Good place for a couple to go for a weekend?

oramgepekoe

Wells in Somerset.

http://wellssomerset.com/

lostinrates

oramgepekoe wrote: »

Wells in Somerset.

http://wellssomerset.com/

Wells is sweet,.....but tiny. And not simple to get to if not driving.

lostinrates

Idiophreak wrote: »

Meh...Don't get me wrong, I agree that there are quite a few good places to eat *outside* Oxford...but the city itself is pretty lacklustre...In fact, I thought it was widely accepted that Oxford is a bit of a culinary black spot...I can remember several reviews alluding to the fact, like this:

"it must be stated that in some contexts the superlative doesn't cut it. World's Greatest Jewish Sports Star sounds tremendous, for example, until you recall how long it's been since Mark Spitz hung up his goggles. So the bare fact that relative newbie the Magdalen Arms is already widely regarded as Oxford's finest says less about it than it does about a town that would be lucky to scrape a third in culinary achievement."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2010/mar/20/magdalen-arms-oxford-restaurant-review

There was a (very positive, actually) review of Sojo on the Guardian once that was rather more scathing about Oxford, too - but I can't seem to find that one anymore...

There are lots of places (particularly cultural places...) is considered kind of cool to damn. They get reputations for being terrible places to eat. Like Venice. And it's true, there are lots of terrible places to eat. But there are everywhere, and there are few really Truely sublime places to eat anywhere. If not going on a specific foody tour then one can find pretty good food in many of the places its 'cool to damn' very easily.

I also used to spend a lot of time in Venice and have eaten really well and a darn site more cheaply than a cardboard tourist pizza costs, there regularly. .

Carcluster

hamsterfan1 wrote: »

How about Bristol? Zoo, SS Great Britain , Clifton Suspension Bridge etc & it's got loads of shops & restaurants

Jest had a long weekend in Bath, which was fantastic. Always gets good reviews, so shouldn't have been a surprise. Nice place to just be walking round, not actually "doing" an attraction which is a bonus. We like to visit zoos or wildlife locations wherever we go, so Bristol Zoo was really disappointing. Only joined the Asiatic lion talk, which didn't actually feature a lion. They were no-shows for our entire visit. the talk didn't feature any interaction with the lions such as checking their teeth, paws etc. Many others were also non-visible. The zoo is very small, so many of the larger animals are no longer viable - the butterflies were good, though - with friendly and knowledgeable staff.
Might have been better for kids - there were dino-hunts and other kid-friendly features, but for grown-up wildlife fans it was a bit sparse.