Point 1.

The phrase "going up to/down from town" refrred, I have always believed , to London.

However, it is a phrase that indicates a certian vulagarity or imprecseness of language and could be frowned upon in polite society..Let 's consider who uses the phrase here- a servant and Lydia.

Mrs Reynolds was not probably very learned. JA was not above poking fun at servants language.The servant girl, employed by teh Austen's who referred to her mother simply as "mother" was mocked by JA in one of her letters, IIRC.

We know for certian that Lydia is not a learned or really polite girl.

Their manner of speech and use of a "slang " expression is an indication in JAs works, of a charcters lack of social standing, or lack of social propriety.

Point 2
Lydia's little speech to Mary is uesd here to indicate that her motor mouth nature does not indicate anything deeper.She pays lip service to a true sisters concerns- she does not truly attend to Mary and in this instance,depite her words, she still manages to ignore her.

Point 3
Travel as entirely within one's own conrol.Independant travel as we call it now was the order of the day.There are lots of posts about travel in this era in the L+T archives and it may help you to go there and have a rustle through our virual muniment room;-)

Point 4
I am sure Mrs Gardiner,being a capable and sensible woman would have helped in the travel plans.Her relationship with her husband seems to be a true patnership, and whiel he was busy with his sucessful business I am sure she was helping- by arranging their holiday.

Point 5
I am sure Mrs garniner qualifed as an 18th cnetury tourist.As long as one was well dresed , could travel to the property and pay the housekeeper her expected tip, then one could visit many of the great houses and estates in England.She may have visited the grounds and not the house.