YankeemovingAbroad

I have been looking at both areas as possible summer stays. Which of the two do you think offers the best combination of eateries,night life,pubs, scenery,sight seeing outings such as historical venues,parks ect ect? I'm in conversation with realtors about possible homes to rent.What is the up side to picking manchester over Buckinghamshire and vice versa?

Thanks very much

srah

Definitely Bucks is the better location.... however due to the closer proximity to the capital you will pay the price.

Funky Monkey

I am from Buckinghamshire and love the county.

Just because you are in Bucks does not mean you will be 15 minutes from the capital either.
Places like the Chalfonts, Amersham e.t.c are nice and the county offers plenty of nice scenery as seen in many Midsommer murder episodes on T.V, you may however live somewhere lacking any "life" and have to commute to a bigger town.
Manchester on the other hand has lot's of trendy spots as well as some not so nice areas and I would not dismiss Manchester.

How old are you and it depends exactly what are you looking for?. Both places have lot's of interesting things to do.

Celtic Princess

Depends what you're after. Buckinghamshire menas you can have day trips to London. Manchester means you can have day trips to the Lake District. You can get to Alton Towers from both.

srah

Bucks is closer for weekends to Paris c/o Eurostar.

Bucks also a great location for the Cotswolds which is very pretty and the yanks in particular love.

The Lake District is very pretty but it's difficult to find a day when it's not raining up there to go visit.

On average the cost of living is certainly cheaper in Manchester but then you can't put a price on the northern sense of humor...it's the best!

Bevm

Manchester is also great for days out in the Derbyshire Dales, Chatsworth etc, and loads of interesting historical places in the NW, if you're into them.

I assume there are plenty of cheap flights to the continent from Manchester airport.

Unless you particularly want the Bucks countryside plus fairly easy access to London, I'd go to a nice area of Manchester. You can always take the train to London for a few days there if you want.

Bev

YankeemovingAbroad

Some interesting opinions. I'm in my 40's, just young enough to still have all types of fun but wise enough to know my limits. I think living near London, but not in it, is very appealing for nights out on the town. Hopefully Bucks is far enough away to not feel the big city "attitude" that is found in most hugh cities like new york. I want to be in a place to ride horses which I'm guessing can be found in Manchester and Bucks.

Manchester is appealing to me for several reasons. It's up north in a region of the country where the people have a reputation for being a bit more approachable and friendly. But I question how much entertainment value Manchester can offer compared to the south. Living in Manchester is cheaper to rent a house,close enough for day trips to Liverpool,and catching the ferry over to Ireland.But I'm not sure what else of major importance is found near Mans? Living in Bucks I can get to Brighton Beach,London,Wimbledon,quick flights to the continent,a very mixed international population ect.

I'm thinking there are nice parks to play tennis in Mans and Bucks. I wonder if any of those parks have basketball hoops? Might be too much to expect in the UK being that basketball is not popular there. One thing I do like in both places are the homes to rent. Very nice with lots of out door space.

brits1

Hi we are from Greater Manchester...we are luckyto still have most of our family in the area and some "down South"...when we go home for a visit our vast majority is spent in the North....our last visit we easily made a visit to these areas without a huge amount of traffic or time getting there (can be a problem down south) okay where to start....Derbyshire...Blue John Mines, Buxton, Bakewell......just a lovely area....and the tarts are fab!!!! lol....over to Yorkshire...some lovely villages in the South (you can easily get to where the film Emmerdale and Last of the Summer Wine areas)....then we went to Filey,Scarborough, Thirsk for a day at the races...over to York...well worth a few days visit especially staying at the Novotel in the city centre....and the Lake District even on a rainy day is more than worth it. North Wales is easy as well...with it's lovely coast line and ofcourse fab Castles.....Chester and Liverpool are more than worth a visit....yes even Liverpool....the North is vastly under valued in my mind...and mostly by "southernes" many whom have never been past Watford Gap....either way I am sure you will have a lovely time....anyway in the U.K (well most places) do have a something of interest....oh and Manchester does have a great night life...and don't beleive all the press...it is as safe as most Cities in this day and age can be.

YankeemovingAbroad

Thank you Brit1 for your suggestions. Very helpful! We are also looking to stay at a castle as a long weekend outing. There are a couple good websites for that sort of thing. My family will be joining me in the latter summer weeks of my stay. I see there are several which rent suits and doubles. I'm pretty sure the older kids(20-22 ages) will get a big kick out of that experience, but the younger ones will especially find the reenactments, jaw dropping.

Hopefully there will be a few weekly medieval theme events planned for tourist. Probably what I'll do is which ever place(Manchester or Bucks) I pick to rent a house for the summer ,I'll rent a stay at a castle near the other if that option is possible.

Bevm

I'm not sure what you have in mind for a "night on the town." Of course, London has a lot to offer, but Manchester's not a sleepy backwater. You might want to do a google search on the sort of things you'd want to do.

I'm arguing for Manchester, but it's only just because you seem to be marking it down more than you should, IMO. I enjoy London, but I think you could get the city life you want plus access to a lot more variety of England from Manchester.

But bear in mind, I am a northerner!

Bev

Bermudashorts

I am from Greater Manchester but have been living in the south for most of the last 14 years. Manchester is a major UK city and there will be no shortage of entertainment, dining and drinking options. Mancunians need entertainment too

You might find Brighton and Wimbledon (lived there for 9 years am now in Hertfordshire), not quite as accessable from Buckinghamshire as you think. Well it would involve a couple of changes of train to each or a long drive around London, could easily be 3 hours. It can be done of course and as a visitor you probably would not mind, my point only being that I personally would not say that Wimbledon and Brighton are readily accessable from Bucks.

Manchester has an airport too and there is not much difference in flight to Europe from London versus from Manchester.

Overall though, I think both locations have a lot to offer and I would not say one is distinctly a better option than the other. If pushed, I would say that Manchester offers a better blend of countryside and city pursuits. You can stay somewhere and enjoy beautiful countryside options during the day and then a very easy journey into the city centre at night. I doubt you would want to be making regular night time visits into London from Bucks, although there of course are cities in Bucks (but they won't be as big as Manchester).

YankeemovingAbroad

Bev

What do you mean.."a lot more variety of England"? What do I truly gain by picking Manchester instead of London? I have not made up my mind just need to learn as much as possible about Manchester before deciding because it is the lesser known option for most Americans .

Bermudashorts

Did you want to compare Manchester with London or with Buckinghamshire? They are not the same thing, the attractions of London will not exactly be on your doorstep if you are staying in Bucks. Perhaps you have checked the distance apart and it doesn't look too bad, but on this crowded island public transport and traffic congestion can be a nightmare, especially into London.

If you were choosing between London (not Bucks) and Manchester as a city to visit, then this Mancunian would recommend London.

Fleaflyfloflum

In my opinion, you would be better suited to Bucks. I remember you doing a thread about wanting the best weather. Manchester is famous for its rain

Not only that, there is loads and loads of beautiful rural scenery within easy reach of Bucks. Excellent transport framework which will leave you within easy access of any kind of lifestyle you want. You could even catch a train to Englands surf beaches in Devon/ Cornwall from London.
You would be very close to the M25. OK it gets chogged up when theres an accident, but you will have the choice of 4 international airports directly off it. You will have access to the Eurostar channel tunnel into Europe. You will have quick tube accesss into London and by road the world is your oyster.
The cotswolds are a stones throw away, as it the M4 to Wales and the west country.

Fleaflyfloflum

Hi Bermuda

You do have quick access to London in Bucks. The Metropolitan tube line stretches right out to Amersham which has fast trains going right in and thats on top of the British rail line to Marylebone