Stoke on Trent in General

Advantages: not a bad place to live
Disadvantages: -

Stoke on Trent or otherwise known as the Potteries has probably classed as one of the worst places to live in the UK, but when you sit down to eat please think about where your crockery came from, we do have some uses. Known as the Potteries or the 6 Towns, Stoke on Trent in renowned for its Pottery Industry which unfortunately over the past 20 years has seen the closure of many of Stokes famous POt Banks and has resulted in a lot of people out ...
...in the Pottery Industry then SToke on Trent is the Place to come. - The Six Towns - Sometimes known as the six towns still, Stoke on Trent is built up of Stoke, Hanley, Longton, Fenton, Tunstall and Burslem. Other many towns within the city were originally considered as village until the early 20th century where it was officially classed as the City of Stoke on Trent. - Stoke - One of the smaller towns within the city that has a very small shopping ... Read review

Advantages: Centrally placed, great oatcakes, unpretentious people
Disadvantages: Confusing to navigate, not as vibrant as neighbouring Birmingham or Manchester

...the train station is in Stoke (well, just outside of actually, making it nowhere significant at all unless you're a university student), and there is no connecting service to Hanley, which has no train station at all. And despite the city centre being the town of Hanley, the town of Burslem is actually the one referred to as the 'Mother Town', made (semi) famous in the works of Arnold Bennett. And though Stoke it famous for its pottery, its most ...
...way systems in Hanley and Stoke are only for experienced users. Quality of Life: Quite why transport is relatively expensive I do not know, because it is well known that Stokies earn amongst the lowest wages in the country. To compensate for this, though, we also have some of the lowest property prices (you can currently buy a damn good 2 bed terraced house in a decent location for between 25 and 38k depending on area). We also have cheap beer ... Read review

Advantages: Nicer places are all within easy reach
Disadvantages: Its not one of those nicer places

...and Fenton. This understandably gives Stoke a rather dislocated feel. Also, the city centre is Hanley, rather than Stoke. Which is very confusing but also a bit of a godsend as Stoke is one of the more dilapidated areas. It has a shopping area that consists of Woolworths and a row of boarded up shops. In fact the nicest building is probably the Salvation Army centre - the home of most of the residents. The city centre, Hanley, is marginally more ...
...see, the other thing about Stoke is it's ancient road system that is favoured only by snails and sloths. They've started to improve it now, work that will take at least another two years, but in the meantime journeys take four times as long and you wonder whether you'd be better off buying a bicycle. And it gets worse in the winter when they conveniently forget to grit the roads - last year during the 'big freeze' it took around SIX hours to travel ... Read review

Advantages: up and coming area
Disadvantages: road net works need sorting

...of Stoke-on-Trent, easily accessible from Stoke rail station, also just of the (D) road, the A500. One of two major roads through Fenton is leek road, along this stretch of road, you will find, 5 car dealers, major plumbing suppliers, Builders and Timber merchants, 4 pubs, access road to train station, Stoke-on-Trent College, and another six form college. The other major road through Fenton, towards Longton also is well established, with a Caravan ...
...of the Great Footballing team, Stoke City, whom at the height of the game had some great players, such as, Legendary Sir Stanley Mathews, Super Goalie Gordon Banks 1966 World Cup Winner, etc: Also the home of World Famous Pottery manufacturer Spode producing High quality work since 1770 and the famous French Michelin Tyre producing company who chose Stoke as its first British site in 1927, and not forgetting Portmerion pottery. Famous buildings ... Read review

Advantages: Beautiful towns, Excellent Demonstrations, Good value factory shops
Disadvantages: None

I'd promised my wife since before we got married that I'd take her to Stoke-on-Trent, but it took us nearly 5 years to get there. Our journey began in a warm London just before 6am and ended around 3 hours later in a rather wet Stoke-on-Trent. Our first port of call was the touriist information centre which is well signposted. We picked up maps showing the pottery places and a list of local accomodation. We visted Pottermerion, Royal Doulton, ...
...on sale tend to be "seconds" with slight defects that in some cases can't be noticed, and the sale price is less than half that of a normal product. Many of the companies offer factory tours and demonstrations of how the pottery is made - all of which are very good. We finished around 6pm and decided to spend the night in Stoke-on-Trent. We stayed at the excellent Toby lodge where we enjoyed a superb cavery meal. The next day we returned back to ... Read review

Advantages: Clean, Good food, reasonable rates, decent facilities, great location
Disadvantages: Staff communication

...After the last Ciao meet and the wonderful (not) hotel that we all remember so fondly I was relieved to find the words 'Holiday' and 'Inn' on the community page as the suggested hotel for the Alton Towers meet. I have stayed in more Holiday Inn Hotels than I have possibly had hot dinners over the years, in general I find them all to be of a decent standard, clean, functional and most times with friendly and courteous staff. I even told Dean how I have never had a problem in a Holiday Inn hotel, famous last words...... Location, Location, Location... The Stoke On Trent Holiday Inn is actually situated in Clayton Road, a stones throw from the M6. One of THE most important things for me is the ease of finding a hotel in the first place. Having driven myself and my car round the bend at Birmingham trying to find the last 'meet hotel' I... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Good facilities, lots to see, free admission
Disadvantages: There's only one lift

...the computers. However, if you really want to have a good look round ( and there are over 650 000 objects to see ) then it's probably best to go without young children, as they would begin to get bored after a while. The staff were friendly and very helpful, and the museum was very well laid out. You can get a free floor plan in the foyer to help you find all the different sections. Even though the museum is mainly about the Potteries, there is something to interest everyone, and if you're ever in the area, it's definitely worth a visit. GENERAL INFORMATION The Potteries Museum and Art Gallery Bethesda Street Hanley Stoke-on-Trent ST1 3DW 01782 232323 www.stoke.gov.uk/museums... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful