6 Days in Britain: The Overnight Loop
Six days extends the 5-day York-then-Edinburgh spine one leg further west: from Edinburgh, cross to the Lake District via a change at Oxenholme rather than doubling back to London first. It’s a genuine loop, York on the East Coast line, the Lakes and Liverpool on the West Coast line, not a there-and-back repeat of the same track. Ready for the full version with Liverpool added? See the 7-day plan .
Book these before you go
- Your Windermere or Ambleside base: check rates on Booking.com , book before the York and Edinburgh legs since Lake District rooms sell out earliest in summer
- Edinburgh Castle: book a timed slot on GetYourGuide , £21.50 online against £24 at the gate
- Hill Top, Beatrix Potter’s farmhouse: book directly at nationaltrust.org.uk , tickets release every Thursday two weeks ahead and the car park needs a slot too
- LNER and Avanti advance fares: lock in York, Edinburgh and the Oxenholme leg together at lner.co.uk and avantiwestcoast.co.uk
| Day | Destination | Travel time from London |
|---|---|---|
| 1-2 | York | ~2h direct, LNER from King’s Cross |
| 3-4 | Edinburgh | ~2h24 direct from York |
| 5-6 | Lake District (Windermere) | ~2h from Edinburgh via a change at Oxenholme, then ~3h to London |
Day 1: London to York
LNER’s fastest King’s Cross to York run takes about 1 hour 45 minutes. Walk the Shambles, stop for tea at Bettys Café Tea Rooms, then take in the Minster’s exterior at golden hour.
Day 2: York Minster and the National Railway Museum
Book the Minster’s tower climb for opening time (from about £13, closer to £28 with the tower, valid a full year), then spend the afternoon at the free National Railway Museum.
Day 3: York to Edinburgh
LNER runs York to Edinburgh direct in about 2 hours 24 minutes. Spend the afternoon on the free Royal Mile between the Castle esplanade and Holyroodhouse, and settle into your Old Town base.
Day 4: Edinburgh Castle and Arthur’s Seat
Book Edinburgh Castle for the morning, £21.50 online against £24 at the gate, then climb Arthur’s Seat in the afternoon for the city’s best free skyline view.
Day 5: Edinburgh to the Lake District
This is the leg that makes the loop real. Trains run Edinburgh to Oxenholme in as little as 1 hour 47 minutes, then a short branch-line hop covers the last stretch into Windermere, so budget close to 2 hours total. Base yourself in Windermere or Ambleside; there’s no single hotel that puts you within easy reach of the whole national park, and chasing one wastes a day on local buses.
Day 6: Hill Top, Windermere and the trip home
Book Hill Top, Beatrix Potter’s farmhouse near Near Sawrey, for the morning, £15.40 adult on a strict timed-entry system that also requires a separate car park slot if you’re driving. In the afternoon, take a Windermere Lake Cruises boat, shorter hops start in the low teens in pounds, the full round-the-lake Freedom of the Lake ticket runs closer to £28. Avanti’s fastest Oxenholme to Euston run is about 2 hours 39 minutes; budget closer to 3 hours with the Windermere branch connection factored in.
Do I need a car for this leg of the trip?
No. The Oxenholme change handles the rail side, and once you’re based in Windermere or Ambleside, local buses and the lake cruise boats cover Bowness, Ambleside and Grasmere well enough for a 2-day stay. A car only starts paying off if you’re pushing into the quieter fells beyond the main lake.
Before you go
Pack proper waterproofs for the Lake District specifically, its weather runs wetter than York or Edinburgh even by UK standards, and comfortable walking shoes matter more here than anywhere else on this route. Prefer Wales or Shakespeare country to a second week north? Swap this leg for Cardiff or Stratford-upon-Avon instead, both run about 2 hours direct from London, just on separate lines that don’t connect neatly to this loop.