Ely is one of a handful of the most beautiful
medieval
towns of Europe. It is located 60 miles North-East of London. The
centerpiece of Ely is a cathedral built in 1200 and surrounded by a
former Benedictine Monastery founded in 672.
Everything in Ely will be within a 5-7 minute walk, including the town center, market, train and bus stations for connections.
You will not need a car, as there is excellent train and/or bus service to the London airports and to all points of interest. However for local sightseeing beyond Ely, you may want to rent (hire) a car locally in Ely and team up with others.
Further information including brochures are available at the Ely web site, the Ely Tourist Office, or the King's School web site.
Weather:Temperatures in Ely in April are normally in the 50's during the day and 40' s at night. The amount of sun varies dramatically with some very sunny days and some drizzly days. Spring arrives very early in Northern Europe and it is a pretty time of the year with many flowers.
Money: England uses the English pound, which at the time of writing is worth $1.65 The best way to exchange dollars is to use ATM machines and to charge purchases to credit cards. Banks and currency conversion service, while handy, usually charge about 10% of the money converted for the process.
Contacting us in England/phoning home: We will have an English cell phone (mobile) available so that we can always be contacted, but calling from within England will require an English phone card which will likely require cash.
Phone cards are available at news-stands at both airports immediately on exiting customs. These phone cards will also work to call back to the U.S. Some phone cards purchased in the USA can be used overseas, but check before purchasing. Major phone operators such as AT&T have a toll-free number in the UK for use with their own phone cards.
Most USA cell phones use the CDMA system and do not work in the UK, which uses a GSM system. We advise you to check with your service provider to avoid disappointment. In addition to having our cell phone, we will also be checking our e-mail constantly.
If you have webmail with browser services
you will be able to use our free e-mail terminals for contacting
friends
at home.