Once again it is approaching that time of the year when we start to think about planning a little summer holiday treat to help brighten up those last remaining gloomy days of the (it seems) everlasting winter period.
It’s with no real surprise that the MPs at number 10 haven’t quite figured a way to pry ourselves up and out of this economic recession. And for the majority of us, it seems fair to say that we’re pretty broke. But all is not lost! For those of you searching behind the sofa for some secret stash of gold, or sliding your pennies across the kitchen counter with the thought “We’re going to be a bit short this year” dropping into your mind – never fear! More and more Brits are turning their backs on Mediterranean vistas and instead looking a little more inward to what our fair isles has to offer.
It’s come on strong over the last few years, but holidaying at home is now in vogue. Rediscovering our gorgeous country re-opens the honesty of the British Isles, and with it, the depths of heritage and sheer volume of attractions dotted up and around the rolling greens of Britain.
The first thing to do in enjoying a British holiday is to put on your tourist hat. Okay, maybe not literally. But, unlike a lot of UK residents, thousands and thousands of international tourists flock to the British Isles, cameras at the ready, eyes open wide, full of energy, intrigue and, best of all, curiosity. Everyday most of us walk down a residential street past three periods of architecture without even blinking an eye – a Georgian bridge here, a Victorian school there, a Modernist museum in a seaside town. The wealth of variety in the UK is staggering.
And this is, perhaps, only the start of it. Beyond the face value of architecture and the glorious aesthetics of our regional towns, districts and cities, there is a history – which is possibly one of the most documented in the world – that seems to open doorways to our imagination, our understanding, and the past!
British heritage, in total, is not too far away from a partner also concerned in preserving Britain at its best. Ecological Britain faces a lot of the same perennial and, quite honestly, perilous concerns that tend to rise up year after year.
Sustainability is where British heritage and ecological Britain cross paths. It seems to be that both these long standing signposts are often neglected, missed or just simply ignored in our day to day ramblings. But now more than ever there is a great opportunity to take a different route from the status quo.
As well as helping to cut back on an annual carbon footprint the size of the moon, you’ll be investing your hard earned money (British heritage sites are often overlooked by Government funding and can rely on tourist support alone) back into the surroundings where you live and work for the rest of the year. Plus, after your first Brit Holiday, you’ll be sure to see why they put the Great in front of Britain.
So this year, instead of wrestling for a sunbed already draped in black, red and gold, or finding yourself wedged in an overcrowded, near to boiling ‘secret’ beach cove, try to look beyond the traditional package-deal and see the value to be had from a Traditional British holiday.
