After a long cold winter with heavy winds and several snowstorms around the UK these past few months, finally, the long-overdue spring is around the corner! The temperatures start rising, and birds chirping can be gradually heard in every corner. It is now time for spring cleaning, and to start packing for the long-waited spring holiday to enjoy the warm weather and the refreshing, clean air. It is certainly the best time for all fellow global travelers to visit the UK in its most glorious season.
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There are indeed a lot of things that we can do and visit in the UK this spring holiday, whether you're traveling solo, or taking a journey with friends and family, which will ensure that you come back from your holiday with a refreshed mind and newfound energy. The following is a list of several activities that you can do this spring in the UK:
Planning on a trip to Singapore? Or planning to rediscover Singapore? Find out everything you need to know when visiting Singapore with Your Muslim Visitor Guide to Singapore and the Lifestyle Guide to Singapore for Muslim Travellers!
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Spring is a brilliant time to explore the natural beauty of the UK countryside. The nature holiday adventure is suitable for every traveler, and the bonus part is that it will rejuvenate your mind and body when you are back to your normal daily routine. You have to be prepared for physical activities though, from walking, hiking, trekking, biking, camping, fishing or just merely embarking on a nature walk. You can choose any activity which suits you best.
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One way to enjoy spring in Britain is by enjoying the blooming wildflowers that can be found in almost every corner of the British countryside. Particularly, daffodils and bluebells are everyone’s favorite flowers this season; it is really exciting to see them in full bloom. For Daffodils, the best time to watch their magnificent beauty is in mid-March to April, whilst Bluebells show best their splendor in late April to early May. One interesting fact that might not be known by many: half of the world’s Bluebells grow here in the UK and, not just in the woods! The best spots to watch the beautiful blooming Bluebells are in the Lake District area, Bristol, Dartmoor, and Gloucestershire. Click this link to find where to spot them!
Apart from wildflowers, watching and spotting wild animals in spring is also a relaxing and enjoyable holiday. This time around you will have a chance to see the Seabirds nesting. Around eight million Seabirds fly to the shores of Britain in Spring. It is indeed one of the greatest wildlife gatherings that you can watch on Britain’s shores; moreover, you get to spot whales and dolphins too if you're lucky, especially up north, in Scotland. Check Britain’s nature news link if you want to do wild animal spotting.
If you prefer, animal spotting can also be done on land, where you can encounter many species of birds in the wild and also the tech-savvy Badgers. Have you ever seen Badgers in the wild? Badgers begin to come out of their hibernating holes in spring, so you could go to Devon in particular for a unique experience in spotting these cute and smart animals.
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Another nature activity that you can enjoy in the glorious British spring is to visit the many flowers farm sprawling all over Britain. One such farm, and also the most well-known type of flower farm, is the Lavender farm. There are several Lavender farms not far from London that you can visit from around June, up to August. The closest to London, yet highly recommended is the Mayfield Lavender Farm. Their 25-acre lavender farm with café and shop is located in Banstead (Woodmansterne), Surrey – approximately 15 miles from Central London. I suggest that you read their visit information carefully on how, when and where to go there. Click here to know their information for visitors.
If you can't wait until June, there is another famous Lavender farm worth visiting this Springtime, the Somerset Lavender Farm. Click here to find out where and how to go there. They will open the field this May to September, In shaa Allaah.
Apart from Lavender, the Rapeseed and Yellow Mustard flowers will also be blooming all over the UK. Their farmers grow these flowers in such a way that they can even be seen to the left and right of motorways. So if you do intercity travel by car, bus or train you can see beautiful, lush yellow carpet-like flowers on either side of the roads or railway tracks, and the scenery is magnificent. However, you must be quick if you want to see these pretty views, as the best time to spot them are from early April to the end of May.
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The love-hate relationship between the public and the UK Royal Family has always been a topic for the tabloids. Nevertheless, even though the Royal Family’s popularity may not be the same nowadays compared to the past, their news and activities still capture the attention of so many people around the world. Especially now in 2018: the next big event that will happen to the Royal Family is the Royal Wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle on 19 May 2018 at Windsor Castle.
In celebrating this event, the Royal Family invites the public to attend this special day, and the Windsor local council and Windsor residents have been preparing their city for the visitors who will come there. Now, if you fancy a fairytale-like wedding, this may be your once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to attend a world-class Royal Wedding festivity. You will surely enjoy your visit to Windsor as well since this city is one of the most beautiful cities in the UK. You can experience the grand history of England by visiting the Windsor Castle, which is one of three Royal Residences of Queen Elizabeth II (the other two being the Buckingham Palace in London and the Holyrood Palace in Edinburgh,) which are still being used, up till now. Note that admissions are charged in this castle. You can watch the famous Changing of the Guard daily routine at 11:00 here, up close. Apart from Windsor Castle, you can go punting and cruising the river around the city center, and the whole family will love Legoland Windsor, too.
Now, if you want to experience this special royal event, you should book your travel and prepare everything promptly, since all hotels will be booked by visitors all over the world. Avoid booking one on the day itself. Click here to know more about it.
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Love the outdoors? Springtime is the best time for camping, climbing, hiking, trekking, mountain biking, kayaking, surfing, and more in the United Kingdom. There are many places here to do these outdoor activities, but one place stands out from the others as you can do all these activities we mentioned in that one place. Can you guess where it is?
...
It's Wales.
Wales, the ultimate place for all you outdoor junkies out there! It has beautiful green scenery, towering mountains, as well as both sandy and rocky coastlines, so you can do all your outdoor activities there. On this site, you'll find the right place to do all the outdoor activities. Click here for their site - you'll see, they have it all!
One of the world-famous outdoor activities there is “coasteering”. Ever heard of coasteering? If you're an outdoor junkie, you'll love this one. Coasteering is a sport, the activity of exploring rocky coastlines by climbing the rocky cliff, jumping off into the sea, and swimming along the coastline. This outdoor activity has attracted many visitors to Wales. Indeed, Wales is in fact, the birthplace of this new outdoor activity.
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The rocky coastlines in Wales make this one of the perfect activities there. One of the operators in Pembrokeshire, Wales is the pioneering entrepreneur behind this outdoor activity, and they have been instrumental in spreading this activity to other parts of the world such as Australia, Hong Kong, and many other places that have the ideal coastal environment for coasteering. You can find out more about coasteering in Wales from the Wales Tourism Board website, click here.
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A holiday is a fun and enjoyable time for the whole family, but as Muslims, we also strive to fulfill our duty to Allah and remember Him, and that includes praying (salah) to Him, every day.
If you're traveling to big cities in the UK such as London, Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool, Edinburgh, or other cities, you can surely find Masjid(s) there. Most airports, hospitals, and universities in the UK also have prayer places, so finding a prayer space shouldn't be a problem. However, if you're traveling in small towns or the countryside, then this noble hadith above surely gives us useful guidance to fulfill our obligations:
It was reported by the Abu Sa’eed Al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him), 'The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “The entire Earth has been made a place of prayer except for the graveyards and the toilet.”' (Sunah At-Tirmidhi, Hadith No. 317 – Sahih).
What this noble hadith informs us, is that Allah has made it easy for us to fulfill this duty by making the whole earth a Masjid for us. We can offer our salah anywhere on the earth, even if there is no Masjid or specified prayer place/prayer room. You can pray in your hotel, the parking lot, airport, train station, mountain, beach, park, or any other places, as long as it's clean, and not places such as toilets (that is, when and where people answer the call of nature,) and graveyards.
So, my tip to be able to offer prayers are: (1) make sure that you have a bottle of water for ablution (wudhu’), a small prayer mat and a prayer compass app in your mobile app with you at all times; (2) find a clean, quiet and secluded place in any place (forest/woods, parking lot, corner of the building, hidden spot in the park, etc) to offer your prayer.
Moreover, there are concessions for us as a traveler that will make it easier for us to offer our salah during our journey, as long as we can fulfill the condition of a traveler in fiqh. For more on the fiqh of travel, we recommend that you consult a reliable scholar in your locality who will be able to teach you the fine details of travel fiqh according to the madhhab of your region.
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