Derby

Derby (pronounced DAR-bee) is a city in Derbyshire, England. Purportedly the UK's most 'central' city and promoted as a base for exploring the Peak District, Derby also boasts modern shopping facilities and a number of visitor attractions in and around the surrounding area.

Derby was the site of Lombe's Mill, the first fully mechanised factory in the world, built in 1721. Railway engineering starting in 1840 in Derby, and continued with the Derby Carriage and Wagon Works. The city is now the site of the UK's only remaining locomotive manufacturer. Rolls-Royce opened a car and aircraft factory in the town in 1907; today the aero-engine manufacturer is the largest engineering employer in the area. Car maker Toyota has a manufacturing and assembly plant in Burnaston, just south of Derby.

• Derby Market Hall, The Market Place, DE1 2FS, +44 1332 255653. 9AM-5:30PM. This Grade-II listed building is the work of Melbourne engineer Rowland Mason Ordish, and was completed in 1866. The magnificent ironwork roof is not to be missed. There is also a fantastic range of stalls selling everything from fresh fruit and veg to mobile phones and Japanese comic books. The hall is undergoing renovation, but remains fully accessible.
• Derby Arboretum. England's first public park, deeded to the town of Derby in 1840.
• Royal Crown Derby, 194 Osmaston Road, +44 1332 712800. A factory producing fine china, part of Derby's history. Contact the factory to schedule a tour.
• Museum of Making, Silk Mill Lane, +44 1332 255308. closed for renovations. The museum is due to open in summer 2020. Free.
• Derby Museum and Art Gallery, The Strand, +44 1332 716659. Tu-Sa 10AM-5PM, Su non-4PM, Bank Holidays closed. Features collections of porcelain created in Derby since 1750. Other displays include archaeology, military history, geology and natural history. The art gallery has a large collection of paintings by Joseph Wright of Derby. Free.
• Pickford's House, 41 Friargate, +44 1332 255363. M 11AM-5PM, Tu-Sa 10AM-5PM, Su 2-5PM, holidays 2PM-5PM. Unique museum of Georgian life and historic costume. Well worth visiting. Free.
• Derby Cathedral, Cathedral Centre: 18-19 Iron Gate, Derby DE1 3GP, +44 1332 341201. Though not one of the most spectacular of English cathedrals (it was a "mere" parish church until 1927), the cathedral has an impressive 16th-century tower (which is occasionally open for some spectacular views across Derby); most of the rest is early Georgian, with an east-end extension in matching style completed in 1972. Highlights include a painted wrought-iron screen by the renowned local smith Robert Bakewell (1682–1751) and memorials to Bess of Hardwick, Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire and Florence Nightingale. Peregrine Falcons have nested on the tower for several years and volunteers are on hand with telescopes for viewing during spring and early summer (go to http://derbyperegrines.blogspot.co.uk/ for current dates).
• St Mary's Chapel, Bridge Gate. 14th-century bridge chapel, one of the oldest surviving buildings in Derby and one of the few surviving bridge chapels in England. A picturesque little building next to the River Derwent, still hosting regular services but with limited opening times otherwise.
• Derby Gaol, 50-51 Friar Gate, +44 800 027 7928.
• Elvaston Castle Country Park, Borrowash Road, Elvaston. 321 acres of open parkland, woodland and more formal historical gardens surrounding a 19th-century Gothic Revival castle. Has in the last few years been lacking attention and investment.
• Kedleston Hall, near Quarndon, DE22 5JH, +44 1332 842191. The home of the Curzon family which was constructed in 1759. This neoclassical hall had particular controversy as the Curzon's forced the village of Kedleston to relocate several miles away with the exception of the All Saints' church which stayed put.
• Banks Mill, 71 Bridge Street, DE1 3LB, +44 1332 597866. An innovation space for creative and digital industries, with a rolling programme of exhibitions and open studio events featuring residents and members.

Derby Market Hall, The Market Place, DE1 2FS, +44 1332 255653. 9AM-5:30PM. This Grade-II listed building is the work of Melbourne engineer Rowland Mason Ordish, and was completed in 1866. The magnificent ironwork roof is not to be missed. There is also a fantastic range of stalls selling everything from fresh fruit and veg to mobile phones and Japanese comic books. The hall is undergoing renovation, but remains fully accessible.

Derby Arboretum. England's first public park, deeded to the town of Derby in 1840.

Royal Crown Derby, 194 Osmaston Road, +44 1332 712800. A factory producing fine china, part of Derby's history. Contact the factory to schedule a tour.

Museum of Making, Silk Mill Lane, +44 1332 255308. closed for renovations. The museum is due to open in summer 2020. Free.

Derby Museum and Art Gallery, The Strand, +44 1332 716659. Tu-Sa 10AM-5PM, Su non-4PM, Bank Holidays closed. Features collections of porcelain created in Derby since 1750. Other displays include archaeology, military history, geology and natural history. The art gallery has a large collection of paintings by Joseph Wright of Derby. Free.

Pickford's House, 41 Friargate, +44 1332 255363. M 11AM-5PM, Tu-Sa 10AM-5PM, Su 2-5PM, holidays 2PM-5PM. Unique museum of Georgian life and historic costume. Well worth visiting. Free.

Derby Cathedral, Cathedral Centre: 18-19 Iron Gate, Derby DE1 3GP, +44 1332 341201. Though not one of the most spectacular of English cathedrals (it was a "mere" parish church until 1927), the cathedral has an impressive 16th-century tower (which is occasionally open for some spectacular views across Derby); most of the rest is early Georgian, with an east-end extension in matching style completed in 1972. Highlights include a painted wrought-iron screen by the renowned local smith Robert Bakewell (1682–1751) and memorials to Bess of Hardwick, Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire and Florence Nightingale. Peregrine Falcons have nested on the tower for several years and volunteers are on hand with telescopes for viewing during spring and early summer (go to http://derbyperegrines.blogspot.co.uk/ for current dates).

St Mary's Chapel, Bridge Gate. 14th-century bridge chapel, one of the oldest surviving buildings in Derby and one of the few surviving bridge chapels in England. A picturesque little building next to the River Derwent, still hosting regular services but with limited opening times otherwise.

Derby Gaol, 50-51 Friar Gate, +44 800 027 7928.

Elvaston Castle Country Park, Borrowash Road, Elvaston. 321 acres of open parkland, woodland and more formal historical gardens surrounding a 19th-century Gothic Revival castle. Has in the last few years been lacking attention and investment.

Kedleston Hall, near Quarndon, DE22 5JH, +44 1332 842191. The home of the Curzon family which was constructed in 1759. This neoclassical hall had particular controversy as the Curzon's forced the village of Kedleston to relocate several miles away with the exception of the All Saints' church which stayed put.

Banks Mill, 71 Bridge Street, DE1 3LB, +44 1332 597866. An innovation space for creative and digital industries, with a rolling programme of exhibitions and open studio events featuring residents and members.

• Go on a ghost walk in the UK's second 'most haunted' town. For example: Derby ghost walks, Friargate and Cathedral Quarter.
• Darley Park walk. Take a walk up the Derwent to Darley Park
• Watch football ie soccer at Derby County FC, Pride Park, Royal Way DE24 8XL, +44 1332 667532. They play in the Championship, the second tier of English football. Pride Park Stadium, capacity 33,000, is off A6 at the southeast edge of town.
• Derbyshire County Cricket Club, Grandstand Road. Watch a game of cricket
• Derby Live - Guildhall Theatre and other city centre venues, Market Place, +44 1332 255800. Music, touring theatre and other live performances
• QUAD, Market Place, +44 1332 290606. 2-screen cinema, gallery, café bar, workshop, BFI Mediatheque.
• Derby Theatre, 15 Theatre Walk, St Peter's Quarter, +44 1332 593939. In-house and touring productions
• Déda, Chapel Street, +44 1332 370911. Dance performances and classes, also events by other organisations
• Markeaton Park. Public park with children's playground and paddling pool, crazy golf and craft village.
• The Roundhouse, Roundhouse Road, Pride Park. The oldest railway turning shed in the world is now a location for public and private events. Tours of the building are also available at prearranged times.

Darley Park walk. Take a walk up the Derwent to Darley Park

Watch football ie soccer at Derby County FC, Pride Park, Royal Way DE24 8XL, +44 1332 667532. They play in the Championship, the second tier of English football. Pride Park Stadium, capacity 33,000, is off A6 at the southeast edge of town.

Derbyshire County Cricket Club, Grandstand Road. Watch a game of cricket

Derby Live - Guildhall Theatre and other city centre venues, Market Place, +44 1332 255800. Music, touring theatre and other live performances

QUAD, Market Place, +44 1332 290606. 2-screen cinema, gallery, café bar, workshop, BFI Mediatheque.

Derby Theatre, 15 Theatre Walk, St Peter's Quarter, +44 1332 593939. In-house and touring productions

Déda, Chapel Street, +44 1332 370911. Dance performances and classes, also events by other organisations

Markeaton Park. Public park with children's playground and paddling pool, crazy golf and craft village.

The Roundhouse, Roundhouse Road, Pride Park. The oldest railway turning shed in the world is now a location for public and private events. Tours of the building are also available at prearranged times.

• intu Derby, West Ave, DE1 2PL, +44 1332 366383. M-W 9AM-6PM, Th F 9AM-8PM, Sa 9AM-7PM, Su 10:30AM-4:30PM. Derby's main shopping centre is the £340m intu Derby, which opened as 'Westfield Derby' in October 2007 and offers a wide range of shops selling merchandise at competitive prices . As well as a state-of-the-art 12 screen Cinema De Lux, intu Derby has a spacious food court which offers a wide diversity of international cuisine as well as the usual fast food outlets.
• Cathedral Quarter. Those spending time in the city should also visit the quaint streets and old market hall. Specialist shops, lush green spaces and some really comfortable bars and restaurants make the Cathedral Quarter an ideal place to relax and enjoy a good meal.
• Wyvern Retail Park, Wyvern Way, Chaddesden. On the outskirts of the town, includes Sainsbury's, Boots, Mothercare, Toys R Us, Homecare, Clark's and a number of fast food chains.
• Meteor Centre, Mansfield Road. Retail park includes Morrisons supermarket, PC World and Staples.

intu Derby, West Ave, DE1 2PL, +44 1332 366383. M-W 9AM-6PM, Th F 9AM-8PM, Sa 9AM-7PM, Su 10:30AM-4:30PM. Derby's main shopping centre is the £340m intu Derby, which opened as 'Westfield Derby' in October 2007 and offers a wide range of shops selling merchandise at competitive prices . As well as a state-of-the-art 12 screen Cinema De Lux, intu Derby has a spacious food court which offers a wide diversity of international cuisine as well as the usual fast food outlets.

Cathedral Quarter. Those spending time in the city should also visit the quaint streets and old market hall. Specialist shops, lush green spaces and some really comfortable bars and restaurants make the Cathedral Quarter an ideal place to relax and enjoy a good meal.

Wyvern Retail Park, Wyvern Way, Chaddesden. On the outskirts of the town, includes Sainsbury's, Boots, Mothercare, Toys R Us, Homecare, Clark's and a number of fast food chains.

Meteor Centre, Mansfield Road. Retail park includes Morrisons supermarket, PC World and Staples.

Derby is an excellent place to get an Indian Curry. Obviously plenty of great Fish & Chips shops, but don't miss the steak and kidney pie and mushy peas. Another local staple is a Cob - no, not the horse but a filled bread roll.

English

• The Kitchen, 47 Sadlergate. Breakfast and lunch menus.
• The Royal Oak, 55 Green Lane, Ockbrook (7km, Bus 9 every 2 hours not evenings or Sundays, +44 1332 662378. Real ale pub that serves real English food. Need to book a table to get a proper Sunday roast dinner. Indian
• Anoki, 129 London Road, +44 1332 292888. Voted one of the UK's Top 10 Indian restaurants by The Times.
• Basmati, 5-6 Hollybrook Way, +44 1332 523700. Indian restauarant in Heatherton Village.
• Shalimar Gold, 15 Midland Road, +44 1332 366745.
• The Mogul Restaurant, 41-43 Green Lane, +44 1332 203343.

Chinese

• The Excelsior, 6-8 Becket Street, +44 1332 364907.
• Zing Vaa, 524-528 Burton Road, Littleover, +44 1332 294524.
• The New Water Margin, 72-74 Burton Road, +44 1332 290482.
• May Sum, 9 Babington Lane, +44 1332 209888.

Italian

• Antibo, 21 Midland Road.
• The European, 22 Iron Gate, +44 1332 368732.
• Dolce Salato (formerly Burley's), 32 Queen Street, +44 7428 062931. Italian cafe with hot or cold food to eat in or take away. Japanese
• MoonSha, 4 Friary Street, +44 1332 343288.
• Ebi Sushi, 59 Abbey Street, +44 1332 265656.

Thai

• Papaya Thai, 50 Green Lane, +44 1332 405894.
• Thai Dusit, 8 Bold Lane, +44 1332 372016.

Greek

• Stelianas & Saphos Greek Taverna, 115 London Road, +44 1332 385200. Excellent Greek food.

Mexican

• Pepitos, 127 London Road, +44 1332 360663. Mexican restaurant.

French

• Le Bistrot Pierre, 18 Friar Gate, +44 1332 370470.

As with most major cities the usual chains such as Nando's, Pizza Express, Frankie & Benny's, Zizzi, La Tasca and Old Orleans are all to be found in the city!

The Kitchen, 47 Sadlergate. Breakfast and lunch menus.

The Royal Oak, 55 Green Lane, Ockbrook (7km, Bus 9 every 2 hours not evenings or Sundays, +44 1332 662378. Real ale pub that serves real English food. Need to book a table to get a proper Sunday roast dinner.

Anoki, 129 London Road, +44 1332 292888. Voted one of the UK's Top 10 Indian restaurants by The Times.

Basmati, 5-6 Hollybrook Way, +44 1332 523700. Indian restauarant in Heatherton Village.

Shalimar Gold, 15 Midland Road, +44 1332 366745.

The Mogul Restaurant, 41-43 Green Lane, +44 1332 203343.

The Excelsior, 6-8 Becket Street, +44 1332 364907.

Zing Vaa, 524-528 Burton Road, Littleover, +44 1332 294524.

The New Water Margin, 72-74 Burton Road, +44 1332 290482.

May Sum, 9 Babington Lane, +44 1332 209888.

Antibo, 21 Midland Road.

The European, 22 Iron Gate, +44 1332 368732.

Dolce Salato (formerly Burley's), 32 Queen Street, +44 7428 062931. Italian cafe with hot or cold food to eat in or take away.

MoonSha, 4 Friary Street, +44 1332 343288.

Ebi Sushi, 59 Abbey Street, +44 1332 265656.

Papaya Thai, 50 Green Lane, +44 1332 405894.

Thai Dusit, 8 Bold Lane, +44 1332 372016.

Stelianas & Saphos Greek Taverna, 115 London Road, +44 1332 385200. Excellent Greek food.

Pepitos, 127 London Road, +44 1332 360663. Mexican restaurant.

Le Bistrot Pierre, 18 Friar Gate, +44 1332 370470.

Derby's nightlife is among the safest in the country, having won multiple Purple Flags. Pub crawls are often organized by the real ale campaign, or if all night raves are your thing, Derby boasts some exciting clubs open until 4am.

The majority of bars in Derby are found on Friar Gate, Sadler Gate and Iron Gate. One of the best is Bar Lisi on Sadler Gate, which is nice and intimate.

Derby is noted for pubs serving a range of real ales and is home to about a dozen microbreweries (small breweries). A few pubs worthy of a visit within the city centre area are:

• Ye Olde Dolphin Inne, Queen Street, +44 1332 267711. Derby's oldest pub, with lots of character. The pub has several small rooms and an outside/partially-covered seating area which houses the pub's beer festivals at various intervals throughout the year. Food - at reasonable prices - is served throughout the day and the evening and there is also an à la carte restaurant upstairs, although not open every night. There is always a good range of well-kept beers. General knowledge quiz on Sundays, music quiz on Tuesdays. Ghost walks can also be booked here.
• The Flowerpot, 23-25 King Street, +44 1332 204955. This is a lively and atmospheric pub on the northern edge of the city centre that serves a wide range of real ales, including some of its own microbrewery ales.
• The Brunswick, 1 Railway Terrace, +44 1332 290677. The original microbrewery pub in Derby, near the train station in a characterful old railway building. The choice of beer on tap here has to be seen to be believed; a place not to be missed!
• The Standing Order, 28-32 Iron Gate, +44 1332 207591. Located on Irongate in a former bank, this pub has a truly impressive interior as well as a good selection of real ale. The Standing Order is a Wetherspoons pub.
• The Seven Stars, 97 King Street, +44 1332 340169. Traditional pub with real ales housed in a timber-framed building of around 1680.
• The Abbey, Darley Street (2.5km, pleasant walk along the river, +44 1332 558297. Traditional pub in remaining building of an Augustinian Abbey
• Malt Shovel, Potter Street, Spondon (5km, frequent buses, +44 1332 674203. Traditional pub interior.

Ye Olde Dolphin Inne, Queen Street, +44 1332 267711. Derby's oldest pub, with lots of character. The pub has several small rooms and an outside/partially-covered seating area which houses the pub's beer festivals at various intervals throughout the year. Food - at reasonable prices - is served throughout the day and the evening and there is also an à la carte restaurant upstairs, although not open every night. There is always a good range of well-kept beers. General knowledge quiz on Sundays, music quiz on Tuesdays. Ghost walks can also be booked here.

The Flowerpot, 23-25 King Street, +44 1332 204955. This is a lively and atmospheric pub on the northern edge of the city centre that serves a wide range of real ales, including some of its own microbrewery ales.

The Brunswick, 1 Railway Terrace, +44 1332 290677. The original microbrewery pub in Derby, near the train station in a characterful old railway building. The choice of beer on tap here has to be seen to be believed; a place not to be missed!

The Standing Order, 28-32 Iron Gate, +44 1332 207591. Located on Irongate in a former bank, this pub has a truly impressive interior as well as a good selection of real ale. The Standing Order is a Wetherspoons pub.

The Seven Stars, 97 King Street, +44 1332 340169. Traditional pub with real ales housed in a timber-framed building of around 1680.

The Abbey, Darley Street (2.5km, pleasant walk along the river, +44 1332 558297. Traditional pub in remaining building of an Augustinian Abbey

Malt Shovel, Potter Street, Spondon (5km, frequent buses, +44 1332 674203. Traditional pub interior.

Derby is generally a very safe city centre but as with most cities in the UK, common sense with regard to personal safety should prevail when walking around the city late at night, particularly in some of the outlying areas.

Map of places with Wikivoyage articles nearby

• Matlock Bath - around 45 minutes north up the A6 or Derwent Valley rail line, this spa town resembles a seaside town without the sea, due to the number of fish & chip shops and amusement arcades. Nightly illuminations each autumn. Very popular with motorcyclists.
• Buxton & The Peak District - one of the major national parks in the UK, a beautiful area for hillwalking, mountain biking, camping, climbing etc.
• Carsington Water for a number of water-based leisure activities, between Wirksworth and Ashbourne
• Cromford, part of the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site.
• Nottingham - home of the legend of Robin Hood, nowadays a popular destination for 'city breaks' thanks to its shopping and entertainment attractions.
• Sheffield - large city world-renowned for its steel industry and to another extent its cultural achievements, particularly in the area of popular music.
• Discover some of the small villages south of the city such as Melbourne and Shardlow. Maybe try a pint in a country pub.