Next Monday we are planning a trip to York. We will be staying three days at the Grays Court Hotel then two days on the Yorkshire coast near Whitby. This will be my first visit to The city of York I am looking forward to exploring this beautiful city, rich in ancient history.
The usual dilemma. What to pack for a short break in a UK city during our mercurial summer? One minute sun the next rain. Temperatures fluctuating daily if not hourly.
DETAILS OF ABOVE:
Quilted jacket (UK link) // Pink cashmere sweater WoolOvers (US link). // rose gold earrings // cream tee shirt // MeandEm black trousers // rain hat // backpack // Black sneakers // umbrella.
My advice as usual would be……….
Layers and more layers, sturdy and comfortable footwear and lightweight waterproofs. Uniglo have some great new tops called Airism (UKlink) (seamless and good as an undergarment). If you prefer something warmer their heattech (UKlink) range is excellent. Footwear. I opt for trainers for general walking. If you are going hiking I would recommend specialist boots. I always carry a fold up umbrella and rain hat in my bag. If I am out all day I favour a small smart backpack. This leaves my hands free to make the most of photo opportunities. An ultralight down jacket is a useful layering piece. Uniglo have the best they are lightweight and pack down into their own bag, which can be popped into your backpack if it gets warm.
DETAILS OF ABOVE:
White sunhat // silver/grey linen dress // grey cashmere poncho // white jeans // cross body bag // silver/white sandals // packable parka (UK link)
Well we could be lucky and summer might return. In which case my Hopefashion linen dress will come in useful. During the day I can wear it over my white jeans. A cashmere/cotton poncho is great to pop on day or evening. A thin packable parka nearly always comes in useful. I carry a sunhat with me to protect my hair and skin. Flat comfortable sandals complete the look.
DETAILS OF ABOVE:
Uniglo blocktech coat (UK link)// cream sweater // swimsuit // MeandEm trousers // wicker basket similar // short wellies // skinceuticals sunblock // MeandEm cream top
The final two days of our weekly visit to the North of England will be spent at the Raithwaiteestate hotel on the Yorkshire coast near Whitby. I have added a swimsuit to this collection as there is a spa with swimming pool as part of the complex. A warmer wool sweater and short wellies will come in handy for long breezy walks!
We will be travelling by car so I do have some leeway. I probably won’t be taking three raincoats. I will check the weather forecast a few days before leaving and edit accordingly. I have kept the colour palette as clean as possible. Navy/black/grey/cream with a touch of pink. All the items can be packed into a small carry-on bag.
Last year we visited the Lake District and I put a similar travel capsule wardrobe together that stood me in good stead.
Lovely choices and very sensible, too. Your packing palettes always please me and help me chill out. Right now we’re packing for a weeklong trip to Vancouver, BC, and your advice and choices above have made my packing easier. Thanks!
Glad the post has given you some inspiration Ann
Had to purchase a weeks worth of clothing, sundries and shoes last week when luggage decided to get off the plane before I did during a work trip. Thanks to blogs like yours, I was prepared to look chic with less! Enjoy NY. It’s a moody and vibrant city.-Laurel
Thanks for your comment Laurel. Wish it was NY well maybe there is some excitement to be had in our ancient city of York!!!
Misunderstood. You will be cooler in your country for sure!
I live in Canada and went to England in 1989. We stayed in small hotels with history. This made the trip very memorable. We stayed the first few days in London in a hotel that was beside Covent Garden. With the window open you could hear them practicing opera. Wow. We then drove to the middle of England to a hotel in Grantham that was built in the 1100’s. Canadian history only goes back about 500 years so experiencing such ancient history was like being in another world. That summer was very hot and I only took a carry-on bag of clothing for 10 days. We went to York twice because we liked it so much.
This post reminds me of that trip.
Hi Sharon
I am glad you had some good memories for your trip to the UK. How wonderful to listen to the singing from Covent Garden Opera house. It is some time since we have been to an opera there and I do miss it. We are lucky that we have some much history and ancient buildings to explore in this country.
Laurelbledsoe: She is going to YORK, not New York. My ageing eyes made that mistake too, but then realized…
The wardrobe looks perfect! I look forward to photos.
Old York is probably not as moody & vibrant as New York but I hope you like it . I recommend Skosh on Micklegate for the best evening meal – you must book . Most visitors like Betty’s for snacks but Mannions is great too . All these are local businesses, not chains . If the weather is kind , the walk round the medieval walls is lovely but there are lots of interesting museums . Follow your nose around the little alleys & snickets to avoid the crowds . My favourite shop is the Margaret Howell outlet shop at McArthur Glen , a short bus ride from the city centre.
Have fun
Hi Wendy
Thank you so much for your recommendations. We will definitely check at least some of them out.
You stay in some wonderful hotels, love the look of these two. Definitely will look at a trip there. Where do you find your beautiful accommodation? Do you have a recommended guide or just trawl the internet? I love your blogs and look forward to them. Your style is so well put together.
Hi Susan
On this occasion our hotels were chosen by the friends we will be staying there with. They live in the North of England and know many of the hotels there. Another criteria is that our accommodation needs to be near rivers as both our husbands are keen fishermen. A good resource we have used in the past is Sawday’s
I have just returned to Spain from my adopted country, Canada. I bought TWO Samsonite garment bags on sale. One of the reasons I crossed the Atlantic. They either do not sell these in Europe or good ones are very hard to find. But they are the best things ever for easy travelling. Everything is packed on hangers so short hotel stays do not require laborious unpacking and repacking. No ironing either. Really organized with enough space for undies, shoes, etc. and papers. Mine cost 200 to 360 $ CDN.
The larger one would take enough clothes for a month or more.
Also, I recommend Samsonite or other nylon zip bags which help keep other items sorted, quick to unpack and pack, and provide added hygiene in hotel closets and drawers.
Have a great trip.
Hi Kathryn Thank you for the recommendation. I did some research and they do seem to sell them on the UK Samsonite site and also at John Lewis. I also found the nylon zip bags on Amazon. Samsonite is certainly good quality.
OFF YOU GO!NO matter what the weather is you will have a great ESCAPE!