Day Trips from London
Some of England's finest places are an hour or two from London by train. Castles, university cities, the coast and the countryside, with realistic travel times and tips.
Some of England's most famous places are within easy reach of London. Castles, cathedral cities, university towns, the coast and the countryside can all be visited in a day by train or coach, and many of the journeys take less than two hours.
Our day-trip guides explain how to get there, what to see when you arrive and whether an organised tour or public transport is the better choice. Detailed route comparisons are also available from our sister site Viamo.net.
39 guides in this section.
Castles and history
Windsor Castle Day Trip
Trains, tickets and St George's Chapel.
Stonehenge Day Trip from London
Tours or public transport, and combining it with Salisbury.
Canterbury Day Trip
The cathedral, the old streets and the river.
Leeds Castle Day Trip
The castle on a lake, and how to get there.
Dover Castle and the White Cliffs
The castle, the tunnels and the cliff-top walk.
Photos in this list: photographer and licence for each image are listed on our image credits page.
Cities and countryside
Oxford Day Trip from London
Colleges, the Bodleian and a one-day walking route.
Cambridge Day Trip from London
Colleges, punting and King's College Chapel.
Bath Day Trip from London
The Roman Baths, the Crescent and the timing.
Brighton Day Trip from London
The pier, the Pavilion and the Lanes.
The Cotswolds from London
The villages, and how to get there without a car.
Seven Sisters Cliffs
The walk, the viewpoints and cliff-edge safety.
Paris for the Day by Eurostar
Timings, border controls and a realistic plan.
Photos in this list: photographer and licence for each image are listed on our image credits page.
Castles, houses and history
Hever Castle
Anne Boleyn's childhood home, and how to reach it by train.
Bletchley Park
Where Enigma was broken, under an hour from Euston.
Warwick Castle
A real castle run like a theme park, and who it suits.
Highclere Castle
The Downton house, open only on certain dates.
Chartwell and the Houses of Kent
Churchill's home, and what else is within reach by train.
St Albans
Roman walls and a cathedral, twenty minutes from St Pancras.
Photos in this list: photographer and licence for each image are listed on our image credits page.
Coast and countryside
Whitstable
Oysters and beach huts, about eighty minutes from London.
Margate
A Turner gallery, an old town and a vintage funfair.
Rye and Camber Sands
A cobbled town and a very wide beach, on one line.
Winchester
The old capital, an hour from Waterloo.
Salisbury
The tallest spire in Britain, and the way to Stonehenge.
Portsmouth and the Historic Dockyard
Nelson's flagship and the Mary Rose, on one ticket.
Box Hill and the Surrey Hills
A proper hill walk, under an hour from Waterloo.
Lewes and Arundel
Two castle towns, both reachable before lunch.
Stratford-upon-Avon
A long day, and whether you should stay the night instead.
The Isle of Wight
Train, ferry, and whether a day is really enough.
Photos in this list: photographer and licence for each image are listed on our image credits page.
Gardens, palaces and the coast
Hampton Court by Boat
Three and a half hours upriver - and when it is worth it.
RHS Wisley and the Surrey Gardens
Great gardens within an hour, reachable without a car.
Blenheim Palace
A Vanbrugh palace, a Brown park, and Churchill's birthplace.
Sissinghurst and the Gardens of Kent
The white garden - and the truth about getting there by train.
Colchester and Roman Essex
Britain's first city, under an hour from Liverpool Street.
Southend and the Essex Coast
The longest pleasure pier in the world, an hour out.
Photos in this list: photographer and licence for each image are listed on our image credits page.
Which trip, and how to do it cheaply
Oxford or Cambridge for a Day?
Which you can actually get into, and which suits a first visit.
The Cheapest Day Trips From London
Under £20 return, if you book the right ticket on the right day.
Day Trips From London That Work With Children
The journey is what goes wrong. The trips that stay under an hour.
The Seaside in a Day From London
Six beaches within two hours, from pebbles to actual sand.
Windsor in Half a Day
Castle, Long Walk and Eton High Street, back for dinner.
Photos in this list: photographer and licence for each image are listed on our image credits page.