Travel: Judging time at the Jurys Inn

May 30 2009 By Huddersfield Examiner

TIME away from the hectic hustle and bustle of family life is vital.

Everyone needs it every now and again – and that’s why we often opt for one night away from home, but not too far away.

And, once there, it’s amazing how time seems to go into slow motion. Freaky, even.

For this Saturday night away we went to ... Sheffield.

It’s something of a strange place – a city of stark contrasts. A pal of mine did his degree there – or rather didn’t do it – as the social life was so good he managed to fail. Praise indeed for the place, but that was going right back to the early 80s.

He’s head of year at a school now so don’t worry about him.

Sheffield is not far from Huddersfield and yet how many people say they’ve been there? Of those that have, what they often mean to say is that they’ve been to Meadowhall.

At the time of the Miner’s Strike in 1984 I was a van driver and Sheffield was my patch – especially the industrial heartland that was Attercliffe.

Much of that has now been bulldozed with Meadowhall, Sheffield Arena and modern retail parks there instead.

Sheffield city centre is the mix of the old, new, ugly and striking. It’s a place of wild architectural contrasts with the worst of the 60s – building that don’t just look sick they’re distinctly terminal – nestling next to the strikingly modern.

Hotels have sprung up right in the heart of the city – and Jurys Inn is the latest. All brick and glass it’s the latest in the chain’s superior budget range.

It’s bright, colourful, vibrant and modern inside – the restaurant has a cafe feel – and the double rooms are large.

Ours had a double bed, two seater settee, long desk that doubled as a dressing table, flatscreen TV and bathroom.

It ticked all the right comfort boxes – especially the king-size bed – with a view across the city towards Bramall Lane, home of Sheffield United.