City Centre

The heart of the city

A walk through Leicester city centre takes visitors through a myriad of shopping experiences, from small, independent businesses, to stunning flagship shopping centres, and all punctuated with scores of tantalising places to eat, drink and relax.

Leicester’s historic Lanes and nearby St Martin’s Square entice visitors to wander among a wealth of fine, independent shops, restaurants and vibrant pubs, including The Globe and Mrs Bridges Tea Rooms which both date from the 1700s.

A stone’s throw away is Leicester Market, which has traded from the site for over 700 years. Today’s thriving market, which includes the award-winning Food Hall built in 2014, is home to over 270 bustling stalls.

Visitors wanting a stunning variety of shops all under one roof, can do no better than to explore one of the city’s two shopping centres: Highcross Leicester contains more than 100 shops, including branches of John Lewis and Debenhams, as well as around 40 restaurants and cafes and a Showcase Cinema De Luxe; while the nearby Haymarket Shopping Centre is home to over 60 more businesses, including H&M, TK Maxx and Primark.

After working up an appetite exploring the city, visitors can refresh themselves in one of the many bistros and bars, offering everything from local craft ales and gin to mouth-watering flavours from across the globe.
 
For visitors who want to stay close to the city centre over night, St. Martins Lodge is a contemporary boutique hotel right in the heart of the city. 

The hotel is a couple of hundred metres away from the award-winning King Richard Visitor Centre.