Chester

Chester has layers, literally. Walk the city's four main streets and you'll find yourself climbing stairs mid-shopping trip, stepping up into the Rows: medieval covered galleries trading continuously since the thirteenth century. Nowhere else in Britain has anything quite like them. Even now, nobody is entirely sure why they were built.

That mystery is part of Chester's character. This compact Roman city, founded as Deva by the legions, ringed by walls that still stand, asks questions it doesn't always answer. The black-and-white facades look Tudor but are mostly Victorian. The walls feel ancient but loop you efficiently around a modern centre. The ghost stories, and there are many, may or may not be true.

VoiceMap's self-guided audio tours are a natural fit for a city that rewards the curious walker. Follow the haunted streets after dark, frolic through two thousand years of history with the kids, or simply let a local storyteller explain what you're standing on. Chester has been surprising visitors since the Romans. Plug in your earbuds and let it keep doing that.