Best ground to watch a test in UK?

maddness

I am looking to bring my dad to a one day international next year Eng V Aus and am wondering which grounds are good for the match and also for a two day trip?
I would love to bring him to Lords but the dates that are working best for us are for the games in Cardiff, Durham, Headingley and Southampton.
Are any of the above good?

Thanks.

Rascasse

I  can only speak about the Rose Bowl. 

Stadium is grand (although it's been expanded since I was last there). It is out of town but that's not necessarily a bad thing. Southampton is a big uni city (so loads of students on the rip in town) and has little in the way of tourist sites anyway, so I would stay in Winchester (lovely town). There's several trains an hour between Winchester and the airport where you can get a connecting bus to the ground. 

I guess it all depends what you want to do when not at the cricket. 

TrueDub

maddness wrote: »

I am looking to bring my dad to a one day international next year Eng V Aus and am wondering which grounds are good for the match and also for a two day trip?
I would love to bring him to Lords but the dates that are working best for us are for the games in Cardiff, Durham, Headingley and Southampton.
Are any of the above good?

Thanks.

Cardiff's a cool city, but I've never been to a match there. I've been in Leeds, but not to the cricket - it's a good spot, especially if you're a fan of Indian cuisine.

Frankly, there's nothing to touch a game at Lord's, as far as I'm concerned, with Old Trafford the next best. The Oval's not bad either.

Completely unhelpful, I know. Sorry.

maddness

Thanks lads, I have been to all the cities where the matches are on but what I am looking to try to find out is what each particular ground is like for a one day test match. I have walked past the ground in Old Trafford which I thought looked a bit miserable but I'm not really a cricket fan so am open to opinions.
My dad is 70 so anywhere we can get a few descent pints and a bite to eat is grand.
Thanks.

booth70

maddness wrote: »

I am looking to bring my dad to a one day international next year Eng V Aus and am wondering which grounds are good for the match and also for a two day trip?
I would love to bring him to Lords but the dates that are working best for us are for the games in Cardiff, Durham, Headingley and Southampton.
Are any of the above good?

Thanks.

I have a friend in Southampton who has been to a few matches at the Rose Bowl and he says its a nice viewing ground....not sure if its called the Rose Bowl anymore though!

booth70

TrueDub wrote: »

Frankly, there's nothing to touch a game at Lord's, as far as I'm concerned,

Totally agree...Have been to the Oval and Lords only in the UK....but Lords has a unique atmosphere unlikely to be matched at any other ground in the world:)

Beasty

I visited the Emirates in Durham for the ODI against Australia this summer and I was very impressed. It's designed with cricket spectating in mind. Chester le Street is not a particularly big town, and parking can be an issue, although there is a decent train service from Newcastle

I would add that in terms of "atmosphere" it was a bit typical of the other northern grounds, Headingley and Old Trafford - the "natives" will tend to drink, and can get a bit boisterous, but against a team like Austrailia that's going to happen (to varying degrees) at all grounds - it can often be best to keep away from the "popular" sections, and observe from afar (and it can be quite entertaining on occasions:))

Tombo2001

As a matter of interest.....how easy would it be to get tickets? for Lords for example, for and England Aus 1-day.....

Rascasse

Tombo2001 wrote: »

As a matter of interest.....how easy would it be to get tickets? for Lords for example, for and England Aus 1-day.....

Lords is a nightmare. MCC members have first dibs (naturally) while the great unwashed have to apply for tickets which are distributed by means of a draw.

Tickets for the other matches are fairly easy to come by.

Osgoodisgood

My favourite grounds are Lords and Headingly. You seem to be closer to the action than at the others. Headingly would probably get my vote for your kind of trip just because the beers and nosh are outstanding.

The only thing that sometimes sways me to choosing Lords though is that the public transport is just so much better. You can stay anywhere in London and you're just a tube ride away.

Tombo2001

Rascasse wrote: »

Lords is a nightmare. MCC members have first dibs (naturally) while the great unwashed have to apply for tickets which are distributed by means of a draw.

Tickets for the other matches are fairly easy to come by.

Do you mean tickets for other grounds are easy to come by?

Tombo2001

Osgoodisgood wrote: »

My favourite grounds are Lords and Headingly. You seem to be closer to the action than at the others. Headingly would probably get my vote for your kind of trip just because the beers and nosh are outstanding.

The only thing that sometimes sways me to choosing Lords though is that the public transport is just so much better. You can stay anywhere in London and you're just a tube ride away.

How do you get your tickets for Lords?

Rascasse

Tombo2001 wrote: »

Do you mean tickets for other grounds are easy to come by?

Yeah they are on general sale from the counties (Lancs, Notts, Durham etc) though I'd imagine a lot are sold out by now. Only Lords and the Oval are hard to buy (for obvious reasons).

maddness

Thanks for all the replies, looks like we are gonna go to Cardiff as dates and flights are best for us both. Would love to go to Lords but tickets are like gold dust.

dfx-

Rascasse wrote: »

I  can only speak about the Rose Bowl. 

Stadium is grand (although it's been expanded since I was last there). It is out of town but that's not necessarily a bad thing. Southampton is a big uni city (so loads of students on the rip in town) and has little in the way of tourist sites anyway, so I would stay in Winchester (lovely town). There's several trains an hour between Winchester and the airport where you can get a connecting bus to the ground. 

I guess it all depends what you want to do when not at the cricket. 

Haven't been to the Rose Bowl, but I have stayed in Southampton for a week...I wouldn't be rushing back.

It's bit like spending a week in Coventry or Ipswich, even the hotels were in and surrounded by an industrial complex/shopping complex car park

getz

old trafford is not bad,and its next to the metro line,so you can get about the city,and lets face it manchester is a great place for a good time.

Beasty

Ah yes Old Trafford:

"If you can see the Pennines it's going to rain - if you can't it is raining ...."

Having said that it doesn't suffer from the bad weather that much more than Headingley I guess.

I lived in and around Manchester for getting on for 25 years - there's an even better "Old Trafford" just down the road, and they have played cricket there!

TBH the cricket ground was suffering a bit but has improved with the recent redevelopment. There's even a hotel within the ground overlooking the pitch. And Manchester does have a lot to offer - pretty much everything you would want in a big city, but relatively compact (compared to London anyway)

getz

Beasty wrote: »

Ah yes Old Trafford:

"If you can see the Pennines it's going to rain - if you can't it is raining ...."

Having said that it doesn't suffer from the bad weather that much more than Headingley I guess.

I lived in and around Manchester for getting on for 25 years - there's an even better "Old Trafford" just down the road, and they have played cricket there!

TBH the cricket ground was suffering a bit but has improved with the recent redevelopment. There's even a hotel within the ground overlooking the pitch. And Manchester does have a lot to offer - pretty much everything you would want in a big city, but relatively compact (compared to London anyway)

think of the cost of that pint ,and you can go down the road to the real old trafford and have a meal in its restaurant [over looking the ground]

Football Gambler

maddness wrote: »

Thanks for all the replies, looks like we are gonna go to Cardiff as dates and flights are best for us both. Would love to go to Lords but tickets are like gold dust.

I know this isn't much use.... but I was in Cardiff just before England played Pakistan there in 2010 (I think it was), and the ground looked well accessible from the City Centre, and at the time I thought it could be a decent and nice place to go back to one day on a City break for a weekend and to take in a cricket match at the same time.

It didn't seem overly busy and was quite relaxing, hopefully it should suit your Dad.

mattweeden

Been to Old Trafford a fair few times. Always good

Inquitus

I went to Nottingham Uni, and personally like Trent Bridge alot.

crackit

I'll agree with that one. Nottingham is a great city and Trent Bridge is a superb ground. I like Old Trafford but not Manchester so while the cricket was good the out on the town bit after wasn't my cup of tea. Lords is, of course, superb and the Oval is top notch too. Trent Bridge wins out for me though.

I've never been to Cardiff because I really dislike the city. The old joke about a nuclear bomb going off in Cardiff city centre and causing £7.50 worth of damage seems about spot on!

decies

Am in the ballot for lords , I didn't make the ballot for the oval , but got email a few weeks later that there were limited tickets on general sale for the oval .

Mary Earnest

You can register on the Surrey cricket website http://www.kiaoval.com/ for "Surrey" (England) tickets. This gives you a bit of a run via e-mail before the general public for England matches at the Oval and has not failed me yet. Tickets usually become available at the end of the season for the following year. I prefer Lords, but sadly can only get a ticket via a member and then am in a queue. The Rose Bowl via Winchester is an eminently sensible option.