Top 5 cities to visit outside of London 

We’ve narrowed down the top 5 cities that we think you must visit in England for a day or overnight trip.

Please note that the costs given below are averages and will sometimes differ depending on your time/day of travel and how far you book in advance. All train ticket prices shown include the 18-25 rail card discount and all coach ticket prices shown include the young person's coach card discount. The flight companies shown do not have student/young person discounts.

• Bath
• Edinburgh
• Belfast
• Liverpool
• Cambridge

Bath

Cost of getting there

• Return train ticket from London to Bath - £31.80 (Great Western Railway, 1hr 25 mins one way).
• Return coach ticket from London to Bath - £9.80 (National Express, 3hr 35 mins one way).

Things to do

• Shopping – Southgate Shopping Centre, Milsom Place, the Corridor Bath.
• Cinema/Theatre – Theatre Royal, Little Theatre Cinema, Tivoli Cinemas.  
• Activities – Bath on the beach, Beazer Garden Maze, Bath Racecourse, Bath Escape, Thermae Baths Spa. 
• Parks/Scenic areas – Abbey’s Tower, Skyline Walk, Royal Victoria Park, Bath Lookout, Royal Crescent, Royal Circus. 
• Museums – Holburne Museum, Fashion Museum Bath, Victoria Art Gallery, the Roman Baths. 
• Rooftop Bars/Must visit restaurants – Graze Bath, Sub 13, Menu Gordon Jones, Claytons Kitchen, the Scallop Shell. 

Cost of staying one night 

• Average room cost for one night - £79 (Airbnb).
• Average hostel dorm cost for one night - £15 (Hostel World)

Transportation within the city

• A good thing about Bath is that it is pretty compact, meaning you can easily reach most key sights on foot.  
• Main form of public transports – Bus/Trains/Taxis (although they are a lot more expensive!) 

What the city is most known for

• Bath is most known for its historical Roman heritage, its cobbled line streets, its scenic views and rural surroundings and of course bath buns! (Don’t worry, its edible food...)

“So, hands up, this might be a little biased because I was born and raised in Bath. But it really is the most beautiful city in the UK. Some people bang on about having a World Heritage site somewhere in their city. Bath City IS a World Heritage site…the whole city! Enough said!” - Chris  

Edinburgh

Cost of getting there

• Return train ticket from London to Edinburgh - £56.70 (LNER, 4hr 40 mins one way)
• Return plane ticket from London to Edinburgh - £53.98 (Easyjet, 1hr 30 mins one way)

Things to do

• Shopping – Princes Street, the Royal Mile, the Grassmarket, Ocean Terminal, Fort Kinnaird.
• Cinema/Theatres – Festival Theatre, Edinburgh Playhouse, The Lyceum, King’s Theatre, Church Hill Theatre. 
• Activities – Real Mary King’s Close Haunted tours, The Chocolotarium (because you just cannot miss a chocolate tour!), Portobello Beach, Camera Obscura and World of Illusions.   
• Parks/Scenic areas – Edinburgh Castle, Palace of Holyroohouse, Arthur’s Seat, Water of Leith, Loch Lochmond. 
• Museums – National Museum of Scotland, Scottish National Gallery, Museum of Edinburgh, The Writer’s Museum. 
• Rooftop Bars/Must visit restaurants – Claton Hills, Shanghar Club, Café Royal, Sheep Heid Inn.

Cost of staying one night

• Average room cost for one night - £83 (Airbnb).
• Average hostel dorm cost for one night - £22 (Hostel World).

Transportation within the city

Most of the attractions in Edinburgh are easily accessible by a few buses, if you’re in the city centre.

• Main form of public transports – Bus (day ticket - £4)
• Tram (day ticket - £4)
• Taxis (Monday – Friday 6am – 6pm initial time fare - £2.10) 

What the city is most known for

Edinburgh is most famously known for its intricate architecture, old buildings and history and of course Scotch whisky which some refer to as the ‘water of life!’

 “Edinburgh - Scotland's capital - is very pretty, walkable and popular with tourists. It is known for its culture, including hosting festivals and celebrations like the Fringe every year - one of the biggest arts festivals in the world - the Military Tattoo, the Science Festival and Hogmanay celebrations (possibly one of the best places in the world to see in the New Year). It has a number of universities and a large international student population. And it's a city with lots of history - from Arthur's Seat Edinburgh castle high up in the heart of the city, to Arthur's Seat (an extinct volcano) to gothic buildings, medieval stairways, historic pubs and winding cobbled streets.” - Catriona.

Belfast

Cost of getting there

• Direct return flight from London to Belfast - £51.98 (Easyjet, 1hr 15 mins one way)

Things to do

• Shopping – Victoria Square, Castle Court Shopping Centre, Connswater Shopping Centre, Park Centre 
• Cinema/Theatres – Queen’s Film Theatre, Strand Arts Centre, ODEON Belfast, Movie House Cinema 
• Activities – Titanic Belfast, Prison Island, Trigger Happy Activity Centre, Victoria Square Dome 
• Parks/Scenic areas – Botanic Gardens, Sir Thomas & Lady Dixon Park, Victoria Park, Black Mountain 
• Museums – Ulster Museum, Titanic Belfast, HMS Caroline, North Down Museum  
• Rooftop Bars/Must visit restaurants – Cathedral Quarter, Babel Belfast, The Perch Rooftop, The Treehouse 

Cost of staying one night

• Average room cost for one night - £55 (Airbnb).
• Average hostel dorm cost for one night - £26 (Hostel World). 

Transportation within the city

Belfast is known to be a city where you will find lots of cars so black cabs are definitely a very popular option of choice to get around!  

• Main form of public transports – Buses (day ticket -£3.50)
• Trains (Visitor pass for one day - £6.00)
• Taxis (£1.35 per mile) 

What the city is most known for

The Lion, the witch and the wardrobe of course! I mean what else? You can’t go to Belfast and not visit C.S. Lewis square for that, but other than that it’s history of the waters, it’s beautiful scenery and Ginger Ale which was actually invented there! 

“Belfast was an amazing weekend trip away for me! The highlight of my trip was most probably seeing the Titanic Belfast and learning about its history and also strolling around The C.S. Lewis square as I’ve always loved watching The Lion, the witch and the wardrobe. Belfast really is nothing short of things to learn about and places to visit!” - Nabihah.

Liverpool

Cost of getting there

• Return coach from London to Liverpool - £13.80 (National Express, 5hr 45 mins).
• Return train from London to Liverpool - £43 (Avanti West Coast Railway, 2hr 13 mins).

Things to do

• Shopping – Liverpool ONE, Metquarter, St Johns Shopping Centre, Williamson Square Shopping Outlet. 
• Cinema/Theatres – Royal Court Theatre, M&S Bank Arena, Everyman Liverpool, Liverpool Empire. 
• Activities – Mersey Riverside, Tate Liverpool, Casbah, Hope Street, Radio City Tower, Royal Albert Dock Liverpool. 
• Parks/Scenic areas – Sefton Park, Calderstones Park, Otterspool Park, Croxteth Hall & Country Park. 
• Museums – Museum of Liverpool, World Museum, Walker Art Gallery, Tate Liverpool. 
• Rooftop Bars/Must visit restaurants – Alma de Cuba, Panoramic 34, The Pilgrim Cellar Bar, The Krazyhouse.

Cost of staying one night

• Average room cost for one night - £51 (Airbnb).
• Average hostel dorm cost for one night - £24 (Hostel World).

Transportation within the city

Liverpool is a fairly compact city so you won’t find it too difficult to get around. Luckily, they have a whole range of ways to get around the city! 

• Main form of public transport: Bus/Train/Ferry (day ticket for all 3 - £5.55).
• Taxi (£2.60 basic fee).

What the city is most known for

The Beatles, its famous football teams – Everton F.C. and Liverpool F.C. for all you football fans, its political history and the people of Liverpool including their great sense of humour and generosity (coming from a Londoner, I can definitely agree with the second part of that).

"Liverpool has such an interesting history which is why it's a 'must see' place for people. Having been such an important sea port for the UK and its close proximity to Ireland, there's a vibe in Liverpool which is very unique. I think that has contributed to Liverpool producing such amazing art and music over the years. The city centre itself is not nearly as big as London so a busy day of sightseeing will allow you to see a lot of the main attractions. Along with Edinburgh and Belfast, it's also a really good chance to see parts of the UK which look and sound very different to London. You never know...you might end up liking the Liverpool accent." - Alix.    

Cambridge

Cost of getting there

• Return train from London to Cambridge - £35 (Great Northern Railway, 1h 11 mins).
• Return coach from London to Cambridge - £17.50 (National Express, 3 hours 5 mins).

Things to do

• Shopping – Grand Arcade, the Grafton, Lion Yard, Cambridge Retail Park. 
• Cinema/Theatres – Cambridge Arts Theatre, Light Cinema Cambridge, Arts Picturehouse Cambridge, ADC Theatre, Movies on the Meadows. 
• Activities – River Cam, Cambridge Market Square, Great St Marys Church, Bridge of Sighs. 
• Parks/Scenic areas – Cambridge University Botanic Gardens, The Backs, Lammas Land, Stourbridge Common. 
• Museums – The Fitzwilliam Museum, Museum of Archaeology, Sedgwick Museum, Kettles Yard. 
• Rooftop Bars/Must visit restaurants – Fitzbilies, Smokeworks, NOVI, Revolution Cambridge.

Cost of staying one night

• Average room cost for one night - £57 (Airbnb).
• Average hostel dorm cost for one night - £27 (Hostel World).

Transportation within the city

• Main form on public transport: Bus (day ticket - £8).
• Bicycle Hire (£10).
• Taxis (£2.80 basic fee). 

What the city is most known

Most known for the legendary Cambridge University, Cambridge is also described as one of the ‘most beautiful cities in the world’ (what do you think…?). It’s most famous for its picturesque and scenic views being a great location to just sit back and relax. Sorry in advance if you’re a hard party animal!

"Cambridge is one of the cities I would describe as quintessentially British. Cambridge University has lots of its colleges in the centre and with some of the narrow, winding cobbled streets, you really feel like you've stepped back in time...in a good way! I would definitely advocate going punting on the River Cam if the weather allows it as you'll get a unique perspective of the city. As it can be reached in under an hour from Kings Cross Station and Cambridge itself is not that big, a day trip would definitely be enough." - Aki. 

So where are you choosing out of the above to visit first? With all cities having a large variety of things to do and get involved in, you’ll find that you won’t fall short of entertainment at all.

This article could go on with many more suggestions about where you should visit and what you should do but the only way to truly find out is get yourself out there. 

But just remember, if you’re living in London…you’ve already scored a home run!