En Voyage_Issue#14_Flickbook

Travel
ALTRINCHAM
THE INCREDIBLE
REVIVAL OF
ALTRINCHAM
In the Sunday Times Best Places to Live 2018 survey, Altrincham was
rated the best place to live in the North West of England. Just 3.6
miles from Manchester Airport and eight miles from Manchester city
centre, this thriving market town is a destination in itself.
THE HUB OF
THE TOWN IS
ALTRINCHAM
MARKET, THE
CENTREPIECE
OF A £6M
REGENERATION
IN THE AREA
Historically part of Cheshire,
Altrincham was established as
a market town in 1290, and
developed further thanks to the
extension of the Bridgewater Canal
to the town in 1765 and the arrival
of the railway in 1849. Yet the
opening of the huge Trafford
Centre in 1998 took people
away from Altrincham’s once
bustling streets and it became
something of a ghost town.
Just eight years ago it had the
highest shop vacancy rates in
the UK, with almost a third of
its shops lying empty, but the
town has turned its fortunes
around and is now enjoying
a well-deserved revival.
Altrincham is served by
the excellent Metrolink tram
system from Manchester city
centre, or you can catch the
train from Manchester Piccadilly
station. From the airport, if
you’re not hiring a car you
can hop on the number 18
bus or take a short taxi ride.
The hub of the town is
Altrincham Market, the centrepiece
of a £6m regeneration in the
area, which is everything a market
should be and more. There is a
19th-century covered market, with
quality butchers, fishmongers,
greengrocers and bakers selling
their wares alongside visiting street
food traders and stalls selling all
kinds of crafts, jewellery, clothes
and homewares. Shopping here
is a world away from the soulless
experience of traipsing around the
supermarket; you can buy local
and forget about accumulating a
bagful of single-use plastic.
ALTRINCHAM HALL MARKET HOUSE COFFEE
ALTRINCHAM HALL TAPAS AND PAELLA
52 En Voyage | Aurigny’s Magazine