If you no longer value peace and quiet, the city is the place to be.
For going out, hanging out, eating out or just chilling out, the city has it all.
Nottingham is no exception – in fact, it has to be one of the best places in the UK for a number of reasons and more.
Some of them make the city worth living in while others are awards and innovations that make them just great all around.
Read more: New stores unveiled in Nottingham
So we’re not holding back here – apart from London and New York, these are the 9 reasons why Nottingham is the best city in the world.
1 – Young and carefree
Nottingham is home to around 60,000 students, making it one of the youngest in the UK.
Apparently there are more under 30s here than in any other city except Manchester.
As such, it’s a great place for a day or night out with friends.
Try climbing at the Clip ‘n’ Climb, enjoy a round of mini golf and cocktails at The Lost City, then head to a gig in Rock City.
If you prefer a quieter night, Nottingham has an enviable selection of pubs and bars – TripAdvisor lists 137 of them, including England’s oldest pub, Ye Olde Trip to Jerusalem.
The city has won the Purple Flag Award for seven consecutive years, recognizing excellence in managing downtown nightlife.
Wherever you land, you are guaranteed a good time.
2 – shop till you drop
Nottingham is hard to beat when it comes to pampering yourself or a friend.
The Victoria Center is home to high-end stores like Pandora and Superdry, as well as cafes and restaurants.
The Flying Horse Walk Arcade – named for the historic pub nearby – is a Georgian covered mall with a mix of national chains and indie shops.
And the Exchange, which has been the heart of Nottingham shopping since 1929, offers a mix of alternative boutiques, fine art and fine wines.
3 – Something old, something new
If the last one suits you, check out Hockley – a time machine that takes you back to the Victorian era of cobbled streets.
Nicknamed Nottingham’s Soho, it is a treasure trove of vintage fashion and antiques.
Cow, Wild Clothing and White Rose have you sorted according to the classic nightlife clobber, while the labyrinthine Hopkinson offers unique housewares and works of art for the finest of surfaces.
4 – innovation in spades
Nottingham produced some of the most important ideas and inventions of our time, many of which we take for granted.
Did you know that the world’s first video recorder called Telcan was developed by the Nottingham Electronic Valve Company in 1963?
Life-saving traffic lights were also invented here in 1866 by Nottingham High School student John Peake Knight.
Running water in every household originated here when local engineer Thomas Hawksley developed the first high pressure supply on Trend Bridge in 1831.
In 1933, John Boot, chairman of the pharmacy company Boots, invented the weekend by closing his factories on Saturdays and Sundays to reduce layoffs due to overproduction.
And if you love a baconbutty on a free Sunday, then you probably couldn’t live without HP Brown Sauce – a condiment created by Nottingham grocer Frederick Gibson Garton.
5 – ‘The Home of Sport’
Visit England, named ‘The Home of Sport’ in Nottingham in 2015, highlighting the city’s contribution to British sporting life.
Here there are more sports opportunities per person than anywhere else in Europe and plenty of opportunities to watch and participate.
Whichever game you watch, you will likely find it here – the city that is home to two soccer teams, a test match cricket ground, and national ice and water sports centers.
The City Ground, home to Nottingham Forest, is not far from the home of rival Notts County
(Image: Getty Images)
Several teams from Team GB are stationed here, including world champions in speed skating.
And the city has been hosting its own annual urban cycling event, the Milk Race, since the 1960s.
The Jesse Boot Wildcats Arena is a £ 2 million multifunctional sports center just outside the city center.
It is home to the Nottingham Hoods basketball team, which has two teams in the English National Basketball League.
And if you like your sport a little older, what better place to try your hand at archery than at one of the clubs scattered across the house of Robin Hood itself.
6 – In touch with his past
Despite what the city is vibrant and busy, there is plenty of history to be discovered here.
The city has its own castle, which was an occasional royal residence in the Middle Ages.
There are museums for almost every historical interest – from the family-friendly Robin Hood Experience to the National Justice Museum to the morbid Haunted Museum with the horror movie theater of the 1920s.
And Wollaton Hall is a 16th century country house known as an “architectural sensation of its time”.
It is also located in a beautiful park landscape with lots of deer. Speaking of …
Wollaton Hall in Wollaton, Nottingham
(Image: Joseph Raynor / Nottingham Post)
7 – A green and pleasant country
Nottingham is one of the UK’s greenest cities with parks, public gardens and recreational areas galore.
The 19th-century arboretum includes more than 800 trees, a rose garden, and a boating lake, while the Forest Recreation Ground offers acres of picnic, stroll, or play space.
Just beyond the city limits is Attenborough Nature Reserve, home to thousands of birds and a fascinating nature center that has been awarded prizes for ecotourism.
Also nearby are Bestwood, Broxtowe and Shipley Country Parks, which offer plenty of options for those looking to get away from the hustle and bustle.
Attenborough Nature Reserve
(Image: sc.aerials)
8 – Getting around is easy
Nottingham has a convenient tram network – something more cities probably should have.
According to the campaign for better traffic, trams reduce traffic jams in the city center by up to 14%, are more flexible than trains and more reliable than buses.
They cause only a third of the CO2 emissions per passenger as car trips, improve air quality and reduce noise pollution.
The Nottingham Express Transit System is 20 miles long and has dozens of stops from Hucknall to Clifton.
That’s a good thing, because there’s so much to see and do in Nottingham that it has to be one of the best cities in the world.
Still, if you want to go away for a day …
Our What’s On newsletter is the best way to guarantee that you will never again miss a shop evening or a big event.
It’s also filled with news from pubs, bars, and restaurants, as well as stories from the entertainment world.
Just head over to this page to sign up – or enter your email address in the black box at the top of this story.
9 – right in the middle
Nottingham could hardly be better located from which to explore England, as it is right in the geographic heart.
Birmingham, Leicester, Sheffield and Manchester are just a stone’s throw away, with the Peak District National Park and Cannock Chase AONB in between.
So there may be bigger cities and quieter rural idylls, but there aren’t many places like Nottingham where everything you want is so easily accessible.