Encompassed by the cold swells of the North Sea, the wild waves of the Atlantic Ocean and the warming currents of the Bristol Channel, this island nation has long stood as a bastion of individuality and singleness, geographically separated just a stone’s throw from the coast of mainland Europe.
Many travellers will know it as the home of kings and queens, empire and Englishness, where castles crown the hilltops and tea flows from the taps. Others will favour its footballing prowess, quaint country cottages or penchant for heady summertime festivals (think Glastonbury and Reading!).
But, ask any United Kingdom tour guide and they will tell you that this country is much more than its stereotype, because from towering Welsh Snowdonia in the west to the snow-tipped caps of the Scottish Highlands, there’s culture, history and character to boot. Ruined monasteries pepper the verdant valleys of Somerset, abandoned mines linger in the cracks of Glamorgan and The North, Stonehenge silhouettes on Salisbury plain, and all the while, the adapting, breathing metropolis of London keeps churning through time.