On Chester’s one-time bustling industrial downtown streets, the black and white timbers of the overhanging Tudor houses cast their shadow over the old Roman roads and town squares. Meanwhile, all around, the crumbling walls of Britain’s ancient imperial masters demark the old town centre, while the great amphitheatre on Vicars Lane stands as a testimony to this town’s important past.
Any Chester tour guide is quick to tell how this now humble and picturesque town on the River Dee was once a mercantile and military powerhouse of the United Kingdom; first as the largest manned fortification of the Romans, then as a medieval port town and bastion of royalist support under King Charles I. Today, the town’s major sights ooze with this rich history, and guests should be sure to explore the various museums that do well to chronicle its past.
Chester is also a great town for strolling, and visitors enjoy a patchwork of promenades and parks that run from the downtown cathedral, through the riverside Groves and to the city’s famous zoo. There are also plenty of traditional English pubs, where hearty meals and midland ales are served up all day long.