The Sheffield Staycation
This is a paid partnership with Sheffield: The Outdoor City.
After a busy summer of staying local and hiding from tourists in Cornwall, by the time September rolled around I was very much in need of a holiday of my own. I wouldn’t usually opt for a city break - in fact I think it’s been a few years since I did a city weekender - but when I was invited up to Sheffield, my curiosity was piqued.
You see, Sheffield isn’t your average city. It’s known as The Outdoor City, and for very good reason: it has 61% green space (the highest of any European city), more trees per person than any other city in Europe and a third of the city sits within the Peak District. Sold on Sheffield? After reading those stats, I know I was!
When our staycation weekend arrived, I knew the first place I wanted to visit was the Peak District. Living in Cornwall means I don’t see “proper” hills very often, and given how much of the city overlaps with the National Park I just had to get myself there.
With just one day allocated to Peak District adventures, I decided to take Sam up Kinder Scout: the highest point in the Peak District and a beautiful day out. We picked up a couple of generously filled sandwiches from the Hathersage Bakery and made our way to Edale, the little village which lies between Kinder Scout on one side, and the Great Ridge and Mam Tor on the other.
After a short and gentle walk across the farmland at the bottom of the hills, the ascent began. We’d chosen a route that heads up to Broadlee-Bank Tor before following the hilltops over Grindslow Knoll and to Crowden Tower. A leg-burner for sure, but worth it for the incredible views of peaks and valleys for miles around.
After stopping to wolf down our sarnies, we were back on our way. I’d intentionally kept our plans for this first day quite minimal which meant we were free to take our time and stop and enjoy the view whenever we wanted. Eventually though it was time to start the descent, and we carefully picked our way down Crowden Clough and followed the brook back to civilisation.
Our final port of call was The Penny Pot Cafe, the hillwalkers dream cafe, stocked full of pastries, cakes, ice cream and drinks. In true Sam and Anna fashion, we couldn’t decide which of the cakes to go for so chose three (all of which were consumed before we made it back to the car).
It was now time to head into Sheffield. Checking into our hotel, the first thing I noticed was that it was directly attached to what looked like an indoor botanical garden. A quick snoop revealed that we were indeed next door to the Winter Garden, an award winning temperate urban glasshouse, home to more than 2,000 plant specimens from around the world.
Straight after breakfast the next morning, Sam and I made a beeline for the Winter Garden. It did not disappoint: huge palm trees reached up to the glass ceiling, bamboos towered over walkways and tiny, fantastically vibrant flowers added pops of colour to the green around us.
Inspired by this indoor garden, we next made for Sheffield Botanical Gardens. Although the incredible Glass Pavilions are currently closed, the sprawling gardens still offer up plenty to look at and experience. Surprisingly exhausted after our morning of looking at beautiful plants and green spaces, Sam and I ended up plopping down on the grass in the shade of a tree where we regained some energy and befriended a few of the famously friendly squirrels.
Back in the city centre later that afternoon, we faced the decision of where to go for lunch. It wasn’t a matter of choosing between restaurants and cafes, rather which stall to go to: we’d specifically chosen this weekend to visit Sheffield as it coincided with a host of Summer in the Outdoor City events.
Today was the Harvest Fayre, a food and drink festival celebrating the city’s vibrant food scene. After wandering around the many mouth-watering street food stalls, we eventually settled on woodfired pizza from Sunshine Pizza Oven and a pint from a local brewery, a match made in heaven. Sitting in the sun in the Peace Gardens in front of the Town Hall, I realised I absolutely felt like I was on holiday.
This feeling was heightened that evening as we went out in search of somewhere for dinner. Despite not booking a table, we were lucky enough to bag a spot at the Vietnamese street food restaurant Pho, perfectly located on Leopold Square. Surrounded by other restaurants and bars with music drifting out and a constant stream of Saturday night foot traffic, this little square could easily have been mistaken for one in a European holiday destination.
Sunday morning was done in what I consider to be the proper way: a slow start followed by copious amounts of coffee and toast. Feeling well set-up for the final morning of our staycation, Sam and I checked out of our hotel and wandered down to Pollen: a newly reinstated inner-city flower market. The market overlooks the River Don, part of the Grey To Green Project in Castlegate. This fantastic initiative has transformed a tarmacked area into a green public space filled with plants and artwork.
After browsing the beautiful stalls and only just managing to stop myself from buying a plant that was definitely too big for my tiny cottage, Sam and I reluctantly accepted that it was time to begin our journey south. We were both so blown away by what Sheffield had to offer, from the vibey cosmopolitan squares buzzing with eateries and bars, to the well-maintained green space that was integral to the city. It’s definitely somewhere we would both recommend… And love to revisit ourselves!
