Lucky Oxford. It will have two fast railway connections to London from Monday, December 12 (2016). That is the day the new Marylebone to Oxford line will open. (Oxford is already served by trains from Paddington Station.) The link will be billed, correctly, as the first new connection between London and a major city in… Continue reading
Browsing Category Travel
Visit England showcases stay at home travellers’ delights
The view from the 69th floor of the Shard in London is stupendous. With a bit of time, and guidance, I am sure you could pick out, on a clear day, two or three surrounding counties, as well as the whole of the metropolis itself. But Visit England, in its 2017 Showcase event there, wanted… Continue reading →
Shopping phenomenon Bicester Village rail station hits 1 million
One year on (November 3rd 2016) since it opened, and 1 million people are said to have used Bicester Village station. That’s quite a figure. And there is more expansion to come, with the completion of the line to Oxford city centre on December 12 (2016). There is a direct service from London’s Marylebone station, fast (49 minutes,… Continue reading →
Champion honey-coloured stone pub in the Cotswolds
I approached the Horse & Groom at Bourton on the Hill in the Cotswolds, on a dimming autumnal evening, with “child in the toy shop” level of anticipation. It had just been voted Pub of the Year in The Good Pub Guide 2016. The guide extolled it as “Handsome, Georgian, honey-coloured stone inn”. It’s one… Continue reading →
Glasgow’s Grand Central recalls great days of station hotels
I have experienced several spirit-sapping, early morning departures from UK airports (mainly Luton) recently. This makes me wonder, and not for the first time, whether flying (early, it is always early) with budget airlines was worth the effort. On one occasion, at Luton, we had to leave the car we were travelling in well short… Continue reading →
How good food became Northern Ireland’s big selling point
Wine and Brine, a small restaurant in Northern Ireland, was named as local restaurant of the year in the Waitrose Good Food Guide 2017. Another culinary coup for the province in 2016, which is Northern Ireland Year of Food and Drink. —- I was delighted to see Wine and Brine in the small Northern Irish town of Moira… Continue reading →