An out-of-town day excursion is simple to arrange thanks to the wide array of automobile rental possibilities. But because time is so valuable, we don’t want to be in the car all day.
From ancient towns, national parks, and beach landscapes, you won’t have time to play “I spy.” Here are some ideas for your next road trip from central London, all of which can be reached in less than two hours, as well as suggestions for where to eat lunch along the way.
Before you leave, make sure you know which credit cards are best for renting a car. Plan your trip, so you don’t go through the London Congestion Charge zone.
Marlow
There are several things to do in Marlow and the Home Counties, both nearby. Marlow is right on the river, so cross the Grade I-listed Marlow Bridge and walk along the Thames Path to see wildlife and the occasional rowing boat on the river. Afterward, go to The High Street and adventure to find blue plaques. If you look hard enough, you can find the house where Mary Shelley wrote Frankenstein and the building where TS Eliot lived during World War I. Getting a parking spot can be difficult, especially around lunchtime. You can park for up to six hours at Liston Court Car Park for $5.
Places to eat lunch
Marlow is known for its Michelin-starred restaurants, but just a few miles away is the Hurley House Hotel, where you can choose from sushi to steak for lunch. There is also a beautiful garden and terrace where BBQs are held on the weekends.
“New Forest”
A trip to the New Forest is as near to a safari as you can get without purchasing a plane ticket. As you walk down shaded lanes and across heather-covered heath, ponies grazing there for thousands of years will keep an eye on you, and cows and pigs will casually hover up fallen acorns. From July to September, you can hop on and off the New Forest open-top bus tour, which has three different routes. You can even bring your bikes and (well-behaved) dogs.
Places to eat lunch:
Pubs in the New Forest is important to the area’s history. Londoners’ idea of a country pub is the Pilgrim Inn, which has a thatched roof, roaring log fires, and a cozy dining room for long lunches.
Island of Mersea
This island getaway is great if you love the water because it is connected to the mainland by a causeway that floods at high tide. There are beach huts, ice cream, windsurfers, and many boats on Mersea Island. From the Causeway Jetty on Coast Road, you can take a boat around the harbor to see the sights from the water. The south-facing beach on Mersea Island, which looks out over the Blackwater Estuary, is sometimes sunny and has a strange mix of sand and rocks, but it has great views. If you go to Mersea at the end of August, you could also stop by the Clacton Airshow. It’s free and has a wide range of things to do, from The Red Arrows to shows of old planes.
Places to eat lunch:
The Company Shed is the main attraction. Its seafood platters bring people from all over the country every weekend. It doesn’t take reservations, and you can only get food to go. Get there before noon to eat oysters, prawns, and dressed crab from the area. That catch-and-release crabbing is free and fun. Be careful of those crab claws, though!
Whitstable
Margate and Deal are two picture-perfect towns on the Kent coast, but Whitstable is even more beautiful with its pastel-colored beach huts and busy arts scene. Explore the artistic side of Whitstable by going to its galleries, like the Fishslab Gallery, which used to be the town’s fish market. Historic Harbor Street is a must-see for all day-trippers to Whitstable. After that, you can shop at The Harbor Market for unique trinkets and furniture.
Places to eat lunch:
Locals love the Lobster Shack, known for its fresh oysters and other live shellfish. With a view of the beach and a lot of outdoor seating, it’s a great place to watch people in the summer and warm up by the log burner in the winter. We don’t take reservations.
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The White Cliffs of Dover and Leeds Castle
This two-stop day trip starts in beautiful Kent at Leeds Castle, which is not in Leeds. It is in the middle of a lake and is surrounded by forests and parks. Walk through the Lady Baillie Gardens before taking a short drive to the White Cliffs of Dover, which are very famous. Their bright white chalk faces reach 350 feet and signify home, hope, and freedom. Also, keep an eye out for two herds of hardy Exmoor ponies. Their job is to graze the rough grasses, bushes, and trees to keep them from taking over the chalk grassland on the cliffs.
Places to eat lunch:
From the stunning cliffs, go 10 miles up the Kentish coast to St. Margaret’s-at-Cliffe, where you can discover The White Cliffs Hotel Bunkhouse Kitchen Bar. Here, you can have a real Kentish experience with Folkstone fish, and herbs picked from the wild, and ice creams made at home.