Places I should see in the UK and Rome

[Red_Praetoria]

My family and I are going to the UK and Rome in a few days here. We'll probably go see all the "big" sites like Stonehedge, the Vatican, Pantheon, some British museums and ect. So what im asking is, are there any not as well known places that you guys love to see/visit that we should go check out on the trip?

Thanks,

[king-nord]

Cornwall and Devon in genral are both great places to go.

[Red_Praetoria]

Thanks, a friend that lived in London tells me all the pubs/restraunts along the mainstreets are tourists traps and all the restraunts/pubs a block inwards are generally where the locals go?

[Romulus_A]

When I went to the UK, I enjoyed seeing some of the castles, particularly Warwick Castle, and Dover Castle. As touristy as they may be, they're beautiful places to see.

Just as well, as King-Nord said, Devon is a very beautiful area. We stayed in an inn at a pub in that area for 3-4 days, and just driving around, and seeing the landscape and everything was amazing.

Finally, I'd have to say London itself is a great experience. There's so much to do there, and it's fairly easy to get around too (much more so than in cities in the U.S.). To add to that, London has places like Trafalgar Square, the National Gallery, Tower of London, etc.

Word to the wise though, be wary of pickpockets in London .

[Red_Praetoria]

Thanks ill have to see if we can go see Devon.

[Copperknickers II]

London is great, imperial war museum is worth vistiting, as is the natural history museum if ur into that sort of stuff. And of course my personal favourite the british museum, the largest collection of stolen property in the world. They managed to fill an entire room with monoliths and obelisks looted from ancient temples from egypt to south america. Stonehenge is really dissapointing though, you spend ages queueing and all you get is a view you could have seen from the motorway, about 200 yards from the stones themselves.

Glasgow is... nothing special (i live there btw). Stirling castle is very nice though, as is edinburgh and its castle. Scenery is epic up in the highlands, but that would require to much of a detour i think.

Also im going to rome for the first time i'll be keeping an eye.

[Lord Consul]

Avoid Glasgow. It isn't all that special, unless you like walking through endless commercial pedestrian-only streets like Sauchiehall St.

London is a one-of-a-kind city. Be sure to watch some West End musical (Lord of the Rings, Sound of Music, Phantom of the Opera) or a Harold Pinter play, they're always running. Don't forget to walk around the Convent Garden, Oxford Street, Russel Square (the British Museum is nearby), Notting Hill... The list is endless.

BTW, if you haven't got an European passport, be ready to meet Hell when you step out of the plane in Heathrow. British immigrant officials seem to have a sadistic habit of humiliating tourists for hours before letting them in.

[CaptainCernick]

Stonehenge is really dissapointing though, you spend ages queueing and all you get is a view you could have seen from the motorway, about 200 yards from the stones themselves.

I agree. Don't bother with Stonehenge. If you're going to go to Devon anyway, the motorway takes you past it, take the nearest exit and you can look at it from a distance, which should be more than enough.
I'd second the Devon recommendation, except that if you are only staying a week in England (?), you might want to spend your time a bit closer to London and the airport. Devon is a long time driving, and while it really is a beautiful place (I stayed a week in a cottage there, it was like being in a Jane Austen novel) you might use your time better visiting the more accessible places.
No visit to England is complete without a castle/garden visit, so be sure to do one.