There are SO many train day trips from London that you can do! After living in London for 7 years I've realized that because London is a HUGE city, if you live in, say, Blackheath, taking a train out of London Paddington will involve much more travel time than if you live in Notting Hill! Hence, I've decided to organize the day trips you can take out of London based on which London station the train leaves from.

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London is great, but sometimes you just want to get out of the city! I've done so many day and weekend trips out of London, I've become the go-to resource for all my friends on car-free destinations that are within easy reach of the capital!

Direct Train Journeys

The locations below can be reached via direct train from London. (There are also routes which involve changing trains, so make sure you book one that is direct if you want to minimize the travel time!)

Bath

Take the train from London Paddington directly to Bath Spa. (1h 14 min)

Things to Do

• Roman Baths
• Bath Skyline Walk
• Jane Austen tour of the city

The City of Bath is not only gorgeous, it's also a World Heritage Site with so much to do. The Roman Baths were constructed over 2000 years ago thanks to the city's natural thermal springs.

Jane Austen lived here for a time, and you can retrace her footsteps through the city.

Bristol Temple Meads

Take the direct train to Bristol Temple Meads (1h 28 min.)

Things to Do

• Bristol Art Museum
• Bristol Cathedral
• Clifton

Oxford

Take the direct train to Oxford.

Things to Do

• Pitt Rivers Museum
• Bodleian Library

Bradford-on-Avon

Take a direct train to Bradford-on-Avon.

Situated on the banks fo the River Avon is the picturesque town of Bradford-on-Avon. There are several well-preserved buildings dating to the 17th century, such as the Jacobean Hall (great example of English Renaissance architecture) and Tithe Barn.

The Bridge Tea Rooms are so cute, you often see them on social media.

Note that there isn't a central nexus for this town, so the shops and restaurants are fairly scattered. (You have to cross the road to get to some of the restaurants.)

The town is particularly lovely in December, when everything is lit up by Christmas lights!

Windsor

Take a direct train to Windsor & Eton Central

Although it's home to Windsor castle (the oldest and largest occupied castle in the world), Windsor isn't one of my favorite day trips from London. It's simply too crowded with tourists to be enjoyable!

If you are a huge Royal fan though, then don't miss the tour of the royal residence, where you can also see paintings by famous artists such as Holbein, Van Dyck and Rubens.

Changing Trains/ Bus

The following destinations require you to either change trains, or to transfer onto a Bus.

If traveling on the weekend, note that there are often route works that may cause inconvenience to your journey!

Bleinheim Palace

Getting there: Take a GWR train to Oxford, then the S3 bus towards Woodstock, which will stop at the palace’s gates. Ask the bus driver to identify the appropriate stop.

Designated as a World Heritage Site in 1987, the Palace has a history of 300 years and beautiful gardens with a lake, created by the famous landscape gardener, Capability Brown.

Most famous resident: Winston Churchill was born there in 1874.

Bruton

Take the train to Castle Cary then change for a train to Bruton. (1hr 36 minutes, though some routes are a bit slower.)

A very picturesque town with cute cafes and shops.

Stonehenge

Take the train to Salisbury, where you can get a bus to the site.

One of Europe's best known stone circles whose origins remain a mystery to today, Stonehenge dates back to 2500BC and is a World Heritage Site (including Avebury.)

There's a Museum nearby to tell you more about how the iconic structure was built.

Tip: Stonehenge can be colder than the cities, so bring an extra layer!

Any questions about the best London day trips by train? Let me know in the comments!

If you've read Jane Austen's book, you'll be intimately acquainted with the city of Bath in the U.K. It's a gorgeous place a direct train from London with lots of great places to eat at. Here's my list of the best restaurants in Bath city centre, all of which we've dined at on own our penny. (i.e. they're unsponsored reviews!)

Clayton’s Kitchen

      Address: 15A George St

This lovely little restaurant is elevated slightly above the main road and is one of the best restaurants I visited in Bath.

The service was very attentive and the food delicious- we enjoyed our time here so much so that we made a note to come back again (even though there are so many places we still want to visit in Bath!) Even though we sat outside- we were the only table sitting along our stretch- we never felt neglected by the waitress, who was very warm and friendly.

We enjoyed the starters (salmon and), the mains (chicken and fish), the house wines ( worchester culver and rose) and the affogato dessert!

The Scallop Shell

Address: 22 Monmouth Pl, Batg BA1 2 AY

We were looking for a last-minute lunch place on Saturday, and managed to find a table upstairs, on the terrace. (No lift, you'll have to climb the stairs.) The staff were very helpful.

We had the Megrim Sole Fillet with chips, mushy peas and aioli and an English Heritage Tomato Salad with feta, pickled red onions, gem lettuce & muscatel dressing. The salad was very fresh but the sole a little bland (though fresh.) If the fish had been grilled on both sides, it would have tasted better. Next time, we must try the famous fish and chips instead!

Corkage Chapel Row

    Address: Chapel Row,Bath BA 1, 1RN. 

We passed this restaurant many times not realising that it has a charming and cosy ambience, with a very romantic lovely terrace. The ox cheek was great but the courgette salad a little bland. We finished with cheese cake.

Ole Tapas

Address: First Floor, 1St John St.,Bath, BA1, 2JL

This Spanish restaurant is a great choice if you want a change from English cuisine. It serves tapas style small dishes.

We had: Pantumacc, Setas a la Planeha, Gambia’s Pil Pil, Pulpo a la Brase, Polo Asada, and a Pan Extra.  The octupus was very well presented and the bread super crunchy- I could have had two servings! 

 The service was quick but the music was too loud for us. (It's not really a good place for conversation.)

Ponte Vecchio

Address: Springs Garden Road, Bathwick, Bath BA2 6PW

This restaurant is a bit hard to find. You have to navigate down narrow steps down to this restaurant situated near the Pulteney weir by the river.

It has an upstairs dining area with terrace. The food was great- we had the fresh mussels for The Cozze Marinar, the Spaghetti lo scoglio and Caprese served with fresh tomatoes and slices of mozzarella.

The waitress, a student at the local Bath University, was also chatty and friendly.

The Marlborough Tavern Bath

 Address: 35 Marlborough Buildings, Bath BA12LY

This gastropub is located a little out of the centre of Bath, uphill from the Royal Crescent, but is well worth a detour. It ties with Clayton's Kitchen as our favorite place to eat in Bath.

In fact, we ate here twice during our trip!

The Fish and Chips, the steak burger and salad were sumptuous. The chips were meticulously cut and fried crisply. We enjoyed the food and the cosy and comfortable ambience very much.

They also have a very value-for-money lunch set!

Raphael Restaurant 

Address: Gascoyne  House, Upper Borough House, Bath BA1  1RN

We were very excited to dine at Raphael as it's famous in Bath. Sadly, we were quite disappointed by our experience.

The food was hit-and-miss: my mom had a delicious hake with boneless chicken wings and peas. However, my skate wasn't the tastiest. We also ordered a salad bowl of kale and chips to share. (Chips were much too salty.)

The service was also a little lacklustre- we didn't feel as welcome here as we did at Clayton's Kitchen. In addition, the tables were placed very near to each other. You have to enter your seat sideways for fear of topping over the  placed setting of bottle of wine and glasses.

For the same price that I paid at Raphael, I had ordered more dishes at Clayton’s Kitchen : a starter, 2 mains, a salad 2 glasses of wine and a dessert!

La Terra

Address: 2 John St, Bath BA12JL

We had the set lunch- I enjoyed it but my Mom felt that the fish was not hot enough. (It's because she eats slowly!)

As such, she felt that it was a bit pricy for the food and ambience, but I enjoyed it! The waiter was very friendly!

Places With Live Music

Bandook

Address: 3-7 Milson St, Bath BA1 1 BZ

We chanced upon this Insia restaurant on one of our walks along Milson Place, and were seduced in by the "live jazz" notice.

The place reminded me of Dishoom in London. The Kale Pakora Chaat, Chicken Curry, Jackfruit Biryani, prawns were all scrumptious. The staff were also very friendly.

Alas, the music started quite a bit later than advertised, so we were almost done with our meal by the time they had begun! The restuarant is divided into sections and, depending on where you sit, the music may be too soft (or loud.)