Lancaster..what's it like?

[shadypines]

I realise I can't go for a while so in the meantime what do other MNetters think of this city? Is it pleasant to the eye, relatively clean, many galleries, museums? Thanks for any info.

Kings Arms is sooooo out of date, it has started a very long overdue refurb downstairs. No idea if they started in the bedrooms.

I've stayed in similar once Grand now grim places in Brighton.

It does ran a lot but that does not = all the time 😂

I grew up there. It’s the sort of place that people come from - couldn’t wait to leave personally.
It is very rainy and grey mainly because the local stone is grey and planning makes builders use it.
Shopping isn’t great apart from a few independent places.

I went to uni there. It did rain a lot! It’s a quiet town I would say. Lots of lovely surrounding countryside.

I lived in Lancaster for six years and loved it, despite the rain.

The blue-domed building (visible from the M6) is the Ashton Memorial in Williamson's Park which, before coronavirus, had regular art exhibitions. Next to the Memorial is a huge playground where you can watch your children play as well as have a grand view of Morecambe Bay, plus there is a decent cafe and a Butterfly House. The walks around the park are well signposted with lots of little notice boards giving information about trees, plants and the birds you are likely to see.

It's a great day out for families.

I had the best lemon merengue pie in a Church cafe in town. The. best ever.

• 26 ish years ago. I still dream about it.

I miss being able to nip into Gorrill's to see what was new in the china, linens and housewares. It was known to everyone as Gorilla's.

I also miss the Port of Lancaster Smokehouse - their Lancashire sausages with bits of black pudding in were wonderful. Although they do mail order so when this crisis is over...

I was lived ( and was a community mental health nurse ) in Lancaster for about 15 years. Definitely more of a town that a city. Some nice parts, lovely bars, live music scene and cafes etc. Some really rough parts too, lots of large spread out estates, quite a north/ south divide in the city.
But then I moved and began community nursing in Blackburn- then I really discovered what rough meant, Lancaster was a walk in the park in comparison......

How many decades ago was your last visit ?

It feels like decades... we normally go there regularly. Walks along the lune, visits to dukes, whenever we need coffee. But we always look at the weather forecast before we go anywhere.
DD, who went to school there, does notice the difference now she's at uni in one of the driest parts of the country. But she loves coming back up this way for the hills.

must be near the sea so I always imagined it as quite nice.
Hm, well the seaside is Morecambe .... but, good for a bike ride, fabulous views of the lakes, and I've seen eider ducks there.

It definitely has a bit of a hippy vibe, quite a few Green councillors.
Must remember to donate to the Dukes to keep it open.
PoL Smokehouse are still delivering, at least locally.
For clothes I shop online basically but otherwise I'm always in town picking up lovely bread/meat/wholefoods, going for a coffee, taking the DCs to the library.
There are usually events that the DCs like in town over Easter and holidays though they can be rammed and noisy.
Lovely walks (so relieved we can walk to Williamson Park, we go early!)
Bike network is good too.
All the professionals I know work at the uni, hospital or schools.
It is pretty with the sandstone too - Scottish relatives say it reminds them of Edinburgh.

Well it's lovely and sunny today! Shame we can't enjoy it!

If Eden still come to Morecambe it will be unrecognisable!

Oh no @RandomMess, hadn't given a thought to it not happening, a lot has been invested so far so hopefully it'll just be delayed.

I know the world has gone mad when it’s sunny in Lancaster. DS is at the university, I’ve been drowned every time I’ve been there.

Well it would be a massive boost post Covid-19 economic disaster.

Most towns have been suffering with retail shops disappearing, sadly not just an issue here at all. The bit of Surrey we lived in is now equally dire

Lancaster is lovely. It's more of a town than a city I agree but that's is beauty. It's hard to go into town and not see people you know once you've lived there a while. I live in a nearby village that is a real old fashioned community and my children are at the aforementioned grammar schools and thriving there (or at least are in normal times!)

There was a problem with isolation up at the Uni leading to or exacerbating mental health problems amongst some students at one time but now the Uni has put so many things in place to combat this that it isn’t any worse than any other Uni now. I was really impressed that they addressed this issue at an open day last year and there’s a really good network of support options now. Including a beautiful multi-faith and counselling service.

I lived in Lancaster for 12 years. I loved it there-although I left 20 years ago so couldn’t really say what it’s like now as I haven’t been back for ages. I’d move back in a second if I could.
The things I miss most are the view of Morecambe bay on a clear day, Williamson’s park and the easy access to the Lake District.

There was a problem with isolation up at the Uni leading to or exacerbating mental health problems amongst some students at one time

My DS was caught up in this some years ago when he was there. I had to bring him home as he attempted suicide and nobody I rang would speak to me! It was awful. I really hope they've sorted out things out. He only completed 18 months and never went back.

So sorry to hear that, Nightsky. Hope all is well with him now.

It's my adopted home town - I moved there 30 years ago for partner's work, and never wanted to leave. Although at the moment we have work on the other side of the country. Gorgeous little city - you get the sea breezes, and it's close to the Lake District, Manchester & Leeds. Lovely big old houses in the centre. Two of the best state grammars in the country, and an excellent university.

Yes, it's small, and you will need to get out on occasion, but it's close to so much else, including Scotland - during the Edinburgh Festival, I can go for a day, and see 3 or 4 shows if I plan right.

But it's a small friendly place in the right way - I can go into the pedestrianised town shopping centre on a Saturday morning and always run into someone I know, even when I'm just visiting every second weekend.

It's very safe for children - the kind of place where they can run into town independently. Lots going on in terms of activities.

Thriving arts scene - both at the university and in the town centre - but you'll need to get over any sense of town & gown - the university offers some really fabulous resources for the whole town. Although who knows how it'll be after we're through the current crisis.

If you want all the naff high street shops, you can go to Preston or Manchester (Preston's market is fab).

Really good for foodies - Booths is the local supermarket, and fantastic local produce.

But really, it depends why you're thinking of moving there. I lived in a huge international city before I moved to Lancaster, and found the first year tricky. But I adapted and really miss living there full-time at the moment. I'm done with big cities, and Lancaster has the history and status of the county town of Lancashire - it's a place that's proud of its long history & importance - without the traffic, pollution, and general exhaustion of a big city.

Also - I think the thing about Lancaster in comparison to, say, Huddersfield or Bury or Preston, is that it was established a long time ago - the Priory is 9th century - and became a very wealthy port (Glasson Dock) in the 18th century, before the Lune silted up & Liverpool took over as the main north west port, so there's evidence of wealth & grace in its civic buildings and a lot of the domestic architecture as well. It's not one of those depressing mill towns across the Pennines - it was a centre of commerce & government long before the cotton mills.

It does make a difference in the architecture & layout of the town and the way the heritage & history plays out in the modern world.

I’m sorry to hear that, thenightsky and I hope he is ok now.
I must admit I didn’t apply to Lancaster when I was 18 as it looked overwhelmingly bleak even though I loved the town itself.
They’ve made it much more self-contained but with better facilities and support, including ‘mentors’ so I hope what your DS went through is no longer happening.

There are the remains of a Roman bath house at the back of Lancaster Castle.

Lancastre, the original name, means "Roman fort on the banks of the Lune".

If you stand in the central courtyard of the Castle itself and look slowly from left to right, you will see the style of architecture getting newer and newer, starting from the Norman keep right through to Tudor times. Even the graffiti on the inside wall of the keep is old, dating back to the 1600s.

@thenightsky what an awful experience and sadly repeated at universities across the country although they are slowly moving forward.

At 18 they are technically adults and patient confidentiality is everything and enshrined in law whereas students, first time away from home and all many have ever known are vulnerable and their peer group unequipped to recognise or handle it

If you stand in the central courtyard of the Castle itself and look slowly from left to right, you will see the style of architecture getting newer and newer, starting from the Norman keep right through to Tudor times. Even the graffiti on the inside wall of the keep is old, dating back to the 1600s

The castle and the priory are very striking. The view down to the Lune from the back of the priory used to be stunning. There was a tangled old path that used to lead down to the quayside and there was a beautiful stone angel in the graveyard which was quite stunning, but had sadly been decapitated the last time I visited. When I was a teen, I couldn't wait to leave, but parts of it are pretty.