Widnes

Widnes is a town in Cheshire, England.

By plane
The nearest airport is Liverpool John Lennon Airport, a short bus or taxi ride away. However Liverpool is not served by direct flights to London or by trans-Atlantic flights. Manchester Airport is the main airport for these flights, and is about 45 minutes by taxi or car, 90 minutes by train.

By car
Widnes is easy to reach by car from the M62 Junction 7. It is clearly signposted from the motorway. The town centre is quickly reachable by taking the A568 bypass south (Watkinson Way) and turning west onto A562 (Fiddler's Ferry Road). Mersey Gateway Bridge is £2 toll and there are no booths. If you are looking to go to the market and pedestrianized section of town near Albert Square, turn right at the large round about onto Green Oaks Way. Follow the signs for parking. After walking through the market building, you will be on the best street for shopping or dining. Unlike most towns in the region, free parking is available 7 days a week.

By train
does not have a direct rail service to London but trains stop at Runcorn, a short bus or taxi ride away. Widnes station is about 20 minutes walk to the north of the town centre and is served by frequent trains to Liverpool and Manchester. Hough Green station, which is in the western side of the town, is also on this line, though more trains pass through here without stopping compared to Widnes station.

By bus
There is a very limited coach service from London (about 4–5 hours), however more often then not it works out considerably cheaper to get a coach to Liverpool instead - if bought in advance online coach fares to Liverpool from London can be as little as £5. Buses run to and from Liverpool, Runcorn, Chester and Warrington. National Express do not have a dedicated station in Widnes, however they do stop near the town centre occasionally, usually close to the main library. Local Bus services by Arriva and Halton Transport regularly head into Widnes from Liverpool, St Helens, Warrington, Knowsley, and Runcorn. Day passes are available for both bus services for between £3 and £4.

Get around
The town is small enough to walk around, but there are bus and taxi services. Most of the main attractions in Widnes are no more than a half-hour walk from the town centre, due to the town's small size.

Halton transport, a local bus company, run very frequently and are also a cheap way of going to other nearby towns, such as Runcorn, St Helens, or Liverpool. They offer a day-pass service which can be bought on the bus.

See

 * A number of Grade II listed buildings
 * A number of Grade II listed buildings
 * A number of Grade II listed buildings
 * A number of Grade II listed buildings
 * A number of Grade II listed buildings
 * A number of Grade II listed buildings
 * A number of Grade II listed buildings
 * A number of Grade II listed buildings
 * A number of Grade II listed buildings
 * A number of Grade II listed buildings

Do

 * Walk/shop/dine in town centre and market
 * Visit one of the 6 Green Flag awarded parks
 * See the views of the town and the surrounding areas from Pex Hill or the Silver Jubilee Bridge
 * See the views of the town and the surrounding areas from Pex Hill or the Silver Jubilee Bridge

Stay safe
Widnes is a safe area and as with any area general caution and common sense should be used. If a place doesn't feel safe then simply move on - the layout of Widnes's roads and areas can be unusual, with very safe roads right next to streets which would be considered rough, so often there aren't really unsafe 'areas' as such.

There have been repeated cases of assaults and muggings on the Jubilee Bridge. As such the bridge's footpath is closed at night, and it is best to avoid crossing the bridge on foot after dark.

Connect
As of Oct 2022, Widnes and its approach roads have 4G from O2 and Three, and 5G from EE and Vodafone.

Go next

 * Liverpool - 25 minutes west, easily accessed by either bus or train, which will both take you into the city centre without having to transfer
 * Chester - 30 minutes south, by public transport you need to get a bus into Runcorn - Halton Lea shopping centre, where you then transfer onto another bus into Chester
 * Manchester - 40 minutes east, both Widnes and Hough Green train stations run regularly into Manchester.