Where is Chester's independent spirit?

Grim reading this weekend for Visit Chester & Cheshire. The story, High Street: High Noon, published in Saturday's Telegraph magazine, painted a grim picture of life in the Roman, walled city. Empty shops, shady men with flyers for lapdancing clubs and even the dark spectre of Mrs Thatcher. Ugh.

There wasn't much comfort to be found in the words of writer Mick Brown, nor in the statistics rolled out to illustrate the claim that Chester, with its dependence on tourism, retail and financial services, is particularly vulnerable to the dreaded credit crunch.

Try this one for size: 'In the Oxford Economics Index of Vulnerability, Chester ranked third in the country, behind the City of London and the London borough of Tower Hamlets.'

The publication of this piece makes for particularly unfortunate timing given today's announcement that Virgin Trains are offering discounted fares to boost visitor numbers to Chester and Cheshire.

But are things really so bad? I've just walked around the centre of Chester and, while there are still plenty of empty shops - as there are in any high street right now - there are also lots of businesses apparently weathering the recession.

So how does Visit Chester & Cheshire respond to the piece? And, while the owner of the shop Ancient Worlds is clearly not happy with his lot, what about the other independent shopkeepers and restauranteurs out there?

Places such as deli Joseph Benjamin, which featured in the Taste Cheshire food trail I covered for the Observer a few weeks back.

Is Chester becoming a homogenised destination of bland chain shops, or does it still retain a special allure, notably for its retail offer?

Let's hear your thoughts. Post your comments below.

First past the post in Chester

Beware of red-wine hangovers around Cheshire today. The annual Visit Chester & Cheshire Awards were held last night at Chester Racecourse.

   The big winner on the night with a hatrick of gongs was Carden Park, the hotel golf resort and spa, namely Excellence in Business Tourism, Sustainable Tourism Award and Large Hotel of the Year.

   Celebrations too for Harrop Fold Farm, Macclesfield, with their third consecutive win, taking the B&B of Year award for their combination of winning location, accommodation and cookery classes.

   I judged the Small Hotel of the Year award and picked Peckforton Castle (pictured above right) as my winner with Nunsmere Hall a close second place.

   My reasons? Attention to detail, proactive attitude to new business and a strong sense of personality infused throughout the family-owned property.

    Did the right people win on the night? Post your comments here.

Travel in the best possible taste

I've been staying close to home this week. No, not skiving off. I may only have travelled as far as my backyard, that is the city of Chester, but I was still working.

   First I spent a day judging the small hotel category in the annual Visit Chester & Cheshire Tourism Awards. Three places made the shortlist: Peckforton Castle with its fairy-tale ambiance, Nunsmere Hall (that's it pictured left) with its manicured grounds and Inglewood Hall, a conference centre reborn as a business hotel. 

   Want to know which one won? Catch the results on June 5th at the awards dinner. Want to know how I chose the winner? Listen into travel talk the Duncan Barkes programme on City Talk this Friday from 10.15am to find out more about the criteria for assessing the finalists. 

   Later in the week I went to the opening of the Taste Cheshire Food Trail, a series of seven routes across the county, featuring over 60 businesses united by the common pursuit of fine food and drink. 

   I had a sneak preview of the only walking trail, a three-mile circuit around the ancient Roman city, taking in local highlights such as the gourmet Cheese Shop and tucked-away deli-restaurant Joseph Benjamin.

   The six other routes are car based and stretch as far afield as Macclesfield, Northwich and the Wirral. All seven are documented in a A5 booklet available from tourist offices and participating businesses along the routes.

   Can Cheshire sell itself as a must-visit destination on the strength of its local produce this summer? Well, from what I've seen so far, this could cook up a storm.