I stayed at the three star Jurys Inn Leeds for one night in mid February 2012.  I booked the day before I travelled to Leeds. I wanted to find a hotel within a ten minute walk from Leeds railway station at a reasonable price for a late booking. I started off searching for Leeds hotels [...]

London is home to some of the best museums in Europe and on top of that it’s free to get into UK state museums, although there can be charges for special exhibitions. So here are seven great London museums. Victoria & Albert (V&A) The Victoria and Albert Museum is probably my favourite London museum. On [...]

Although we live in between Newcastle upon Tyne and Edinburgh, we visit Edinburgh far more frequently. This is partly because one of our sons lives in Edinburgh and partly due to being Scottish I’m more drawn to the North. However, in November 2011 my husband suggested a day trip heading south toward Newcastle. We had [...]

I paid my first visit to the Museum of London in November 2011. The museum opened in the mid 1970s and is situated a short walk from St Paul’s Cathedral. Sculpture outside Museum of London The Museum of London is arranged in chronological order starting from early London to the present day. Roman sculptures at [...]

I’m a huge fan of the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) in London having visited on many occasions over the years. I reckon it’s one of the best museums in Europe. My most recent visit was in November 2011. Exterior of V&A

I reckon that the English city of Leeds doesn’t get the attention it deserves. I visited Leeds last year and was very impressed. My favourite part of Leeds was the Waterfront, featured in my things to do on a Leeds short break. One of the reasons I had such a great time in Leeds was [...]

I’m off to London next month to attend the World Travel Market. I started to compare hotels in London for convenience of getting both to the Excel Exhibition Centre in the Docklands and peripheral events in the West End. It seemed to me that the area near the Tower Bridge was ideal. Now I’ve heard [...]

If you’re visiting the UK capital why not try to time your trip to see some London ceremonies described below by Andrea Kirkby. While there are several well known London Ceremonies such as the Changing of the Guard for instance and Trooping the Colour in the summer; then in autumn, it’s the State Opening of [...]

The Black Bull pub is located in the hamlet of Etal in North Northumberland and is the only thatched pub in the county. We had lunch there on a weekday in late August 2011. Exterior of The Black Bull

The United Kingdom (UK) comprises of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.  If you’re looking for ideas for what to do in the UK, here are some great travel tips from the Europe a la Carte team. ENGLAND Cool Off at the Diana Memorial Fountain, Hyde Park You may dangle your feet in the refreshing [...]