05 June 2009

The world tour that won’t cost the earth

With holiday makers tightening their belts this summer many have set their sights on staying in Britain instead of exotic locations overseas. But, for the more ingenious traveller, a world tour is still possible without ever leaving these shores according to map makers, Ordnance Survey.

"With all the signs pointing to more and more people holidaying in Britain, we wanted to look at ways you can still get the feeling of being abroad but without the costs involved" says Ordnance Survey spokesman, Rob Andrews.

"What we found was a fantastic array of exotically named places scattered all across the country."

Running his finger down the map, Rob shows that a full day's travelling will get you from Moscow (in Cumbria) to Barcelona, right down in Cornwall. "You could stop off in Bermuda on your way through Warwickshire," he suggests, "or make the diversion to Egypt, near Winchester in Hampshire." But, to get you thinking, here are Ordnance Survey’s suggestions for some overseas destinations here in Britain.

To begin with, you can explore Europe without so much as paying to cross the Channel. Starting from Dunkirk - you'll find it in Kent - you can work your way north through Holland (in Surrey) to The Hague, right up in Tameside and then turn south to Florence (near Stoke-on-Trent). Your route continues to Geneva, near Aberaeron on the Welsh coast, before the cross-country trip back to Kent, where your Grand Tour concludes with a visit to Gibraltar.

On a different theme, why not discover some of Britain's biblical links on a shoe string? Your pilgrimage begins in Bethlehem, on the edge of the Black Mountains in Carmarthenshire. Head north through Wales to Babylon, near Chester, then on up to Jerusalem, just off the A66 near Appleby-in-Westmorland. A long haul south takes you through Palestine, Hampshire, and on into Devon, where the tour ends at Jordan, just a mile or so from Uncle Tom Cobley's Widecombe in the Moor.

Looking to wider horizons, long-haul enthusiasts can quench their wanderlust with a trip to New Zealand; you'll find it near Lyneham in Wiltshire. While you're in the area, excursions to Dorset and Somerset will bring you to Christchurch and Wellington, too. Still with an Antipodean flavour, Derbyshire holds Melbourne and Botany Bay, and Sydney is tucked away on the outskirts of Crewe, in Cheshire.

Lastly, try crossing the Atlantic but without the price tag. Canada lies in the heart of rural Lincolnshire and, a little further north, you'll find both Toronto and Quebec in County Durham. Staying with the transatlantic theme, the USA is particularly well represented in Scotland; Baltimore, Dallas and Houston are all north of the border, and you could even head for California, near Falkirk on the Firth of Forth.

But, intriguing as it is, the great British world tour does have one serious drawback. As Rob Andrews points out, "While it’s certainly cheaper than a real world tour, I’m afraid we can't guarantee that you'll come back with a suntan!"

Plan your own 'world tour' with a visit to Ordnance Survey's leisure web pages  at www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/leisure. You can search for any of the 256,000 place names found in OS Landranger Maps; plot your own routes, view photos and comments from other visitors and buy maps for the entire country – the perfect tool for helping you holiday in Britain this summer.

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Head of Corporate Communications - Rob Andrews

Email: rob.andrews@ordnancesurvey.co.uk

Phone: (+44) 023 8005 5563

Senior Communications & PR Officer - Paul Beauchamp

Email: paul.beauchamp@ordnancesurvey.co.uk

Phone: (+44) 023 8005 5564

Press Office fax: (+44) 023 8005 6156