Leicester

Leicester is the tenth largest city in Britain with a population of approximately 300,000. It is situated at the heart of the East Midlands, a large region which encompasses six counties.

Leicester is a culturally diverse city with a good track record of shared cultural events. The city’s Diwali celebrations are the largest outside of India and attract visitors from many cultures. Leicester Caribbean Carnival is the second largest in the UK. The Leicester Comedy Festival has been staged annually since 1994 and attracts many top acts to the city.

Leicester is home to three leading sports teams; a range of excellent, free museums and art galleries; a state-of-the-art theatre (Curve, opened in 2008); the largest covered market in Europe (which has been on the same site for 700 years), the award-winning National Space Centre (the largest and most modern space-related visitor attraction in Europe); and the only double-track, standard gauge steam railway in Britain!

To find out more about Leicester and Leicestershire, visit www.OneLeicester.com

Below are a collection of useful links to local sites:

• BBC Leicester
• Go Leicestershire
• Leicester City Council
• Leicestershire County Council
• Leicester on the Web – Your On-line Guide to Leicester
• This is Leicestershire
• Government Office for the East Midlands
• EastMidland Network Project
• Travel to Leicester
• Leicestershire Chamber of Commerce and Industry

• Leicester is situated right at the heart of the UK, in the East Midlands. Neighbouring cities include Nottingham, Derby, Birmingham and Coventry. With excellent road, rail and air links, Leicester is easily accessible from all parts of the country.

By Car

Leicester is just off the M1 (junctions 21 & 22) and has convenient road links to the North, and to London in the south.

By Train

Leicester is on the Midland Mainline from London St Pancras to South Yorkshire. Direct services from London take 75 minutes. For further information call National Rail Enquiries on 08457 48 49 50 or visit www.midlandmainline.com or www.centraltrains.co.uk.

By Coach

National Express offer national coach services to St Margarets Bus Station in Leicester. For further information call 08705 80 80 80 or visit ww.gobycoach.com.

By Air

East Midlands Airport is 30 minutes by car (01332 852 852) and Birmingham International is 45 minutes by car (0121 767 5511)

Local Travel

For information on local bus services, call the Travel Line on 0870 608 2608. More details on local travel can be found at Leicesters Tourist Information Centre.