For some context, I’m from the States and visited England for the first time this past October. Cornwall was absolutely beautiful and gave us some of the highlights of our trip. However, we heard a few people mention impoverished areas and post-mining towns in slumps here and there.
In the US, if I come across a rural town with not a lot going for it in terms of businesses or attractions, it is run down more often than not. But in Cornwall we took the B-est of B roads you could find and every tiny hamlet we chanced upon was rather cute and the houses seemed well kept.
Our travels weren’t exhaustive by any means, but we covered a pretty good area and I didn’t see anywhere that run-down. Have I just wrongly applied where I’d expect to see poverty with my US viewpoint, or did I just not get to those parts of the countryside?
Edit: I am not a poverty-seeking tourist and did not fly across the Atlantic to find folks down on their luck. I went to Cornwall for the coast, history and hiking, but a lot of Brits I talked to before my trip mentioned poverty more times than not.