Leamington Spa

Introduction

Leamington Spa has the rare distinction of the right to use the prefix “Royal” a name that is only used by tourists. The town is situated in the centre of Warwickshire, in the heart of the English countryside. It has a Georgian town centre with a modern shopping mall and a spa in the Royal Pump Rooms. Leamington is a nice place to live and a good place to visit with an exceptionally large number of pubs (the town centre alone had 65 licensed premises at the last count).

Formerly known as Leamington Priors, the town is about a dozen miles to the north of Stratford-upon-Avon and is now virtually joined to Warwick. Leamington grew around the saline springs and the Royal Pump Room and Baths, which were opened in 1814. A treatment at the baths was supposed to be very beneficial and claimed to cure many disorders - gout, rheumatism, stiffness of the joints etc. - and the spa water was drunk as a laxative. There are many beautiful old buildings in the town, which has a wide, main shopping street - the Parade - and some well-maintained gardens around the river Leam. Charles Dickens was a frequent visitor and set a scene in "Dombey and Son" in the town.

Did you Know

• Royal Leamington Spa is one of only three towns in England to have been given the official prefix “Royal” and was granted by Queen Victoria in 1838.
• Leamington received Purple Flag status in 2016 (a nationally recognised award highlighting welcoming town centres).
• People who live in or who come from Leamington are called Leamingtonians.

Events and Festivals

Leamington Food Festival

Leamington Food Festival Website is held in September (during weekends 10:00am - 6:00pm) and is located in the Pump Room Gardens and the Town Centre (Postcode CV32 4AA). Over 150 exhibitors fill the Pump Room Gardens for the weekend festival, which is now over nine years old (2016). The Festival includes lots of free bites, a children’s cookery school, a master class area, a live kitchen and live music and attracts over 20,000 visitors. Also alongside the festival there is an annual “Taste Trail” featuring a number of local restaurants, visitors to the festival can purchase a Taste Trail card for £1, visit the restaurants, sample their dishes and rate each one accordingly. Entrants are entered into a prize draw to win dinner for two at the winning restaurant.

Getting There

By Plane

Coventry Airport (CVT) is about 20 minutes journey by car, though was closed to commercial traffic in December 2009.

Birmingham International Airport (BHX), is larger and not too far away and serves the region with frequent domestic and international flights. There are several direct arrivals a day from all major UK and European destinations, and one or two from more far-flung places such as Delhi, Dubai (twice daily), Islamabad, Luxor, New York and Toronto.

By Train

Leamington Train Station is located in the south of the town in Old Warwick Road (Postcode CV31 3NS).

There are three lines that radiate to and from Leamington Spa; one heading north-west leading to Birmingham, one going north to Coventry and the third providing a direct route south-east to London.

Opened in 1852, the current art deco style station dates from 1939 and has four platforms. The north facing platforms lead to Stratford-upon-Avon, Birmingham or Coventry, whilst the south goes direct to London. The station booking hall was sympathetically refurbished in 2008 to resemble the original Great Western Railway.

Following years of restoration work "the Friends of Leamington Station" were rewarded in 2009 when Leamington station garden was named the finest in the country by Country Life magazine.

By Car

Visitors by car beware: the centre of Leamington features a perplexing traffic system which forbids turns onto or off the high-street. This can make navigating the centre of town by car very tricky to those unfamiliar with the town's layout.

By Bus

Leamington Spa is well served by buses. The No. 12 bus travels between Sydenham-Leamington Spa-Kenilworth-Coventry, including Coventry City Centre, Coventry Rail Station, the University of Warwick and Kenilworth on its route.

Getting Around

The centre of Leamington is compact and easily walkable, but the Parade in particular is well served by local buses.

Eat

Leamington has a good choice of moderately priced upmarket restaurants, including a wide choice of British Indian restaurants.

Drink

Leamington has a small but vibrant nightlife scene. There are many pubs and bars and 3 small nightclubs. Most of the bars are around Bedford Street and Warwick/Regent street.

Sleep

There are a number of Bed and Breakfasts in Leamington, as well as a large number clustered together in Warwick less than 3 kilometres away on Coten End/Emscote Road (the same road).

Keep Connected

Internet

There is now a large number of restaurants, cafés and pubs within the town that offer internet access including the public library where computers and printers are also available. Most hotels also offer internet access, including Wi-Fi, but most times at a cost.

Phone

See also: International Telephone Calls

The international calling code to Leamington Spa is: 44 1926. To make an international call from the United Kingdom, the code is: 00

In case of emergency, call 999 or 112 from any phone. Such calls are free and will be answered by an emergency services operator who will ask you for your location, and the service(s) you need (police, fire or ambulance). You can call this number from any mobile telephone as well, even if you do not have roaming.

Although the number is declining, you can still find payphones in some public areas and pay with cash, there are the iconic red phone kiosks of which three are located at the top of The Parade in the centre of town. Because of their historic importance and the fact that they are located in a Conservation area, they benefit from listed status. Two of these kiosks have been adopted by the Town Council, whilst the the third remains as a working public telephone.

Mobile phone 3G and 4G coverage in Leamington Spa is very good including the main networks: Vodafone, EE, 3 and O2 all rated Strong Signal by "Which" a consumer rights service.

Post

The Royal Mail provides postal services in the United Kingdom. The Royal Mail's store fronts are called Post Office and offer services ranging from sending letters and packages to foreign currency exchange. Use the branch locator to find the nearest Post Office branch. There are a few post offices in Leamington Spa with some incorporated in other stores. All post office branches are marked with signs that say 'post office' in red lettering. Post boxes can be found at any post office and standalone large red post boxes on the streets or red boxes in the sides of public buildings. The postcode for Leamington Spa is CV32 (north of the River Leam) or CV31 which is south of the river. For sending packages overseas, it might be a good idea to check prices and services with international companies like TNT, UPS or DHL.

External Links

• Town Council Website