City Arts Centre

Advantages: Spacious, well laid out, interesting
Disadvantages: Gift shop not that great

...(which is situated in the City Art Centre, 2 Market Street, Edinburgh – right next door to Waverley Station, very handy for out-of-towners), you will find the work of set and costume designers, model-makers, graphic artists and others. The exhibition is spread over 5 floors – this means that things are not too crowded, and you are not peering over someone’s shoulder to get a look. I’ll try to give you a taster of what I saw: ...
...work of graphic artists – these artists produce ‘concept designs’, used as sources of information and inspiration during the making of the film. Apart from probably being worth a huge amount of money, these pictures are fantastically detailed. I would go so far as to say, I would not be averse to having a couple of them hanging on my wall. VISUAL EFFECTS AND ‘CREATURES’ – First Floor On this floor, you can discover ... Read review

Advantages: Fun, educational, not too expensive
Disadvantages: Busy, poor merchandise

...Wars Exhibition opened in the City Arts Centre in Edinburgh. The exhibition features artwork, models and costumes from all the Star Wars movies but more on that later. The City Arts Centre is slap bang in the centre of Edinburgh, right beside the train station, and with the huge banners that they hang from the roof you will always be able to find it. The building itself is five stories high and exhibitions generally take up the entire building including ...
...and of course stairs. Naturally there are gift shops and a coffee shop in the building. The Art of Star Wars Exhibition makes good use of the building and apart from one or two little things the whole exhibition is fantastic. The first problem I encountered was as soon as I arrived when I was met by a large queue snaking down the street. Still it was opening weekend so perhaps it will get a bit better as the weeks go on. The queue did move quite ... Read review

Advantages: Cheap, friendly, diverse, caters for all tastes
Disadvantages: Not central, hidden

...Hidden in a suburb of Cardiff about 5 minutes from the City Centre is the Chapter Arts Centre. The Centre is a hub of activity for all sectors of the arts. The cinema is renowned throughout Wales for showing diverse pictures ranging from Priscilla Queen of the Desert to moody black and white "arte noir" productions. There are frequent performances by live artists from all four corners of the world including South America, Africa and beyond. The Centre also includes a friendly cafe area with reasonable prices, and all food is home cooked on the premises. There is also a bar area, which can get particularly lively in the evenings. The Centre is easy to find - if you head North through Cardiff City Centre by foot and then head right into Cowbridge Road for about 5 minutes, you will come to the local Police Station and the Centre... Read review

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Advantages: Cosmopolitam,culture,great shopping
Disadvantages: Unpredictable weather

...Cardiff,the national capital of Wales,surprises a lot of first time visitors and captivates many of them. Old images of an industrial and coal exporting port,are no longer relevant-today Cardiff is entering a new golden age with exciting new developments taking place both across the city and on the waterfront at Cardiff Bay. The city has a great deal to offer today's visitor.For starters there is a delightful castle in the city centre. Then there is the spanking new Millennium Stadium,great art galleries,museums, and outstanding shopping to be enjoyed. Head down to Cardiff Bay and you will find up market eateries,night clubs,a bowling alley, a science centre of world importance, a 5 star luxury hotel and spa, and a fascinating art centre in the old Norwegian sailor's church. The city has one of the finest civic centres in Europe... Read review

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Advantages: good nightlife, quite a lot of parkland, much cheaper than London, decent shopping facilities
Disadvantages: Nothing to do on Sundays or in the suburbs, there is a large 'townie' presence, from my knowledge the pubs are pretty awful

...I have been a frequent visitor to Leicester, so I believe I know it quite well. The nightlife is pretty good on occasions with big bashes at Club City and at the Uni, there are some decent alternative shops away from the main shopping centre and the phoenix arts centre hosts a wide variety of events. The city itself is not ugly on the whole (especially when compared to Coventry or Stoke) with the Uni situated in a nice park. However, my main gripe to do with Leicester is that there is absolutely nothing to do on Sundays! The trouble is, without a car it aint easy to get out of the suburbs on a sunday either except go to the cinema or the university's biological gardens which are a bit of a hidden secret. Maybe things will improve with the opening of the Space Centre.... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average somewhat helpful