds, but it’s the North Yorkshire region that most visitors most commonly refer to as ‘Yorkshire’. Here, the unofficial capital is the historic city of York; a lively student town celebrated for its extraordinary architecture and still-standing 13th-century defense walls. York’s biggest draw card is the magnificent York Minster Cathedral, one of the largest in the country, with a remarkable gothic façade that dates back to the 8th century.

England‘s food has earned itself a reputation for blandness over the years, but with historic recipes dating back to the Victorian times, inventive use of staple ingredients and some notoriously wacky names (think ‘bubble & squeak’ or ‘spotted dick pudding’), traditional English cuisine has plenty of surprises up its sleeve. Here are six of the nation’s most beloved dishes to get you started.