Sheffield - Travel Tips

Victoria Quays

Sheffield has been a regular destination for years - it is a centre of excellence for ice hockey. This month I have been to the city twice to support my son and his ice hockey team.

I have used a few of the city's hotels, with mixed results. The Holiday Inn a few years ago was dreadful. Last year the Novotel was a big success.

Novotel

For this month’s first visit, I had one night in the Novotel. It was expensive. £184 including breakfast. That is almost double what I would usually be paying - anywhere, never mind a Novotel. As before, it was very good. The location suits me - a 5 minute walk to the railway station and about the same to the tram line which takes me to and from Ice Sheffield.

I had dinner at the Novotel when I arrived - it was great. £14.99 for a 3 course menu, so it was good value for money too. I blew any savings on a couple of glasses of wine.

Novotel Dessert

I travelled there and back by train. I used Trans Pennine Express on the way south from Edinburgh, with a change of train in Manchester. Journey time was about 4.5 hours, with a 5 minute connection!

The return journey was on CrossCountry Trains via Newcastle, but I did not have to change. The journey time was just over 4 hours.

All those trains were right on time.

TPE

Prices are a bit meaningless as it all depends how far in advance you book, and whether you are flexible enough to travel when it is cheapest. I have reached the time in life where a Senior Railcard comes into play, so I get big discounts.

Winners!

On my second trip I stayed at the same Novotel for two nights, at half the price per night.

I drove to Sheffield and back. It takes about 4.5 hours each way - in distance it is 295 miles (472 km) in each direction. I would always prefer the train (or a plane) for that distance but it was Easter weekend and the British trains are often madness at this time. The flight times just did not work out.

I only drive about 750 miles in a month, so it was a bit of an adventure for me. I reckon I spent about £60 on fuel, and my lease costs for that kind of mileage would be about £100. The train would have been cheaper. So would the plane.

Supertram

Sheffield has two tram lines - or light rail, I think. The yellow line goes past Ice Sheffield - £2.50 each way or £4.20 for a day ticket. They have conductors on board to sell you tickets, so there is no need to worry about messing around with ticket machines.