Trains to Leicester

"Built over the buried ruins of two millennia of history, Leicester (les-ter) suffered at the hands of the Luftwaffe and postwar planners but an influx of textile workers from India and Pakistan from the 1960s transformed the city into a bustling multicultural hub” Lonely Planet

As the largest city in England’s East Midlands region and one of the oldest cities in the country, Leicester is filled with many interesting sights. The surprising discovery of the remains of King Richard III in 2012 in a car park in the city has sparked a flurry of development. This includes a visitor centre on the site where the remains were found and the restoration of the cathedral where the King was reburied.

Leicester railway station is on the main rail route from London to Leeds and most services are operated by East Midlands Trains coming from the St. Pancras Station. There are up to four trains travelling from the capital every hour. There are also direct train services coming from the cities of Birmingham, Cambridge, Derby, Nottingham and Sheffield amongst others.

All of the attractions in the centre of Leicester are easily accessible by foot and an extensive network of public buses provides services throughout the city.

St. Nicholas’ Church is one of the most notable places of worship in Leicester. It’s more than 1200 years old and it houses the Jewry Wall, said to be the largest piece of Roman masonry in the UK that’s still standing. Another famous church, the Leicester Cathedral, used to be the Church of St Martin and was later transformed to a Cathedral when the diocese of Leicester was restored.

The King Richard III visitor centre is an exploration centre that was erected at the site where the remains of the king were found. It also contains information about the life of the King of England and some stories about the discovery of his remains.

Another museum that you should check out in Leicester is the National Space Centre, which doubles as a planetarium and a cinema featuring six galleries. Other museums in the city are the Jewry Wall Museum, New Walk Museum and Art Gallery and the Newarke Houses Museum and Gardens.