Dover Travel Forum

We are coming from the USA on a ship that ends in Dover, England we will have 6 days to spend after the sailing in Dover or another area of England; we are also open to traveling across the Channel to the mainland but we are a loss as to where to go, any suggestions?

Not quite sure what you mean by being at a loss about crossing the channel to the mainland? I guess you mean continental Europe?
You could reach France or Belgium very easily in a couple of hours by Eurostar from London or Ebbsfleet ( closer to Dover).
Ferries would take you to Spain or to France with onward travel to Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany ...
Flights from a number of London airports would take you further afield to cental and east Europe.. but with only 6 days you perhaps need to make a decision about somewhere closer to avoid spending too much time on getting there..

With 6 days your opportunities for travel within England are considerable - particularly if you hire a car - Canterbury, London, Oxford,Stratford on Avon, Bath, Stonhenge all the popular tourist destinations.

You have not indicated on your profile any special interests which would certainly make advising you easier, nor have you mentioned what time of the year you will be arriving in Dover - that too could make a difference to recommendations.
I do hope you will get back and let us know when you will be arriving and tell us what you would most like to see and do in those 6 days.
Also will you be leaving the from the Uk at the end of them?

Agree with Ranger. Hiring a car would give you a vast array of options within the UK, more than enough to easily fill 6 days (more like 6 weeks, actually).

Hiring a car should be done online in advance, especially if you want an automatic (these are not common). Journeys always take longer than the map suggests: our roads are congested, and rural roads can be narrow and winding.

http://www.theaa.com/route-planner/index.jsp?database=B

will give you an idea of routes and travel times by car.

Even by using public transport you could see a goodly variety of places in that time.Apart fromLonodn, you could isit York, Warwick, Bath, Winchester, Brighton, Gloucester, Salisbury, Stonehenge, Oxford, Cambridge, Windsor, Lincoln........the list is endless...

www.nationalrail.co.uk will give you train times/details/fares.

www.nationalexpress.com will give you long-distance bus (coach) routes, times and fares. Coaches are cheaper than trains but slower.

But if you want to go to the continent (not the mainland) then you need to book your Eurostar tickets as early as possible for cheapest fares. The booking window is open 120 days in advance of travel, and cheaper fares soon sell out. There are no last-minute cheap fares. www.eurostar.com France, Belgium and the Netherlands are easily accessible by train.

Depending on time of year, it would also be sensible to book your accommodation in advance.

I am sorry, this is my first time using this, so I do not have all of the right information down. Due to the limiting time a highlight tour is best.

We are sailing into Dover on April 28th, since we do not speak any foreign language and have never travelled within Europe we are a bit hesistant, at the same time do not want to miss the opportunity to experience the EutoStar, a bit of Paris and a maybe another city.

We have to be back in Florida on Sunday, May 3, since we are back to work on Monday.

You do not need to be over-concerned about your lack of other languages. Hundreds of thousands of British people travel quite happily to the continent every year with no languages at all.

If you want to explore, for example, Paris then I suggest you base yourself in London (maybe with a few daytrips to e.g. Windsor and Oxford)then spend a couple of nights in Paris.

You will need to decide soon though, in order to get the cheapest Eurostar fares (59GBP each return is possible).

If you do decide on France then buy a small English/French phrasebook/dictionary before you leave the US. It will be extremely useful for menus/notices etc and it is courteous to at least know the appropriate words for please, thank you, sorry, how much etc when visiting anywhere. I like the Berlitz series,which are light and compact but contain sufficient for most situations.

You will be able to cope in Belgium (I highly recommend Bruges as an alternative to Paris) with English and French.