Sign in with Facebook51-53 The Polygon, Southampton, Hampshire, SO15 2BB, United Kingdom
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the titanic engineer officers' memorial
The original castle gate
Ascending The Walls
Along the harbour
Is renting a car the best way to see the New Forest in a short time? We were thinking of going to Burley and Lyndhurst to get a flavor of the area. It looks like it is a short drive. We will dock in Southampton on the Queen Mary and will just be there from 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on Oct. 19th. My elderly mother will be with me and she would like to see the area and go to a tearoom for a clotted cream tea. Those two towns look like good places to visit.
Thank you!
If you want to explore the UK countryside, a car really is the best bet assuming you are happy to a) drive on the left and b) negotiate the traffic (hopefully you have someone who can mapread/watch roadsigns for you?).
If you want an automatic you will need to book online as soon as possible. Automatic cars are uncommon in the UK, and many hire firms only have a few available. But it's usually cheaper to book any hire car in advance.
Will you actually be off the ship at 7.30am, or is that just when you dock? If the former, you may have trouble hiring a car until later (and doing the paperwork/checks may take some time). If the former you may not be off the ship until much later so hiring a car may not be such a good idea after all.
You will need to return the car by 3-ish, to allow for final paperwork/checks and you to board the ship. Allow plenty of time for traffic congestion and delays: ships don't wait.
There are no car hire facilities at the cruise dock, but Avis has a delivery/collection point for pre-booked cars. That seems to be your best best, otherwise you will be using time getting to/from the hire firm premises.
http://www.visit-southampton.co.uk/site/faqs
Check distances and estimated drive-times on this site. It is up-to-date with roadworks and so on, and is thus a better option than relying on a satnav (or map) alone:
http://www.theaa.com/route-planner/classic/planner_main.jsp
Excellent though the site is, allow more than the estimated time for each segment. If you do start off at 7.30-8am you will be hitting the rush-hour traffic anyway.
Lyndhurst will probably take around 30 minutes from Southampton, Burley (choose 'Burley, Ringwood' from the AA menu) will take around 40-45 minutes (assuming no major delays on either route).
'Clotted cream teas', by the way, are originally from and usually found in Devon. You may find that you can only have a 'cream tea' (i.e. not using clotted cream) in Hampshire.
You'll certainly find a cream tea in Lyndhurst:
http://www.foodanddrinkguides.co.uk/lyndhurst/the-lyndhurst-tea-house-/restaurant/4553/
or you might prefer somewhere else...perhaps this one at Holmsley:
http://www.newforesttearooms.co.uk/index.htm
Other near-Burley choices here;
http://www.burleynewforest.co.uk/eat.html
A number of large round-the-world yachts call regularly at the Royal Southampton Yacht Club, which is a stop on the Whitebread Race. The blue catamaran in the photo is making a bid for the fastest maritime circumnavigation of the Earth.
Beautiful Port town adorned with Historic old walls all through the town.
Nightlife great at Oxford street. Plenty of options for food and drink. Strangely a lot of Thai places in Southampton. Locals must like thai food.
Claim to Fame :: Titanic sailed from here and lots of Theatres and art galleries
Tip : Nothing opens before 9 and everthing closes after 5!!!!!!!
Anywhere in Southampton...cannot miss the fact that it is a Port...Ships and cruiseliners dominate any scene
Best way to Saouthampton is to take the national express from London. 2 hours travel time and cost is 13 pounds. Taxi will take 3 hours and cost is whopping 300 pounds. Way back to London the most convinient option is the Train cost 27 pounds ...particularly if going to central London
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