Cheshire is a lovely area of central England to the west of Derbyshire, east of Wales and south of Liverpool and Manchester with typical English farms and countryside.

There are lots of things to see in Cheshire though things are a bit spread out.

Located in the town of Anderton, just north of Northwich, the Anderton Boat Lift (see https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/things-to-do/museums-and-attractions/anderton-boat-lift-and-visitor-centre-cheshire for details) which is a marvel of Victorian engineering that has recently been refurbished to working order. It was built in 1875 to allow boats to travel between the River Weaver and Trent and Mersey Canal, a vertical distance of 50 feet (15.2 meters).

There is a small café, museum (including, oddly, an assortment of early penny arcade games as well as the lift control room) and children's playground on site which are all free to visit. You can also book a boat trip (at nominal cost) that takes in the short trip down the former River Weaver to Northwich with remnants of former industry as well as a ride on the lift itself (see note below).

Tours are held throughout the day and can be booked either starting with the lift itself (you catch the boat outside of the café on the upper level of the lift) or with the river trip (you catch the boat at the bottom of the lift).

Note: As of October 2025, the lift is not working as they seek to raise funds to pay for repairs to the lower entrance gate. Boat tours currently run a longer route along the river.

Midway between Nantwich and Chester is Beeston Castle and Woodland Park (signposted off the A49) operated by the National Trust. This stunning medieval castle is perched on top of a tall outcrop of rock overlooking the (somewhat flat) surrounding Cheshire landscape. The wonderful castle grounds, crossed throughout with paths, are surrounded by a wall with the castle at the uppermost part.

There is a small “pay and display” car park opposite the main entrance. There is a small café operated by the trust beside the main entrance while inside the grounds (yes, there is an admission charge) there is a small visitor centre and gift shop as well as toilets.

To get to the castle you follow a steep gravel path to the lower walls of the castle then continue up through the inner gardens to reach the keep itself which is, of course, at the top of the hill.

The grounds also have a recreation of an ancient “roundhouse” in the woods that it is worth seeking out.

The castle is a ruins but enough of the walls and buildings remain to give you a good idea of what it was like. The views from the top are amazing and well worth the walk.

Located just outside of Ellesmere Port, only a few miles from Chester and literally surrounded by the Cheshire Oaks Designer Outlet shopping complex, is the small but fun Blue Planet Aquarium. The aquarium has exhibits on the ground floor and basement that includes a large tank with sharks and other big aquatic animals that can be viewed via a long glass tunnel walkway.

The ground floor has the interconnected “Northern Streams”, “Flooded Forest”, “Lake Malawi” and “Frog Zone” (mostly poisonous ones) exhibits with many tanks (be sure to use the overhead walkways to have a different perspective). There are also toilets, a large gift shop, and an exterior space accessed via the gift shop that features a large play area, a nature walk (closed when we visited) and an enclosure featuring pelicans.

The basement features a number of large open surface pool exhibits “Caiman”, “Rock Pools” and “Coral Cave”, then around the back is the “Ocean Exhibit” which starts with an auditorium featuring large window looking into the main tank (lots of seats here to sit and watch including some on the “balcony”) then a glass tunnel that takes you along the bottom of the tank then into the final exhibit “Venom” leaving you at the “Nautilus Kitchen” cafeteria.

Tickets are a bit expensive at about £30/adult and you have to pay a flat fee for parking though if you purchase something in the cafeteria you get a free drink when you show your parking receipt.

Located just north of Whitchurch, Cholmondeley Castle Gardens consists of gardens and walking trails that can be visited by the public (the home itself is not open to the public). It also hosts several events throughout the year in the grounds. There is an entrance fee charged with tickets available online or at the entrance ticket booth.

The extensive formal gardens are located a short distance from the castle to the south consisting of separate sections: “The Glade”, “Rose Garden”, “Lavinia Walk”, “Ladurnum Grove”, “Temple Garden”, and “Folly Garden”.

There is the small “Cholmondeley Tea Rooms” (with indoor and outdoor seating), children's play area, and it is also possible to visit the nearby chapel (all are well sign-posted and there are paper maps available). It is well worth walking up into the hills behind the tea rooms for views of the surrounding landscape and explore some of the less formal areas of the site.

A short distance to the west of Macclesfield, Jodrell Bank is home to a number of radio telescopes and has been instrumental in many discoveries of astrophysical phenomenon. The site welcomes visitors with a number of exhibits and walks throughout the rural site. Entry tickets are valid for one year and are not terribly expensive. Pre-booking is definitely recommended.

You can visit the centre which has a number of family-friendly exhibits including the wonderful new “First Light Pavilion” which houses an exhibition on how and why the facility was created (they have dramatically used some large old panels from the telescope as projection surfaces), a “Space Dome” cinema/planetarium, as well as other temporary exhibits and a large cafe. The “Space Dome” hosts films/events throughout the day so check the schedule when you visit (some are free some you must pay for).

Most will want to see the massive “Lovell Telescope” at the far end of the site. Here you can get very close and, if you are lucky, see the telescope rotate before your eyes as it changes it's focus on another part of the sky.

Near to the telescope there is the “Space Pavilion” which houses both temporary exhibits and interactive displays for younger visitors. As you exit the site there is the obligatory (small) gift shop which has a small café attached as well.

The National Waterways Museum, Ellesmere Port is a surprisingly interesting museum just off the M53, north of Chester. The museum is in the buildings of the former “Ellesmere Port” where the Shropshire Union Canal meets the shipping canals alongside the southern shore of River Mersey, just south of Liverpool Airport.

The site consists of a number of buildings containing displays around the canal and lock system along with a number of boats moored up in various states of preservation including canal boats, barges and even a World War 2-era concrete barge.

The main museum space is in the “Island Warehouse” (“Exhibition Hall”) which contains preserved canal artefacts (or those in the process of being preserved), hands-on exhibits for children to demonstrate various principles involved in canals and films showing what life was like on the canals when they were used commercially (now they are used only for pleasure).

The “Power Hall” contains a number of steam and diesel powered engines while the “Blacksmith's Forge” contains six forges with one still operated by a modern-day blacksmith (who offers courses).

The “Porters Row Cottages” at the far end of the site is a series of four cottages decorated in the style of four different eras of when the port was in operation and really give you an idea of what life must have been like there. At the far end of the site are the horse stables and “Winchhouse & Slipway” which demonstrate how boats would have been removed from the water for repair.

Near the main entrance beside one of the two locks there is, unusually, a used book shop and old-fashioned Victorian arcade. As the “Canal & River Trust”, who run the museum, are a charity they are always looking for ways to make money.

The visitor centre has a small café, shop and a room where a (very) short introductory video gives an overview of the site layout. There is a large free car park opposite though note there is an entrance fee for the museum itself. When we visited many of the buildings had a QR code that you could scan to show you a short video of an actor describing life and the building itself. This was moderately successful but we preferred instead to just walk around and take in the atmosphere, reading if we wanted to know any details.

There are lots of opportunities for shopping in Cheshire though there are a few areas that stand out.

Located just outside of Ellesmere Port, a few miles from Chester is the enormous Designer Outlet Cheshire Oaks (the UK's largest designer outlet) – Featuring 150 stores, restaurants and cafes over about 400,000 square feet. The stores are arranged in a square-shaped outdoor (uncovered) mall with free parking throughout the complex. It is very well done facility with plenty of things to see and do on-site never mind the surrounding area which features various “superstores”, car dealerships and an entertainment complex (including cinema).

The shops are all quite spacious, the staff very friendly and there are a good number of choices for dining though this consists mostly of high-street chains such as McDonalds, Burger King, Five Guys, Slim Chickens, Pizza Express, Wagamama and Yo Sushi. Retail largely focuses on clothing but there are shops selling homeware, cooking supplies, stationary, etc.

To visit, follow the clearly marked signs from the M53.

For further information, please see:

• My Cheshire Restaurant Reviews
• Visit Cheshire and Chester - Official tourist board
• Wikipedia - Cheshire