Connecting With Nature and Urban Life: A Family Excursion For The Ages

The preparation process for a vacation tends to be relatively taxing and stressful. Apart from scheduling a flight and booking a hotel room, you also have to establish a travel solution within your final destination and craft a pragmatic itinerary for your group. As you might imagine, facilitating these tasks can be very time-consuming and may even turn you off from the idea of vacationing altogether. After all, taking care of every salient detail within a holiday plan is similar to seeing how a sausage is made; you’d rather have nothing to do with it at all.

However, in this day and age, it is important understand that much of the trepidation and apprehension associated with holiday plans actually stems from a lack of information. After all, the commercials and advertisements we see paint a picture juxtaposed to the reality of modern vacations. Fortunately, with a bit of targeted research you can eliminate many of these concerns, but it all begins with learning more about your final destination, in this case, the gorgeous Peak District in the UK.

The Peak District

Nestled in the centre of England’s mainland, the Peak District National Park and its surrounding areas are teeming with diversity, historical significance, and a seemingly endless assortment of wildlife. From the beautiful scenery in Dovedale to the dazzling vistas on the Monsal Trail, the Peak District represents the pinnacle of wilderness and greenery, and provides an inescapable natural essence. So whether you wish to take a revitalising hike through the local wooded boroughs or relax in an old-fashioned village pub, you’ll be able to absorb the Peak District lifestyle in its fullest sense, regardless of the size of your travel group. To boot, you can also head down to the nearby Ladybower Reservoir or Chatsworth house for an eye-opening, informative tour through some of the most well-preserved areas in the entire region.

Booking Your Stay

The most important aspect of any foreign vacation plan is ensuring that you have access to a knowledgeable, resourceful local from the onset. After all, you wouldn’t rely on a Chinese person to inform you about life in California, nor would you seek Asian travel advice from a Londoner, so it only makes sense to avoid the generic hoi polloi of holiday planning by circumventing the need for multinational hotel chains. Of course, booking a stay at a renowned resort will provide your travel group with a wide assortment of indulgences and frills, but you’ll likely miss out on the nuanced intricacies of local life, which defeats the purpose of scheduling a culturally-enriching holiday in the first place.

Thus, if you are planning to spend your holiday in the UK’s Peak District, it is important to plan your itinerary with a local, family-oriented travel agency like Derbyshire Country Cottages, because doing so will allow you to merge traditionalism with modernity during your excursion. As these agencies feature extensive networks of private cottages, cabins, and bungalows across the expanse of the Peak District region, you’ll be able to avoid the long lines and inordinate crowds associated with bustling hotel resorts, all while enjoying the freedom of a truly bespoke getaway with your family and friends.

The Accommodations

Although you’ll likely be staying in a customary, old-style structure, it is important to note that you’ll still have access to Wi-Fi, running water, a full assortment of cookery, and contemporary fittings and furniture. To put it simply, you will be provided with all of the amenities which you’d find in a publicised five-star resort, but you won’t have to deal with all of the usual stressors that come along with such accommodations. On top of that, you’ll have proximate access to wilderness jaunts, self-guided tours, woodland hikes, and cycling escapades, all of which allow you to see the full breadth of the region at your own pace.

However, it is important to note that you won’t be figuratively trapped amongst greenery and trees, because you can easily take a short trip to one of the nearby population centres for some urban fun.

Top Urban Attractions in the Area

From the iconic London Eye observation wheel and the timeless St. Paul’s Cathedral to the towering Windsor Castle and historic Stonehenge, there is truly something for everybody to see and do during a visit to the UK. As a matter of fact, many of the travellers to the Peak District only stay for a short period of time (less than five hours), because people are drawn to the city’s urban nightlife once the sun sets. Thus, it should come as no surprise to find out that the country’s capital city of London catered to a record-breaking 31.5 million international visitors in the past year alone. So if you decide to leave the Peak District for an urban excursion, you’ll definitely want to visit the following hotspots:

  • Open Garden Squares Weekend – Spanning across 27 UK boroughs, you’ll get to see incredible greenery sprawling across rooftop terraces, traditional garden squares, and unique architectural wonders. Over 100 of the 200 participating gardens are normally closed to the public throughout the year, so this event marks a special opportunity to get up close and personal to some of the most wonderful landscape displays in the world.
  • Arcelor Mittal Orbit Slide – Created by renowned German artist Carsten Holler, this attraction is not only the world’s tallest tunnel slide, it’s also the longest as well, with over 175 metres of tubing from beginning to end. During the exhilarating descent, visitors will pass through a flurry of dark and transparent sections as London’s picturesque skyscape whooshes by.
  • Sunset Safari at London Zoo – Your travel group will be taken on a thrilling tour through the after-hours scene at the world-renowned London Zoo. The self-guided jaunt consists of feeding wild animals, visiting the world food market, and seeing gymnasts transform into lively tigers during the keynote show. For animal lovers, this is an absolute must-see!
  • Camden Market Excursion – Renowned as one of the most breath-taking shopping districts in all of Europe, travellers from the world over flock to London’s Camden Market year-round. Situated near the Regent’s Canal, your travel group will be able to peruse craft shops, clothing outlets, bric-a-brac stalls, and a wide range of eateries as you take in UK’s cultural diversity.

With some help from a reputable local tourism agency, you’ll be able to see the sights at your own pace without having to worry about paying over the top for your accommodation, so start planning today!