In England, do as the English do - be polite, say “cheers” and talk about the weather

England is one of the four countries that make up the United Kingdom, together with Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. London is the capital of England, and of the United Kingdom.

England is governed only by the government of the United Kingdom, whereas Scotland and Wales recently have established local assemblies with the power to create laws and set taxes.

British Rail ran most of the British railway system until the year 2000. Today, all the passenger train companies in Great Britain are privately owned. A coordinating body owns the National Rail brand which organizes the common ticketing structure. National Rail still uses the former British Rail double-arrow logo.

For visitors from abroad, the Britrail Consecutive pass and Britrail Flexipass offer unlimited train travel in England, Wales and Scotland.

At first, you may get the impression that quite a large number of companies are involved in the UK’s current rail system. However, a few larger companies operate multiple franchises. The biggest are the National Express Group, First Group, Virgin Trains and Arriva.

England has a large number of international airports. The main airports are Gatwick and Heathrow in London, Manchester International airport and Birmingham airport.

The famous Eurostar high-speed train links England to mainland Europe. Trains run from Waterloo Station in London to Paris and Brussels via the Channel Tunnel.

Traffic drives on the left-hand side of the road in all of Great Britain and Ireland. The tunnel under the English Channel (the “Chunnel") is used both by cars and trains between England and France.

The official currency in England is the pound sterling. Be aware that bank notes from Northern Irish and Scottish banks are sometimes not accepted in English shops, even though they should be.

According to Wikipedia, England’s economy is the second largest economy in Europe and the fifth largest economy in the world. Over 100 of Europe’s 500 largest corporations are based in London.

The world-renowned Full English Breakfast truly exists. It might consist of fried bacon, fried eggs, fried sausages, fried bread, fried black pudding, fried white pudding, fried mushrooms, scrambled eggs, baked beans in tomato sauce, toast and butter. According to English tradition, the full breakfast is often served throughout the day. The English bring their breakfast tradition with them wherever they go, so don’t be surprised to find the Full English Breakfast on a menu in Spain.

English food has undergone a revolution. There are numerous award-winning restaurants run by famous TV chefs, and the English have been obsessed with good food. There are many ethnic restaurants such as Chinese, Asian or Mexican. Unlike many other European countries, vegetarian food is widely available in England.

The inventor of the World-Wide Web, Tim Berners-Lee, is from England. English artists such as The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd, Radiohead, Led Zeppelin, David Bowie, Queen, Oasis and Elton John are amongst the biggest selling in the world.

God Save the Queen is usually played during English sporting events but is in fact the national anthem for the United Kingdom as a whole.

Recommended sights and events in England

All events are described in greater detail in the tourist guides linked to at the end of this section.

• The impossibly beautiful countryside of the Cotswolds overlooks the Severn Vale and is an upland region of stunningly pretty, gilded stone villages and remarkable views.
• Children will no doubt appreciate a “Harry Potter” tour of England. The Glenfinnan Viaduct was used for the Hogwarts Express. From May-October, the old Jacobite steam train still runs once daily from Fort William in Scotland to Mallaig and back. Gloucester Cathedral doubled for the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The Bodleian Library at the Oxford University doubled as the Hogwarts Library in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone*. Kings Cross Station in London is featured in all Harry Potter films. It’s the place where young witches and wizards hop the train at Platform 9 3/4 for the magic trip to Hogwarts. Alnwick Castle was the setting for Hogwarts School in the Harry Potter films. It was first seen in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, but eventually took on a larger role in the flying-lesson and Quidditch match scenes in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone*. (* Released as Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone in the UK.)
• The Xscape Castleford has the UK’s largest indoor snow slope, Europe’s tallest indoor ice climbing wall, rock climbing walls, an all weather skatepark, a multiplex cinema, 20-lane bowling wih 15 bars, cafes and restaurants.
• The Farmhouse Breakfast Week is held in January every year and is all about nutrition – “make time for it”!
• York has been the capital of the north for nearly 2000 years. It played a central role in British history under both the Romans, Saxons and Vikings.
• The famous Grand National steeplechase takes place at Aintree, Liverpool, on the first Saturday in April.
• The Glastonbury Festival music extravaganza swamps Glastonbury’s paddocks in June.
• In the conifer forests of the Lake District National Park, you might see the now rare indigenous red squirrel.
• The Pleasure Beach in Great Yarmouth is a 9-acre leisure park featuring over 70 rides and attractions.
• The opening shots from the James Bond movie The Living Daylights were filmed at Beachy Head and the Historic Dockyard. Chatham was one of the locations in The World is not Enough, while the old chalk pits at Amberley Museum were used in A View to a Kill starring Roger Moore and Grace Jones.
• England’s premier steeplechase event takes place in early April at the Aintree Racecourse.
• The blue hills of Shropshire is one of the most peaceful and underrated areas of Britain. The gentle terrain and the low population density make it perfect cycling or open walking country.
• Steamers and launches sail daily during the year between Ambleside, Bowness and Lakeside near Windermere in the Lake District.
• Native ponies can be found in the New Forest, Dartmoor and Exmoor, where feral ponies have lived since the first century AD.
• The biggest zoo in Britain is located in Chester.
• The Reading Festival in August features some of the most popular artists and bands in contemporary popular music.
• One of Europe’s most prestigious international festivals of music and the arts features as many as 1,000 performers at various venues in Bath in May.
• The Epsom Derby famous horseracing event is held in the first week of June at Epsom Downs, Surrey.
• The Great British Cheese Festival is held in September. Millets Farm Centre, Frilford, Oxon.
• The Duxford Air Museum is an airbase a day trip from London with five hangars’ worth of historic aircraft.
• Eat as much as you can at the Rye Bay Scallops Week in January/February.
• England’s largest arts festival features some 400 different cultural events in Brighton in May.
• The Glyndebourne Festival is centered at the 1,200-seat Glyndebourne Opera House in Sussex, in May every year.
• Broadway is reputed to be one of the most beautiful villages in the country. Get off the train at Honeybourne near Stratford-upon-Avon.
• The Lancashire Food Festival takes place in Accrington, Lancashire in April.
• The Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham is an important destination for pilgrims from around the world. The nearest train station is Kings Lynn or Sheringham near Norwich.
• Winchester is the former capital of England and an attractive cathedral city with lots to see. The train from London Waterloo passes through the beautiful southern English countryside and takes about one hour.
• Shrewsbury is considered the finest Tudor town in England.
• Tens of thousands of fans gather in Liverpool in August to celebrate the music of the Fab Four during the International Beatle Week.
• Stow-on-the-Wold is a Cotswold market town with buildings dating back to the 16th century. Take the train to Evesham.

Scenic train rides in England

South

The trains in the Southeast take you through the South Downs and over wide marshlands to the sea.

• Hastings to Weymouth
• Portsmouth to Bath

East and central

The eastern part of England is flat. Wide-open views make this undiscovered part of Britain so different.

Moving west we get closer to Birmingham, the literary towns of Stratford and Oxford, and natural beauty of the Cotswolds.

• Bath to Exeter
• Cardiff to Bath
• Chester to Cardiff
• Ely to Norwich
• Norwich to Lowestoft, then continue to Ipswich
• Norwich to Cromer
• Oxford to Hereford
• Hereford to Birmingham

West

Seaside towns and villages along rugged coastlines – this is Devon and Cornwall.

• Salisbury to Exeter
• Exeter to Penzance, and you’ll be near Land’s End, the most westerly point of the English mainland
• Liskeard to Looe
• Falmouth to Truro
• Weymouth to Bristol
• Exeter to Torquay

North

The North Country is a well-kept secret with an abundance of wonderful scenery.

• York to Harrowgate, then continue to Leeds
• Leeds to Hebden Bridge
• Carlisle to Settle
• Carlisle to Newcastle
• Carlisle to Preston
• Middlesborough to Whitby
• Manchester to Sheffield
• Manchester to Llandudno
• Manchester to Windermere (Lake District)
• Windermere to Glasgow

England rail passes

The Britrail Consecutive pass and Britrail Flexi pass both offer unlimited train travel in England, Wales and Scotland.

Britrail and Eurail

The largest rail network in Europe is called Eurail, and includes Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Luxembourg, Montenegro, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, the Republic of Ireland, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.

England is not part of Eurail. If you wish to travel by train through both England and other parts of Europe, you should consider buying a separate Eurail pass. Learn more about Eurail at our sister site EurailForAll.com (opens in a new window).

Tourist information

The official website of the English Tourist Board — Enjoy England
Lonely Planet destination guide for England
Wiki Travel guide for England