Cambridge Town House, Southport

Advantages: YOU DON'T NEED A PASSPORT.
Disadvantages: LET'S JUST SAY THERE'S AN 'INTEREST' DEFICIT.

...Southport, a pimple on the coast of the Irish Sea, used to be in Lancashire. Then the Boundary Commission decided that it was more suited to Merseyside. The location change coincided with the general decline in popularity of English sea-side towns as holiday destinations, from the 1960s onwards. The town centre is about the same distance – 20miles – from Liverpool, St. Helens, Preston and Wigan. And about 40miles from Manchester. I’ve actually lived in Southport for 26years … but I’m always interested to see how the place is being marketed to tourists. Presumably most visitors would arrive either by road or rail … unless anyone was wacky enough to float over from Ireland on a lilo. Well, I guess their first impressions of the place will be pretty disappointing. The train station was constructed from concrete in the 1950s. Now... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Still a lovely place to shop
Disadvantages: Parking - and the lack of leisure facilities

...Lord Street Southport is a famous name for good shopping. A typical Victorian Street with wide pavements, canopies over the shops, trees and benches all along to sit and relax on a warm day. Not as many interesting shops as there used to be but there as still some. The Gardens on the promenade are lovely and the walk over the bridge to the beach is still the same as I imagine it was in Victorian days. Traffic Wardens are the biggest problem in Southport. It is difficult to find a parking space in the Town but the pay and display has now been extended to out of town and its not cheap. Best bet is to park in Morrisons Car Park in Tulketh Street or B & M Bargains at the end of Lord Street. Footnote - forget the beach - and there is no leisure facilities at all not a good place for a holiday with children if the weather is bad.... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average somewhat helpful

Advantages: More space for M&S undie dept
Disadvantages: No Woolworths in Cambridge

...I live near Cambridge and was browsing the pertinant reviews,just out of interest.I came across one for Woolworths listed under Cambridge Attractions! Well I agree that W is a useful store but there's more to Cambridge than that.... Leaving aside the 'attraction value' of W compared with a town full of medeaeval buildings and beautiful parks .......there is an important piece of info that everyone should know about this store. It no longer exists! It closed down several years ago.The building now houses part of Marks and Spencer (they also have a shop on the market square). The poor star rating indicates how I feel about the demise of this store in Cambridge, and is not a reflection on the store itself. The nearest Woolies is now in St Ives... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average not helpful