Chester Factsheet – what is there to do and see in Chester?

Chester

Chester is a fabulous place for either a day out or a holiday. With the abundance of shops in Chester City Centre and not far away at Cheshire Oaks. Or the ambiance provided by all of the historic buildings including The Rows with their double story shopping areas.

If that wasn’t enough the nearby River Dee provides the backdrop for a relaxing place to walk, people watching and somewhere to just take a moment. You can go on boat trips, hire boats or get something to eat and drink as well.

Where is Chester?

Chester is a beautiful walled Cathedral city, found in Cheshire, in the North West of England. It is close to the border of Wales and just below Liverpool and Manchester.

Where to park in Chester?

We usually use the Park and Ride near Chester Zoo (Upton Park and Ride) – postcode CH2 4BB, but with COVID we didn’t fancy going on a bus, so decided to look at what else was available.

We found a fabulous alternative, the Little Roodee car park, post code CH1 1SL.

We travelled there on Wednesday 16^th June 2021, got there at about 11am and there were plenty of parking spaces available.

The parking at Little Roodee cost us £5 for the day and there was a café and toilet in the car park.

What route did we take for our day in Chester?

We started at the Little Roodee car park and headed along the river.

Just before the Queens Park pedestrian bridge we headed left up The Groves to Grosvenor Park.

We pretty much walked straight on through the park, with the Cathedral Church of St John the Baptist on our left.

We exited the park onto Vicar’s Lane, where we turned right, then headed left onto Love Street.

At the end of Love Street, we arrived at Foregate street. From there we explored the surrounding streets and shops, with a few coffee breaks on the way.

When it was time to head for our reservation at Hickory’s Smokehouse, we made our way to the Chester Cross, walked down Bridge Street and then lower bridge street towards the river.

At the river we turned left for Hickory’s and then Little Roodee car park was on our right ready for when we had finished!

It was a thoroughly enjoyable day!

What is there to do and see in Chester?

Chester Castle

Chester Castle was founded in 1070 by William the Conqueror.
You can get a good view of the castle and get to walk around the Medieval Walls across the road from the Little Roodee Car Park.
History of Chester Castle | English Heritage (english-heritage.org.uk)

Chester walls.

The Chester Medieval Walls are free to walk about.
They are the most complete Medieval Walls in the UK
They are a 2-mile circuit.
You can easily just do part of the walls.

Grosvenor Park

The Park sits between Chester City Centre and the River Dee
It is a Grade II registered Victorian Park.
Within the park you will find
- Lodge Café
- Activity zone
- Open air Theatre
- Miniature Railway
- and much more

Chester Eastgate clock

Situated within the Chester Medieval Walls.
The clock was added to Chester’s Walls to celebrate Queen Victoria’s diamond jubilee.

Historic Buildings

Chester Cross

The Chester Cross signifies the centre of Chester

Chester Market

Chester Market • A unique shopping experience in the heart of Chester
There is also an awesome Christmas Market in Chester City Centre, close to the Chester Cathedral.

Chester Forum Shopping Centre

The Forum Shopping Centre | Facebook

Chester Christmas Market

Chester Christmas Market | Facebook

Chester Zoo

Postcode CH2 1EU
Chester Zoo

River Dee

Riverside walkway
Lots of benches
A good level surface.
Access to the city walls

The Rows

700-year-old two tiered covered half-timbered shopping galleries
You get 2 high streets in one!
Includes regular high street favourites and many independent stores.
The Rows are found down Watergate Street, Northgate Street, Eastgate Street and Upper Bridge Street.

River cruises

ChesterBoat – boat trips on Chester’s beautiful River Dee

Boats for hire

Chester Boat Hire – Chester boat hire

The Watergate Street Gallery

Watergate Street Gallery | Buy Fine Art | Contemporary Gallery

Sick to Death Medical Museum

Sick to Death – Discover Chester’s dark past

Grosvenor Shopping Centre

Grosvenor Shopping Centre | Grosvenor Shopping Centre (thegrosvenorcentre.co.uk)

Where we ate in Chester

We ate at Hickory’s Smokehouse which is right by the river. We have eaten there before and will eat there again, the food, service, décor and location are all just perfect for our taste. I would highly recommend.

The postcode for Hickory’s Smokehouse is CH1 1AG

Hickory’s Smokehouse (hickorys.co.uk)

What is near to Chester

Cheshire Oaks

A vast designer outlet
We will provide a factsheet and video on Cheshire Oaks in the coming weeks.
Postcode CH65 9JJ
Cheshire Oaks Designer Outlet | Up to 60% Less | McArthurGlen

The Hollies Farm Shop

Deli & Farm Shops, Cheshire | The Hollies Farm Shop

Blakemere Village

Home – Blakemere Village

Warrington Market

Warrington Market | warrington.gov.uk

Where we stay when visiting Chester

Preston Marriott

On this trip we decided to stay at the Preston Marriott as we were also visiting family in Fleetwood, it’s postcode is PR3 5JB.

The Preston Marriott is a simple 1-hour drive away from the Little Roodee car park.

I will be doing a write up on the Preston Marriott in the coming weeks and there will also be a video.

The Ridgeway Country Holiday Park

On previous visits to Chester, we have stayed in a dog friendly lodge at The Ridgeway Country Holiday Park.

It is more a large caravan with decking than a log cabin type of lodge, but it was nicely furnished and perfectly comfortable.

We booked through Hoseasons.

Its postcode is WA6 6XO

https://ridgewaypark.co.uk

Useful items for your trip

USB multi charger – this is quite useful as also an international travel adapter – https://amzn.to/3xIIzZy

**Camera** – 📸We took the pictures on my Sony ZV-1 camera https://amzn.to/3u1VKCY

Camera Grip – We use a grip/short tripod with my camera – the Sony GP-VPT2BT https://amzn.to/2TeWJm5

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