Rawtenstall - does anyone know the area?

[Cheeseandlobster]

We are going there for a long weekend soon. Gorgeous cottage in the middle of nowhere. We always like to spend an afternoon ambling around the local town so can anyone tell us what Rawtenstall is like or if there is another town that is nicer?

Yes I live in Ramsbottom which is 10 minutes away. Rawtenstall has really improved in recent years and is a really nice place to visit. If you like long walks in beautiful woodland and countryside, you'll love it around here. There are some great places to eat out but Ramsbottom is well known for its award winning eateries and independent bars. There is also a very popular steam train which runs from Rawtenstall through Ramsbottom to Bury. This area is beautiful and a popular place for tourists. There's loads more to do I'm sure you can find them online.

I have been on the steam train and it is lovely. Bury market seemed to be wide ranging and perhaps something that will be dying out in many places over the next few years.

Bury Museum has a Lowry painting, not sure if it will be open yet.

Oh it sounds wonderful and exactly what we want. For some reason I had it in my head it would be more working town rather than scenic.

We will probably only have time to visit 1 town so is Ramsbottom the best choice do you think?

I love steam trains and markets btw

Bury market is great and you can try the food at Katsouris . There’s a dry ski slope near Rawtenstall if it’s still there .

Hebden bridge isn’t too far, and there’s probably more to do there than Ramsbottom. There’s some nice walks round about. Lancashire has some Panopticons that you can visit, the nearest one to you is Halo. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panopticons. You can visit all of them in a day, stopping for a pub lunch near one of them (you would need to drive between them).

@sandgrown

Bury market is great and you can try the food at Katsouris . There’s a dry ski slope near Rawtenstall if it’s still there .

I was in Bury yesterday - it’s pretty grim at the moment, hardly a tourist spot.

All this info is wonderful. Thank you so much

Bury is grim. Ramsbottom is great for eating out and is literally a stones throw from Rawtenstall. Don't go near Bury if you can possibly help it

Hebden bridge isn't near because the roads to get there are a ballache, over an hour at least.
Pop in to bolton, loads to see there

@Onetoomuch

Hebden bridge isn't near because the roads to get there are a ballache, over an hour at least. Pop in to bolton, loads to see there

36 minutes according to google maps.

DO NOT go to Bury, it is a complete rough shithole. I can't believe people are advising it. Unless you go straight through it on the steam train and don't get off.

Ramsbottom is a lovely quaint village. If the weather is nice you could walk up to Peel Tower. The Duckworth Arms just outside Ramsbottom has good traditional pub food, and the view across the valley is lovely.

My children love this;

www.visitlancashire.com/things-to-do/singing-ringing-tree-panopticon-p66560

If you scroll down there are links to other art installations across Lancashire - they’re all near lovely views.

Hurst Green is nice. It’s about 30 minutes away.
www.visitlancashire.com/things-to-do/the-tolkien-trail-in-the-footsteps-of-j-r-r-tolkien-p583810

Bury market is awful, I live 3 miles away and I never go there. People come on coaches from Scotland, they must be so disappointed when they get there.

Don’t go to Bury. Ramsbottom is nice and enough to do for an afternoon. If you want to eat you probably need to book. I recommmed the Eagle and Child.

I say Hebden Bridge also although Ramsbottom is nice, lots of nice restaurants but not really enough for a day out. Also Bury isn’t that bad, I quite like the rock although haven’t been for over a year. But definitely not enough to do for a day, just a few hours of shopping. The transport museum is fun for kids for an hour though.

Rams bottom is lovely. But definitely try the milkshakes at Fitzpatricks in Rawtenstall. Park farm shop on the top road to bury is great lots of homemade produce and the traditional tea rooms open inside on the 18th.

Oh and the Whitchaff pub has great food.

It is just dp and I ( and our very elderly dog who likes to have a lovely long snooze in the afternoon) so I think we will just go somewhere for a few hours. Ramsbottom or Hebdon Bridge I think. One of my friends stayed in Hebdon last year and raved about it. I hadnt actually realised how close it was

I really wouldn't visit Bury or Bolton unless you need a primark visit.
Rawenstall is alright, it's not super lovely but the countryside is pretty. Rambottom is actually nice.

Hebdon bridge over Ramsbottom all day every day.
Ramsbottom is over priced, over populated, parking is shite and it has a few bars and a chocolate cafe . You could do the centre in 10 mins.

If you do go to the halo panopticon like pp mentioned, make sure you head (walk/drive) down to the bottom of the valley afterwards. The village there is Wycollar and it is absolutely gorgeous.

Lovely cafe (with amazing local cheese and onion pies), a lovely river running through for doggy paddles and a series of 3 very old bridges (probably 15th century, or earlier), but each is completely different design-wise. There's also a ruined manor house you can wander and a local history display in an old barn that is sometimes open.

@Onetoomuch

Hebden bridge isn't near because the roads to get there are a ballache, over an hour at least. Pop in to bolton, loads to see there

Bolton is even more grim that Bury these days. I live in between both towns and wouldn’t choose to go into either 🤣

The whole of the Rossendale valley is a bit of an undiscovered gem I think. For an able round somewhere with a villagey feel you could also try Crawshabooth with us close enough to walk for Rawtenstall.
I agree that Ramsbottom is lovely and a great place to eat. Is the chocolate cafe still going? I used to love it there.

How long are you going for OP?

Agree with some of the other posters... AVOID Bury.