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"Traveling is the best way to find out who you really are." This is a personal quote by yours truly (Maya). We wrote this on our Instagram quite some time ago, around the time we started exploring Scotland and its beautiful history.
So last week Andy and I (being Maya) finally got our long-awaited break from our "normal people" day jobs (yep we have those too, 'cuz money does not grow on trees, lovely dreamers), and decided to take a tour of the UK and discover the geeky gems (and other stuff) the island has to offer.
Even if the weather was not as friendly as forecasted, we made it work and still had a wonderful time, exploring new places, admiring the lands, and getting lost because we forgot to download the maps prior to the trip (that's a note to self for next time!).What can we say? Life is an adventure! (also Wales has bad reception for your normal signal phone signal, nor just internet signal, so keep that in mind.)
What makes a travel tour geeky?
The first question we got from friends and family when we said we will do a "geeky travel tour of the UK" was: "What the hell is a geeky travel tour?" Well, it's pretty simple actually. It's traveling with the purpose of finding either filming locations (like Outlander, Batman, Harry Potter - and soon to be Game of Thrones!), or geeky things like the Doctor Who's Tardis.
To be fair, I'm to blame for most of our "geeky" adventures, because I am fascinated by the "behind the scenes" stuff, but Andy did geek out bad at Warhammer World's exhibit, especially at the end. If you are remotely interested in miniatures, creating dioramas or just love building and creating miniature stuff, this place is a must see for you!
Also, it's fun to do other unrelated nerdy things, like feeling like a magician at the border point, where you can stand with one leg in England and one in Scotland and literally be in two places at once, or geek out over mammoth fossil tusks, giant blue whales skeletons and pieces of history at museums. Did I mention how nerdy we are? :)
Last but not least, we did all this on a budget, so instead of hotels we got to stay at some of the nicest Airbnb's in the UK for on the budget couples, and I will list them below. This was simply because we wanted to spend our money on stuff that really matters to us - collectibles and small "tokens" from the places we visited.
Like our new wand - Grindelwald's (because Andy had his eye on it since I wrote our guide) bought from the Noble Collection Store in London, my new Ravenclaw woolen scarf (house pride baby!) from the Platform 9 and 3/4 Store, and last but not least, the cutest miniature and two collectable coins from Warhammer World.
How to see these places and not pay a ton of money?
You can visit the castles, henges and other historical places cheaper if you buy yourself either an Explorer Pass(in Scotland - for 5 or 14 consecutive days), an Overseas Visitors Pass( in England - for 9 or 16 consecutive days) or a membership for either Historic Scotland or English Heritage( if you are planning to stay for longer - this is a yearly subscription).The memberships give you access to every location for free, but there are different memberships for Scotland, England, and Wales, each with their own places, benefits, and other goodies. And yes, you can have memberships in Scotland, England, and Wales at the same time.
As for places to stay, it's simple. As we mentioned earlier, instead of splurging in hotels, why not try Airbnb? You can find cheap places that might surprise you, and posh places for a better price, if you have a little room in the budget.If you're a couple in need of a breakaway and want some lovely hosts, we highly recommend:- Julia and her private room in Sherwood, Nottingham area- Basil and his private room in Greater London(zone 4), and last but not least- Jem&Caroline's Caravan Cwtch in the heart of Wales.P.S.If you go through our Airbnb link today, you get £25 off a home booking of £55 or more and £9 off an experience of £36 or more! Your welcome!But enough with the chit-chatting! Let's get to it!
(At least) 10 Awesome spots to geek out over in the UK
To make this easier for everyone, we came up with a system, to gather and display all the information (and photos) in a way that is fun and simple enough to follow. And you know what's the funny thing? This is merely the tip of the iceberg, and consist of the few places we got to know and explore so far.
Harry Potter locations (Free to visit)
Giving that I, like many others my age, grew up alongside Harry, Ron, and Hermione, reading about their adventures at Hogwarts, and later seeing them in the movies, of course, I had to find out the connections to the real world. It's my way of being closer to the Wizarding World, I guess. (*still waiting for my letter sigh*)Besides the obvious Warner Brothers Studio Tour, that you need to pay for, there are quite a lot of free filming locations you can visit that do deserve your attention, and that's what we're focusing on today.
1. Platform 9 ¾ - King's Kross Station, London
2. Diagon Alley - Edinburgh
3. The ‘bridge to Hogwarts’ - Glenfinnan
4. Hogwarts (plus the lake) - multiple locations
- Durham Cathedral
- Alnwick Castle*
* to enter the Alnwick Castle it is expensive (and not included in English Heritage), but if you don't want to pay to enter, you can see the walls if you go for a walk around.
- Virginia Water
5. Millennium Bridge - London
6. TARDIS location (Free)
While in London, why not see if you can find Doctor's Tardis, just parked outside a normal tube exit. (Psst. It's the Earl's Court Station). Who knows? It might still be there when you get there if the Doctor didn't travel away by then.
Outlander filming locations
7. Blackness Castle (Paid)
Even if you may recognize it as Black Jack Randall’s headquarters in Fort William., from the series, this is actually Blackness Castle in reality. Oh, and what a magnificent fortress it is!
Named "The Ship that never sailed", because of its ship-like appearance, it was built sometime in the 15th century and served as a royal castle, prison and arms depot. Now it is known for great filming locations for various productions, including Outlander and Mary Queen of Scots.
8. Linlithgow Palace (Paid)
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The entrance and corridors feature as Wentworth Prison, the place where Jamie was imprisoned back in season 1. In reality, it's the birthplace of James V (1512) and Mary Queen of Scots (1542), and it was one of the favourite residences of Steward kings and queens, starting with James I.
9. Inverness, Loch Ness,(free) and Urquhart Castle(paid)
As we know, Claire and Frank go on their second honeymoon in Inverness, in the books they take a cruise on the water and in her 18th-century life Claire meets the Loch Ness Monster here.
The Urquhart Castle is one of the many Jacobite connections found throughout Scotland, and it truly is the gem of Loch Ness. It would be a pity not to visit it and walk through its ruins.
10. Warhammer World (part free part paid)
Now, if you are at all inspired by fantasy stories, physical games as much as online RPGs, if you like building and painting stuff, especially miniatures and realistic, and/or fantasy inspired landscapes to scale, then this place is definitely a must for you.
To the main shop, the HUGE game room, and the awesome pub, the entrance is free, but don't just stick to those places, impressive as they may be. For the small fee of 7,50 per adult, you'll want to go beyond and explore the exhibit. Trust us, it's an experience you won't forget.
Bonus!
Tom Riddle's grave - Edinburgh (free)
It is said that J.K. Rowling may have been inspired by the grave of a man called Thomas Riddell when she cooked up Voldemort's name, and you can visit that place, in Edinburgh.
Ancient Aliens connections - multiple locations
Besides all the henges found throughout the UK, there are some references that we found in the past two weeks in our travels. They are either place where they filmed, and/or artifacts that they show and discuss in the series.
Stonehenge (paid)
Need I say more? P.S. Even if you're not allowed to get super close to them anymore, they are a beautiful thing to see.
The British Museum (free)
This place is packed with history and all kinds of artifacts from all over the world, starting with the Anunnaki and going through every culture and religion. And even though somehow it makes me sad to see them all packed in a big building and not in their rightful places, I still feel grateful for the opportunity to see them in person.
Robin Hood connections - Nottingham (free)
Who doesn't know of the Sheriff of Nottingham, Maid Marian, Robin Hood, and his Merry Men? If you want to get a bit closer to that part of history, you can find Robin Hood's statue in the city center, and after the Castle will be done, we heard that there will be more activities to come.
Batman - Nottingham(free)
As the filming location for Wayne Manor, in The Dark Knight Rises, this beautiful Elizabethan mansion called Wollaton Hall was used. The Deer park surrounding it is amazingly beautiful, also, it's free to go inside and explore its chambers and collections.
The Noble Collection Shop, London (free entry)
Aaaaaand, that's all for today, lovely dreamers! We hope you enjoyed our (first) list of awesome spots to geek out over in the UK, and why not? Maybe even go and explore them for yourself.
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