Colchester
Advertisement
By train
Colchester is served by 5 train stations.
Colchester Station, known locally but unofficially as North Station (local buses call it North Station on the schedules) is located about 1 mile north of the town centre and is Colchester's main rail hub. It has approximately 5 services an hour to London (Liverpool Street) taking 50 minutes to 1 hour. Half-hourly expresses between London Liverpool Street and Norwich cover the 50 mile trip in around 50 minutes with 1-2 intermediate stops. Commuter trains take a bit longer and make many intermediate stops and are less comfortable, although tickets are valid on either service. There are also services north to Norwich (50 minutes), Lowestoft and Peterborough (no services to Cambridge - you should change at Ipswich) and local services to Ipswich, Colchester Town, Harwich, Clacton-on-sea and Walton-on-the-Naze. The station has recently been re-developed and has two entrances - the north entrance has a ticket office, self-service machines, ATMs, a taxi stand, long-stay parking and a bus station. The south entrance is smaller and has bicycle parking and self-service ticketing but no staffed ticket booths. You need a ticket to enter and exit the station as it has automatic ticket barriers. To get to the town centre, buses 61 and 62 run from right outside the north exit to Colchester High Street, although most local services depart from North Station Road - go through the south exit and walk down to the main road.
Colchester Town Station is more conveniently located at the St. Botolphs road junction in the south-east of the town centre and has a half-hourly shuttle to Colchester North as well as hourly services to Walton-on-the-Naze. To reach London outside of peak hours you should change at Colchester (North).
Hythe is a small, unstaffed station in the eastern suburb of Hythe, close to the large Tesco superstore and within walking distance of the University of Essex. There are hourly services between Colchester and Walton plus occasional peak hour services to Clacton and London. Avoid this station after dark as it's often too quiet and isolated.
Wivenhoe serves the attractive riverside suburb/town of Wivenhoe and the University of Essex - it has hourly services to London and Clacton, and a local hourly service between Colchester and Walton.
Marks Tey is in the western suburb/village of Marks Tey and is the interchange for the local line to Sudbury. It has regular connections from Colchester and London (mostly for services towards Clacton and Harwich as well as occasional services to Ipswich and beyond) and hourly services to Sudbury.
By bus
The two main operators in the town are First Essex and Network Colchester, with Chambers Coaches and Hedingham Omnibuses among others providing services to surrounding towns and villages. Most services run from the Temporary Bus Station on Queen Street but will pick up at other stops around the town centre.
By coach
First Essex operate the daily/round-the-clock coach service X22 from Colchester Bus Station, the University of Essex and Colchester North Rail Station to Braintree and Stansted Airport. With effect from the 9th of January the X22 service is now run by the TGM Group.
National Express coaches serve the bus station (and various other stops) on route 484 between London Victoria and Clacton-on-Sea.
By car
Colchester can be reached by car either via the A12, which links up with the M25 from the south, or the A14, which links up with the M1/M6 from the North.
Advertisement
Castle Park is a fairly large park in the grounds of Colchester castle. A number of events are held there annually, including cricket matches (There is a cricket week every year when Essex C.C. play visiting counties), music festivals and a fireworks display in November.
Colchester Zoo Makes an interesting day out for the family. With some of the best cat and primate collections in Europe, and recent winner of the 'Large Visitor Attraction of the Year' Award, it's well worth a visit.
Mersea Island A small island located on the estuary of the River Blackwater. The northern end of the island is mostly made up of marshland but there are three settlements on the southern half - Barrow Hill (which consisits of several houses along a road), East Mersea (a small collection of farms, a post office, a pub, a couple of tacky holiday parks and an outdoor youth centre) and West Mersea, a small fishing town most notable for it's seafood, fish and chips, countless pubs, a few small independent shops and a Co-op supermarket. It is quite a pleasant place to wander around with many miles of beaches. The island can be reached by car along the B1025 from Colchester (approx 9 miles) and crossing the Strood causeway (originally built by the Romans) onto the island - note that during high tides the causeway is likely to flood which effectively cuts off the island from the rest of society as it is the only road access. Bus service 67 runs every 30 minutes from Colchester Bus Station to West Mersea High Street (some peak hour services also pick up/drop off at Colchester North rail station), although unfortunately as it is the only public transport option the fare is very high (roughly £4 single, £6 return), meaning that it is actually cheaper to travel to Chelmsford from Colchester by bus, which is roughly 3 times as far. Journey time is roughly 30-40 minutes depending on the route taken and the time of day. There are no buses to East Mersea other than school services. During the summer there is a ferry service from East Mersea to Point Clear and Brightlingsea on the Tendring peninsular.
Wivenhoe Once a small fishing town on the River Colne to the south of Colchester, Wivenhoe is now a suburb separated from the rest of the town by the University of Essex. It has grown considerably over the last few years as it has become a popular place for London commuters to live because of the good rail links. However, the waterfront area and the High Street are still very traditional with lots of small independent shops, restaurants, pubs, a fish and chip shop and a Co-op supermarket. Wivenhoe can be reached in about 20 minutes by car by taking the A133 out of town past the university and then taking the Wivenhoe exit. There is free parking just off of the High Street and outside the Co-op supermarket, as well as long-stay Pay and Display parking at the train station. (Note that cars cannot use Boundary Road at the University as a shortcut as barriers restrict access to buses and university traffic). Trains run every 30 minutes from Colchester North to Wivenhoe, and every hour from Colchester Town. Buses 61 and 62 run every 10 minutes from Colchester High Street to Wivenhoe - note that service 61 takes a very indirect route. Wivenhoe can also be easily reached by foot or cycle along the Wivenhoe Cycle Trail which starts from Colchester Castle Park, runs through the Hythe and along the river, ending up at Wivenhoe Station.
January - March
November - December
Information not available
Advertisement