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Travel guide · London and Scotland

Travelling to the United Kingdom

London, Edinburgh, university cities, stone villages and castles: a country made for exploring by train. We tell you when to go, what to see and what to eat.

Updated 19 October 2026 · How we make our guides

  • All year round
  • Where to eat: the pub
Photo: Unsplash

United Kingdom in 30 seconds

  • Any time of year is good to travel to the United Kingdom: our data shows no months with weather, closure or crowd warnings.
  • Contactless in London.
  • To eat like a local: the pub. Don’t leave without trying: Fish and chips, Full English breakfast, Sunday roast.

United Kingdom in November

Yes: November is a good time to travel to the United Kingdom. Our data shows no weather or seasonal warnings that month.

More destinations for November

When to travel to the United Kingdom

Any time of year is good to travel to the United Kingdom: our data shows no months with weather, closure or crowd warnings.

  1. Jan no warnings
  2. Feb no warnings
  3. Mar no warnings
  4. Apr no warnings
  5. May no warnings
  6. Jun no warnings
  7. Jul no warnings
  8. Aug no warnings
  9. Sep no warnings
  10. Oct no warnings
  11. Nov no warnings
  12. Dec no warnings

What to see in the United Kingdom

The cities and areas most worth your time, with their highlights. Open each one for all the places, where to stay and its day trips.

  • London
    London

    London

    Free museums, markets, the Thames, palaces and neighbourhoods for every taste.

    • Big Ben
    • British Museum
    • Tower Bridge
    • Camden
    London guide
  • Edinburgh
    Scotland

    Edinburgh

    A castle on a volcano, the Royal Mile and Arthur’s Seat: the capital of Scotland.

    • Edinburgh Castle
    • Royal Mile
    • Arthur's Seat
    • Calton Hill
    Edinburgh guide
  • Manchester

    Manchester

    An industrial city reinvented, with music, football and museums.

    • Old Trafford
    • Etihad Stadium
    • Northern Quarter
    • John Rylands Library
    Manchester guide
  • Liverpool

    Liverpool

    The city of the Beatles, with historic docks and two big football teams.

    • The Beatles Story
    • Cavern Club
    • Albert Dock
    • Anfield
    Liverpool guide
  • Oxford

    Oxford

    The oldest university in the English-speaking world, among colleges of golden stone.

    • Christ Church
    • Bodleian Library
    • Radcliffe Camera
    • Ashmolean Museum
    Oxford guide
  • Bath

    Bath

    Roman baths and Georgian elegance in honey-coloured stone.

    • Roman baths
    • Royal Crescent
    • Bath Abbey
    • Pulteney Bridge
    Bath guide
  • York

    York

    A walled medieval city with an enormous Gothic cathedral.

    • York Minster
    • The Shambles
    • City walls
    • National Railway Museum
    York guide
  • Glasgow

    Glasgow

    Scotland’s great city of art, live music and Victorian architecture.

    • Kelvingrove
    • Glasgow Cathedral
    • Necropolis
    • Street art
    Glasgow guide
  • Cambridge

    Cambridge

    University colleges beside the River Cam, explored by punt.

    • King’s College
    • Punting
    • Mathematical Bridge
    • Fitzwilliam Museum
    Cambridge guide
  • Brighton

    Brighton

    A beach, a Victorian pier and an oriental palace, an hour from London.

    • Brighton Palace Pier
    • Royal Pavilion
    • The Lanes
    • i360
    Brighton guide
  • Stonehenge

    Stonehenge

    The most famous prehistoric stone circle in the world, on Salisbury Plain.

    • The stone circle
    • Visitor centre
    • Salisbury
    • Avebury
    Stonehenge guide
  • Belfast

    Belfast

    The capital of Northern Ireland: the Titanic museum, the murals and the gateway to the Giant’s Causeway.

    • Titanic Belfast
    • Murals
    • Town hall
    • St George’s Market
    Belfast guide
  • Giant’s Causeway

    Giant’s Causeway

    Thousands of hexagonal basalt columns stepping down into the sea, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

    • The columns
    • Clifftop trails
    • Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge
    • Dark Hedges
    Giant’s Causeway guide
  • Inverness

    Inverness

    The capital of the Highlands, on the River Ness and a stone’s throw from the monster’s loch.

    • Loch Ness
    • Inverness Castle
    • Culloden
    • Ness Islands
    Inverness guide
  • Isle of Skye

    Isle of Skye

    Scotland’s island of wild landscapes: black peaks, cliffs and fairy pools.

    • Old Man of Storr
    • Quiraing
    • Fairy Pools
    • Portree
    Isle of Skye guide
  • Cardiff

    Cardiff

    The capital of Wales, with a castle in the centre, a regenerated bay and the rugby stadium.

    • Cardiff Castle
    • Cardiff Bay
    • Victorian arcades
    • Principality Stadium
    Cardiff guide
  • Windsor

    Windsor

    The oldest inhabited castle in the world, a home of the royal family, on the banks of the Thames.

    • Windsor Castle
    • St George’s Chapel
    • Changing of the Guard
    • Long Walk
    Windsor guide
  • Cotswolds

    Cotswolds

    Green hills and honey-coloured stone villages: the picture-postcard English countryside.

    • Bibury
    • Castle Combe
    • Bourton-on-the-Water
    • Chipping Campden
    Cotswolds guide

Day trips and activities

What’s most worth booking from each city. We take you straight to the best-rated tour on GetYourGuide, with its reviews and dates.

From London

From Edinburgh

From Manchester

From Liverpool

From Oxford

From Bath

From York

From Glasgow

From Cambridge

From Brighton

From Stonehenge

From Belfast

From the Giant’s Causeway

From Inverness

From the Isle of Skye

From Cardiff

From Windsor

From the Cotswolds

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What to eat in the United Kingdom

To eat like a local: the pub, and order a Sunday roast if it’s Sunday or fish and chips. And don’t leave without trying:

  • Fish and chips

    Battered fish with chips, best by the sea.

  • Full English breakfast

    Eggs, bacon, sausages, beans, tomato and mushrooms.

  • Sunday roast

    The Sunday roast with Yorkshire pudding.

  • Afternoon tea

    Tea with sandwiches, scones, clotted cream and jam.

  • Haggis

    Scotland’s national dish, with neeps and tatties.

  • Pie

    Steak and kidney or chicken pie.

The typical dish of the United Kingdom, at home

Fish and chips
Photo: Andrew Dunn · CC BY-SA 2.0

Fish and chips

The quintessential British dish: white fish in beer batter with thick-cut chips, salt, malt vinegar and mushy peas.

  • Serves 4
  • 50 min

Ingredients

  • 4 skinless cod or hake fillets
  • 1 kg potatoes for frying
  • 200 g flour and 1 teaspoon of baking powder
  • 300 ml very cold beer
  • Sunflower oil for frying
  • Salt, malt vinegar and lemon
  • For the peas: 300 g peas, butter and mint

How to make it at home

  1. Cut the potatoes into thick chips and fry them at 150 °C for about 8 minutes, without browning. Drain them.
  2. Mix the flour, baking powder and salt with the cold beer, without overmixing.
  3. Pat the fish dry, dust it in flour and then dip it in the batter, and fry at 180 °C for 5–6 minutes until golden.
  4. Fry the chips again at 180 °C until crisp.
  5. Cook the peas and crush them with butter and mint. Serve everything with salt and vinegar.

The trick: Double-fry the chips and keep the beer ice-cold for the batter: that’s what makes it crunch.

The typical food of each city, with a recipe

Curious facts about the United Kingdom

What guidebooks don’t tell you and will help you understand the country better.

  • Most of London’s big museums are free.
  • Big Ben isn’t the tower but the great bell inside it.
  • The London Underground, opened in 1863, is the oldest in the world.
  • Scotland, Wales, England and Northern Ireland each have their own national football team.
  • They drive on the left.
  • Scotland has its own legal system and its own banknotes.

Traditions of the United Kingdom

Customs and celebrations that will help you experience the country like a local.

  • 5 November Bonfire Night

    Bonfires and fireworks for the Gunpowder Plot.

  • 31 December (Scotland) Hogmanay

    Scotland’s New Year’s Eve, with a huge party in Edinburgh.

  • Changing of the Guard

    A ceremony at Buckingham Palace.

  • August Edinburgh Festival

    The largest performing arts festival in the world.

What not to do in the United Kingdom

First-trip mistakes that are easy to avoid.

  • Don’t travel without an ETA (electronic travel authorisation) if your nationality needs one, and bring your passport: EU national ID cards are no longer accepted.
  • Don’t stand on the left on Underground escalators.
  • Don’t jump a queue: here it’s sacred.
  • Don’t forget to look right before crossing.
  • Don’t buy single paper tickets for the Tube: paying contactless is cheaper.
  • Don’t be surprised if pubs close early.

Before you go

Entry requirements depend on your passport and change: always check them with official sources before travelling.

Closing days

  • Columbia Road Flower Market · London

    Sundays only, 8 am to 3 pm.

Frequently asked questions about the United Kingdom

What people search for most before travelling to the United Kingdom.

What’s the best time to travel to the United Kingdom?

Any time of year is good to travel to the United Kingdom: our data shows no months with weather, closure or crowd warnings.

What to see in the United Kingdom in a week?

The essentials of the United Kingdom: London, Edinburgh, Manchester, Liverpool and Oxford. How many places fit into your days, and in what order, depends on your dates and how you get around: the Bagintravel app plans your trip day by day in a minute.

What to eat in the United Kingdom?

Fish and chips, Full English breakfast, Sunday roast, Afternoon tea, Haggis, Pie. To eat like a local: the pub.

What is the typical dish of the United Kingdom?

Fish and chips. The quintessential British dish: white fish in beer batter with thick-cut chips, salt, malt vinegar and mushy peas.

What should you not do in the United Kingdom?

Don’t travel without an ETA (electronic travel authorisation) if your nationality needs one, and bring your passport: EU national ID cards are no longer accepted. Don’t stand on the left on Underground escalators. Don’t jump a queue: here it’s sacred.

What do you need to travel to London?

A valid passport (EU national ID cards haven’t been accepted since 2021) and, for most nationalities, an ETA, the electronic travel authorisation you apply for online before you go.

Is it worth travelling to the United Kingdom in November?

Yes: November is a good time to travel to the United Kingdom. Our data shows no weather or seasonal warnings that month.

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More guides

Guide reviewed 19 October 2026. Seasonal data, places and areas: the same ones the Bagintravel app uses. Sources and method.

Photos: cover, Unsplash. London, Ilya Grigorik (CC BY-SA 3.0). Edinburgh, Andrew Colin (CC BY 2.0). Manchester, Mark Andrew. (CC BY 2.0). Liverpool, Peter Tarleton (CC BY-SA 2.0). Oxford, Diliff (CC BY 2.5). Bath, Diego Delso (CC BY-SA 4.0). York, DACP (CC BY-SA 2.0). Glasgow, 瑞丽江的河水 (CC BY-SA 4.0). Cambridge, Andrew Dunn (CC BY-SA 2.0). Brighton, hozinja (CC BY 2.0). Stonehenge, Diego Delso (CC BY-SA 4.0). Belfast, Simon Burchell (CC BY-SA 4.0). Giant’s Causeway, Chmee2 (CC BY 3.0). Inverness, Lucas Kendall (CC BY-SA 4.0). Isle of Skye, Klaus with K (CC BY-SA 3.0). Cardiff, DeFacto (CC BY-SA 4.0). Windsor, Diliff (CC BY 3.0). Cotswolds, Saffron Blaze (CC BY-SA 3.0).