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A visit of Southampton itself normally only takes a couple
of hours. But some of the places nearby are absolutely worth
a visit and you should make sure to not miss them!
Winchester
The beautiful City of Winchester, prior capital of England
is absolutely worth a visit, especially as it is only a 20
minutes drive. It is particularly famous for its gothic cathedral,
which is the second longest medieval building in the world.
It also has a nice historic centre that gives you the feeling
of medieval times. For those of you who like the shopping
Winchester should just stroll up and down High Street. If
the weather is good a walk along the river Itchen outside
the town walls is a very nice experience, and if you feel
extremely fit, I would suggest a walk from Southampton to
Winchester (3-6 hours).
Salisbury & Stonehenge
Salisbury is an other city nearby, that is considered by
some the loveliest city in Britain (at the moment a town has
a cathedral it is called a city, no matter how small it is).
Its cathedral was build between 1220-1258 and is a good example
for Early English style with the highest spire in the country.
After a visit of the city, an excursion should lead to Stonehenge.
This world famous prehistoric stone circle is only a short
drive away and always worth a visit also the amount of tourists
during summer can spoil the pleasure quite a bit.
Bath SPA
Bath is about 1.5 hours by train away from Southampton and
as the name already suggests its big attraction is the Roman
Bath. A visit is highly interesting, with the bath still filled
with hot water and a very good museum connected to it. The
rest of the stay can be used to walk trough the very nice
city and maybe visit the cathedral (which is much smaller
than the one in Winchester or Salisbury).
London
London can be reached from Southampton with a direct train
in 1.5 hours. I am not going to tell you what to visit in
Britain’s capital, because that would require a own
webpage, and most of you will know what to expect anyway.
Bournemouth
After this sightseeing packed tips something more relaxing.
The nice sea resort of Bournemouth with its famous beaches
is half an hours drive away from Southampton. Who doesn't
care about icy water temperatures (I am from Italy!) can get
a good swim there, if the weather allows it.
Isle of Wight
The Isle of Wight can be reached from Town Quay within 25
minutes by speed boat or an hour by car ferry. Once there
a wide range of activities can be carried out. Well worth
is a trip around the island on the scenic route (1-2 days
on your bike), hiking or cycling
along the cost or over the central hill range, searching for
fossils on the west and south cost the island, and for the
brave a bath in the see. All these possibilities have made
the Isle of Wight one of Britain's favorite holiday places.
New Forest
If you prefer an old and dark forest instead of the wind
swept island than a walk in the New Forest west of Southampton
my be the right thing for you. It is one of the biggest forest
areas in England, as it belonged for centuries to the King
who used it as his hunting ground. A large number of foot
and cycling routes
lead trough the forest and after a the workout good pub food
can be found in one of the small Pups scattered around the
area.
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