# Cerca de London

London is best left by train, from a different station for each direction: Paddington for Oxford, Bath and the Cotswolds; King's Cross for Cambridge; St Pancras and Victoria for Canterbury, Whitstable, Rye and Brighton, and Waterloo for Windsor, Salisbury and Stonehenge.

Fuente: https://www.geocalia.com/en/england/london/getaways

## Planes de un día
- [Bridgerton's London: Greenwich and Hampton Court](https://www.geocalia.com/en/england/london/itineraries/bridgerton-london-greenwich-hampton-court.md) (0 min en coche): The facade of the Bridgertons' house and the Old Royal Naval College courtyards at Greenwich in the morning, Borough Market at midday and Queen Charlotte's palace in the afternoon.
- [Harry Potter's London: platform, market and theatre](https://www.geocalia.com/en/england/london/itineraries/harry-potter-london-walk.md) (0 min en coche): Three filming locations in the morning, lunch at Borough Market, the gallery of the saga's graphic design in the afternoon and the stage play in the evening, by Tube and on foot.
- [Harry Potter Studio Tour in Leavesden](https://www.geocalia.com/en/england/london/itineraries/harry-potter-studio-and-watford.md) (50 min en coche): A 20-minute train from Euston to Watford Junction, a shuttle to the Leavesden studio, three and a half hours among real sets, and lunch halfway round.
- [Windsor: castle, boat and Eton](https://www.geocalia.com/en/england/windsor/itineraries/windsor-castle-boat-and-long-walk.md) (55 min en coche): About 35 minutes by train from Paddington: the castle at opening time, lunch by the wall, a 40-minute boat on the Thames, the bridge to Eton and the Long Walk.
- [Whitstable: oysters and harbour](https://www.geocalia.com/en/england/whitstable/itineraries/whitstable-oysters-harbour-and-the-street.md) (1 h 35 en coche): A direct train from Victoria or St Pancras, the harbour with its boats, oysters at a bar dating from 1856, the castle gardens and, if the tide allows, a stone path out into the sea.
- [Canterbury: cathedral and market](https://www.geocalia.com/en/england/canterbury/itineraries/canterbury-cathedral-guided-walk-and-market.md) (1 h 40 en coche): 55 minutes by train from St Pancras: a guided walk through the alleys, Becket's cathedral, lunch at a farmers' market and Roman mosaics beneath the street.
- [Harry Potter's Oxford: staircase, hospital wing and cloister](https://www.geocalia.com/en/england/oxford/itineraries/harry-potter-oxford-day-trip.md) (1 h 40 en coche): The Christ Church staircase, Hogwarts' hospital wing in the Divinity School, lunch at the Covered Market and the cloister oak at New College, by train from Paddington.
- [Cambridge: King's, pub and punt](https://www.geocalia.com/en/england/cambridge/itineraries/kings-the-backs-and-punting.md) (1 h 40 en coche): 48 minutes by train from King's Cross: King's Chapel, the college gardens on foot and by punt, lunch at the pub where DNA was announced and a free museum.
- [Oxford: colleges, tower and punt](https://www.geocalia.com/en/england/oxford/itineraries/oxford-day-trip-from-london.md) (1 h 40 en coche): An hour by train from Paddington, Christ Church in the morning, the best view of Radcliffe Square, free dinosaurs in the afternoon and an hour's punting on the river.
- [Brighton and the white cliffs](https://www.geocalia.com/en/england/brighton-and-the-seven-sisters/itineraries/brighton-seven-sisters-day-trip-from-london.md) (1 h 50 en coche): One hour by train from Victoria: the Royal Pavilion, the alleys of The Lanes, oysters by the sea and, in the afternoon, by bus, the Cuckmere walk to the Seven Sisters.
- [Stow and Bourton by train and bus, no car](https://www.geocalia.com/en/england/cotswolds/itineraries/car-free-sunday-stow-and-bourton.md) (2 h 4 en coche): Train from Paddington to Moreton-in-Marsh and the 801 bus, which runs hourly on Sundays. A morning in Stow, lunch at an old inn and an afternoon by the river in Bourton.
- [Rhinos, scones and Arlington Row](https://www.geocalia.com/en/england/cotswolds/itineraries/family-wildlife-park-burford-and-bibury.md) (2 h 4 en coche): A morning at Cotswold Wildlife Park, with penguins, rhinos and giraffes; lunch in a Burford tea room, and Arlington Row in Bibury before dark.
- [Rye: cobbles and dunes](https://www.geocalia.com/en/england/rye/itineraries/rye-citadel-castle-and-camber-sands.md) (2 h 5 en coche): A little over an hour by train via Ashford: Mermaid Street, the church tower, the castle that was a prison, grilled lunch on the High Street and the afternoon on the Camber dunes.
- [Stratford: Shakespeare's houses](https://www.geocalia.com/en/england/stratford-upon-avon/itineraries/shakespeare-houses-in-a-day.md) (2 h 15 en coche): Two hours by train from Marylebone to follow Shakespeare's life: the birthplace, New Place, the actors' pub, his grave by the river and Anne Hathaway's farm.
- [Stonehenge and the Magna Carta](https://www.geocalia.com/en/england/salisbury/itineraries/stonehenge-by-train-and-bus.md) (2 h 15 en coche): A direct train from Waterloo, a bus to Stonehenge with tickets included, Old Sarum on the way back, the cathedral with the tallest spire and its Magna Carta, and a 700-year-old tavern.
- [Bridgerton's Bath: filming locations, tea and the Regency](https://www.geocalia.com/en/england/bath/itineraries/bridgerton-bath-walk.md) (2 h 30 en coche): Regency life at the Jane Austen Centre, a two-hour guided tour of the filming locations, the Featheringtons' house, tea at the Modiste and Lady Danbury's facade.
- [Bath: Roman Baths and thermal soak](https://www.geocalia.com/en/england/bath/itineraries/roman-baths-and-royal-crescent.md) (2 h 30 en coche): 1 h 20 by train from Paddington: the Roman Baths first thing, the abbey, a Sally Lunn's bun, the Royal Crescent and a hot rooftop soak at dusk.

## Five airports and a station for every direction

London shares the flights from Spain between five airports. Heathrow takes those from Madrid, Barcelona, Bilbao, Valencia, Seville, Málaga, Palma de Mallorca and Tenerife South. Gatwick, to the south, adds the most cities: besides almost all of those, Alicante, Murcia, Almería, Santiago de Compostela, Menorca, Gran Canaria, Lanzarote, Fuerteventura and La Palma. Stansted and Luton, to the north, add Girona, Zaragoza and Santander the first, and Granada and Asturias the second. London City, by the river, has flights from Madrid, Málaga, Palma and Ibiza.

To leave London it is best to think in stations, not roads. Paddington is the western gateway: [Oxford](/en/england/oxford) in about an hour, [Bath](/en/england/bath) in 1h 20, Windsor with a change at Slough and Moreton-in-Marsh, in the [Cotswolds](/en/england/cotswolds), in about 90 minutes. Waterloo takes you to [Windsor](/en/england/windsor) direct and to [Salisbury](/en/england/salisbury) in an hour and a half. King's Cross, to [Cambridge](/en/england/cambridge) in about 48 minutes; Euston, to Watford Junction for the Harry Potter studio, and Marylebone, to [Stratford-upon-Avon](/en/england/stratford-upon-avon) in about two hours. Towards Kent and the south coast, trains leave from St Pancras, Victoria and London Bridge: [Canterbury](/en/england/canterbury) in 55 minutes by high-speed, [Whitstable](/en/england/whitstable) in a little over 1h 15, [Rye](/en/england/rye) with a change at Ashford and [Brighton](/en/england/brighton-and-the-seven-sisters) in an hour. If you land at Gatwick, Brighton is half an hour by train from the airport.

You only need a car for the Cotswolds with the family, where the zoo, Burford and Bibury have no train linking them. Remember that in England you drive on the left.

## The Harry Potter studio and Windsor, in a long half-day

**Less than an hour by road** are the [Harry Potter studio](/en/england/london/itineraries/harry-potter-studio-and-watford), at 50 minutes, and Windsor, at 55. They are long half-days that by train you can do without thinking about parking.

**Between an hour and a half and two hours** is the majority: Whitstable (95 minutes), Cambridge, Canterbury and Oxford (100), Brighton with the Seven Sisters cliffs (110), the Cotswolds (124) and Rye with Camber Sands (125). To almost all of them, the train takes quite a bit less than the car.

What lies **more than two hours away** calls for an early start or sleeping there: Stratford-upon-Avon and Salisbury with Stonehenge are 135 minutes away and Bath, 150. For those there are [a night in Stratford with a Royal Shakespeare Company performance](/en/england/stratford-upon-avon/itineraries/stratford-night-with-rsc-theatre) and [two nights in Bath with Stonehenge](/en/england/bath/itineraries/bath-stonehenge-two-nights-from-london).

## Hogwarts in the Snow, from 14 November to 17 January

In winter it gets dark around half past four, so it is best to choose city or indoor plans. From 14 November 2026 to 17 January 2027 the Harry Potter studio stages Hogwarts in the Snow, with snow-covered sets; in December, Bath has a Christmas market, and from September to April it is native oyster season in Whitstable. In [Oxford](/en/england/oxford/itineraries/oxford-day-trip-from-london), in December and January, punting is swapped for the Ashmolean Museum.

In spring, [Cambridge](/en/england/cambridge/itineraries/kings-the-backs-and-punting) has its best weeks from April to June, although from mid-May to mid-June some colleges close for exams. It is also the season for Windsor on weekdays and for Oxford's punts, which run from February to November.

In summer the coast pulls: [Brighton and the Seven Sisters](/en/england/brighton-and-the-seven-sisters/itineraries/brighton-seven-sisters-day-trip-from-london), from April to September with light until late for the cliffs; Camber beach, next to [Rye](/en/england/rye/itineraries/rye-citadel-castle-and-camber-sands), from April to October, and Whitstable's, from May to October. In Stratford, from Easter to October, there are boats on the Avon, and in Salisbury it is best to catch the first bus to reach Stonehenge before the coaches.

In autumn, September leaves Cambridge and the [Cotswold villages](/en/england/cotswolds/itineraries/car-free-sunday-stow-and-bourton) green and without August's queues, and Canterbury or Bath work in any weather.

## Canterbury in 55 minutes from St Pancras

- **No car, in a day:** [Canterbury from London](/en/england/canterbury/itineraries/canterbury-cathedral-guided-walk-and-market). High-speed from St Pancras in 55 minutes, the cathedral with a guided tour and the market; avoid Mondays.
- **With one or two nights:** [Brighton and the Seven Sisters](/en/england/brighton-and-the-seven-sisters/itineraries/brighton-seven-sisters-weekend). An hour by train, the Royal Pavilion and the pier on Saturday and, on Sunday, the chalk cliffs from Cuckmere Haven to Birling Gap, setting off on the 12 Coaster bus.
- **With two nights:** [the Cotswolds](/en/england/cotswolds/itineraries/cotswolds-two-nights-cotswold-way). Direct train to Moreton-in-Marsh, on Saturday walking the Cotswold Way from Chipping Campden to Broadway and on Sunday Stow, Bourton-on-the-Water and Bibury.