Colchester Town

Nice town with a lot of history and a castle. Highwoods is also a great place for walking and running

Its an okey town if you live on campus and you dont travel to campus everyday. The transportation really sucks, busses not turning up or turning up really late. There is pretty much everything in town though. Whatever you need, you can find it.

Good town, a lot of restaurants and good nightlife. Sometimes can get a bit monotonous and if you don't enjoy doing the same thing over and over again, then this will not be the place for you. However, all in all, a lot of hustle and bustle of a Friday and Saturday night, but pretty standard on the whole.

There's not a lot to do but they have Taco Bell so that's the only reason they get three stars. The town it's self is small and quaint. It seemed very dry with no real night life. You'd have to travel out of town in order to enjoy.

Colchester is a small town that has most things but I am from a very big city so getting used to Colchester is taking time. I love that it's close to London, and there is an airport nearby as well. The restaurant options are not too bad, as there is one for most categories and price ranges. Colchester has most shops, but these shops are quite tiny compared to others. I honestly dislike the locals. Nightlife is basically non existent. Overall, weird place.

Shopping in Colchester is pretty decent - they have a lot of high street shops like H&M, TkMaxx, TopShop, etc. They got a big Primark about 2 years ago, but they don't have a Zara. There aren't many independent clothing shops here yet. Eating out is also quite decent, there are a lot of good chain restaurants like Bills, Pizza Express, Five Guys, Zizzis, Wagamama, etc. There are also a lot of good independent(ish) restaurants like The Pavilion, Three Wise Monkeys, El Guaca, and lots of cute little tea rooms and cafes. Of course there are also fast food chains too. Drinking is quite good depending on what you like - if you like local pubs then it's great. There are a lot of great pubs like Queen Street Brewhouse, the Fat Cat, the Ale House, the New Inn... a few miles away is Wivenhoe, with some really nice little pubs like the Black Buoy, the Station, the Greyhound... if you prefer more bar-type places, there's Hudson, Qube, The Pavilion, Three Wise Monkeys, Twisters, V bar, Fashions... The only real club in Colchester is Atik, which has three floors and is quite popular. The castle is Colchester's main tourist attraction - a Roman temple built into a castle by the Normans. It's been opened into a museum, and there are underground guided tours of the foundations. It's surrounded by castle park, a very pretty park for families to enjoy in the daytime, and occasionally holds events like Fireworks Day and Christmas Markets. Outside of town is Colchester Zoo, a large zoo with a really large selection of animals to see. There's a bowling alley and laser quest arena just outside of town by Hythe Station, and a Go Ape a short drive away. Colchester is also close to beach towns like Clacton and Brightlingsea, which make nice day trips. The vibe of the town is quite grim. It is an ugly-looking town despite its Roman history, and one that you need to be careful in. Crime rates are quite high here. Buses (First and Arriva) are reasonably regular, but are often late in peak hours. Train links to London are good, as well as National Express coaches.

Very Good range of resteraunts, however night life is poor and high street shops do not cater to the student city that it is

University of Essex isn't that close to Colchester town itself - about an hour's walk - and there isn't much around the University itself. Colchester town has ok shopping, the usual shops such as Topshop, H&M, Superdrug, Boots etc; the highlights in terms of shopping are probably Fenwick and Superdry which are a bit less typical. Colchester also has many of the usual restaurants/cafés - Prezzo, Pizza Express, Nandos, Starbucks, Costa. There are a few more independent/smaller options but not loads. There are two cinemas in town, Odeon and Curzon. Odeon is fine, never any problems but tickets are usually quite expensive. I haven't been to Curzon but I've only heard good things from friends that have, and apparently they do good student deals so that's worth looking into. The most well known club is ATIK which generally has cheap entry and is ok but not always that clean, although this is usually the case with clubs hahah. The Wetherspoons is in an old theatre which is cool and close to most places in town, so convenient for pres.

Plenty of lovely places to eat out. Also, good for shopping. All within walking distance of the town.

It’s a really quiet town, with minimal, almost nonexistent nightlife. So people don’t really go out apart from going to the ATIK in town. Shopping isn’t comparable to shopping in London. We don’t even have a zara. The Next is like a shoebox, the Topshop is pretty much empty. But I like it just the way it is. It’s always calm and peaceful. I could always go to London if I wanted any of these things

The oldest town of England. And you can clearly see it. This town is full of old building with a middle age style but also many lovely Victorian’s. Home of the university of Essex is full of pubs, a couple of clubs, lovely restaurants and a shopping mall. The city is fullfilled with parks and surrounded by nature and cultivated camps. There is also a zoo and a golf patch. Although all of this, there is something “boring” of this town, maybe because of all this places half empty, closing very early. Personally the thing I love the most of Colchester is the distance from London, just 40 minutes by train! When buses works and trains too.

There's a lot to do during the day, shops, café's and restaurants. However slightly lacking in the nightlife!

There are a few fun bars to go to, although, they seem to geared towards young college students. It is bit less fun for mature students and post grads like myself. There is a decent amount of stuff to do though including shopping, eating out, movies, and parks.

Colchester has a good balance between a rural and urban vibe. The town has plenty of attractions: cinema, theatre, shops (department stores, clothes and supermarkets) and whilst also being tranquil enough to offer a different pace of life for those from London, there are plentiful surrounding villages close by to visit and seaside towns (clacton, southend). Transport is OK but if you're a uni student it can be a bit of a schlep to go to town - not easy access for those based on campus.

Overall, it’s actually okay, pretty similar to London but quieter. Shops close relatively early 5:30/6pm but they’ve got a wide variety of shops so there’s nothing you’re missing out on. Nice people, haven’t had a bad encounter. Plus, the university people are cool too so you’re down to find people that re your cup of tea.

The oldest town in the UK. It's tiny, but lively. There are a lot of bars and clubs in the town. And full different kind of restaurants with reasonable price. The location is close to London, it takes only less than an hour by train.

The university is not as close to town as I would like. Plus there is not much activities to do in town either

Colchester is a lovely town, but there are upsides and downsides. I find that drivers aren't very friendly and there is generally always traffic, and the bus services are not very reliable and they're expensive. The nightlife is okay, there isn't much choice and the town centre is a bit of a trek from the university, as it's too far to walk. But there are a large number of lovely pubs and bars around. The shopping is quite good too because most shops are available somewhere in Colchester, but I may find that more so because I am able to drive to the retail parks too. The main downside is the town itself is quite isolated. There aren't many great towns or cities nearby but London is easy to get to.

Colchester has lots to do if you're in to history, otherwise it's a pretty dead town. Nightlife is poor, only one cinema but if you enjoy a McDonald's then you're sorted.

ehhh not too bad, some places are super expensive, some not too bad. Good travel routes through into town with a range of shops to visit and what not.

There's lots to do in town however the prices aren't that student friendly and you always need to ask for a discount. There's a range of normal shops and independent ones so there's lots of variety and stalls on the weekend. Lots of bars, a few good charity shops, all you'd expect. Lots of different food, vegan and veggie options too, different options for nights out although some places are filled with older locals and don't have a great reputation so ask around first. Going out on student nights or to see local bands is better than a random night out. 10 minute drive to town

Not a great variety of places to go on a night out. Shopping is good as there are a great variety of shops around the town, but parking can be expensive/difficult, especially in the town centre. There are some great fun things to do. I find it quite an isolating place though