Every day out in England, weighed up.
Whether the Stonehenge coach beats the train to Salisbury. Which Ripper walk is the good one. What the studio tour really costs once the transfer is in. We book them, we grade them, and we say which one to take.
The tours England fills first.
Every England review →One coach out of London carries more travellers than anything else in the country. Here is that day, and the runs behind it, with what each costs and how long it takes.
1
Stonehenge, Windsor Castle, and Bath from London
See Windsor Castle, Stonehenge, and Bath in one long London day, with transport, commentary, and optional admission to major sights.
From · $111
Read our review →
2
London Big Bus Hop-On Hop-Off Tour with Optional River Cruise
from $39
3
London Small Group Tour of Historical Pubs
from $40
4
Beatles Magical Mystery Tour
from $30
5
“Blue Route” – City & Beatles Tour
from $27
6
Stonehenge, Windsor Castle and Bath with Pub Lunch in Lacock
from $123
7
Oxford University Walking Tour With University Alumni Guide
from $41
8
Tower of London and Crown Jewels Exhibition Ticket
from $49
The days England is known for.
A stone circle on Salisbury Plain, a film studio in Hertfordshire, four doorsteps in Liverpool, a fortress on the Thames. Most first trips are built around a handful of these, and each one books differently.
London sells out before your flight lands.
The pub walk with fourteen listed rooms, the speedboat that turns at Canary Wharf, the Whitechapel lanes at closing time. The capital rewards the traveller who booked in the departure lounge, not on arrival.
One long day: the stones, the castle, the crescent.
All Stonehenge day trips →
Coaches leave central London around eight and are back by seven. The difference between them is how much they try to fit in: two stops done slowly, three done briskly, or a private car that waits while you take your time.
Stonehenge, Windsor and Bath in one sweep
Windsor before the queues, the stone circle mid-morning, then the Georgian crescents of Bath with an hour to yourself before the drive home.
Bath and the honey-stone villages
Skip the third castle and give the afternoon to the Royal Crescent, the Roman baths and a Cotswolds village with a stream running past the pub.
The Cotswolds, Stratford and Warwick
Bibury and Bourton in the morning, Shakespeare’s town after lunch, a proper medieval castle before the light goes.
Oxford and Cambridge, punt and dining hall.
An hour and a bit from London in either direction. Oxford does stone quads, film sets and pub corners where the writers drank. Cambridge does the river: a chauffeured punt past King’s College is the best pound-for-pound hour in England.
What a day out in England costs.
Every reviewed tour sorted by price. A very good English day starts at the price of two pints and a sandwich.
Guided walks, ghost tours, punts, cathedral and palace entry. Most of the best hours in England live in this band.
Half-day tickets bundled with a guide, river cruises with lunch, the studio tour with its transfer, city walks with tastings.
The long coach days out of London, private cars that wait for you, and the after-hours access nobody else gets.
Three things only England sells.
Guided walks and river cruises exist everywhere. Four lads from Liverpool, a Victorian murder case that was never solved, and a household cavalry that still changes on a schedule belong to this country alone.
The Beatles Doorsteps
Penny Lane is a real bus route and Strawberry Field is a real gate, and the city has built two hours of pilgrimage around them. The best runs take in Menlove Avenue, Forthlin Road and the rebuilt Cavern on Mathew Street, where the band played nearly three hundred times before anyone outside Liverpool had heard of them. Book the small-group version: the coach ones idle outside the gates.
- 1Beatles Magical Mystery Tour★★★★★★★★★★ 5.0 · 9,266 reviews
- 2“Blue Route” – City & Beatles Tour★★★★★★★★★★ 5.0 · 8,562 reviews
- 3The Beatles Story Experience Ticket★★★★★★★★★★ 4.5 · 1,393 reviews
The Ripper Walk
Five murders in ten autumn weeks of 1888, no conviction, and a corner of east London that has been rebuilt around the case ever since. Guides differ enormously here: the good ones handle the victims as people and know which alleys are original, the weak ones just point at a Pret. Evening departures only, roughly ninety minutes, and it gets genuinely cold on Mitre Square in winter.
- 1London Jack the Ripper Guided Tour with Ripper-Vision★★★★★★★★★★ 4.5 · 4,840 reviews
- 2London Jack The Ripper Guided Walking Tour★★★★★★★★★★ 5.0 · 3,131 reviews
- 3Ultimate Jack the Ripper : Guided Tour of London★★★★★★★★★★ 5.0 · 1,495 reviews
The Guard Change
The Household Division has mounted the King’s Guard at Buckingham Palace for three centuries, in bearskins, with a full regimental band. It runs on set mornings rather than daily and is cancelled in heavy rain. A guide is worth the fee here purely for position: the forecourt railings fill an hour ahead, and the better view is from the Victoria Memorial steps or along the Mall as the New Guard marches down.
- 1Changing of the Guard Guided Walking Tour in London★★★★★★★★★★ 5.0 · 1,793 reviews
- 2Buckingham Palace Entrance Ticket & Changing of the Guard Tour★★★★★★★★★★ 4.0 · 1,720 reviews
- 3Changing of the Guard Guided Tour at Buckingham Palace★★★★★★★★★★ 4.5 · 941 reviews
It rains in England. Plan the indoor half.
Rain here is rarely dramatic and rarely brief: an afternoon of grey drizzle that ruins an open-top bus and improves everything else. Book the museum morning, the tea, the covered market and the pub with the low beams for the days the forecast turns, and keep the walking tours for the clear ones.
Four English bookings that will not wait.
Most of this country can be arranged from a hotel lobby the night before. These four cannot: they run on ticket releases, opening seasons and access windows that have nothing to do with when your flight lands.
- 01Harry Potter Warner Bros. Studio Tour with Transport from LondonTimed entry only, released well in advance, and there is no ticket window at the gate. Summer and school-holiday slots go first.
- 02Stonehenge Inner Circle Private Tour from London with Bath VisitAccess inside the stone circle runs before opening or after closing, with capped numbers on each departure. These sell months ahead.
- 03Buckingham Palace Entrance Ticket & Changing of the Guard TourThe State Rooms open for a few weeks in late summer only, on timed tickets; the guard change itself runs on set mornings, not daily.
- 04Downton Abbey & Highclere Castle Tour from London, with OxfordThe castle is a private house that opens on selected dates, so the tour runs on its calendar rather than yours.
By region — London out to the coast
London341 tours
Liverpool32 tours
Oxford21 tours
York24 tours
Bath18 tours
Manchester18 tours
Cornwall8 tours
The Lake District10 tours- The full region list →
By experience — walks, water, palaces and pubs
Seven days from London to the north, reviewed stop by stop.
Stonehenge
Bath
Oxford
LiverpoolLiverpool, Manchester and the Lake District.
Two hours up the west coast line and the accent, the architecture and the price of a pint all change. Liverpool trades on four musicians and a waterfront; Manchester on football and warehouses; an hour further and Windermere opens out under the fells.
- 1Beatles Magical Mystery Tourfrom $30
- 2“Blue Route” – City & Beatles Tourfrom $27
- 3Liverpool City Sights Hop On Hop Off City Tour – 24hr Ticketfrom $19
England gets better looking after closing time.
More after-dark walks →
London Jack the Ripper Guided Tour with Ripper-Vision
Read our review →
Ghost, Ghouls and Gallows Tour : Guided Tour with Boat Ride
Read our review →Newest reviews from around England.
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Beginner Foraging Walk: Wild food walking tour & tasters
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Half-Day Guided E-Bike Tour Portland with Brunch
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Street Art Tour and Spray Painting Workshop in London
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JURASSIC SPECTACULAR | 10+ Stops on the Jurassic Coast!
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Pauls Walking Tour – Sundays at 10:00am – or Group
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Christmas at Warwick Castle – Light Trail & Ice Skating Packages
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Four hour walking wine tasting tour of Manchester’s best bars
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Daily Manchester City Centre Walking Tour with Local Guide
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Secrets of London Bike Tour: Thames, Tower Bridge, and Market
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Easy Access Tower Bridge and Engine Room & Scenic Thames Cruise
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