The Rows, shopping on two levels
Start at the Cross, where Chester's main streets meet, and the Rows run off along the old streets in every direction.
Chester's Rows are covered galleries above the street, and the city believes no other town in the world has them. More than 200 shops line them, many independent, so one street at ground level and back along the gallery above gives a whole new set of doors.
Steps lead up to each gallery and the old floors change level, so a pushchair may prefer the street. Our things to do in Chester fits the browsing into a fuller day.
We chose these shops as a family because we enjoy them, not because anyone paid us to.
Eastgate Street from the walls by the clock
Bridge Street, for clothes, gifts and homeware
A paper bag swings from one hand, and the next window is already catching your eye.
Bridge Street is the stretch of the Rows that runs down from the Cross, with clothes, gifts and homeware on both levels. Nichols & Co fills three floors with fashion, jewellery, fragrance and things for the home.
Close by, Chester Boutique adds independent fashion and accessories, and Suzie K carries alternative gifts, clothing, jewellery and crystals. Together they make a gentle hour for a group who all want something different.
Halfway down, St Michael's Arcade hides a little story. The Duke of Westminster built it in 1910 with a front of white and gold tiles, Chester objected, and a year later he paid to rebuild the front in black and white timber, while inside, the Edwardian arcade still has its tiled walls.
Watergate Street, for books
The smell of old paper, a narrow aisle and a book you didn't know you were looking for.
For books, Watergate Street is where Chapters Book Bar pairs an independent bookshop with a glass of wine on the Row.
Amblongus Books specialises in second hand, rare and beautiful books, some found only in the shop itself. The best finds often sit on the lower shelves, so half an hour there passes quickly.
Up on the city walls above the canal, Books on the Walls is another small independent bookshop, tucked into an old brick building beside the walkway.
Watergate Street and its Rows
St Werburgh Street, for makers and gifts
In 1966 Alan and Susan Brown opened a shop in Liverpool and called everything in it thingummyjigs. Their shop, Thingummys, spent more than thirty years in Chester, and the family has brought it back to St Werburgh Street, beside the Cathedral.
Its shelves hold ceramics, homeware and cards, made mostly by makers from Cheshire, the North West and North Wales, so a small present for someone at home is easy to find, and hard to give away.
Enjoy the Pause, a holiday home with two bedrooms, sits on a quiet terrace a short stroll from the Rows. Stay with us and this corner by the Cathedral is an 8 minute walk from your front door, which leaves time for a slow browse before lunch. The Cathedral's own gift shop is close by too.
Back on Eastgate Street Row, Powells Jewellery is an independent specialist in vintage and contemporary fine jewellery. It suits a slower stop, where choosing matters more than covering ground.
Chester Market and the Makers Market
Cheese wrapped in paper, a loaf under one arm and the big clock ticking over the hall.
Chester Market in Exchange Square gathers local produce and small traders under one roof. Shop traders keep different hours from the food stalls.
The Makers Market brings local makers to Exchange Square on set dates. Around Christmas, the festive market has its own plan in our Christmas in Chester guide.
Northgate Street, on the way to the Market
A covered route for a rainy day
Rain patters on the street below while you browse, warm and dry, one floor up.
On a rainy day, Bridge Street Row, then Watergate Street Row across the Cross, then the Market keeps you under cover. The galleries keep off most showers, though the crossings in between are open to the weather.
Two favourite shops and a warm café stop make an easy afternoon. Our cafés in Chester guide has hot drinks along the way, and a sit down lunch can come from our family restaurants guide.
Drop the bags at home, then carry on
The kettle clicks on, and the day's finds come out of their bags one by one.
The joy of shopping from a home inside the walls is that the bags can go back to your front door, 5 minutes from the Rows, before lunch or the next street. Then you head out again lighter.
Once your dates are set, our book direct page has the details, and the shops suit a slow morning of your stay.
