Lancaster is dominated by its castle and priory church both built on an old Roman site.

The castle is still a working monument because it is still functions as two crown courts and a prison.

These gems look down on the river Lune with historic bridges including the Rennie Aqueduct carrying the Lancaster Canal over the Lune and a graceful footbridge built to celebrate the Millennium.

Here too is the Maritime Museum on St George’s Quay a Georgian masterpiece designed by a member of the Gillow family better known for the making of furniture.

Lancaster is not only a good place to tour from but is also a place to stay with a wide variety of markets and shopping outlets. There are museums a plenty including the Judge’s Lodgings and the City Museum. The River Lune Millennium Park is the place to sit and contemplate not one millennium but three as the Roman legions certainly dipped their toes in the Lune.

Williamson Park is between the city centre and the M6 with the expanding University close by. The park was built in the 1860s around a disused quarry.

The American Civil War led to the so called ‘cotton famine’. Many of Lancashire's cotton towns devised ‘job creation’ schemes to keep men in work. This park has proved to be one of the very best of these schemes.

James Williamson devised the scheme. His son, also named James, but who became Lord Ashton, enhanced the park in 1907 by constructing a magnificently domed memorial to his wife.

The memorial which dominates the area for miles has been restored and the old Palm House holds a display of butterflies from all over the world. There is also an aviary and a collection of small mammals.

As Lancaster hosted larger and larger sailing ships it was not possible to bring them into the heart of the city and Glasson Dock was purpose built to serve this purpose.

At one time a railway line ran from Glasson to Lancaster via Conder Green but this has long closed to be replaced by a linear nature reserve.