Hotels in Chester

Chester is small enough that no choice of base is a bad one, but the difference between staying inside the walls and staying a mile out is real, and it comes down to whether you want to walk home from dinner or park the car for free.

Within the walls you are paying for footsteps saved. The city core is barely half a mile across, so a room on Lower Bridge Street or near the Eastgate puts the cathedral, the Rows, the amphitheatre and the river all within ten minutes on foot. These are mostly historic buildings converted to hotels, which means character, uneven floors and, in a few cases, no lift and no car park. If you are arriving by train and intend to eat and drink late, this is the right trade.

The Hoole side of the city, north-east of the centre around the station, is where most of the guest houses and bed and breakfasts sit. Victorian villas with off-street parking, breakfast cooked to order and a fifteen-minute level walk into town make this the sensible choice for a longer stay or a family trip. Rates are typically a third to a half below the city-centre equivalents, and Faulkner Street gives you a genuine neighbourhood of restaurants and shops rather than a tourist strip.

Across the Old Dee Bridge, Handbridge is quieter still, with riverside paths and fast access to the A55 for anyone heading on into North Wales. If you are here mainly for the zoo, Upton puts you a few minutes from the gates and saves an hour of traffic on a summer morning.

Finally, the countryside within fifteen minutes' drive holds several country-house hotels with spas, at Rowton, Pulford and beyond. These suit couples wanting gardens, a pool and free parking, and anyone visiting for a wedding or a spa break rather than sightseeing. The compromise is that you will need a taxi or a designated driver every evening you want to eat in the city.