Get real in an English pub
Seek out a pub with lots of hand-pumps at the bar, choose a locally brewed real ale, consume and choose another. Intersperse with rounds of darts for a true taste of English glamour.
Cheer on a football team
There are few things the English are as passionate about as football. Huddled in the stands of any stadium across the country you’ll witness grown men cry like babies and angelic-looking kids swear like troopers.
Pitch up at a festival
Whether you’re into epic stadium rock or traditional Peruvian panpipes, there’s something for everyone on England’s festival calendar. Have your wellies to hand.
Go rambling
With an impressive array of national parks and limitless green and pleasant land to explore, it’s not surprising the English love their walking. Routes are well marked and plentiful, so all you need is a pair of boots.
Take afternoon tea
The tradition of having tea, cake and dainty sandwiches at 4pm-5pm is still thriving in London’s finest hotels and village cafés throughout the country. If you take a trip to the West Country, be sure to try a Devonshire cream tea of scones, jam and clotted cream.
Don a wetsuit
Surfing in England is not for the faint- hearted, but on an island that receives swell on its entire coastline, it’s not to be sniffed at either. Cornwall and Devon are the hot spots, but the surf off the North-East coast is becoming increasingly popular.
Visit Stonehenge
No one knows why England’s prehistoric settlers went to such lengths to arrange huge stones in patterns, but this onl makes the likes of Stonehenge and Avebury all the more fascinating.
Mix with high-society
From Blenheim Palace in the south to Castle Howard in the north, England’s extravagant and elegant stately homes are perfect places to live out your Jane Austen fantasies.
Dance the night away
While the Madchester days are long gone and the era of the superstar DJ is dwindling, England continues to take its nightlife seriously. For the best clubs head to London, Manchester, Brighton and Bristol.
See a play in the West End
Whether you’re a theatre buff or not, the slick professionalism of the plays and the grandeur of the old theatres is more than worth a West End ticket price.
