Which shopping outlet in England could I take my mum to

[frogthedippydog]

I live in Belfast and I would really love to take my mum on a shopping day/few days over in England to spoil her but I'm not sure where would be the best to take her. She loves shopping so she would really enjoy this and it would be so nice to spend time with her.

If you have any ideas of where to go I'd love to hear. I've heard of Cheshire oaks and the bullring but know nothing about them. Any advise welcome x

Cheshire oaks is enormous and has a fab range of outlet shops as well as cafes and restaurants etc. It also has a normal retail park next door with next, river island etc and an enormous sainsburys and what (certainly was at some point) England’s biggest M&S! You could perhaps also combine with a shopping trip to Chester (5/6 miles down the road) which also has excellent shopping.

How about Bicester Village - a lot of big brand discount outlets. My Singaporean SiL always goes.

Additionally there is the Trafford Centre (30 miles or so) from Cheshire Oaks which is all indoor and again, huge (but not an outlet).

It’s pronounced Bisster, BTW.

Oh great ideas thank you all so much. I'll have to do some research into the logistics of each place. Is Cheshire oaks decent in terms of prices ie are the outlets really discounted?

Thanks so I much I'll have a look online and see what it's like xx

With Cheshire Oaks you could get the overnight ferry from Belfast and it's only a few miles away from Birkenhead. If you drove you'd have the car to store your purchases!

Cheshire oaks is very good, I’ve been to Bicester twice, I wasn’t particularly impressed either time. If you’re staying for a few days Chester itself is very nice with places to visit without wasting a lot of time on travel.

Bicester is lovely but is all outdoors so gotta be nice weather. It is near Oxford though which is a gorgeous city to visit although a nightmare to park in it she has any mobility issues

Thanks so much. I've heard that Chester is lovely so maybe Cheshire oaks is the way to go then maybe a night in Chester itself. Do you know which the nearest airport would be?

Are you coming by car/ferry or flying? I agree that Cheshire Oaks (and possibly the Trafford Centre) will probably be suitable. If you have a car, the suggestion to come on the overnight ferry is probably a good one, as if you flew, you'd then have luggage restrictions to deal with.

Prices are a variable mix of decent reductions on previous seasons, things that are 'OK' and might make a higher priced brand more affordable, plus some that's probably permanent reductions from fake high prices that no-one ever really pays and aren't worth more than the discounted price. It depends on what you're looking for.

Thanks so much. I was wondering if there is such a thing as a coach trip that did the driving for you so you got the best of both worlds ( I don't think I'd be confident enough to drive)

From Belfast, living in England. To be honest, there aren't really many shops over here that you don't get back home. It would be more bringing her over for other experiences. For ease of getting to from Belfast, Bristol/Bath are great for shopping and plenty of other things to see/do ( Harbourside in Bristol, Clifton for sightseeing, Bath - the Roman Baths, Royal Crescent etc), obviously London, Liverpool is lovely for a wander around the docks. Can build in a sightseeing Beatles taxi tour ( which is great fun, even if not a fan!). Birmingham - can wander along canals, good shopping. I'd chose somewhere that you can get cheap EasyJet flights to and look at other experiences whilst here. Afternoon tea, visiting sights and a bit of shopping! Have a wonderful time with your mum!

Best airport to use would probably be Liverpool, but it depends on what flights are available. You might get a bigger choice of flights to Manchester, but Liverpool is small and easy to use, and Manchester is big and horrible.

Easyjet, Ryanair or Loganair would be where I would look first for flights.

I always found that Bicester village was a bit too focussed on high-end fashion for the very skinny and very young. I preferred Swindon (though there’s nothing else to see around Swindon) or York (which is quite small). I’ve not been to Cheshire Oaks, but would quite like to go after seeing the previous posts.

Kent? Ashford Outlet, Bluewater and a trip to London. Shopping heaven

Brighton is wicked for shopping, has a really big beach, and an easygoing city vibe. Very warm if you go during the summer and only about 20/30 min drive from Gatwick or get the train straight there in about 20 mins

Thanks so much for your input! You're so helpful. I'll have a wee nosey at these too xx

Fly to Stansted and Braintree Village?
East Anglia looks very different to NI so a bit more interesting.

@EarlGreyAndCucumber York outlet and the city (connected by the Park and Ride) would be a nice trip for the OP, but might be difficult/time consuming on public transport, although fly to Manchester then get the train to York would probably work quite well (Manchester Airport has a train station and I think the Trans Pennine Express goes to York, watch out for strikes and cancellations due to weather/staff shortages).

Cheshire Oaks is huge and has some great discounts, and quite a few restaurants - you can see exactly what is there on their website. If you have a car, it's brilliant for shopping and it's easy and quick to get there from Chester, which is lovely. If you wanted a break from shopping, the Wirral (Parkgate, Thurstaston, Hilbre etc) is easily accessible, as is North Wales.

I wouldn't attempt it without a car though, as Cheshire Oaks is built around big car parks, and it's even a bit difficult to walk between the various parts of it (Cheshire Oaks, the Coliseum, M&S), though you can. There's nowhere nice to stay that's in walking distance (Ellesmere Port isn't really a tourist place at all) and public transport is poor.

Absolutely London Heathrow

Tube it to Westfield Shopping Center

https://www.westfield.com/united-kingdom/london/access

This, if you’re flying.

Bicester needs a car; and the discounts aren’t anywhere near as good as they used to be (although they’re probably brilliant compared to Singapore!). The shops are very aimed at the young, slim demographic.

Cheshire Oaks is brilliant, but needs a car. I love Chester, but if you’re not confident driving, I’d probably scratch that one off for now.

Birmingham is lovely but again, I don’t think I’d attempt it without a car, unless you’re interested in checking out the Bullring and any of the festival pop ups from the Commonwealth Games legacy this summer - but I suspect it’s all the same as you’ve got in Belfast.

Westfield would be my bet, and convenient from Heathrow.

Ashford outlet mall is great, but Ashford is such a dump. Nice to combine with a trip to Canterbury though.

But Westfield isn't an outlet, just another shopping mall.