Book a Holiday Cottage at The End of The Line. Photo credit: Mark Lynham
Fancy somewhere different? Be a little spontaneous! Discover new corners of the UK when you book a weekend or midweek break in a holiday cottage somewhere at the end of the line.
Juliet Cottage, Stratford-upon-Avon - the end of the line for Shakespeare? View cottage
There must be hundreds of excuses to book a weekend break, from the desire to get away from it all in a rural retreat to a couple of nights being lulled asleep to the sounds of waves crashing on a nearby beach in a seaside cottage.
But how about a voyage of discovery to a less-travelled corner of the UK?
For travellers with a sense of adventure, here’s the perfect idea for a weekend or midweek getaway. Find and book a holiday cottage at the end of the line. Leave your car at home (or the station car park) and book tickets to a station at the end of a line. For those unsure where ‘the end of the line is’, there’s a list of thirty-one termini stations below. Each link towns to a page of cottages within taxi distance of the station to catch your fancy.
Top Tip: The earlier in advance, you book your train tickets, the cheaper they will be.
Save money or pamper yourselves with affordable First Class tickets. For train times and prices, go to Trainline.
As well as being an environmentally friendly way to travel, there’s the joy of the journey as you race or trundle through magnificent scenery (the sea wall at Dawlish en route to Cornwall in Devon or Highland views on the way to The Kyle of Lochalsh. You can eat, read, snooze, and even surf the internet when not window gazing.
Explore The Monsal Trail in the Peak District. Stay at Derwent House, Matlock. View Cottage
Most trains will accept bikes if you plan a cycling weekend, but you may need to reserve a space for them in advance, so check before you leave home. Check the train company website you’ll be using for their bicycle policy. For cycling holidays, try The Tarka Trail from Barnstaple or The Monsal Trail, which can be reached via Buxton in the Peak District.
You can take pets on holiday by train, too, and you’ll find plenty of pet-friendly holiday cottages to tempt you. They can travel free of charge, usually a maximum of two pets per passenger, and must always be on a lead.
Discover the everyday delights of small market towns or seaside resorts from St. Ives in Cornwall to the Kyle of Lochalsh on the West Coast of Scotland – and enjoy the journey through the Great British countryside.
The UK bristles with little destinations not known as visitor hotspots but perfect for walking weekends, such as moorland walks in Matlock and Blaenau Ffestiniog or beach-comber walks in Falmouth and Exmouth.
Turn every day into an adventure, discover local produce markets's delights (what self-catering holidays were designed for), or visit art galleries such as The Tate in St. Ives. Make it a culinary weekend and discover superb delicatessens and restaurants from Llandudno to Whitby.
The My Favourite Holiday Cottages Railway Terminus List
Here is our list of thirty-one UK station termini where cottages are advertised on this site. We’ve selected those stations where the only way out is back the way you came in.
Here, you can find large, small, grand and cosy holiday cottages to rent for a short break or more extended holiday. Click on the link to view the cottages advertised in each location. You will find a town description and suggestions for things to 'go see do' on each page.
- Oban
- Windermere
- Scarborough
- Whitby
- Saltburn
- Ilkley
- Buxton
- Matlock
- Stratford-upon-Avon
- Llandudno
- Lympstone
- Holyhead
- Pwllheli
- Blaenau Ffestiniog
- Fishguard Harbour
- Pembroke Dock
- Barnstaple
- Exmouth
- Paignton
- Looe
- Falmouth
- St. Ives
- Penzance
- Newquay
- Weymouth
- Lymington
Please email us (info@mfhc.co.uk) a tale of your trip, sharing what you discovered and in which cottage you stayed. We’ll publish it on our News pages.
For more on sustainable travel, holidays read: Sign The Flight-Free Pledge: Enjoy Holidays That Don’t Cost the Earth.