Staycation Travel Ideas: Places To Visit That Will Take You On a Trip Through Time
Pretend to be a Time Traveller Day – Places to visit that will take you on a trip through time!
Turn your motorhome or campervan into a chariot through time! The 8th December is the wacky national holiday ‘Pretend to be a Time Traveller Day!’ In celebration of this weird and wonderous holiday, we’ve put together a list of locations that will make you feel like you’ve flown back through time or propelled forward into the future!
Go back in time:
Dinosaur Egg Beach’ at Porth Nanven, Cornwall
Travel back to a world of prehistoric wonders and pretend to navigate through a minefield of Jurassic eggs! Porth Nanven nicknamed the Dinosaur Egg Beach gets its name from the rounded egg-shaped boulders that consume the beach. In every direction, you’ll find rocks in a vast range of sizes from the size of the standard chicken egg to over a metre in length!
An interesting fact about these rocks is that they were not smoothed out by the sea that we know today but the prehistoric sea, some estimated to be the work of the sea 120,000 years ago!
Cardiff Castle, Wales
When exploring Cardiff Castle, you’ll find a unique mesh of architectural styles from the castle’s rich history that will take you through time. From a 3rd century Roman fort to Normandy Castle, a Victorian Gothic mansion, this location has been through many changes. In the 11th century, Normandy invaders built a castle and a motte on the Roman fort site, which served as the foundation for the structure seen today.
In later years during World War II the castle’s tunnels served as air raid shelters from enemy bombs, these wartime shelters have now been reconstructed and can be visited as an exhibition at the castle.
Giant’s Causeway, Antrim
This spectacle in Northern Ireland is almost 60 million years old! Giant’s Causeway was formed by an ancient colonic fissure eruption resulting in it creating 40,000 interlocking columns! The columns were created from the flowing lava cooling when making contact with the sea. A fun fact about this marvel is that it’s so old that when the eruption happened Ireland was still attached to North America!
A fun folk story that surrounds the Giants Causeway and where its name originated from involved the legends of an Irish giant named Finn McCool. Finn McCool was said to have a rivalry with a Scottish giant named Benandonner, to face his rival the legend states that Finn McCool built the causeway to get across the Irish Sea. Benandonner’s frightening encounter with Finn McCool led to him destroying the causeway as he fled back to Scotland! On the coasts of west Scotland, similar basalt columns can be found further tying into the local legend.
Black Country Living Museum, Dudley
This is an immersive historical experience perfect for Pretend to be a Time Traveller Day. Go back in time and explore an open 26-acre 19th century village consisting of reconstructed shops, houses and industrial areas that represent the Black Country’s rich and interesting history. This is a perfect fun and informative day out for the family to witness history and discover the black country’s coal mines, factories and steam power that transformed it into an industrial powerhouse for the UK. Interact with historical figures and gain insight into what life was like during this important period in history for the UK!
Did you know: That the Black Country Living Museum was used as a production set for the award-winning drama Peaky Blinders!
The London Bridge Experience
Image Source: Mike Peel |CC BY-SA 4.0
“Funny, historical, and educational… and not for the faint-hearted”
Do you seek frights and thrills when learning about history? Well, the London Bridge Experience and London Tombs may be the perfect place to visit this Pretend to be a Time Traveller Day! This experience delves into the dark side of London’s history including Jack the Ripper, Boudicca’s battles with the Romans, William Wallace, and The Great Fire of London!
As a bonus, once you’ve completed the London Bridge Experience coming with all general admission tickets, you’ll have the option to enter the London Tombs…
In the haunted vaults of London Bridge, you’ll enter the immersive scare maze, do you think you could make it through?
St Fagans National Museum of History, Cardiff
There’s no better way to experience history than to live it! If you want a taste of historical Welsh architecture, culture, and lifestyle then the St Fagans National Museum of History may be the ultimate trip for you!
Celebrate Pretend to be a Time Traveller Day by experiencing the exciting development of Wales over time. This huge open-air museum stands on the grounds of St Fagans Castle and gardens; here you will find over 50 historical buildings taken from all over Wales and rebuilt including: a Victorian school, a Medieval church and a Workmen’s institute; on top of this they have even recreated historically accurate an Iron Age farmstead and a Medieval Princes Court! St Fagans is packed with all kinds of activities including a farm visit to Llwyn-yr-eos Farm or witness live craftsmen demonstrations from blacksmiths, clog makers, and corn and woollen millwork! This is the perfect exciting and informative day out in Wales for all the family!
Victoria Art Gallery, Bath
One of the most unique ways to experience history is through Art! Step back in time as you observe a rich and vast collection of paintings, sculptures and decorative arts, photographs, prints, and drawings.
One of the most notable in the painting collection is the original Tudor portrait of Henry VIII! If you’re an art lover this is the perfect way to spend Pretend to be a Time Traveller Day!
Futuristic places to visit:
Eden Project, Cornwall
The large bubbly hexagonal architecture of the Eden Project is a unique sight that will make you feel that you’ve entered a future century! The former craterlike clay mines and an eyesore to Cornwall were transformed into a sustainable and beautiful global garden. Within the huge eco-domes, you will experience 2 different biomes: tropical and rainforest; each packed with native plants, and even wildlife!
Something really futuristic about the Eden Projects is using the power of augmented reality you can take a tour with 360° views from the comfort of your motorhome or campervan right now! Digitally experience the Eden Project here!
Cyberdog, Camden
Image source: Fred Romero | CC BY 2.0 DEED
Guarded by 2 large cyborgs, entering Cyberdog will transport you into a futuristic neon cyberspace! Although this is a store that specialises in rave-ware it’s a fun place to experience even if you don’t have interest in the clothing. Get lost in flashing lights and trance music as you explore the various sectors: Kawaii, Neon Clubwear, 2090s (Futuristic), Cybertronic! If you want to experience a world of cyber this Pretend to be a Time Traveller Day Cyberdog Camden is the place to visit!
ABBA Voyage, Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park
Image source: Den Hieperboree | CC BY-SA 4.0
ABBA Voyage offers an interesting mix of both the past and the future! Experience ABBA as they appeared back in 1979 and all their hits performed by futuristic virtual ‘ABBAtars.’ Taking place in its own specialised arena the highly acclaimed ABBA voyage, described by The Guardian as a ‘dazzling retro-futurist extravaganza’ is the ultimate way to spend Pretend to be a Time Traveller Day if you’re a fan of ABBA!
National Space Centre – Sir Patrick Moore Planetarium – Leicester
Image source: Matt Brown| CC BY 2.0 DEED
Located in the National Space Centre, the Sir Patrick Moore Planetarium (the UK’s largest planetarium) will take you on a trip through the skies, planets, and stars! The futuristic 360-degree dome has a variety of different shows from exploring the possibility of extra-terrestrial life in ‘We Are Aliens,’ to experiencing a rocket launch from inside the body of an astronaut in ‘Astronaut’, and even taking a tour of the universe in ‘Tour of the Night Sky!’
Get the perfect cover for your time machine!
Before you set off on your travels to past and futuristic locations make sure you get the right cover for your Motorhome or Campervan!
If you like to do things the old-fashioned way, give a member of our friendly team a call on 0208 984 0777 to run through a quote, or get a futuristic quote online here!
Disclaimer: At the date of publication all information within this article was factually accurate. However, changes in circumstances over time may impact the accuracy of the information.
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We’re a family run business with over 30 years' experience in the provision of specialist motorhome and campervan insurance. With a wealth of awards under our belt, we pride ourselves on providing a friendly and professional service, offering you the most comprehensive cover money can buy - starting from just £200!
