Arrive…

Blackburn is easy to get to by car or public transport and you can stay for as long as you wish.

By bus:

Blackburn town centre is home to a state-of-the-art bus station right next to Blackburn Market and The Mall shopping centre.

You can find the latest bus timetables and maps available here: https://www.transdevbus.co.uk/blackburn/services and you can plan your journey by bus here: https://www.traveline.info/

 

By train:

Blackburn train station is mainly served by Northern trains, which connect York to Blackburn in 2h 3m, Rochdale to Blackburn in 1h 12m and Preston to Blackburn in 24m.  It’s situated in the Cathedral Quarter area of the town centre.

For more information on how to get to Blackburn by train visit Northern Rail  or Trainline

 

By car:

Travel by car is just as convenient, with good access from the national motorway network, visiting Blackburn couldn’t be easier. A short drive from the M6 and M65 motorway, Blackburn is easy to reach.

There are many large car parks which include electric car charging points, and lots of on-street car parking available (please note parking charges apply).

Car Parks:

• The Mall Shopping Centre Multi-storey car park:
  • BB2 2DQ
  • Pay on foot. Coin and card payments are accepted.
  • Good for accessing The Mall shopping centre, town centre shopping areas, King George’s Hall, Blackburn Sports & Leisure Centre, Cathedral Square and Blackburn College.
• Feilden Street Multi-storey and Feilden St Undercroft car parks:
  • BB2 1LQ
  • Open 7am to midnight Mon to Sat – Closed Sunday
  • Pay on foot. Coin and card payments are accepted.
  • Good for accessing King George’s Hall, shopping areas, Blackburn Sports & Leisure Centre, Reel Cinema (4 hours free parking for cinema users) and Blackburn College.
• Brown Street car parks
  • BB1 6AF
  • Pay on foot. Coin and card payments are accepted.
  • Good for accessing The Mall shopping centre, shopping areas, Cathedral Square
• Barton Street car park
  • BB2 1JL
  • 8am to 8pm, Monday to Sunday. Parking on bank holidays is free.
  • Pay on foot. Coin and card payments are accepted.
  • Good for accessing King George’s Hall, shopping areas, Blackburn Sports & Leisure Centre and Blackburn College.
• Duke Street car park
  • BB2 1DH
  • Paid parking is available from 8am to 8pm, Saturday and Sunday.
  • Coin and card payments are accepted.
  • Good for accessing King George’s Hall, shopping areas and Blackburn College.
• Fleming Square car park
  • BB2 2DG
  • Pay on foot. Coin and card payments are accepted.
  • Good for accessing Fleming Square independent shopping, Cathedral Square, The Mall shopping centre, Darwen St.
• Salford
  • BB1 5BE
  • Public Car Park Evenings & Weekends Only
  • Good for accessing Cathedral Square, Morrisons and shops in The Morrisons Square, The Mall shopping centre.
• Jubilee Street:
  • BB1 1EP
  • Premier Inn private car park & also car park for public parking evenings & weekends only
  • Pay on foot. Coin and card payments are accepted.
  • Good for accessing Cathedral Square, Blackburn Youth Zone, Darwen St, shopping areas
• Mill Lane
  • BB2 2AU
  • Pay on foot. Coin and card payments are accepted.
  • Good for accessing Cathedral Square, Blackburn Youth Zone, Darwen St, shopping areas
• Simmons Street
  • BB2 1AU
  • Pay on foot. Coin and card payments are accepted.
  • Good for accessing King George’s Hall, shopping areas and Blackburn College.
• King Street
  • BB2 2DH
  • Pay on foot. Coin and card payments are accepted.
  • Good for accessing King St shops, Fleming square shops, shopping areas, The Mall shopping centre
• Weir Street
  • BB2 2AN
  • Pay on foot. Coin and card payments are accepted.
  • Good for accessing Cathedral Square, Blackburn Youth Zone, Darwen St, shopping areas

More information about Blackburn with Darwen Council car parks.

 

Electric vehicle charging points

Fast (22kW) charge points for electric vehicles are located in Feilden St, Brown St and Weir St car parks.  The tariff is 25p/kWh.  There is a maximum stay of 4 hours and parking is free whilst charging.

Slow (7kw) charge points are available in The Mall car park.

By bike:

If you cycle to and from Blackburn town centre, there is lots of cycle parking available.  You can find it outside Blackburn Town Hall, on Town Hall St outside the library, in the Mall car park, next to The Mall on Lord St, on Ainsworth Street by the bus station, and on Cathedral Square, to name but a few.

 

Stay…

Situated in the heart of Blackburn’s Cathedral Quarter stands the Blackburn Premier Inn. Ideally located for visiting Blackburn town centre for work or pleasure.

The Premier Inn Blackburn Town Centre is opposite Blackburn train station and has a private car park just across the road.  Located just next door to Blackburn Cathedral, you won’t have far to go if you’re looking for shopping and culture. There are resturants and cafes on your doorstep, The Mall shopping centre is a stroll away, King George’s Hall is within a short walking distance, as is Blackburn Museum and Art Gallery.

The hotel also an on-site restaurant, Thyme, as well as new-generation bedrooms, each featuring an impressive 40″ flat screen TV, bright, modern bathroom with a large shower head and slumber-inducing, king-size Hypnos bed.

Outside of the town centre, there are also a number of other quality hotels, B&Bs and places to stay including the Hampton by Hilton, located a few minutes’ drive from the centre.

 

Enjoy!

Shopping

Blackburn town centre has a perfect mix of big brand shopping and unique independent shops.  Primark, H&M, M&S, Next, TKMaxx, New Look, JD Sports, Sports Direct, Game, Wilko and River Island are just some of the big name retailers available.

The Mall Shopping Centre offers a brilliant shopping experience with 100s of fashion, home, fragrance, beauty, jewellery, phone, travel, stationary, card and gift retailers, as well as the fantastic Blackburn Market with its popular food court, all indoors so you can shelter from the British weather!

The town centre’s amazing independents include Ainsworths Jewellers, Bat Cave comics and collectibles, Geek Retreat, Edmondsons Furniture, Emporium IV Menswear, Eve Lingerie, Hobkirks Sewing Machines, Moorey’s Health store, Outdoor Action clothing and equipment, Pelle Menswear and Remix Casuals.

Events

There’s lots of fantastic events taking place in Blackburn town centre throughout the year.

Blackburn is renowned for its creativity and family-focused events – whether it’s amazing brick model trails, the annual National Festival of Making or simply trails and treats during the school holidays.

Throughout the year we host a number of events to suit everyone – all of which are shared on the Blackburn BID social media channels, so make sure you ‘like’ them to keep up to date with what’s coming soon.

Come and Experience Blackburn.

Food & drink

Blackburn town centre has a whole host of brilliant pubs, bars, cafes, coffee shops, dessert cafes and restaurants, taking you from day to night.

Quality coffee and food is available from Costa Coffee, Exchange Coffee Company, The Winter Lotus Brew House, Caffee Impresso, Muffin Break and Rhode Island Coffee; lovely food, drinks and cakes are available from Checks & Greys at Blackburn Cathedral, Mad Hatters Cupcakes & Tearoom, Muffins, Original Monkey Express, The Refreshment Bar and Blackburn Market’s busy food court.

For a refreshing pint, a delicious cocktail, or an amazing array of gins, you can visit the luxurious Shh! Bar, the cosy Rock Box, the welcoming Drummers Arms, or enjoy the more traditional Blackburn Times, the Sun Hotel, Sam’s Bar, The Vic or the familiar surroundings of the Postal Order Wetherspoons pub.

To relax and indulge your sweet tooth, Blackburn town centre has Haute Dolci and Heavenly Desserts luxury dessert restaurants

For a great meal or night out, we have fantastic restaurants which will cater for all tastes.  From the relaxed Caribbean vibe of Turtle Bay, the delicious steakhouse and cocktail bar of The Firepit Bar and Grill, the delicious Trip Advisor top-rated Thira Indian restaurant, to the world-famous Jimmy’s Killer Prawns Seafood restaurant, the beautiful East Z East, the yummy Frankie’s burgers and the ever popular Nandos.

New restaurants are opening all the time too!

Entertainment

Let Blackburn entertain you! King George’s Hall welcomes some of the biggest names when it comes to music and comedy – From Liam Gallagher and Florence and The Machine to Josh Widdecombe and Jason Manford.

Even our Pantos feature some of the biggest starts – with 2021’s Snow White featuring Strictly Come Dancing Champion Katya Jones and CBBC’s Hacker T. Dog!

Did you know Blackburn town centre has 2 cinemas?  The Vue Blackburn and the Reel cinema have all the latest movies and festive films for you to see.

Geek Retreat on Church Street, is a hub for fans of comics, arcade games, consoles, trading cards, table top games and boardgames.  Why not take some time out to enjoy some games and a bite to eat with friends and family.

Remember ice skating is not just for Christmas!  Planet Ice is home all year round to an Olympic sized ice rink offering public skating, lessons, birthday parties, and even performances on ice.

Tenpin Blackburn offers ten pin bowling and much more!  Hosting 24 bowling lanes, a fully licensed bar, arcade machines, a restaurant, table tennis and pool tables, there is so much for you to enjoy.

Pampering

Treat yourself to some pampering at our fantastic hair and beauty salons. Whatever treatment you are looking for, we’ve got it in Blackburn town centre.

Danielle Marie offers hair and beauty services including nails, makeup and hair; Hartlands house of beauty and grooming offers a variety of treatments from nails and waxing to massage and botox; Heiress salon, the one-stop shop for all your hair and beauty services; Talia’s beauty salon and academy offer nails and beauty treatments and specialises in lashes; Unique Beauty 4U caters for all your beauty needs; plus there’s express nail services with Posh Nails.

There’s also a range of brilliant hair salons and barbers, including the Barbers in The Mall; Dark Secrets Hair Salon; Extendables specialising in hair extensions; Jeff Stone Hairdressing; Just Cuts; Passerini barbers and Kwikcutz to name but a few.

Plus, Blackburn Market has a range of hair, beauty, barbering and grooming services available!