Nottingham Travel Guide
From Wikitravel
Nottingham is a city in England known as the "Queen of the Midlands".
Contents |
Understand
Nottingham is a major city in the East Midlands of England, its prosperity historically derived mostly from the lace making and coal-mining industries - little of which now remain. Nottingham has moved towards a more service-based economy.
Get in
By plane
- Nottingham East Midlands Airport lies south-west of the city and flights are available to many international destinations. A bus runs between the airport and city centre every 30 minutes 4am-11pm and hourly 11pm-4am.
- Birmingham International airport is approx. 40 miles from Nottingham and serves all major international destinations.
By train
Nottingham is on the main line out of London St Pancras. The cheapest tickets between London and Nottingham are available from Midland Mainline but must be bought well in advance. There are also regular connections to Birmingham, Derby, Leicester, Crewe, Sheffield, and Leeds. Note that trains from London to Sheffield do not stop at Nottingham.
Turn right out of the station for an easy 5 minute walk to the city centre.
The Nottingham Tram (NET) runs from Nottingham main line station through the city centre and out to Hucknall park and ride and Phoenix Park park and ride to the north of the city.
By car
From the south, travel on the M1 and exit at junction 24. From the North take the M1 junction 25 or 26.
By bus
Nottingham has two sizeable bus stations, Broadmarsh and Victoria, and bus operators offer services to most other UK destinations. National Express and megabus both provide cheap advance tickets to Nottngham form london. National Express also provides cheap tickets to Leeds from Nottingham. The train is far more pleasant though, with midland mainline offering free coffee.
Get around
- The city has extensive bus services provided by two companies, trentbarton and Nottingham City Transport, as well as a tram system. An all day ticket for all buses and trams in the city is £2.70 and called a 'Kangaroo', as the ticket allows you to 'hop on' and 'hop off' any method of transport as you wish.
- The city centre is best explored on foot.
See
- Ye Olde Trip to Jerusalem Inn off Maid Marian Way - The oldest pub in Britain, the "Trip" traces its existence back over 800 years.
- Nottingham Castle is not nearly as good as it is in Hollywood (the original was made of wood and burned down) but has an excellent exhibition on the history of the city.
- The Galleries of Justice are well-worth visiting for a fascinating look at the sometimes rough justice meted out in years gone by.
- Wollaton Hall is a large mansion in a nice deer park, Wollaton Park. It has a natural history museum.
- Theatres include the Theatre Royal (Royal Centre tramstop), and Nottingham Playhouse (on Wellington Circus, near Derby Road).
- A nationally recognised independent cinema called Broadway is located on Broad Street in Hockley.
Do
- Go Ice Skating at the National Ice Centre
- In the summer you can hire a rowing boat on the beautiful grounds of The University of Nottingham.
- Clumber Park, about 30 miles north on the A614, is a vast area of parkland and woods owned by the National Trust, good for walking and cycling (bicycle hire available).
- Sherwood Forest Country Park is about 20 miles to the north off the A614, north of the village of Edwinstowe along the B6034, and can also be reached by bus (phone Traveline 0870 6082608). There is a visitors centre and you can see 'Major Oak', the tree in which legend has it that Robin Hood hid from his enemies.
- For keen walkers, Matlock and the Derbyshire Peak District can be reached in about a hour by car.
Learn
Work
Buy
Nottingham has two large excellent shopping centres at either end of the City Centre "The Victoria Centre" and "The Broadmarsh Centre". The Victoria Centre is the more modern of the two, and has more shops & facilities. Broadmarsh is on the eve of a huge redevelopment which will more than double its size.
Eat
Budget
An 'all you can eat' Chinese buffet in the Broadmarsh Shopping Centre - a meal costs less than five pounds, but the restaurant closes at 5pm.
Mid-range
French Living, 27 King Street, Nottingham NG1 2AY, +44 (0)115 9585885 (info@frenchliving.co.uk) [1] Lunch Tu-Fr 12PM-2PM Sa 12PM-2.30PM Dinner Tu-Sa 6PM-10PM Excellent bistro run by a French couple. The Onglet a l'Echalotte is beautiful and there is a good variety of prix fixe menus. (£15-£25)
Las Iguanas, http://www.iguanas.co.uk/, +44 (0)115 959 6390 (nottingham@iguanas.co.uk). This is a wonderful Brazilian restaurant and we really enjoyed our food. It's just east of the main town square.
Splurge
- Hart's Restaurant
- World Service
- China China
Drink
Apart from Ye Olde Trip to Jerusalem (allegedly built in 1189) which is below the castle and often on the tourist trail there are over 100 licensed premises in the square mile around the centre of Nottingham. A good place to start is the trendy Lace Market area east of Market Square where you will also find many good restaurants. Pubs around the Market Square tend to appeal to younger drinkers with a Wetherspoons and Yates's Wine Lodge, but the area on the canalside around the Via Fossa pub tends to be a little more discerning. The Hockley area also provides a range of pleasant bars to suit a range of budgets. Slightly further out of the centre in the multicultural and vibrant area known as Sneinton is a wonderful pub caleed the Lord Nelson with a great graden and real ales.
Sleep
Budget
- Midtown Hostel
http://www.midtownhostel.co.uk/, £16 a night
Midtown Hostel has lots of good things going for it. It's clean, in a great location (just 1 minute walk from the main square), hot water in the showers, free internet, decent kitchen (does have oven, does not have stove, has large fridge to store food in), PS2 and a few games, and free coffee and tea. The beds are reasonably comfortable (but some do squeak).
However, my stay was marred by poor management. The guys who were in charge of the hostel during my stay ran an all night drinking party in the common room. This included lots and lots of alcohol, loud music, and people yelling and shouting until 5 or 6 o'clock in the morning. This happened all three nights of my stay, and all of this happened in the common room, which was about 1 meter from my head, with only a thin wall separating my ears from the party. Additionally, several of the people in the drinking party weren't even staying at the hostel - some ended up leaving the hostel at 6 in the morning, once the party was over, and others ended up sleeping in the common room, then leaving the hostel a couple of hours later. That's rather annoying and insulting to those of us who paid money to stay at the hostel.
I understand that there will be some people who will cause noise and cause trouble. The management is supposed to deal with those problems. But when the manager of the hostel is the ringleader of the party, it results in a horrible experience.
I would NOT recommend staying at midtown hostel in Nottingham, England.
Mid-range
- Jury's Inn
- Holiday Inn Express
Splurge
- Hart's Hotel
- Lace Market Hotel
Contact
Stay safe
Nottingham has been highlighted by the media for gun crime, although the actual incidence in 2004/5 was 19 offences per 100000 population (compared to 50 for both Greater Manchester and London) [2]. The reality is that Nottingham is not a dangerous city and provided you act sensibly you will be safe. It is best to avoid walking late at night through St Ann's (council estate north-east of the Victoria shopping centre) and The Meadows (between the railway station and the river), although the Victoria Embankment along the river is quite safe.
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