Tips for Enjoying Your Self Catering Vacation

Your self catering vacation in England can be more enjoyable by heeding these tips based upon our experiences.

1. Remember - you are a visitor in a very hospitable country.

2. Be polite, patient, and courteous, i.e.. do not be demanding. Manners are a hallmark of the English. This especially true in the small towns and villages.

3. Pattern your dress and demeanor after the locals.

4. Do not try to imitate the local accents. The locals know you are a visitor and will gladly engage in polite conversation and answer reasonable questions.

5. Do not criticize, be complimentary.

6. Observe the rules for your self catering accommodation, parking, use of gardens, etc. If in doubt ask.

7. Learn the traffic and pedestrian signage.

8. Parking - shortly after 5 p.m. expect many streets will be filled with parked cars. The locals have returned home from work and parked near their homes. Traffic can be especially slow in the villages at this time. Share the road.

9. Store Hours - if the shop sign indicates it closes at 5 p.m., that means the doors are locked. It is not the time by which you should arrive to begin shopping. We learned this in Great Torrington. A vegetable monger had a nice selection of vegetables displayed on the sidewalk. After a walking tour of the town and tea at a nice tea room, we decided to shop for vegetables. It was shortly before 5 and the vegetables had already been moved into the store for overnight storage. The shop keeper was kind enough to allow us a few minutes shopping.

10. Spend time at the local shops and markets. You can become more than just a tourist passing through.

11. Do not plan out each minute of the day. There are to many wonderful things to enjoy spontaneously as you travel about.

12. Keep Smiling.