• Shopping - has typical department stores and a couple of shopping centres. There is a traditional sweet shop (Humbugs) opposite HMV which is nice. There is a regular market in the centre with food and other stalls.

• Cinema - Lancaster has a new multiplex cinema where you can catch the latest releases. Nearby bars and restaurants often have food and cinema deals.

• Dukes Theatre and Cinema - The Dukes is Lancashire's professional producing theatre. The Dukes' drama productions include classics and new plays performed in two auditoria, plus Summertime theatre - an un-miss able outdoor experience. Dukes Cinema is one of the most successful independent screens in the country, offering a huge range of mainstream and non-mainstream programming, with Dolby Digital surround sound. Other events include a selection of touring drama, music, literature, art exhibitions. Plus there's a relaxing bar.

• Theatre - Lancaster has a couple of theatres.

• Lancaster Castle - The annual fireworks display is amazing.
• Ashton Memorial and butterfly house (and nice view)
• Lancaster University - The Info lab was nominated for a national design award.

• Lancaster is easily accessible from the M6 motorway, and is about 1 hour from Manchester.
• Lancaster also has a train station on the West Coast Main Line with regular trains to Manchester, Preston, the Lakes and Scotland.
• Lancaster also has a bus station.
• Lancaster is located along the River Lune.

• There is a one-way road system in Lancaster and traffic can be heavy.
• There are many regular bus services servicing Lancaster and the nearby Morecambe. A return on the bus from the city centre to the University costs about £2, and takes about 20 mins on the direct bus or over 30 mins on the other routes through Bowerham.
• Lancaster has recently become a cycling demonstration town

• Local produce

• Nice and Spicy - An award winning takeaway. Also Delhicious is another excellent Indian takeaway.
• Soupanova - Excellent home-made soup, very friendly service.
• The Whale Tail - A fantastic veggie cafe which is famous for its salads and specials.
• The Gatehouse - Excellent restaurant near the canal.
• The Water Witch - An award winning pub on the canal. Famous for its cheese boards and great for sitting out in the summer.
• Merchants - In an old cellar of the building which is now the tourist information centre, quite near the castle. Nothing flash, but decent cheap pub food. Smoking and non smoking areas are in separate cellar vaults.
• Quite Simply French - An upmarket dinner location specializing in fish and meat. Veggie options used to be uninspired but have recently improved. Very good seafood (including oysters). Now also run Quite Simply Food deli/restaurant on Moor Lane by the Dukes.
• Pizza Margherita - A cult pizza restaurant, on Moor Lane opposite the Dukes. Excellent for a quick bite before a play.
• The Sun Cafe - A lovely cafe/art gallery on Sun Street; in the evening it's a restaurant serving food made from local ingredients and particularly fabulous pasta
• The Sultan - Award-winning Indian restaurant housed in an old church and famous for amazing Islamic decor as well as the fab vegetarian selections. It now has a cafe and deli downstairs, which is very comfortable and does Mediterranean and Middle Eastern as well as Indian food. The Indian sweets are particularly good.
• The Golden Dragon - Chinese restaurant.

Lancaster is also home to the regular chain eateries: Litten tree, Weatherspoons (The Sir Richard Owen is generally better than the Green Ayre), Bella Itallia, McDonalds.

There is a good supermarket with local food, Booths, to the south of the city on the A6.

There are many bars and pubs as Lancaster is a thriving university town. Some excellent bars and pubs exist alongside some of the expected chain bars including Revolution, two Wetherspoons, and two Scream pubs.

• The Water Witch- Canalside pub with outdoor seating and very good food. The pub offers a huge selection of continental beers, as well as many local hand-pulled bitters.
• The White Cross - Canalside pub with lots of space inside and outdoor seating as well. Offers food too.
• The Vodka Revolution - 40 plus varieties of Vodka and a pseudo club atmosphere. Dress code and cover charge on busy nights. Caters to the University crowd. Small dance floor on second floor, and three separate bars, two downstairs and one on the second floor. Plush but limited seating.
• Merchants - Pub just below the Castle. It is said to connect to the Castle via a tunnel, as the pub used to be the powder storage room for the castle. The pub is a series of three bricked tunnels just off of a small bar. There is also a second floor housing a washroom.
• Weatherspoons - One of a chain of bars. I do not know the official name of the Weatherspoons in town, but there are two of them. The newer of the two offers lots of space, and cheap drinks, but lacks the character of many of Lancaster's finer pubs.
• The Friary - An old church converted into a pub. Amazing setting, and a lively crowd of University students on the weekends. There is a second floor balcony with a small bar, and a large bar on the main floor with lots of seating. This is a very popular last stop with many University students on Saturday nights before heading to the very popular club "The SugarHouse".
• Varsity - An interesting and modern design. Four split levels and a basement area containing the washrooms. Only the main level is large enough to accommodate more than 20 people. The bar can be very busy on weekends when University is in session.
• Keystones -A nice pub at the top of the main street in Lancaster. A popular starting point of students headed to the Carlton, as the bus leaves from just outside the back entrance. This pub offers nice seating and a central bar. The pub has a pool table. Keystones is just up the street from the KFC.
• Paddy Mulligans - An Irish pub just off the main street, but tucked away. This is a fairly quiet pub. Open seating and a central bar.
• The Walkabout - One of a chain of bars. This bar offers a dance floor located below the main seating level, which can be seen from the seating area from the balcony, and a large seating area on the main level. The washrooms are located upstairs.
• Fox and Goose - A quiet pub located outside of the down town on one of the bus routes from Lancaster to Lancaster University. This pub has one good sized room with open design and a bar at the back.
• Boot and Shoe - A quiet pub located outside of town on another of the bus routes connecting Lancaster with Lancaster University.
• The Bowerham - A quiet pub located outside of town on another of the bus routes connecting Lancaster with Lancaster University. This pub offers live music during certain days of the week.
• The Sun - for expensive but a nice range of European beers.
• The Yorkshire House - local pub with good beer and excellent live music venue upstairs.
• The Borough - girl-friendly wine bar with restaurant at the back and good terrace for sitting outside in summer.