Where to Go When: Great Britain & Ireland

by D.K. Eyewitness Travel, Julia Bradbury (Forward)

Whether you re after a stroll through the woods in springtime, a canoe safari on the Norfolk Broads, a day at the caber-tossing Highland Games or afternoon tea at a fancy hotel, this book will lead you to the best holiday destinations and experiences Great Britain and Ireland have to offer. Its easy-to-use season-by-season format and six themes History and Heritage; Wildlife and Landscape; Cities, Towns and Villages; Outdoor Activities; Family Getaways; and Festivals and Events make planning your time on these beautiful isles easier than ever.

Genres: Travel, Nonfiction, Reference

272 pages, Hardcover

First published February 1, 2010

Reviews

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Skimmed, rather than read word for word in detail. I had trouble reading the tiny print in the outer margins of the pages. Overall, I enjoyed looking through this guide and smiled with delight when I read:

"If Britain had a "Fall Foliage" region to rival New England's, it would be the Lower Wye Valley Gorge." This is great news for me, as according to Google maps I live a 40-minute drive away from this area of outstanding beauty!

Additionally, I live in what is described as "Cider Country" and nearby Ledbury, Herefordshire (where my husband grew up) was listed as a place to visit in the autumn. There is so much to explore, and sometimes it is right on our doorstep!

[Erin]

Wifi has returned to the household and this book has been returned to my Dad’s bookshelf.

[Neil · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice looking, good locations, perhaps a bit more focused on natural locations than my personal travel preferences would dictate. The reasons to go are either seasonal for the natural locations or related to festivals and the like for most of the cities and towns. I wish there was a little more coverage of what other highlights of visiting the location might be, since I would rarely travel somewhere just for a festival (maybe I'm a bit too cheap to pay the added cost of lodging when a town is booked up, and I don't always relish the crowds that festival weekend can bring). The travel publishers could really do better with the average coffee table book. They focus on making them pretty, but the content should enhance what readers are using them for: inspiring and helping to plan the next great adventure, or sometimes, just enabling an armchair adventurer like me.

[Helen · Rating 5 out of 5]

good ideas

This shows places to go in Britain, by month. It has some useful information for each location, how to get there, what to see, although it is sparse - but you get the idea and can look up details in other books or online. It is more of a starting point and the photographs definitely help you decide where to go. In every place the weather says be prepared for rain ;0 so true!

[Neil · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gorgeous to look at, but not much support for why each location was best visited at the time of year for which it is listed (the book is organized by the four seasons). And while it's great to see some lesser known locations getting some attention, it seems odd to only give great cities like London, Edinburgh, and Dublin the same number of pages as tiny islands or bird sanctuaries. I enjoyed looking through this, but you certainly wouldn't want to plan a trip around it.

[Jennifer Daniel · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too much Great Britain and not enough Ireland. I did glean some info about the horse racing scene and that was useful. I don't think any tour books of Ireland even need to mention Guiness. We all know it is there thank you very much.

[Helle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amazing pictures, interesting locations and insights, very nice to get inspiration from. Less suitable for practical information.