Closer to reality

[textualdeviance]

So, that trip to the UK that I had considered for next month didn't happen (for many reasons), but there's now a very good possibility of doing it in late May instead. There's another event at which my Famous People may be and I'll be turning 40 that month, so those are pretty good excuses. :)

The sticking point, as always, has been time/money. Still sorting out the former, but the latter is looking increasingly possible, between the extra month on my contract and what may be a pretty decent tax return when it's all done.

Still, it's tight, and what with the adoption, I don't want to spend any more on this than I have to, so I'm sorting out exactly what we would do there if we went. This is probably a once-in-a-lifetime trip for me, so I want to make the most of it, but we also probably can't afford more than two weeks there, tops.

Aside from the event, the things I know for sure I want to do so far: Giant's Causeway (and possibly other awesome geographical thingies), Brighton, General London-environs historical sights/museums, somewhere in the North (Manchester, York?) and anything else that's an absolute must-see-before-you-die. Might take in a play if Mansfield's in one at the time, and may also want to hit a Primeval filming site or two (aside from the British Museum, which is already on the list.)

Trying to sort through four countries' worth of attractions to figure out the rest is proving quite insane, though. Yeah, the whole thing is only about the size of California, but still. I don't want to be running around madly from place to place and not have a chance to just sit and enjoy it, too (not to mention that running around will exhaust me and make me not enjoy it anyway.) Also have to factor in things like my limited walking ability and such, too.

Hmph. I've done this sort of logistical planning before, howev, so I know I can do this, too. :)

Comments

[textualdeviance.livejournal.com]

Part of the issue is that we'll need to fly econ plus, since there's no way I'd survive a nine-hour flight in regular economy (being wedged into those tiny seats cuts off circulation for me--can't take it for more than a few hours at a time.) So, that bumps up the cost significantly and makes it harder to find deals. The good thing, though, is that M has a ton of air miles, so we should be able to get at least one ticket for free.

Hotels will be the biggest thing, though, which is why I'm trying to map out an early itinerary, so I can get an idea of how expensive each stop will be. Someone suggested that we do two or three "hub" cities, and fan out from there, which sounds like a great idea to me. Maybe London, Manchester and Dublin, something like that--just move hubs every few days, and do day trips from each hub to everywhere else we want to go. Apparently the bullet trains make this all a lot easier, too.

Really hoping we can manage to work this out. I've been dying to do a trip like this basically my whole life, and it's pretty much now or never.

[jaynedoll.livejournal.com]

Train tickets can be really expensive in the UK. Plus it can be a pain trying to get cheaper tickets with convenient times but it is possible, and there might be some kind of travelcard available as well.

Is there anything in particular you'd like to see? Although the UK isn't that big I'm always surprised at how much there is to see.