Guildford in General

Advantages: Beautiful countryside, lesiure centre close by
Disadvantages: Boring night-life, Quite hilly, Expensive, Not many good shops

I have lived in Guildford nearly all my life and like most other people I find my home-town boring, with nothing to do, but after reading this review this should hopefully make your mind up whether you'd like to move here, have a day trip shopping or just go for a night out here. Guildford is located in the south east of England close to the M25 (9 miles from Guildford), the major airports at Heathrow and Gatwick and a frequent rail service from ...
...both leisure and business visitors. Guildford is a historic and vibrant county of Surrey, offering first class entertainment and shopping, surrounded by a wealth of gardens and historic buildings. ***SHOPPING*** I don't think Guildford is that great for shopping, as there aren't many shops I shop in here. There is a main shopping centre called The Friary which is located on a one way street called North Street and is a short walk from the train ... Read review

Advantages: Lively, prosperous, full employment for now, fine for shopping
Disadvantages: expensive, agressive, impersonal, not a place to put down roots

Guildford - one of the wealthiest towns in Britain, the highest divorce rate in Europe, the most expensive houses in the South East outside of London, the typical "Surrey" town - but what is it like to live there? Let me give you the perspective of an "incomer" of ten years standing, a public sector worker rather than a stock-broker. Firstly, Guildford is a very beautiful town, but only south of the dividing line brought by the A3 dual carriageway. ...
...the A3 you have the Guildford of stereotypical Surrey. Leafy residential roads with huge houses, a highly attractive old High Street with cobbles and overhanging balconies. The beautiful castle grounds, sweeping down to Millmead and the River Wey, by which the Yvonne Arnaud theatre sits. South of the town itself there is miles and miles of lovely countryside, going all the way to the South Coast, about 35 miles away, interrupted by little picturesque ... Read review

Advantages: Easily accessed, large, pretty
Disadvantages: Very hilly!! And changing for the worse.

...suppose. However, in recent years, Guildford has started to resemble UK "Anytown" with the same old unimaginative chain stores available ANYWHERE, and the Friary Shopping Mall has got to be one of the worst I have ever been to. It's poorly lit, dingy, slippery and badly designed, both inside and out. Guildford used to boast a whole host of one-off stores, boutiques and bric-a-brac stores but these are fast disappearing as the larger stores swallow ...
...streets. There is no doubt Guildford is a pretty town, with it's cobbled High Street, back streets and alleys and some of the older buildings but I think it is facing a real danger of becoming just another town indistinguishable from anywhere else. The welcome to Guildford signs boast that it is a “Historical Town” – which is true. It has the castle ruins and grounds which are very picturesque and a tourist attraction. Indeed the ... Read review

Advantages: Nice cobbled High Street, Georgian buildings. Shopping
Disadvantages: A bit impersonal

Guildford in Surrey has,traditionally been a major residential centre for London commuters since it is easy to reach by rail and is only around 40 minutes journey time from the capital. It is a basically very prosperous place and has a nice cobbled High Street and a number of fine Georgian buildings. The prestigious University of Surrey is located here and its 10,000 or so students add to the youthful vitality of the town. This elegant town offers ...
...several good book stores in Guildford including a branch of Waterstones. Recreational and sporting facilities in the town are good including the fine Spectrum Leisure Centre. There are also a number of convivial pubs, a few night clubs, and several good hotels and bed and breakfast establishments.Culture buffs will also find Guildford does not lag behind and theatre lovers have the Yvonne Arnaud theatre to go to. Another pleasing aspect is that ... Read review

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...post it is in the Guildford category, as my review concentrates particularly on music shops in Guildford. I listen to a lot of alternative music, and often I find it practically impossible to find specific albums, despite the abundance of music shops in my Guildford. I therefore propose the following route for people looking for the cheapest CD around: First call: HMV. It has a good range of artists, often selling quite obscure music, with specific ...
...local music, which isn't found at some of the other chain stores. However, I find that HMV is the most expensive of all the high-street shops. They do often have sales, but they never seem to have any CDs that I might want to buy reduced, and also they are always so busy that I can barely breathe in there on a Saturday lunchtime. It is always my first stop, but I would not recommend buying from there without checking that there isn't the same album ... Read review