2024 visit: This feature reflects the places and experiences at the time. Check current opening details before visiting.
If you need a break from Buxton, there are several destinations within reach. Stockport, around 18 miles away, was named the best place to live in the North West in The Sunday Times’ 2024 guide. Explore Buxton went to see what all the fuss was about.
The fresh excitement about Stockport seems to centre around the trendy district surrounding the indoor market hall, the so-called Underbanks (named after streets Little and Great Underbank) but the main shopping centre also buzzes with activity and there aren’t as many empty units as you see in other town centres. There are shops Buxton doesn’t have such as Primark, HMV, River Island, Waterstones and an Ikea Plan and Order Point to name but a few.
The chain stores soon give way to the star of the show: The winding streets of the Underbanks and a sequence of independent shops, cafés and bars. Each façade bursts with colour and a proudly-original identity. Accompanied by alarmingly low-flying planes in Manchester Airport’s flightpath, you will find yourself pleasantly bamboozled. There are several fantastic vintage shops, hawking forgotten items from your childhood and unusual homeware from the four corners of the globe, and the prices aren’t crazy. As you feast your eyes on the kaleidoscope of offerings, the rear recesses of your brain will be redesigning parts of your home. We particularly loved Squound! The flashes of street art round here also add to the character of this lesser-known enclave of Stockport.
We didn’t sample much of the bar scene but we imagine this wouldn’t be a bad choice for a night out. Stockport can be reached from Buxton by train or the 199 bus; check the current train and bus timetables before travelling. The atmos is reminiscent of Manchester’s Northern Quarter or Camden in London but Stockport’s Underbanks has a feel of its own; like a rebellious teenager that’s broken off from the pack and found its voice. As well as the drinks and eats and a million ways to make your pad more interesting, there seems to be a generous smattering of barber shops. We can only conclude that the hipsters that crew these streets need regular maintenance.
As we continued to meander along, we pass more indie retailers. Still Life Story catches our eye; thoughtfully curated Nordic inspired contemporary homewares and eye-catching art prints. Further along was Plantshop. Taking house plants to another level, they also offer a re-potting service, advice on plant care and deliver.
These winding slopes feel like they’re heading somewhere; an ultimate destination, and this reveals itself as the market hall. Dating from 1861, this handsome rectangular glass building boasts a local market that isn’t just surviving but positively thriving. The interior bustles with commotion and it doesn’t just feel a novelty for tourists, every square inch looks like its being used by local people for local people, harking back to a time before supermarkets and the internet arrived to suck out our souls. As residents of Buxton, a town with the somewhat senseless combination of a hostile microclimate and outdoor market, we were particularly jealous of this cosy indoor format.
Stockport also has a wealth of heritage attractions. Stockport Council’s museums and galleries include Stockport Museum at Staircase House, Hat Works, the Air Raid Shelters, Bramall Hall and the War Memorial Art Gallery. Some attractions are outside the town centre; check opening times and admission charges before visiting. We concluded our visit with tea and cake at the Plaza, a 1930s Art Deco cinema and theatre whose period interior we enjoyed.
Stockport has been give a hard time over the years but it’s got the last laugh. Like many places in the north of England, the challenge has been to transform it from a gloomy industrial landscape into a bright and cheerful playground for the 21st century. Rising to the lofty summit of the best place to live in the region will no doubt invite even more attention and investment. Succeeding where many are failing, the town has many of its bases covered and others would do well to treat it as a blueprint for their own success.
Do your have your own experiences of Stockport? Or is there somewhere else you think Explore Buxton could send its reporters for a fantastic day out? If so, get in touch on social media channels or email our team at info@explorebuxton.co.uk.
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