Vacations Blog

The capital city of England and Great Britain, London, has vast variety of fascinating visitor attractions, from the very ancient to very recent additions. The majority of the visitor attractions are recognised all over the globe (for instance, the Tower of London, Buckingham Palace and the Houses of Parliament). Amongst the youngest are the Millennium Bridge, London Aquarium, Millenium Dome and the London Eye.

The Merlin Entertainments London Eye (to give it its full name), is more commonly named, just, the London Eye or,occasionally, the Millenium Wheel (because of the fact that it was constructed for part of the Millenium celebrations). The London Eye was officially opened by the then English PM, Tony Blair, in the evening of December 31 unfortunately there were technical safety problems leading to the public not gaining access until March. At that time it was the world’s largest Ferris wheel having a height of 443 feet.

The enormous wheel is situated on the South Bank of the River Thames in Jubilee Gardens looking down upon the Houses of Parliament below. From within one of the thirty two pods towering over the whole of London you can view a large number of London landmarks, the already mentioned Houses of Parliament, Buckingham Palace, St Paul’s, Westminster Abbey and Hampton Court Palace are just a few, what a fantastically unique way to see nearly all of London and, more thank likely, one of the reasons it is one of the most popular paid for tourist attraction in London.

The London Eye’s first flight is at 10am but the ticket office opens half an hour earlier.  The Eye closes at 9.30 pm between July and August, 8 ‘o clock at night between April and October and at 9 pm for the other months of the year.

Visitors arriving in a car will be pleased to discover that there are three close by car parks. For coach parties there are parking facilities very close to the Eye (Telephone:) +44 (0)870 990 8886) for info.

The best method to get to the London Eye is via the London Underground, just get off at one of the following tube stations; Embankment, Westminster, Charing Cross, or the closest Waterloo. You can also travel by boat, get off at Waterloo Millennium Pier.

Finding bed and breakfast accommodation in London is as simple as popping over to Bing, Google or Yahoo (or any other popular search engine of your choice. Whichever you prefer you are guaranteed to find the perfect accommodation in London because the city must have the most guest houses, hotels and bed and breakfasts than any other. Luxurious accommodation to the cheerful and cheap, huge corporate hotels to the smaller boutique hotels and lots more.

Now that Inverness is no longer a town (it’s a city) Fort William is the largest town in the Highlands of Scotland. The town is an incredibly popular tourist center with a great many folk appearing to go hill walking on Ben Nevis. In the article below I take a look at three different places well worth a visit if you are taking a vacation in Fort William.

The Incredibly Interesting West Highland Museum

Founded in 1922 was the West Highland Museum in Fort William. A group of people from Lochaber wanted to create a museum, about life in the Highlands, for the people of the Highlands. The present building was purchased in 1926 from the British Linen Bank, and is located in Cameron Square, just off the Hight Street. Fascinating and small is how many people describe the museum. The exhibits in the museum present a fascinating insight into the way of life in the West Highlands throughout the years. Folk from all walks of life are represented, through the superb collections of artefact’s, picture’s and photograph’s

The Bold Old Inverlochy Castle

In fort William there are two Inverlochy Castle’s, the Old Inverlochy Castle and the new Victorian, chateau-style Inverlochy Castle, built in nearby Torlundy (which is now a luxurious hotel). The Old castle was rumoured to of been erected between 1270-1280, by John “the Black” Comyn, Lord of Badenoch and Lochaber, and chief of the Clan Comyn. Although the castle is in ruins, the layout hasn’t changed very much since it was first built. Lord Abinger carried out alterations and enhancements to the house, in preparation of a visit by Queen Victoria. Old Inverlochy Castle is still an important part of English and Scottish history, due to the part it played during the Civil Wars of the 1640’s.

The Exquisite Jacobite Steam Train

A trip on the Jacobite Steam Train, is an exhilarating way to explore the breathtaking scenery of the Highlands. The Fort William to the Mallaig journey takes one on a magical ride through the glens. One of the most sensational parts of the journey is going over the Glenfinnan Viaduct, which most folk|people will recognize due to the fact that it was used in the Harry Potter films. The 84 mile trip takes you past Loch Morar, Loch Nevis and Ben Nevis, with a break in Glenfinnan before arriving in Mallaig. There is about an hour and half in which to explore Mallaig, before the return journey, back to Fort William. This journey has often been declared, one of the Great Railway Journeys of the planet.

There is plenty of accommodation in Fort William available to book online but you will find a comprehensive list of hotels in Fort William at http://www.fortwilliamhotelscotland.com/