Be charmed by Chester...
STEVE GRAVES spends a weekend soaking up the sights of the Roman city
THINK of UK city breaks, and plenty of destinations spring to mind.
In Chester we may just have the perfect option for the traveller who wants to get the most out of a weekend away while taking things at their own pace.
The walled city, eminently walkable and compact but full of quirky sights and some of the finest historical buildings in the country, has always been a draw for tourists. But for many years its hotel offering seemed stuck in a bit of a timewarp, with few options within the city centre and a limited offering for younger travellers looking for a more up-to-date experience.
All that seems to be changing, with new hotels springing up in recent years offering a fresh take on staying in a historic city, among them the Moxy Chester. Promising a “playful stay” with a stylish approach, with “small but smart” rooms and an emphasis on affordability, Moxy hotels are popping up around the country and the concept certainly feels new for Chester.
For our Saturday night stay we arrived over an hour before the 3pm check-in time, happy to wait if needs be – but staff could not have been more accommodating, with our room already good to go and free cocktails to welcome us at the striking lobby bar, which also serves as check-in desk and the general heart of the operation.
The staff pride themselves on crafting personal welcomes on bathroom mirrors, and after informing them in advance I was a Liverpool FC supporter, we were greeted by an impressive rendering of a Liver Bird.
The room certainly delivered on the brand’s promise, with a real city break feel and a view of the canal alongside which the hotel sits.
Chester, as ever, did not disappoint. From our location in Boughton, a short walk up City Road from the railway station, we weren’t far from Westminster Park and the banks of the River Dee. A stroll through the park took us down to the river before we crossed back up, via the Roman amphitheatre and gardens, towards the heart of the city.
Just as the accommodation scene in Chester is changing, so is the range of bars, cafés and restaurants on offer.
While the city centre was once dominated by retail, it’s increasingly home to independent outfits focused on food and drink.
We enjoyed drinks at the Brewery Tap on Lower Bridge Street, which makes the most of a historic great hall as the perfect venue for real ales and traditional pub food. We also visited the atmospheric Boot Inn and Metronome Jazz Bar, a tiny but effortlessly cool space where I enjoyed a bottle of rarely-spotted Wrexham Lager before dinner at Ristorante Sergio, a classic Italian restaurant which has been a fixture in the city for 40 years.
Breakfast the next morning was buffet-style, with a focus on cold options which would be easy to grab and go – perfectly in keeping with the hotel’s overall approach. Checkout, too, was straightforward – we simply had to drop our key card off.
This approach characterised Moxy Chester for us, it takes out the parts that get in the way of getting out there and helps guests make the most of a short break without compromising on the small luxuries you’d expect at any city hotel.