The Edinburgh Festival and its sister Fringe festival fill the streets with open-access shows, comedy performances, and live music throughout August. Rain or shine, major music festivals in Glastonbury, Reading, and London are cultural landmarks on the calendar. If you’re keen to spend a lot of time outdoors, be prepared for rapid changes in weather conditions.

Outside of peak summer, rain is always a possibility, so bring your umbrella. London can be uncomfortably hot and humid at the height of summer, whereas the north of Scotland rarely experiences hot weather and can see heavy snowfall in the colder months. The Gulf Stream means that the southwest of the country experiences milder and warmer conditions than much of the UK, while the North Sea cools the northeastern coast. London’s mix of centuries-old buildings and cutting-edge architecture - from the 16th-century St James’s Palace and countless Victorian pubs to the vertiginous Shard skyscraper - contrasts with the thatched cottages and tiny pretty villages of the Cotswolds. Outdoors enthusiasts are drawn to the surf at Cornish beaches, smooth sailing in the Lake District, and the mountains of Snowdonia National Park - the views can be enjoyed as you climb them, or from a seat on the Snowdon Mountain Railway - while lovers of architecture can admire the spa towns of Harrogate in Yorkshire and Bath in Somerset. Take a scenic steam train ride through Scotland’s majestic landscape, hop on a boat to enjoy the peace and solitude of the Isles of Iona and Skye off the coast of Western Scotland, and follow the Wild Atlantic Way around the rugged Northern Irish coast, stopping off to explore the famous geometric rocks of Giant’s Causeway.

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland may be geographically small, but this diverse collection of islands have rich, intertwined histories that stretch back thousands of years, taking in the Neolithic standing stones of Stonehenge, the 11th-century Warwick Castle, and spectacular Georgian architecture in Edinburgh and Bath.

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