Best way to get to Leicester?

[yflyer]

Leicester has been in the news all week.

What is the best way to get to Leicester from SIN?

Anything more interesting than SIN-LHR then car/rail?

[MAN Flyer]

While I wholeheartedly agree that Leicester winning the Premier League is the best thing to happen to English Football since 1966, I wouldn't expect too much excitement from the city itself.

If you do intend going then it's a one hour train journey from St. Pancras station in London. The closest airport is East Midlands (EMA) and Birmingham (BHX) is not too far either but London and the train from St. Pancras is your best bet. You can do a day trip by train, thus avoiding staying over.

[DinkumDave]

What's the opposite of a bucket list? Given that we only have a limited time on this planet, what do you call the things you definitely don't want to waste precious hours on?

Well, if such a list existed, then a visit to Leicester would be right at the top of mine
(Shoe shopping with the wife would be second on the list, but that's another matter).

But each to his own.

If you seriously want to visit Leicester, then you will need to learn a new language for starters. Apart from the fact that Hindi, Urdu, and Gujerati are probably more widely spoken than English. Ordinary folk will struggle to understand the Leicester dialect. So be warned.

I suppose there are some attractions in Leicester:
- The Jewry Wall museum has a good collection of Roman artifacts. What makes it special is the way it has been built around the remains of a Roman building, with sections of wall and a nice mosaic floor to look at.
- The Guild Hall. This is a museum in a nice timber framed building. It's not big, and won't take long to look around. But it's free (or at least it used to be). Plus it is located in the City Centre, right next to the Cathedral.
- Which bring us neatly on to Leicester Cathedral. When you think of cathedrals, you probably think of Winchester, Ely, Gloucester, York. Well then you will be in for a huge disappointment when you see Leicester Cathedral. It's basically just a church building, the same as thousands of others scattered all over the UK. It fell into the spotlight a few years ago when the body of Richard III (or so we are told) was dug up from beneath a local car park and buried in the Cathedral grounds. It will only take to 10 minutes to explore fully.
- Leicester Market. Friday mornings are the best time to see it in full swing. It's not great for shopping - it's mostly fruit and veg, but it bring the City Centre alive. There's quite a bustle of people, and the traders' calls are something to experience (good luck trying to understand what they are actually saying!).
- The Clock Tower. Leicester's grand icon. Think Big Ben, but a thousand times smaller. Very underwhelming, but much adored by the locals.
- Take a walk along New Walk to Victoria Park (Viccy Park in local speak). There's not much there - a few trees & a lot of grass - but you can run a few laps there.
- New Walk also takes you past Leicester Museum, quite a grand building with an eclectic collection. There are also quite a number of smaller musuems around Leicester. You can use Google to see if any of them appeal to you.
- Or you could visit Abbey Park. Small, but rather pleasant, set along the banks of the river and bounded by a giant stone wall. You can see the ruins of Leicester Abbey - again, don't get too excited. All that's left are a few stones in the ground. There is also a space museum nearby. I have never been, so can't really comment.
- For a cultural experience, you can head over the Khyber Pass (as the Belgrave Flyover is affectionately known) and into little India :-)

All of the above can easily be accomplished in 1 day.

Things to avoid:
- Leicester Castle. When you think of castles, you generally think Neuschwanstein. Or maybe Windsor, Arundel, or Warwick. Well Leicester Castle is nothing compared to those. It used to be a Motte & Bailey (i.e. a hut on a mound of earth, with a ditch around it). Now all that is left is the mound of earth.
- The City Centre at pub closing time on a Friday or Saturday night. Lots of drunkenness. Lots of rowdy behaviour. Lots of vomit. Try typing "Booze Britain Leicester" into your favourite search engine.
- Certain areas of the City are decidedly "shady", so to speak. Don't visit these areas alone after dark looking like a tourist. If you are planning to stay somewhere outside the City Centre, be sure to research the area first.

Personally, if I wanted to visit a city in the Midlands I would choose Nottingham over Leicester any day. A well laid out and vibrant City Centre. Nottingham Castle is right in the centre, and whilst being more of a Victorian mansion than a "fairy tale" style of castle, it is still well worth a visit. As are the caves below it, and the Old Trip to Jerusalem pub.

Plus the people in Nottingham speak better English (as long as you don't mind being called "duck"), and they are noticeably friendlier. Leicester people tend to be very terse and straight to the point. Nottingham people are happier to take a bit of time to chat and get to know somebody. Nottingham people are likely to start up an impromptu sing song on a bus trip home from the pub. Leicester people are more likely just to start a fight (a "scrap" in Leicester speak).

The best thing about Leicester is getting out of there. Seriously. The countryside to the north west of Leicester - the area known as Charnwood - is quite spectacular. You can take a bus to Bradgate Park (known locally as "Braggy"), which is a real gem - much better than anything in the City. Great for running You can also run/hike/cycle through Swithland Woods, or up Beacon Hill. All very nice. If you are into birdwatching or nature watching you can head to the nature reserve at Ulverscroft. There is even a monastery at Mt. St. Bernard. And don't forget the Bluebell Steam Railway into Loughborough.

The countryside to the East of Leicester is also well worth a visit. The historic towns of Oakham (where they poke 'em) Langham (where they 'ang 'em), Uppingham, and Stamford. You can rent a bike at Rutland Water, or take a run around it. Then there is the Welland Viaduct near Seaton, the iron age fort at Borough Hill, and the parish church at Kings Norton which is also impressive.

South of Leicester, Market Harborough is a lovely town, with Foxton Locks nearby.

Further afield, the Derbyshire Peak District is wonderful, and much more worthy than anything Leicester has to offer. Places like Dovedale, Edale, Bakewell, and Buxton.

But if your heart is set on Leicester, then you need to know how to get there. Well, what do you want to hear? The best way is of course to fly to LHR, then take a train from St Pancras, or a bus from Victoria. Or rent a car and drive yourself.

Other options would be to hitch your way up the M1. I've done this myself a few times. I remember on one occasion trying to get to sleep in the toilets at Toddington services - but that's another story. Right now, if you carry a blue and white sign with a picture of a fox on it, then I expect a lot of people would stop for you. But that novelty will probably wear off pretty soon.

You could rent a boat and travel by canal. The Grand Union passes right through the centre of Leicester. Unfortunately it would take you several days to get from London to Leicester by canal - although it could be very enjoyable if you have the time. If you want to avoid LHR, then you could ride the canals from Manchester instead, or Birmingham is a little closer.

I wouldn't expect too much excitement from the city itself.

Very succinctly put, MAN Flyer

Having said all of that, yflyer, I hope you do visit Leicester, and I look forward to reading your trip report.

[kapitan]

are Thai restaurants popular in Leicester?

[yflyer]

While I wholeheartedly agree that Leicester winning the Premier League is the best thing to happen to English Football since 1966...

Yes...quite an amazing story there!

If you do intend going then it's a one hour train journey from St. Pancras station in London. The closest airport is East Midlands (EMA) and Birmingham (BHX) is not too far either but London and the train from St. Pancras is your best bet. You can do a day trip by train, thus avoiding staying over.

That's a very convenient train journey from London...thanks for the info!

[yflyer]

What's the opposite of a bucket list? Given that we only have a limited time on this planet, what do you call the things you definitely don't want to waste precious hours on?

Well, if such a list existed, then a visit to Leicester would be right at the top of mine
(Shoe shopping with the wife would be second on the list, but that's another matter).

But each to his own

...

Hi, DinkumDave! What an amazing whirlwind tour of Leicester...for someone who's not Leicester's Number One Fan, you've done a remarkable job of selling it (And Nottingham) as a place to visit !

If you seriously want to visit Leicester, then you will need to learn a new language for starters. Apart from the fact that Hindi, Urdu, and Gujerati are probably more widely spoken than English. Ordinary folk will struggle to understand the Leicester dialect. So be warned.

Well that probably means there will be great Indian and South Asian food in Leicester, in addition to the usual menu! Or maybe that IS the usual menu!

As far as accents are concerned, I can imagine it would be quite a challenge for non-native English speakers. As for Singaporeans, our accents are all so mixed up anyway I suspect we there wouldn't be that much of an issue. That said, if it is a dialect, rather than an accent, all bets are off!

Having said all of that, yflyer, I hope you do visit Leicester, and I look forward to reading your trip report.

Thanks! I didn't have a concrete plan to visit when I posted the question on SQTalk...but your write-up has certainly piqued my interest, whether it was intended or not!

[Kyo]

Right now, if you carry a blue and white sign with a picture of a fox on it, then I expect a lot of people would stop for you. But that novelty will probably wear off pretty soon.

Having said all of that, yflyer, I hope you do visit Leicester, and I look forward to reading your trip report.

Sir, you win the best posted reply of 2016! I couldn't stop reading and burst out laughing when I read that sentence... have tears streaming down my cheeks at the moment! LOL!

I miss the UK, gotta find a way to get back there soon!

[yflyer]

Sir, you win the best posted reply of 2016!

+1