Going on Holiday in England with IBS--need help

Hi Josh,England is a pretty good place for IBSers. If you will be doing sight-seeing, the touristy places have facilities. The restrooms are called "Toilets" or "Loo" as in "I have to go to the loo." I once asked for a "restroom," and was sent to the nearest restaurant. If you travel to the country, most carparks have toilets, as do the carparks in shopping malls. Public toilets are well signed and more common than they are here. Some are pay toilets, I'm not sure of the going rate, but have lots of different coins. It seems to me, but it was years ago, that it was just 2 pence. You may want to carry toilet paper or tissues with you as the tp in the public toilets is like wax paper, very rough and non-absorbing. English food can be very greasy, and this may be an IBS trigger. Fish and chips can be greasy at a chip shop, but fine in a pub or hotel. Do you know what foods trigger an attack for you? Dairy, fatty foods, raw vegetables are common. You may take lunch at pubs, so some safe foods may be Ploughman's lunch (bread and cheese), sandwiches, quiche, fish or chicken. I think beef is avoided at the moment due to mad cow disease. McDonald's is all over the place, and they even have vegetarian meals! Be careful of ethnic foods such as Indian, Chinese, etc. These may be excessively spicy or greasy. I would also avoid some of the meat pies as they can be fatty. If you're eating home cooking, you should be fine. There are lots of Brits on this BB, so I'm sure they'll have some more input for you. Look at the site for Mike's audiotapes for IBS. They may really help you begin to learn to relax and enjoy your holiday without the anxiety www.ibsaudioprogram.com Have a wonderful trip, and enjoy!AZ

Everybodt stresses way too much about the situation in London. I am a londoner myself.There are random loos everywhere in london. Some of them are pay loos. AT waterloo station it is i think 10p or 20p, but they are very clean. Yes, underground is a problem. No loos, but normal trains do have toilets on the platforms, though not too good. Luckily, you have just missed the south west trains stike last thurs. I would recommend pub food, especially in wetherspoons pubs. Also, little cafe's and things serve the best baguettes. MacD's, BK and KFC are no different to the states. There is a great Italian in Twickenham called Pasta di piazza or something like that. Mmmmm. Avoid greasy fish and chips, they taste nice but may cause you problems. Chips and gravy is great though. Definately go on the london eye! Madam toussauds is a waste of time, queues too long. Loddon dungeons is well worth the wait, as is the Wheel.Where outside of london are you staying? Let me know and i'll tell you some other info if i know any.Superdrug, Woolworths General, Boots, and 7 11s/Dillons/One stop/co-ops etc and also any place with a green cross on the outside will sell immodium, immodium ad, diaeeze, Milk of mag, kaolin and morphine, gaviscon, wind eez etc etc. So no problem there. Pharmacys on every corner pretty much. You'll love it.Don't only stick to London centre though. I would recommened a trip to Chessington world of adventures or Throrpe park. Also, if yuo have time, visit dorset or take a day trip to Weymouth on the south coast, its great!

Traveller Beware:There's a reason that all of our words that have to do with food come from French (restaurant, menu, cuisine, a al carte, etc.)One has to be careful when dining in the U.K. It takes a little effort to find a decent meal.If touring the countryside, I recommend packing a cooler with sandwiches and such. Ruins and such sometimes don't have facilities.Most pub food is decent, however, if you order with IBS in mind.Fish and chips is IBS-D Kryptonite!On my last trip there, I would eat a big English breakfast, accent on the toastand skip lunch. I'm a d-type, so I brought plenty of Immodium with me. They have it there, but the Pound always pounds the dollar, so it gets expensive to purchase it there.The toilet paper is harsh!The public restrooms in Wales, in particular, are weird. Tiny, curved wooden slats affixed to the bowl are considered a seat.If touring castles/cathedrals and the like, determine the location of the nearest loo before you get into a section of the building that may be very far from it. It's tough to run down an ancient stone spiral staircase!Big tourist traps, like Bath and Statford-on -Avon seem to have inadequate toilet facilities for the enormous volume of visitors they host.I really love England and hope to visit again soon, knowing all I know now.

hello! I went to London for the first time ever and at the height of my anxiety phase!!! I found London great and easy to find a loo. even at all of my sightseeing places, there were loos. the tp was in fact scratchy but believe me you will not mind at all as long as you have a loo accessible!!the only thing that freaked me out was the tube not having bathrooms but it goes so quickly to your destination that you do not have time to worry. remember you can get off at any stop and find a pub to use the restroom. I was so happy that they seem to open at 10 in the morning...I would just order a coke and go. I had a great time and managed to relax and enjoy myself and I will go back again because out of all of the sightseeing that I did, I did not go to the garden shows!I had fish and chips too: one place I do not recall the name is famous for thier fish and chips and peas: did not get sick at all.It was on a really pretty street and the other place was a shop in picadilly and one bite and I was in the loo. so choose your place carefully and do have their famous fish and chips!!!have a great trip!!!Oh and chemists are everywhere and pubs on every corner!!!

HipJan,Do you mean long tube-train rides? I ask because long train rides on British Rail should be fine as the trains have toilets.Julie,My husband does not have much of an accent now after being in the states for 22 years. Actually, he never had a Yorkshire accent because when he was young his family moved around a lot. However, he's always considered himself a Yorkshireman. He had to "americanize" his accent to make himself understood. He found that he would constantly have to repeat himself because people would be listening to his accent rather than what he had to say.Spliff,LaVidaCrapa is being unpleasant, but please do not judge all Americans as ignorant. Most Americans have great affection for Britian, even though Britian is becoming more European I vote for a visit to Yorkshire, one of the most beautiful, friendly places in Britain.AZ

Hi Josh,I'm currently living in Scotland as an expatriate, I'm Dutch and I am IBS-D. I thought I'd better let the true Brits answer your questions first. As far as I have seen, there are always plenty of toilets near every major tourist-destination, as well as plenty of public toilets. If you have to pay for them it will be something in the order of20 - 35 pence. All shopping-malls have toilets, as have the big supermarkets. As a IBS-er I'm sure you're always travelling withextra tissues (wet tp can be very handy, there are plenty of babywipes in travelsize, resealable packets). You'll be spoiled for choice both in restaurants and in fresh food, and there is plenty of vegetables and fruit for sale everywhere ( and the beef is probably the safest here !).AZmom1 : as a European, having family in three European countries, and having lived (amongst other countries) in four European countries and as apparently the only continental European currently posting on this board, can I ask you what you mean with a sad " Britain is becoming more European". Europe is a continent of which Great Britain is a part geographically( at least that's what I learned at school), Europe consists of many, many different countries , all with their own cultures and languages. So in terms of describing the entire population of this continent as something sad is a bit disconcerting, but maybe I misunderstood you?P.S.: on the other hand I don't think the Brits will agree with you about becoming more European, and they probably know best.Fay[This message has been edited by Fay (edited 05-09-2001).]

HipJan,I think I know what you mean about the trains. Some of the local trains do not have toilets, but the intercity ones do. There is a small train (2 cars) that goes from Ilkley to Leeds (20 min.) and even it has a toilet. This is going back a while, but there were some blue train cars that seemed not to have toilets, but the ones with the white top halves always did. I admit I haven't been on the trains for many years, so I'm not the best one to speak to this. I'm sorry if I'm mistaken.Julie,I prefer the West Yorkshire area straight out of "All Creatures Great and Small." I don't want to even think about all of the sheep that used to graze in that area. Fay,The sad face is from an American point of view (mine anyways) that Britain is becoming more European. We could always count on the British as our strongest allies and supporters. Americans always felt close to Britain, just look at all of the fuss Americans made about Princess Di. Europeans tend to have more of a negative view of the US. Ask anyone that has travelled in France for instance. I think my generation of baby boomers on both sides of the Atlantic feel a bond. But younger British feel closer to Europe, and somewhat more antagonistic towards America. I think Britain is losing its "Britishness" by joining the UC. No more miles, pounds and ounces, or "Yorkshire Sausages." I don't mean to offend, just my observations and things I talk about with my family in the UK.AZ