How to Spend Two Weeks Backpacking the UK

Europe is always a good idea, don’t you agree? The charm, culture, cobblestone and cuisine… count me in! Read on to discover how to spend two week backpacking in the UK.

We chose to stay on mainland Britain and visit England and Scotland, narrowly deciding to save Ireland for another trip. For a budget of ~$3,500 USD a person, we were able to explore 5 cities in England, northern Wales, and 3 cities in Scotland over 2 weeks. This itinerary is great for first time visitors to give you a quick taste of everything the UK has to offer.

When planning, it’s important to be efficient. Especially if you only have a limited number of PTO days. You want to make the most of your long trip across the pond. We took the proximity of each city into account, and how well connected they are.

Don’t have time to read the whole post now? Pin it here for later!

We chose to travel in April because it’s off season, which means less crowds and often cheaper flights and better accommodation deals. Fall is also considered off season, but does not work for us because of SEC college football season (go Ole Miss). Summer is the busiest and most expensive time to visit, and we had lots of holiday plans and weddings to attend this winter. So early spring it was!

I consider this trip to be mid-range when it comes to budget. Our goal for daily expenditure was $160/piece, and nightly stay $100-$150. I would consider budget travel to be closer to $25-50/night (hello hostels), and luxury to be $250 and up. We wanted to be somewhere in between. We also aimed for a healthy mix of restaurant meals ($75+), and fast food options ($5-20).

England and Scotland are grand, especially if visiting from America. I always find English speaking countries less intimidating but just because they speak English doesn’t mean they are lacking in culture. Hop across the pond, and take this brilliant 15 day trek across England and Scotland.

Want a full Itinerary to keep you busy for two weeks backpacking the UK?

I’m going to lay out the overall itinerary, then break it up by location and a few must see activities and sites in each place. For a more in depth city guide, click the link to each location to learn more.

For a quick itinerary at a glance, scroll to the end of this post!

Disclaimer: I will say this is a very ambitious itinerary. We are active travelers and as “adults” with 2 full time jobs and no real responsibilities yet other than our cat, we Knew this two week travel opportunity was not likely to come around again. So we made the most of it, decided what we wanted to do and see, and set out to visit as many different places as possible. And truthfully, I have no regrets.

But again, this is a very active and fast paced itinerary best done via backpacking. Pack light, keep your walking shoes on, and try not to ever get too comfortable anywhere. This is the kind of trip you may feel like you need a vacation after your vacation just to recover. But the memories are priceless.

Day 1: Travel

We left from our home in Memphis, TN the afternoon of April 1, and arrived in London bright and early April 2.

Days 2 & 3: London, England

2 days in London is just not enough! 3 days would have been perfect. But hopefully London is a destination you may find yourself in again some day to pick up exploring where you left off. Due to a red eye flight and jet lag, we did not complete our full London itinerary as planned.

Day 1 was spent exploring the south bank up to the Tower of London. Day 2 started with a road market, then lots of walking to try to fit in the rest of my pre-planned itinerary. Read the full London post here to see what we did do, didn’t do, and how we fit it all into 48 hours.

Day 4: Oxford, England

I hope taking a train in Great Britain is on your bucket list. If it’s not, it should be! Especially from London, you are so well connected to many other cities in the country.

I hope you plan to visit at least one historic educational mecca when making your UK backpacking itinerary, but how do you choose Oxford or Cambridge? For us, it was easy. My husband is from Oxford, MS, named after Oxford, England in hopes of becoming a similarly successful town for education.

We enjoyed our day trip to Oxford so much. Between the history, architecture and quaint feeling you could easily fill more than a day. My “must do” experience is punting down the River Cherwell. Never heard of punting? I hadn’t either. It’s basically a long canoe like boat that someone paddles while standing in the back, using a long stick and pushing off the river bed floor. If you’re lucky, your local guide will even share interesting facts and history along the way!

To discover 4 more experiences that can’t be missed, you can find my full Oxford guide here.

Day 5: Bath, England

Another day, another train ride from London. This time, we chose to stay in Bath overnight. I didn’t have big expectations for Bath. But let me tell you, I was pleasantly surprised.

Bath was chosen as one of the “great spa towns of Europe”, and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Bath has a few claims to fame including a filming site for the Netflix show “Bridgerton”, and the home of Jane Austen. But the real beauty in Bath is in the Georgian architecture, relaxing in the same hot spring as the Romans in 60 AD, overlooking the city below from an open air rooftop pool, and one of my most fond meals of the entire 2 week trip. Discover all this and more, and learn how to spend a day in historic Bath.

Day 6: Liverpool, England

Liverpool was one of my husband’s non-negotiable stops since an old friend of his from camp lives there. I knew we’d be meeting up with locals, so honestly I didn’t do much planning or research for Liverpool beforehand.

This was another city that far exceeded my expectations. Maybe it was the perfect itinerary and being shown around by locals. But regardless, I have outlined the top 10 landmarks you must see in Liverpool, and am sharing the perfect itinerary here!

Day 7: Wales

If you are like me, you love lists. Adding things to lists, checking things off lists, just lists in general. Wales is it’s own country, and allowed me to say I checked off not 2, but 3 different countries during our 2 week UK backpacking itinerary.

But luckily, Wales is much more than just another check mark on a list. The landscape is breathtaking. Castles, coastline and local fish and chips in the morning, with national parks, look out points and pubs in the evening. I have shared a packed day in Wales in this full post, and can’t recommend traveling through the northern part of this country enough.

Days 8 & 9: The Lake District, England

This National Park stop halfway through the trip was precisely the breath of fresh air we needed! We had been hitting the ground running in every location above, and I was tired. The Lake District includes lovely historic villages and towns, and of course lakes and 583,747 acres of preserved nature.

And the icing on the cake? Randy Pike Bed & Breakfast. If I could only recommend one stay on this UK Backpacking Itinerary, this bed and breakfast would be it. Located in Ambleside, this bed & breakfast is the definition of secluded extravagance. The daily breakfast menu is vast, local, traditional and overall wonderful. Find out more first timer’s tips on the full post here, including some beginner hikes and must see sites.

Days 10 & 11: Inverness, Scotland

Our grand tour through England was over, and we were embarking up to Scotland in a car. Yes, my husband insisted on renting a car and driving on the wrong side of the road. If you’re curious, I outlined advice, pros and cons of hiring your own car as a form of transportation on this two week UK backpacking itinerary.

The drive up to Inverness from the Lake District was stunning. Inverness had been a bucket list location for me after my interest in the Stars show Outlander. We had great food, drove to see Culloden battlefield, Loch Ness, and a standing stone circle that is much more accessible (and less crowded) than Stonehenge. For more on our day in Inverness, see my full guide here.

Days 12-14: Edinburgh, Scotland

Last but not least in any way, shape or form is Scotland’s capital, Edinburgh. I had so much fun planning this stop, and finding lots of off the beaten path destinations.

I uncover 13 of the best hidden gems you need to make sure to add to your Edinburgh itinerary. Starting with where to stay, I walk you through sights you must see and the best places to grab a bite to help you plan the perfect trip. Oh, and the absolute most amazing afternoon tea experience in a historic library.

This sums up how to spend 2 weeks backpacking the UK, including an itinerary I was so happy with. I wouldn’t change a thing. I’ve summarized the cities by day below. If you are interested in the trip map, with all the stops pinned for your convenience, you can download it here.

Quick Itinerary