Streets in Chester, UK by Christopher John SSF

Wander the city walls

When you first get to Chester, one of the best ways to get your bearings is to take the 3km walk around the city walls. Erected during the Roman period for defensive purposes, the city walls give Chester its nickname of “The Walled City”. Although Chester’s walls have been rebuilt during their history, they form the most complete city walls of any British city. As you walk the walls you can be stood in the spot where history was made – for instance, King Charles observed a civil war battle from the walls – and take in the structures incorporated into the walls; you will probably be familiar with pictures of the Eastgate Clock, built to celebrate Queen Victoria’s diamond jubilee. If you are keen to learn more about Chester’s history, join one of the guided tours of the walls, to find out more about its interesting past. For anyone with limited mobility who would like to see the whole city, a tour aboard the only remaining operating open top vintage bus from 1924 comes well recommended.

Visit Chester’s cathedral

There has been a church on the spot where the cathedral stands for the last 1000 years – initially a Saxon minster before the Benedictine abbey was built. As you walk round this impressive building, you can marvel at the Norman arches, Gothic columns, wood carvings and stained glass windows. Chester’s cathedral is one of the best examples of a Medieval monastery in England and the garden in the cloisters is equally splendid, hosting ferns, exotic bulbs, springtime flowers, majestic trees and herbs. The plants themselves are not the only attraction, but the way in which the cathedral garden is designed and the “Water of Life” sculpture by Stephen Broadbent that is sited there.

Chester’s Cathedral, UK by David Merrett

Sit in the amphitheatre

Located near the River Dee, Chester’s amphitheatre is the largest in Britain. In 2004 and 2005 excavation by English Heritage and Chester City Council uncovered two amphitheatres made of stone. In one, access to the upper seats is by way of stairs at the rear wall, while in the other the seats in higher tiers were reached by vaulted staircases. The two buildings not only differ from each other, but from other British amphitheatres indicating how important Roman Chester was. Various musical and theatrical events are periodically hosted at the amphitheatre, so if you are lucky enough, you might be able to coincide your trip with one of these performances. Discover more about Roman Chester at the Grosvenor Museum, where you can also learn about the local natural history and geology, as well as home life from the seventeenth century to the early twentieth century and art work.

Potter along The Rows

The Rows are unique to Chester. They are part-timbered balconies, which give rise to a second row of shops above those at ground level. You can find these second level shops along Watergate Street, Northgate Street, Eastgate Street and Bridge Street. If you are looking to buy something more unusual for yourself or a gift, you are likely to find exactly what you are after in the many independent stores located in The Rows. Also take the time for a coffee or lunch at one of the cafes in The Rows, before you set off to explore the rest of the city.

Claire writes about city planning and architecture on behalf of a landlord and property advice news site, Pro Buy To Let where thousands of landlords come every month for the latest news on property hot spots around the UK. Chester is surely one of those.

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Hill-walkers will face far more difficult climbs for much less scenic reward – these really are some of the most spectacular views to be found in this part of the country.

Shropshire Plain, UK by Dpaajones

Legend has it that The Wrekin was the work of giants who still live somewhere below the surface. The name derives from the Celtic ‘wre’ and ‘ken,’ translated as ‘most conspicuous hill.’

One-time capital of the ancient British Cornovii tribe who recognised the value of its strategic position, The Wrekin rises 1,335 feet above the northern panhandle of Shropshire’s Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The Cornovii’s iron age hill fort stretches almost 20 acres across the summit.

For history lovers

Just a few miles from The Wrekin, one of the largest remaining examples of a Roman settlement exists at Wroxeter, where ‘The Old Work’ is an eight-metre high wall that once formed part of the fourth largest city in the province.

Originally part of a basilica in Viroconium – built beside the old Roman road of Watling Street – the Wroxeter Roman City was once home to 5,000 people in the 2nd century AD.

Extensive remains still visible today of this early feat of architectural engineering include parts of a market hall and tavern, and an underfloor heating system which once graced the communal bath-house.

For walking enthusiasts

Shropshire offers some seriously superb walking country, with over 3,500 miles of rights of way to choose from including Offa’s Dyke and the Severn Way.

From September 7th to 9th, the Oswestry Walking Festival offers five separate walks over varying distances, including the 12-mile Oswald’s Ring, nine-mile quarry and Offa’s Dyke, and a four-mile trip to the old hill fort and Hengoed.

Visit www.oswestrywalkers.co.uk for further information.

What else to see

Stokesay, Shrewsbury and Ludlow Castles, the Seven Valley and Telford Steam Railways, the Ironbridge Gorge Museums….there’s plenty for everyone in this most picturesque and diverse of counties.

For smaller visitors, the Hawkstone Park and Follies offers a fantasy land of cliffs, chasms, caves, labyrinths and woods – sharp-eyed youngsters will recognise many of the scenes from the BBC’s TV series Chronicles of Narnia.

The park’s Feather Falconry gives kids a chance to experience a nature lesson up close with owls, hawks and falcons, and a medieval weekend here from August 25th to 27th will take them back in time to experience life as it was in the 12th century.

Nicki Williams is a copy writer for Gear-Zone – on-line, outdoor specialists in walking and hiking footwear, wet weather clothing, and down jackets

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Sofia, Bulgaria / antonella sinopoli

Sofia, Bulgaria

Sofia is one of the cheapest eastern European cities to visit and stay in, and by extension one of the cheapest on the continent. The city displays much of its history in its architecture, starting with the city walls, much of which remain largely intact since their establishment in its 7th century days as a regional capital in the Holy Roman Empire. The frescoes of the St George Rotunda date from the 12th century, while the edifice’s foundations date back to the Roman settlement of 4th century Serdica, the original site of the city. Since then, the city’s older buildings trace its time from Byzantine, Ottoman and medieval Bulgar fortresses through the neoclassical period and into the prefabricated socialist-era apartment blocks.

The city also boasts a large number of classical theatres, which remains the country’s most popular performing art, followed by the combined National Opera and Ballet company, established in 1891. Free hiking and cycling tours are a great way to see the Sofia’s extensive green and mountainous areas without leaving the city limits. Bulgaria is still a very cheap place to visit, and 4 (and sometimes even 5) star hotels are affordable if you book sufficiently ahead of time.

Guimarães, Portugal

An average-sized city in the slightly cooler northern region of the country, Guimarães is a real hidden gem that is begging for travellers to seek it out. Tucked away in a lush, secluded valley in the district of Braga, the city was founded around the 9th century by a local noble who conquered the region for the then-kingdom of Galicia, and since the 12th century been considered the seat of Portuguese nationality and the home of the Portuguese conquistadores. In 2012, Guimarães was named European Capital of Culture, and not without good reason.

Despite its size (only around 190,000 in the greater urban area), the city is home to a large number of musuems, galleries and theatres, principle among which is the Alberto Sampaio museum. Opened in 1931, it contains a huge collection of pieces from the city’s history during the 14th-16th centuries. On the first weekend of August, there is the Festas Gualterianas, in honour of Saint Gualter, featuring fireworks, street performers and musical performances, and the spectacular Battle of the Flowers.

Dorset, England

Of course, if the cost of physically getting across the seas is too much, you don’t even have to pass through customs to have a great holiday on the cheap. The south-west of England has long had tourist centres in Devon and Cornwall, but Dorset is just as calm, quiet and picturesque without facing the same high prices and tailbacks as its neighbours. Even better, if you get yourself a bus pass, you can see most of the county without straying from the public transport system.

This holiday might be strictly for the hardcore hiker, as getting the most out of your stay will rely on your capacity for long walks and creative use of wireless internet if you want to stay tuned in the goings on beyond the hills and beaches. The best place to pick up some tips on where to stay while on the Jurassic Coast is Countryside and Coastal, with its range of B&Bs and hostels.

So don’t panic if your budget is looking fine this summer: just take a look outside of the usual haunts.

Catherine Halsey is based in Edinburgh and writes for a digital marketing agency. This article links back to Skype.com.

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Photo licensed under the Creative Commons, created by Allan Engelhardt

The area of today’s town St. Albans was in ancient times inhabited by the Celts. Their village was located at Prae Hill, about two kilometres west of the city. The town was built around the Benedictine monastery, where was in year 324 executed the first British Christian martyr St. Alban.

For centuries, the town remained in the place of the most tumultuous events in the history of England. Originally a Roman settlement of Verulamium became the center of the province of Britannia, and later the leading spiritual centre of the region.

The local Abbey of St. Alban was founded in 793 and in 1553 transformed to the parish church. When St. Albans received the status of the city in 1877, it was appointed the Cathedral. This great example of medieval architecture still dominates the city. It features some Classical elements, such as murals on Norman pillars of the 13th and 14th century.

The oldest preserved part of the cathedral is the nave of the year 1077, which is the longest in England with its 84 meters. Arches built in the early English Gothic style come from the 13th century. In the cathedral you can find the remains of the shrine of St. Alban. It is a marble pedestal composed of more than 2000 small fragments. Next to it is a tomb of Duke Humphrey of Gloucester.

In St. Albans you can also visit the oldest surviving pub in England – Ye Olde Fighting Cocks, located on the street Abbey Mill Lane. It is also one of the most unusual constructions and originally served as a medieval dovecote.

According to the recent research of Nationwide Building Society, St Albans is now the 3rd most expensive city in UK (after the heart of London – Westminster followed by Winchester).

View St. Albans – one of the most beautiful towns around London United Kingdom in a larger map

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