I will be in the UK 08/24/07-09/03/07. I've never been before and need some ideas on what to see and do while I'm there. I'll be staying in Ely which is just north of London. I'll have access to a car so I should be able to get around so I can see and do it all.

Lets hear your ideas.

Take LOTS of money. With the exchange rate, it's going to cost you an arm and a leg.

Seriously, what do you like and how far do you want to drive. There are dozens of things you could do, so some idea of your taste would help...

Ive noticed the exchange rate, Ouch!

We are planning on driving to Scotland at some point. Thats an 8 hour drive so I am open to any ideas between there or close to there. We will hit a castle or two along the way and of a few pubs. Other then that what is there to do?

Take an umbrella too.
If you're going to Scotland, you'll no doubt go up the M-1, Sherwood forest is up that way, a bit of a diversion (East) and you have York which has castles and all the cool viking stuff.
Edinburgh castle is a MUST.
I'll be honest, there's so much, as you go north from London, there are signs everywhere for castle this, battle field that, Hadrians wall here and there and all the Roman, Viking and Norman stuff you could ask for.
Yorkshire is beautiful, North Yorkshire has lots of cool castles like Richmond. Durham has an awesome Cathedral, but they're not very good at cricket.
About an hour west, is Warwick (great castle) and just south of Warwick is all of the Shakespeare stuff in Stratford-upon-Avon. Just north of Warwick is Birmingham, with the Austin/Rover/MG factory.
Have fun.

spent a summer there working on a project for business ...GREAT place and believe me there's plenty to do and keep you busy...are you renting a car?...that will be the first challenge.. other side...and other side.....HAVE A BLAST!

Amberly isn't too far and has an outstanding and unusual museum - "The Museum that Works" and they're not kidding. Also consider going to Gaydon to the Heritage museum. Or take a train up to Coventry and see the transport museum there which I think is the world's best.

The RAF museum at Hendon is close. Brooklands, where this madness all began is just next door.

The underground war rooms should be close to you, and the Museum of London is great, too.

You need to extend your trip - there's just too much to see.

Would you mind looking at an MG YB saloon for me?

Everybody hears about the typical London tourist sites, so here are a few others:

National Motor Museum at Beaulieu, Hampshire.
http://www.beaulieu.co.uk/motormuseum/index.htm

Rye, East Sussex is really nice and has The Mermaid Inn that was allegedly the local smugglers hangout; it was REBUILT in the 1400s. http://www.visitrye.co.uk/home.aspx

Portsmouth, home of what is left of the Royal Navy including Nelson's HMS Victory and HMS Warrior which was the world’s first iron-hulled, armored warship powered by steam as well as sail and constructed of wrought iron. In its day it was bigger, faster and more heavily armed than any other warship afloat. http://www.historicdockyard.co.uk/

Portsmouth also has Charles Dickens birthplace which you can visit. http://www.charlesdickensbirthplace.co.uk/

As others have said there are lots of things that can keep you busy.

Ok, Scotland; just on that little trip alone:
York is great, but don't plan on eating there - the restaurants suck. Try the Angel in Topcliffe, or the Magpie in Whitby instead. (If you want fish and chips this is the best place imo in the uk).

You could do a lot worse than go through the moors or the a19 on the way up. Edinburgh is way touristy. The castle is great, the walk up is ok, the rest of the town isn't.

Coming back:
Go back down the M6 and stop off in the lake district. Do some Beatrix Potter and all that good stuff. Avoid Sellafield.

Further South:

If you have time, then Bath, Devon/Cornwall (for a cream tea) or even Stonehenge are all worth the effort. Lands End is a long drive for not much to see - imo the Lizard is better, although as a visitor Tintagel is ok.

The midlands are described as the 'industrial heartland'. Think rustbelt. I'll defer to my countrymen who are more familiar with the area, but I normally drive through to somewhere more interesting.

That said, the museum at Duxford is ok, and if you haven't been there (and can find parking) Oxford or Cambridge are worth an hour or so...

The Heritage Motor Centre in Gaydon is well worth checking out. I went a number of years ago. Here are some pics:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/daveseven/sets/72157600510924273/

Thanks for all the great ideas. Im sure we will hit some of those destinations that have been mentioned.

Anyone know of any racing going on in the area at that time of year. I tried to schedule my trip for the goodwood speed festival but that didnt work out.

It sounds like there is plenty to see and do so I shouldnt run out of things to do.

BTCC is racing 8/19 and 9/2 so you may miss them.

Hey Spridget,...Be careful, driving. I know I'm not the sharpest knife in the drawer, but I found myself crossing the street while looking the wrong way!! Never did completely adjust to left hand driving.
For "touristy" stuff, it's hard to beat the Tower of London.
Have a good trip! Bob

I just came back from a week in London. The $ is getting hammered by the GBP. Expect to pay at least $2 per GBP.

There's so much to do and see, you won't be bored. I refuse to drive in the UK, as I'm just not comfortable with the whole rotary thing. I'd be fine outside of London, but once inside the M25, all bets are off.

I spent a month there back in 76, and drove for three weeks with a rental. I just pretended the round a bouts were from New Jersey and spinning backwards. They actually were good that my traveling partner could watch to find which route (rotary exit) we needed and point it out, and I could take it the next time by. I was not as bad as Chevy Chase in "European Vacation". I would visit Stratford on Avon, Donington, Beaulieu, the Brooklands museum, Edinburgh, and Portmerion for starters.
I also enjoyed Bournemouth, Caernarvon, Rhyl, Cheddar, Betsw-y-Coed, and Bath very much. Stonehenge was great back then, but it still was open to walking up to the stones at that time.
But that was a major drought summer, so we only saw rain briefly on two days. I have started working on an itinerary for either 2008 or 2009 to go back

Hello SP84,

"and of a few pubs".

If you enjoy beer, there is a huge selection of types for you to try. Certainly try 'Real Ale' as it is known. You will find that this beer is served using a hand pull pump rather than a 'switch' type pump which dispenses pressurised beer.
If you do go the real ale trail, their taste is as varied as that of wines, and some you may like and others you may not? But they are not boring.

Alec

Im fairly sure that the Goodwood Revival meeting is on when you are here in the UK. Its quite possibly the best motoring event ever!

Now *that* is something to see. I attended the Goodwood Festival of Speed in 2000. Absolutely the best motoring event I've ever been to. You could walk right up to the drivers and get autographs. I think Jenks was still alive back then and they had a couple of Moss/Jenks cars running up the hill. There were hundreds of cars spread over hundreds of acres. For liability reasons,the States will lierly never see an event like this. I've got video of an MGA twinkie running up the "hill". Sound was awesome.

Is the Revival in Chichester/Lord March estate as well?

Goodwood is August 31 through September 2 in Chichester I believe.

It's been so long since I've been back home, I don't know what's there any more, outside of the usual tourist stuff, that is...