• Added: 3rd of September 2008
• Area: Alton
• Category: Sightseeing and Attractions

Alton ST10 4DB
08705 20 40 60

Lorelei said
Alton Towers
Alton Towers is a brilliant place for a day out. It has a good choice of rides, with rides such as oblivion, nemisis and air for thrill seekers and calmer rides such as the swans, teacups and hex for younger children.

However the park is in quite an isolated area and nearby hotels are pretty expensive so it's wise either book ahead or not stay overnight. The queue to get into the park also moves very slowly and waiting times for rides can be long, especially during the summer holidays.

There is a wide selection of places to eat and prices are reasonable.

• Added: 3rd of September 2008
• Area: Chester
• Category: Food and Drink

Chester CH1 1LG
01244 347418

Lorelei said
Thorntons
Thorntons is a great place to buy gifts. They offer a free icing service and will ice a message of your choice onto any of their wide selection of chocolate animals, cars, footballs etc. They also offer a good selection of bagged chocolates at affordable prices as well as a counter where you can select individual chocolates to fill a box or bag. There are also a variety of chocolate lollipops, small bags of fudge and so on that are perfect for keeping kids happy when out shopping. My only criticism is that the wide variety of many of the selections can cause problems for people with nut allergies.

• Added: 3rd of September 2008
• Area: Chester
• Category: Sightseeing and Attractions

Chester CH2 1LH
01244 380280

Lorelei said
Chester Zoo
A good family day out. The zoo has a wide variety of animals including a bathouse called the Twilight zone in which the bats are free to fly around above your head. There are various breeding programms and baby animals from these can sometimes be seen

There is a wide selection of places to eat, however all of them are fairly expensive and it might be wise to bring food with you.

There is also a small souvenir shop selling soft toys, postcard etc.

I would caution against going in the middle of summer if you suffer from hayfever/animal allergies as you will be sneezing all day.

• Added: 3rd of September 2008
• Area: Leeds
• Category: Restaurants

Leeds LS1 5NS
0113 2454333

Lorelei said
Wokmania
Wokmania is pretty much your average chinese buffet. They have a good selection of dishes and each dish is replaced regularly so the food remains fairly fresh. They also offer some english food; chips and similar things for those who don't eat chinese. Although I'm not sure what you'd be doing in a chinese buffet if you don't like chinese food

The selection of desert isn't great, basically just icecream. Although they do also have a chocolate fountain, which is a nice novelty.

Service is good and the staff are friendly and courteous. Definitely not the best chinese buffet in Leeds, but not a bad night out either.

• Added: 26th of August 2008
• Area: Leeds
• Category: Events and Entertainment

Leeds LS4 2DG
0871 224 0240

Lorelei said
Vue
Has good sized screens, shows pretty much all of the newly released films and is conviniently close to the city centre. However the cinema does have a tendency to have the sound at deafening levels, especially when showing action movies.

Offers a good selection of cinema snacks including a ben and jerry's icecream bar. Tickets are fairly expensive, but worth the money and you can get 2 for the price of one on Wednesdays if you have an orange phone, which is definitely worth doing.

This cinema only shows new releases, it never reruns old classics or shows foreign movies, which is a shame.

• Added: 26th of August 2008
• Area: Leeds
• Category: Take Aways

Leeds LS1 6LQ
0113 245 8989

Lorelei said
Bagel Nash
Really nice place to get a quick bite to eat when out shopping or when waiting for a train. They have an amazing selection of bagels including chocolate chip, poppyseed and sundried tomato and have a wide variety of different fillings. They also offer a good selection of smoothies and cakes and things like porridge in the AM.

However ome of the fillings aren't of the best quality, the cheaper one's tend to be better. Ham and cheese tastes much better than smoked salmon for example. Despite this many of the bagels are delicious and specialities such as the pizza bagel are definitely worth a try.

• Added: 26th of August 2008
• Area: Leeds
• Category: Cafes and Coffee Shops

Leeds LS1 6AB
0113 242 9509

Lorelei said
Starbucks, Leeds City Centre
This starbucks has a nice atmosphere, the upstairs area has a large number of comfortable chairs and is cosier than many other starbucks. Plus the window trap the sunlight when it's warm, which makes it a good place to get some sun.

In terms of food and drink quality it's much the same as any other starbucks. There's a wide variety of coffe-based drinks and milkshakes and a good selection of cakes. Drinks can be made with skim or soy milk, which is good if you're on a diet or lactose intolerent. However the drinks are pretty expensive and the coffee isn't the best quality brew in the world. It's good for flavoured coffee drinks, but there are better places to go if you just want a black coffee

• Added: 26th of August 2008
• Area: Leeds
• Category: Bars and Pubs

Leeds LS1 8TL

Lorelei said
Juice review
Offers a variety of healthy smoothies and juices. There is a large amount of choice and the staff will alter a drink for you if you dislike one of the ingredients. The drinks are made to order from fresh fruit and no sugar or anything else is added. Many of the drinks count for 2+ portions of fruit. This is a healthier way of eating on the go than many other take-out places. Downside is that seating is very limited, it's a good place to go if you want a quick pick-me-up, but not so great if you're looking to sit and chat with friends. Also the drinks are fairly expensive, but no more pricey than most other juice bars