where in the uk would you say is like being abroad ?

It's much more rural than the south. Lots more Welsh speakers. People rarely travel between the two. It feels a bit like Hawaii and mainland USA. Same country, but feels remote and different.

[-]

Fwoggie2@reddit

The Highlands are a decent substitute for the Rockies or Alps.

Some of the beaches on Skye are as good as the Carribbean although a damn sight cooler.

The Norfolk Broads are a peaceful equivalent to the rural canals in the Netherlands.

Other options worth checking out include the Lake District (don't go during school summer holidays though as it's beyond busy), the coast to coast if you fancy a week walking through increasingly spectacular scenery, Jurassic coast for stunning cliffs and lots of fossil hunting, Isle of Man for the TT races, the Isles of Scilly for getting away from it all.

For a shorter break that's different you could go to a several day long festival such as Glastonbury, Reading and Leeds, Download, Boomtown fair, Shambala or End of the Road.

[-]

worn-out-boot@reddit

The isle of man isn't in the UK..

[-]

Fwoggie2@reddit

My bad

[-]

OurManInJapan@reddit

I’d say Skye doesn’t have exceptional beaches in comparison to other areas in the Highlands and Islands. Harris, however, is mind boggling.

[-]

Mobile-Vegetable7536@reddit (OP)

I'd like to experience scotland in both winter and summer I think either season would be brilliant

[-]

Fwoggie2@reddit

Bear in mind midges can be a total bitch in the summer if in a rural location and it's not windy. https://www.reddit.com/r/camping/comments/q6xe3g/scottish_midges_dont_you_just_love_camping/

[-]

Mobile-Vegetable7536@reddit (OP)

thanks for link

[-]

poppyoxymoron@reddit

Little town of Somerton in Somerset feels like a French village especially on a summers day.

Parts of Norfolk feels like like northern france

[-]

Equivalent_Tiger_7@reddit

I've been to a few places that feel like Beirut.

[-]

C2BK@reddit

I've been to Beirut. At the time, it was far nicer than many cities in the UK.

Won't be rushing back any time soon though!

[-]

Army-Status@reddit

Wigan?

[-]

sighqoticc@reddit

such as?

[-]

TheLandolorian@reddit

Southbourne, Dorset. Whole stretch down to Sandbanks is lovely. Bournemouth beach is full of tourists so would avoid.

[-]

Clippitycloppy@reddit

Malvern

[-]

EyeofAv8@reddit

Isles of Scilly in the summer on a nice day

[-]

EyeofAv8@reddit

And even a lot of beaches in Cornwall are better than the beaches I’ve been to in Bali, Greece, etc

[-]

Glad-Feature-2117@reddit

And the villages. I once went to a place billed as "the prettiest village in France". Whilst perfectly decent, you could come across several prettier places driving 20 miles in Cornwall.

[-]

partyboob98@reddit

Milton Keynes, especially around the shopping centre with the grid-like pattern, feels like it’s been lifted straight from the US

[-]

Glad-Feature-2117@reddit

The rest of MK doesn't feel like the US. I live on a perfectly standard road with a park opposite.

[-]

Ok-Explanation1990@reddit

Designed by hippies to align with the summer solstice like Stonehenge.

[-]

SpicySeraph@reddit

Birmingham

[-]

Real_Science_5851@reddit

In terms of food, absolutely! Knew a few people from London who'd drive up to Brum on some weekends just for the restaurants, especially Asian food and burgers.

[-]

Logical-Towel-7134@reddit

as a Cornishman living in Devon, I was shocked at how beautiful the Pembrokeshire coast is. Not quite like home, but very close. I make sure to visit Tenby once a year now.

[-]

BillyJoeDubuluw@reddit

Firstly, the Scottish Highlands are a perfect display of how gorgeous the British Isles can be if you don’t pin your entire definition of a good holiday on the weather and you embrace the fact that we’re almost Scandinavian on balance…

Secondly, The New Forest competes with multiple pockets of northern France with complete ease…

East Anglia arguably resembles the Low Countries to an extent, too…

Cornwall, I am a fan of, but isn’t as “foreign feeling” as it’s branded to be, it’s more the case that it’s culture is very well maintained and it’s one of the last places that looks that way anymore - especially in the South.

[-]

Mobile-Vegetable7536@reddit (OP)

I agree cornwall is has commercialized dramatically over the years , but they are some not many secret places tourists dont know about ..

[-]

BillyJoeDubuluw@reddit

I do fully agree and will clarify that I’m a fan, I just think Cornwall eclipses some other really great places that are equally nice but just don’t have the same marketing.

[-]

Mobile-Vegetable7536@reddit (OP)

carnt wait to explore them

[-]

vipros42@reddit

I live near Cornwall, spend a lot of time in Cornwall and was in fact in Cornwall most of today. Pembrokeshire is generally a better place to visit in most ways.

[-]

Long_Supermarket_785@reddit

West wales

[-]

DenseRequirements@reddit

Certain parts of London make me feel I am in a different country which is actually a compliment becuase I don't need to travel far to experience different cultures.

[-]

Organic-Violinist223@reddit

Bradford! Feels like Pakistan!

[-]

Think_Money_6919@reddit

Whitechapel, London

[-]

Inkblot7001@reddit

Scilly Isles.

Falkland islands.

[-]

cgknight1@reddit

Falkland Islands are British Overseas Territory and are not part of the UK. Some people are in a situation where they have a British passport but no right to live or work in the UK.

[-]

matomo23@reddit

They are a bit odd. We should have just made them all part of the UK like France and The Netherlands did with the majority of their territories.

However anyone born in a BOT should have the right to live and work in the UK on account of their British Citizenship.

[-]

OnTheLeft@reddit

If we're including overseas territories we could basically just list those and they'd all feel a lot less like the UK than the other answers like North Wales. And not just because they're not in the UK.

[-]

mattcannon2@reddit

Gibraltar - feels very odd spending pounds at all the chain shops!

[-]

PotentialSpare6412@reddit

The Falklands is the most British place on the planet. Nowhere else do people have a stronger sense of British identity. Although it’s not part of the UK.

[-]

Mobile-Vegetable7536@reddit (OP)

thanks for sharing

[-]

Otherwise_Koala4289@reddit

Canary Wharf in London feels like being in any number of soulless, placeless developments around the world.

[-]

FletchLives99@reddit

I actually kinda like Canary Wharf. There's nowhere else like it in London, there's a lot of water and the quality of the buildings is generally pretty high. But yeah, it could be Toronto or cold Singapore.

[-]

Maajorm@reddit

That’s literally NYC financial district

[-]

matomo23@reddit

Nah NYC financial district has more of a vibe to it. It’s more interesting and feels slightly grittier and older. Though I do like Canary Wharf.

[-]

Ok-Explanation1990@reddit

Maybe people say canary wharf feels the same as NYC financial district, but actually I think NYC is older and has a very different vibe.

[-]

Otherwise_Koala4289@reddit

Yeah it's not inherently bad, just soulless and has little connection to its geographical location. As you say, weather aside you could be in Singapore or Dubai or nearly any north American city.

[-]

General-Elephant4970@reddit

Singapore soulless?

[-]

Otherwise_Koala4289@reddit

Parts of it are certainly.

[-]

BeKind321@reddit

Was designed by Canadians …

[-]

FletchLives99@reddit

LOL, yes, I'd forgotten...

[-]

Mountain-Reaction470@reddit

...any airport or High Street, then, is it?

[-]

HH93@reddit

Depends on the number of vape and phone repair shops

[-]

TheSandwichThief@reddit

It gets used in movies for that very reason.

[-]

Ok-Explanation1990@reddit

Sandbanks peninsula, Dorset, on a summers day.

[-]

Material-Sentence-84@reddit

Birmingham, east end of London, Bradford.

[-]

No-Sandwich1511@reddit

The beach in Tiree and Harris are stunning.

[-]

Long_Repair_8779@reddit

There's a spot on the south east of the Isle of Wight, I think it was Ventnor? Near the botanical garden.. On a hot day that felt like somewhere very tropical and not like the UK at all. Also the beach on the south coast of the IoW, I remember the cliffs being all red and it felt like I was in a coastal desert somewhere or on Mars, again not typical of Britain at all.. Most of the rest of the IoW was very much little England though

[-]

EUskeptik@reddit

I’m half Swedish and much of the Scottish Highlands and Islands remind me of Scandinavia.

-oo-

[-]

MainGeneral4813@reddit

East London..

[-]

No_Topic5591@reddit

The Isles of Scilly, but Tresco specifically, with its tropical gardens and white sandy beaches:

[-]

mhoulden@reddit

Northern Ireland. It's got recognisably British things like Greggs and Wetherspoons but other things feel a bit off. Number plates are different and the banks can issue their own notes. Of course the history influences a lot of things. Figures and events important to their communities that you probably won't have heard of. I think Ulster TV now broadcasts as just ITV but the adverts are localised.

[-]

Repulsive_Work_226@reddit

Bath

[-]

CheeryJP@reddit

Love Bath, but it feels very English I think?

[-]

Repulsive_Work_226@reddit

I felt different as a foreigner

[-]

CheeryJP@reddit

Fair enough

[-]

Worth_Strain1806@reddit

Shetland is akin to Scandanavia

[-]

Kerryfaye@reddit

Wife and I went to Dorset in the summer, went to a place called The Blue Pool. Moment we walked in she said "we could be in California right now". Arguably one of the most serene and beautiful places I've ever been in my life. Cannot recommend enough

[-]

sc00022@reddit

South Wales - Pembrokeshire and The Gower are stunning. The beaches are the best I’ve seen in the UK.

[-]

into-the-voyd@reddit

Bradford?

[-]

Mobile-Vegetable7536@reddit (OP)

I got friends in bradford they love it there

[-]

Army-Status@reddit

Londonistan

[-]

Captftm89@reddit

Dungeness is likely being on a different planet.

[-]

JamesTiberious@reddit

Dungeness is pretty unique. Easy to feel like you’re in a difference country. But it’s a day trip at most, you can walk around and get a lunch while you take up the scenery, but that’s it.

[-]

Two_Flower_Nix@reddit

I feel that Canterbury feels a little like a town on the Continent.

[-]

Dazzling-Ad6085@reddit

On a warm summers evening it can

[-]

CrepuscularNemophile@reddit

At the Royal Horticultural Gardens at Wisley, you can walk through the very English feeling woodlands on Battleston Hill that are cool and shady at any time of year. Then, suddenly you emerge at the Mediterranean Terraces where there are fig trees and trachycarpus palm trees plus other 'exotic', sun loving plants.

In the summer, the sudden heat plus the change from moist to dry air experienced while walking down the steps facing west is incredible. I've spent a lot of time in Greece and the smell of the plants and dry air is so similar it takes me back to being in Greece. I've never known such a sudden change in microclimate and vegetation anywhere else I've visited.

[-]

Lyrakish@reddit

There's an area in the West Midlands that, when it's the height of summer, it feels like being in Italy. Just the right temperature, Vineyards all around. I had a little time there during the summer and it was amazing.

[-]

Stunning_Delay1164@reddit

North Norfolk. No traffic, no pollution. Beautiful beaches and amazing nature and natural environment. Local vernacular architecture offering secluded cottages by the coast, marsh Fen and beach.

Just don't tell anyone

[-]

eastkent@reddit

If you were thinking of visiting Norfolk in a campervan you might own, where specifically might you visit?

[-]

GiovanniVanBroekhoes@reddit

And all the toblerone you could eat /s

[-]

OverTheCandlestik@reddit

Go to Grimsby it’s like being in Chernobyl

[-]

CheeryJP@reddit

Harsh! Chernobyl used to be a lovely town.

[-]

Ethel-The-Aardvark@reddit

Isles of Scilly. Takes almost as long to get there as going abroad though, but it's absolutely worth it!

[-]

mhoulden@reddit

I was poking around the Morrisons support site and found they'll deliver to Scilly: https://www.morrisons.com/help/online-shopping-experience/my-orders/#how-do-i-place-an-order-for-the-isle-of-scilly. Unfortunately the next sailing isn't until March.

[-]

Ethel-The-Aardvark@reddit

I know Tesco deliver there, but I think you might need to be a resident to get a slot - they deliver to the quay in Penzance then you rely on one of the regular ships to get it across, which of course is weather dependent. It's not very straightforward!

[-]

St0rmStrider@reddit

It’s a 20 minute helicopter flight isn’t it?

[-]

Ethel-The-Aardvark@reddit

You have to take into account that you've got to get to Cornwall first. The helicopter is expensive so we use the ferry, which takes 2 1/2 hours from Penzance.

[-]

Bumble072@reddit

Ive been and it is about that, give or take. No idea where they are getting the long haul flight from lol.

[-]

CrossRoadChicken@reddit

I live opposite end of the country. I do not live opposite end of the country from an international airport.

[-]

Bumble072@reddit

I worked on Scilly, I travelled from Cardiff to there. Yeh it takes time, but then most of the suggestions here would be the same duration.

[-]

Moppo_@reddit

It'd take me a day to get to the helicopter.

[-]

EyeofAv8@reddit

The Isles of Scilly in the summer on a nice day

[-]

broken-runner-26@reddit

Bradford, Batley and Dewsbury

[-]

Trigg_UK@reddit

This time, year, nowhere. In the summer, I would recommend cornwall.

[-]

Low-Cauliflower-5686@reddit

Milton Keynes around the station, feels like somewhere else in northern Europe.

Scottish cities feel and look different to English cities.

[-]

BigNeedleworker8660@reddit

If I as a Scot felt like The Isle of Lewis/Stornoway were otherworldly, I can only imagine how people from the South of England would perceive it.

[-]

Jacks_Journey@reddit

St Ives cornwall

[-]

RhubarbSalty3588@reddit

Overlooking South Beach Tenby,Wales.

[-]

Shyspin@reddit

Outer Hebrides

[-]

Yorkshire_Roast@reddit

Bradford

[-]

TheSmallestPlap@reddit

Probably London, compared to the rest of the UK it's a lifestyle of its own. Runs like its own little country.

[-]

patchworkcat12@reddit

Portmeirion.

[-]

sniffing_dog@reddit

Llandudno

[-]

younevershouldnt@reddit

Far north of Scotland feels like it could be Scandinavia, Russia or somewhere else with vast empty landscapes that feel a bit prehistoric.

That's my suggestion anyway. Or maybe Milton Keynes.

[-]

smellyfeet25@reddit

we went there. yes it was beautiful . if you get good weather England has so much to offer

[-]

Secure-Presence-8341@reddit

Parts of Scottish Highlands are very similar to parts of Norway.

[-]

TheColonelKiwi@reddit

I think the most obvious one is Port Meirion

[-]

Mobile-Vegetable7536@reddit (OP)

where is port meirion?

[-]

patrickb1920@reddit

Wales

[-]

Mobile-Vegetable7536@reddit (OP)

I definitely have wales on my bucket list for things to explore

[-]

ReditMcGogg@reddit

Be aware you need a ticket to get in….

[-]

Secure-Presence-8341@reddit

Not if you go by boat / canoe. Did it many times as a kid. Sail / canoe over from Porthmadog, walk up into Portmerion, get an ice cream and a look around, then head back. Fun and games getting over the sandbank depending on the tide.

[-]

DizzyMine4964@reddit

Many parts of Port Merion, not of Wales..

[-]

SilyLavage@reddit

I don't know; the eccentricity of the place feels very British to me. The climate and the views over to Eryri also make it quite hard to forget you're in Cymru.

[-]

VisualMethod345@reddit

It's funny you mentioned Devon as I thought Torquay (quieter parts away from the main crowds) in summer felt like somewhere in Europe.

[-]

luken1984@reddit

The harbour and hills and stony stairways all feel quite european

[-]

SilyLavage@reddit

Torquay is actually in Europe, as it happens

[-]

Remote_Development13@reddit

It's because Torquay has a semi-Mediterranean microclimate. Torquay is definitely the answer I'd give to this question

[-]

Rocky-bar@reddit

Paignton in Devon is like a Mediterranean town, very strange.

[-]

keithb@reddit

Orkney. It's basically Denmark.

[-]

helpnxt@reddit

Isles of Scilly

[-]

Intrepid_Bearz@reddit

Devon - Coleton

Coleton Fishacre National trust property in Devon. Go in May before tourist season hits and it’s like another country. Enormous succulents and rhododendrons, sit on the bench looking out to the sea and it’s like being in anther world. You can see why they picked that location to live. Stunning.

[-]

Mobile-Vegetable7536@reddit (OP)

wow looks beautiful

[-]

pdp76@reddit

South west coast path from sennen cove all the way round to porthcurno is really nice in the summer. The sea is blue, there isn’t a ton of people on it and there is lots of coves and small beaches that are inaccessible by roads. Some really nice places along that wall if that’s your thing. I haven’t been for a few years now, but I plan to change that and maybe walk it more and wild camp it a bit for a night or two.

[-]

rich2083@reddit

Bradistan

[-]

Big-Accident9701@reddit

London

[-]

TheDocmoose@reddit

I went Isle of Wight during a heat wave and it was like being abroad on the beach.

[-]

RanaBufo@reddit

Thornwick bay in flamborough on a sunny day could easily be the Mediterranean

[-]

Clivicus@reddit

Guildhall has a very Italian piazza feel about it

[-]

Bitter-Useeee@reddit

So weather dependent but the beaches on the north west coast of Scotland are as beautiful as anywhere abroad.

Get a nice day and its great, sadly the sea isn't as warm and the temp/nice days aren't as common as abroad

[-]

Vast-Gap-6564@reddit

I have had a couple of days in my lifetime where i have been on a beach and the weather's been good and had the whole beach to our self. Once was Applecross beach and once was Southend beach near Campbeltown. But i have lived in Scotland nearly 40 years and that's 2 days it was nice.

[-]

Mobile-Vegetable7536@reddit (OP)

scotland at winter though I could easy hibernate for a month.

[-]

Wise-Youth2901@reddit

It depends what kind of holiday you want, but parts of London on a summer evening really do feel like abroad. For a start, you get the urban heat effect. Try being in parts of Hounslow on a summer evening and it's like little India, with the smell of spices in the air. Then there's other areas, like parts of Chelsea or Kensington that would feel distinctly continental. Parts of London are very international so you can't get much more abroad than that 😂

[-]

Strongsight@reddit

Croydon

[-]

Upstairs_Yogurt_5208@reddit

Lived there for 30 years. I left about ten years ago because it had turned into a massive shit hole. I imagine it’s still as bad if not worse now

[-]

Kind-Combination6197@reddit

Any kind of shopping mall or out of town “outlet” village. Walking around those places you could be anywhere.

Case in point. A few months ago I was wandering around one in upstate New York to kill time for a hour or two. It basically looked and felt the same as the one at Bicester with its overpriced designer crap and bus loads of Chinese tourists turning up to buy it.

[-]

Mountain-Reaction470@reddit

Cymraeg/Welsh speaking Cymru/Wales.

The language is more different to English than English is to Scandinavian/Dutch/French, reckon

[-]

Mobile-Vegetable7536@reddit (OP)

so far my favourites are kynance cove and crantock there beautiful

[-]

ToadInTheHole7181@reddit

Isle of Man, Channel Islands.

[-]

AutoModerator@reddit

Please help keep AskUK welcoming!

When replying to submission/post please make genuine efforts to answer the question given. Please no jokes, judgements, etc.
Don't be a dick to each other. If getting heated, just block and move on.
This is a strictly no-politics subreddit!

Please help us by reporting comments that break these rules.

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.