Visiting Britain. Choosing where to stay.

1. Whatever your taste in hotels – from large and luxurious to small and simple – you will find just what you want in Britain. Old hotels, especially in historic towns and country villages, are usually known as inns. Many of these date from Tudor times (15^th century) or even earlier.

Very convenient, for anyone touring by car are the well equipped motor hotels situated on or near the main roads; and there are also their direct ancestors – the hotels that were built centuries ago to provide hospitality for travelers by coach and still offer the same welcome, though with modern comforts, to the present-day tourist. Of all the various types of hotel, proba­bly the majority of visiting regard these old coaching inns as the most characteristic of Britain; but just as typical of another side of British life are the "country house" hotels – ancestral man­sions and castles which have been converted into hotels while preserving much of their original character. Most of them stand in extensive parks or gardens.

2. Guest houses – also known as private hotels, board resi­dences or pensions – differ from hotels in that they generally do not have a bar and you cannot call in for a meal if you are not staying there. To many visitors from abroad, the special appeal of guest houses – apart from their comparatively low charges – lies in the informal “family” atmosphere in which it is easy to get to know your fellow guests.

3. Accommodation for the night with breakfast is, of course, available at hotels and inns; but in towns and villages all over Britain you will also find houses or cottage displaying a “Bead and Breakfast” (or “B&B”) sign. This indicates that they offer a simple but comfortable room for the night and a home-cooked British breakfast next morning. Ideal for short stays of one or two nights, especially i9f you want to save on costs. Some bed-and-breakfast houses also serve an evening meal.

4. In the rural areas of Britain – particularly Scotland, Wales, the Lake District and the South-West –numerous farm-houses welcome visitors for a single night (evening meal, bed and breakfast) or for longer periods. They make excellent bases for exploring the countryside and the farmer’s wife takes pride in serving traditional home-cooked meals based on local produce.

5. This type of holiday, in which you rent independent accommodation and do your own cooking, is becoming increasingly popular. Throughout Britain there is a remarkably wide range of houses, cottages and flats modernized to make housekeeping as easy as possible; chalets purpose-built for self-catering holidaymakers; and static caravans, usually situated in well-equipped caravan parks.

6. Many holidaymakers, of course, bring their own accommodation with them in the shape of a tent or caravan. As the birthplace of camping, Britain offers n extensive choice of authorized sites for tents and caravans – or for both. Some are small and quiet, others resemble self-containing holiday villages, complete with shops, restaurants, dance halls and swimming pools.

7.Britain has an abundance of economically priced ac­commodation for students and other young visitors, including university and college halls of residence (in vacation time) and the nationwide network of hostels run by such organizations as the Youth Hostels Association and the Young Men's and Young Women's Christian Association.

8. Visitors who would like to devote some of their time in Britain to an activity that particularly interests them can avail themselves of an inviting selection of all-inclusive package holi­days in various parts of the country. The cost covers accommo­dation and participation in the activity of your choice – golf, fish­ing, pony-trekking, painting, bird-watching or whatever it may be.

Activity holidays. Accommodation for young visitors. Camp­ing and caravanning. Self-catering. Staying on a farm. Hotels and inns. Bed-and-breakfast. Guest houses.