[NoHo Arts District, CA] – Active World Journeys travel blog: The 42nd World Travel Market in London and Sensational Day Trips.
Recently I attended the 42nd World Travel Market in London at the ExCel Exhibition Centre. The new Elizabeth Line that opened in 2022 makes it possible to get all the way from Heathrow Airport to the ExCel in a breeze (a cold rainy breeze in London that is).
Almost 5,000 exhibiting companies from around the world take part at World Travel Market London (WTM) each year to showcase their destinations, products and services. It is not open to the public which is why I attended as a “buyer,” being able to pre-schedule meetings with tour operators and tour guides from exciting destinations that I might want to partner with in the future for my group tours that I host with Active World Journeys.
There’s something so special about networking over a period of three days with passionate travel professionals from all around the world. And with the expo being cancelled the past couple years due to Covid, there was a palpable excitement and giddiness in the air. Many of the destinations really go all out with their pavilion appearance and even make it interactive.
There were also several stages around the ExCel Centre featuring speakers on topics such as “Space: The Final Travel Frontier?” and “How can Tourism Deliver on its Climate Commitments.”
I ended up forging some great new partnerships to host future tours to The Five “Stans” countries of the Ancient Silk Road (Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Kazakhstan), Poland, Norway, Iceland, Borneo, and Galapagos & Easter Islands.
After the trade show was over, I decided to stick around for a couple extra days of sightseeing because of the plethora of day tours that are easily available to do from London as a base. First up for me was a full-day trip to the Cotswolds. Located just a 2-hours drive west of London and covering about 800 square miles, it’s an enchanting area of about 100 towns and villages set in a slow-paced idyllic setting. When you’re there in the Cotswolds, it’s like you’re strolling through a romantic painting. The buildings are all made of local honey-colored stone. You can see gorgeous medieval churches, have a pint at an ancient pub, visit charming shops, and meander through residential neighborhoods on dedicated nature walking paths. The best way to experience the Cotswolds is by driving the small scenic country roads from town to town. You simply can’t do that with a big group tour of 50 people in a large coach bus; in fact, it’s actually prohibited. So, I went with Go Tours to be part of a quaint group of about 12 people in a small luxury van. Our guide Glenn dazzled us with funny and historical stories and insights about the Cotswolds throughout our wonderfully pleasant day of sightseeing. Check them out, their website is www.go-tours.co.uk.
The next day I did a full-day tour to Stonehenge and Bath with Anderson Tours. Stonehenge is THE iconic symbol of England and still shrouded in 5,000 years of mystery. It was every bit as awesome and intriguing as I thought it’d be. What I love about visiting this world heritage site is you can actually take a nature walk through the fields surrounding the site on dedicated paths (instead of taking the tourists bus to the Stonehenge site from the Visitor Center, where everybody has to park). This was a great way to stay active and connect deeper with the local environment as well as the other historically significant points of interest such as the 300 bronze age burial mounds surrounding the Stonehenge site.
About an hour’s drive from Stonehenge and we arrived in the city of Bath, England. Now this place was way more than I expected. Sure, I knew there was an ancient Roman spa located here, and it is indeed super impressive to visit and learn about the ancient Romans’ leisure activities. But there’s so much more to Bath. The centerpiece of the city is the cathedral, one of the finest and largest examples of Gothic architecture in England. Bath is known for its Georgian style buildings however and it’s a gorgeous city to ramble through and just get lost on purpose. Bath has about 40 museums you can visit and with restaurants and shops galore, you can easily spend a couple days here to soak it all in. Bath is famous also as the place where the legendary author Jane Austin lived and where Mary Shelley wrote the famous “Frankenstein” novel. You can visit Anderson Tours’ website at www.andersontours.co.uk, they are an established travel brand in business for 30 years and do frequent tours to Stonehenge and Bath.
London and all the surrounding areas within a two-hour drive of the city offer a plethora of rich and rewarding cultural and historical options for the interested and eager traveler. Don’t skimp on your time allotted to spend in this region of England. Other popular day trips from London are Windsor Castle, Oxford, Cambridge, The Cliffs of Dover, Brighton, Stratford-upon-Avon, and more. I look forward to my third visit to London someday soon and exploring more of the abundant day trips available.
And in lieu of recent historical events, I couldn’t end this article without a GOD SAVE THE KING shout-out!
Cheers,
Jack Witt, MS, CPT
Fitness and Health Coach
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