Nottingham

Introduction

Nottingham is forever associated with Robin Hood, Maid Marian and of course the Sheriff, as highlighted in the recent Ridley Scott film Robin Hood. The self-proclaimed "Queen of the Midlands" is today a city with 289,000 inhabitants living within the city's Victorian boundaries, and over 650,000 in "Greater Nottingham". It is the second fastest growing city in the United Kingdom, behind Glasgow.

Today, Nottingham is trying to shake off its negative media image and is in the middle of one of the largest redevelopments outside London, with over £3.5 billion to be spent over the next 10 years.

The city is famous for having more sports facilities per head than anywhere else in the UK and for having the two closest football stadiums in England. Notts County FC is the oldest football club in the world whilst Nottingham Forest is still the smallest club to have ever won the European Cup (now Champions League) whilst being managed by the late Brian Clough.

Nottingham is also renowned for its two universities - The University of Nottingham and Nottingham Trent University - the population of which helps the reputed 5 women to every man ratio remain. ^[1]

Sights and Activities

• Nottingham Castle, which played a key role in the English Civil War, is now an impressive 17th Century Ducal Mansion that holds exhibitions and has an art gallery.
• The Galleries of Justice (on High Pavement, City Centre) is also a popular tourist destination, with a somewhat gruesome museum documenting the building's previous role as the city's courts and prison.
• The Tales of Robin Hood (Maid Marian Way, City Centre) is worth it for all you green tight loving tourists.
• The stunning Elizabethan Mansion of Wollaton Hall, is popular with tourists and residents alike, especially as it has an impressive and ancient Deer Park and substantial grounds. To get there, take a 15-minute-ride on bus number 30 or "Rainbow 2" (yellow) from the city centre.
• The Lace Market and adjacent Hockley Village are the upmarket recreational districts, packed full of boutiques, designer shops and many restaurants, pubs and clubs.

Events and Festivals

• The Nottingham Goose Fair, now held in the city's Forest Recreational Ground, is one of the oldest (having been running for over 700 years, around the time Robin was hanging around, apparently) and largest travelling fairs in the UK. This annual event runs in late September or early October.

Weather

Nottingham, as with all of England, has three interchangeable "seasons": wet; very wet and cloudy. However, you would be rather silly to come to here in general for the weather. That is why British people go to Spain.

Getting There

By Plane

East Midlands Airport (EMA) is the main gateway, located about 20 miles from Nottingham and also the main gateway of Leicester and Derby. Ryanair flies to Alicante, Belfast, Bergerac, Berlin, Budapest, Bydgoszcz, Carcassonne, Dinard, Dublin, Faro, Girona, Granada, Ibiza, Knock, Krakow, Lanzarote, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Limoges, Lodz, Málaga, Marrakech, Milan, Murcia, Nantes, Palma de Mallorca, Pisa, Reus (Barcelona), Riga, Rimini, Rome, Rzeszów, Tenerife-South, Turin, Valencia and Wroclaw.
Many more budget airlines and charter airlines fly to places throughout Europe, including Bmibaby, Thomas Cook Airlines and Thomson Airways.

To/from the airport
The airport has excellent connections to the motorway network by using the M1 and M42. The closest railway station is East Midlands Parkway, which is 6 kilometres away. If you book a taxi in advance you can have a reduced price getting to the railway station, as buses don't go here anymore. Skylink branded bus services operate to and from Leicester, Nottingham, Derby, Loughborough and Coalville.

Getting Around

By Public Transport

By British standards, Nottingham's Public Transport System is rather good if not exactly teutonic, especially the tram system, which last year had over 9 million passengers. Two more lines are planned for the next six years. There is even a high degree of integration with the buses.

Drink

Over 300 bars in only one square mile, is the reported claim. What is undeniable is that there are plenty in the aforementioned more upmarket Lace Market and Hockley (Pitcher and Piano is recommended, for the venue if not for the service) the more "national brands" Old Market Square, or the quasi European Canal Front.

Sleep

Upscale

Learn

Nottingham is renowned for its two universities:

• The University of Nottingham
• Nottingham Trent University

Keep Connected

Phone

See also International Telephone Calls

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. An alternative includes TNT Post.
It's common for a post office to be incorporated into a grocery store, where there will be a small counter located at the back of the store for dealing with post related matters. All post offices 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.

External Links

• Official Governmental Website
• Nottingham Tourism Website