what the hull?

October 3, 2007 7:21 PM

what should i do in hull, england?

i'll be there in late october for a few days. i'll also be in york for a bit, and plan to spend a weekend in london. seeking advice for things to do. i won't be driving, so travel tips would be nice too, and i would like to not spend one zillion dollars, i mean, euros.

i like:
independent / avant garde / alternative theatre
science (esp. medicine & zoology & bugs & gross things & evolution)
running in big safe parks
seeing the behind-the-scenes of places people don't often go (i know hull has food-processing plants, anyone have connections that could get me a tour? i'm very well-behaved.)
television studios
cafes with tasty, interesting, inexpensive food
wandering around in hipster neighbourhoods
shopping for hipster clothes and hipster kitsch in hipster shops
hipsters
bright, relaxed internet cafes
free wifi

i'm not fanatical about, but can certainly appreciate:
art galleries (both small & large)
museums

i'd be 100% up for meeting new people, too.
any askmefi peeps in hull wanna meet a real live canadian?
(please don't be scared off if you're not a hipster, i was being semi-facetious.)

thanks!

posted by twistofrhyme to travel & transportation around England (18 answers total)

Previously
posted by TrashyRambo at 7:44 PM on October 3, 2007

If you want to meet people, why not post a meetup thread in metatalk? Then you can get local flavour Hull as opposed to tourist Hull.
posted by typewriter at 8:04 PM on October 3, 2007

. . . plan to spend a weekend in london.


I THINK YOU SHOULD SPEND MORE TIME IN THE CAPITALS.
posted by Neiltupper at 10:05 PM on October 3, 2007

I think you should check your tickets very carefully if you're expecting to use Euros. Sure you're not going to Europe? (snark!)
posted by Wilder at 1:10 AM on October 4, 2007

Will you not be driving because you can't or you don't want to? Unfortunately, you'll miss out on lots of countryside that way... Car hire should be reasonably cheap and simple if you have all your documents with you - just a thought.

Couple of other things:

Stuff is generally (although not always) cheaper 'up North' and everything is more expensive in the capital than anywhere else.

If you know your itinerary in enough detail, you can save significant money by booking train tickets online in advance (you'll need a credit card): check out National Rail Enquiries as a starting point.

Finally (as you'll discover from the link above), Euros won't get you very far in the UK as we use Pounds Sterling ;)
posted by dogsbody at 1:18 AM on October 4, 2007

Hull isn't the most interesting place... when my other half was a student there, we took advantage of cheap ferries and coaches to get to Amsterdam... much more interesting.
posted by BobsterLobster at 2:05 AM on October 4, 2007

Leave. It's like Baltimore, but without the guns or the culture.


posted by caek at 3:03 AM on October 4, 2007 [1 favorite]

Welcome to Hull.
posted by caek at 3:04 AM on October 4, 2007

Hull seems to be keen to lose its reputation as being a bleak, acultural hell-hole that anybody with an ounce of sense runs away from as fast as ever they can, at least if their visitor information is anything to go by.

"It's never dull in Hull," as the old tourist board slogan used to say.
posted by flashboy at 3:19 AM on October 4, 2007

Ummmm..there's a big bridge near Hull.
posted by Dr.Pill at 8:10 AM on October 4, 2007

My dad's from Hull and I've only been there a few times when I was a kid (and the last time was nearly 20 years ago) but Hull used to have a terrible reputation. A year or so ago it was voted the worst town to live in the country. I told this to my father who took great umbrage (despite the fact that he hasn't lived there for well over 40 years) and he maintains that Hull is a fine place and that people should just stop whining.

So there you have it. I would do what flashboy says and see what visitor information has to offer as Hull's reputation is probably a little unfair. If you don't like it the town of Beverly is near and that'll make a nice day trip and York is lovely.

I think enough people have had a go at you for forgetting that Britain still has the pound so I'll let you off with a gentle slap on the wrist.
posted by ob at 8:18 AM on October 4, 2007

Honestly? Watch your back. I live on the other side of the river from Hull and while it's not the worst town in the area, it definitely has a big contrast between its good and bad areas. I guess it's a bit like an American city in this regard.

I'd advise going to The Deep. It's a pretty amazing aquarium with tunnels and all the other "cool aquarium" bits and pieces. There's also a great balcony you can stand on to look out over the Humber Estuary.. very Titanic-like.

Hull also has a reasonable marina that you can walk through publicly.. worth a look if you like boats or walking across marinas.

Night time restaurant scene is absolutely useless so try to eat during the day.
posted by wackybrit at 8:38 AM on October 4, 2007

Two other things, inspired by comments here.. if you have any way of getting to it, the Humber Bridge is really cool. You can even walk across it. It was the world's longest suspension bridge from a brief while. Secondly, York is a good daytrip away and infinitely more interesting :)
posted by wackybrit at 8:39 AM on October 4, 2007

OP here. you know, i typed pounds sterling first, then said to myself, duh, euros, and changed it. i haven't been to europe for almost a decade so i was guessing & didn't bother to check. i'm very sorry i accidentally snubbed your currency. it was an accident and i'm suitably chastised, thank you. internets, i can always count on you for snark.

one of today's threads about the use of "hooked up" on facebook makes me wonder what i should be careful about saying over there. i'll be in some professional environments- apparently if i say "i dated someone" i mean "i had sex with him"? yikes. is saying "dated" kind of blunt and too-much-information, then? anything else i should be careful about? (the office taught me that a "fannypack" is called a "bumbag", thanks keith.)
posted by twistofrhyme at 10:21 AM on October 4, 2007

oh, and thanks for the ideas- that aquarium in particular looks right up my alley!
posted by twistofrhyme at 10:31 AM on October 4, 2007

Can you visit my aunt?
posted by kuujjuarapik at 11:10 AM on October 4, 2007

Here is a list of some word substitutions. You're right that you should not say "fanny pack" or even "fanny". It means "vagina" over here and is considered rude.

I have never heard or had the impression that "dated" means "sex". I suppose with your intonation, you could imply that, but I don't think it is a common usage. I'm sure someone will chime in here if I'm wrong. You probably also know that people over here call cigarettes "fags", so don't take that the wrong way. Some sausages are "faggots". I actually wouldn't worry about it that much. People will know what you're talking about if you happen to use the wrong word. People are pretty familiar with differences between British and (North) American English, and not only because of all the American TV shows they get over here!

Also, I would agree with spending more time in York. York is lovely and I think you may find more to see or do there than in Hull.
posted by triggerfinger at 11:15 AM on October 4, 2007

Oops. My husband tells me that faggots are actually like a meatball. So there you go.
posted by triggerfinger at 12:37 PM on October 4, 2007