Regions of England

For most travelers, particularly those who make just one journey to the United Kingdom, the central place to visit is London, and London is a fabulous place to visit, indeed! But London is just one of the sights to see while in U.K. In this section we want to bring to you other ideas for where to go, based on our own travels.

As a brief primer, let’s review the general areas of England. England is divided into counties and the locals also refer to regions based on several criteria. It is similar to how Americans refer to New England, the MidAtlantic, the South, the Midwest, the Northwest and the West. Those general areas are roughly defined but do not make up any defined boundaries; England is similarly divided. Take a look at this map we found on the internet:

Starting with the brown area, that is London and the immediate surrounds. The large green area to the right of London includes Cambridge, Norfolk and Suffolk; this area is referred to as East Anglia. The pink area along the southern coast is the South East and includes Brighton, Portsmouth and Dover and the Isle of Wight. The yellow on the west is, logically, called the South West and includes Cornwall, Devon and other counties, along with the cities of Penzance, Bath, Taunton and the famous Land’s End at the very western tip of Cornwall. The two areas immediately north of London in  orange and purple are East and West Midlands, home to major manufacturing cities of Manchester and Birmingham, along with Lincoln and Nottingham. The pink area along the western edge is the North West, where one finds Liverpool. The yellow area bordering on Scotland to the north is the North East and the light green area just below that is Yorkshire and Humberside—so-called because the Humber is that large tidal area on the southern edge of the area. These terms you will see on road signs and hear in general conversation. There are also other terms and expressions for smaller areas including the Lake District, Peak District, Cotswolds, the Appenines, etc. As we delve into these regions (and others) we will give you some ideas of what to look for as you travel.

Similarly, Wales and Scotland have areas and regions of interest and we will discuss them when we cover destinations in those two countries.