Locals share why they love living in Cheltenham

To celebrate Cheltenham being voted the best place to live in the South West 2020 by The Sunday Times we hosted a competition asking local people to share with us why they love living in Cheltenham.  The prizes up for grabs were 3 x £100 Cheltenham gift cards, which can be spent at over 100 businesses in the town centre.  Continue reading to find out who our winners are and learn why Cheltenham is as special to locals as it is to us, the Visit Cheltenham team!

The Sunday Times referred to Cheltenham as 'a family-friendly spa town that puts the gloss into Gloucestershire'.  The rave review also detailed our town's incredible food and drink offering, huge choice of shops,  our impressive culture offering with 25+ annual major festivals, in addition to our highly regarded educational establishments. 

But enough about what The Sunday Times think!  Let's instead concentrate on what locals love about living in our Regency town.  Here were a few of our favourite entries, followed by our three winning entries...

@magiksen on Instagram...

"Firstly, it's in the perfect spot - not too far from Cardiff, London, Birmingham and Bristol. Yet we're out of the way enough to not have the madness of city life! The community spirit is wonderful. There's lots of fantastic shops and places to eat. Lovely parks and attractions nearby. The architecture is wonderful, I especially love the curved buildings in Royal Well and the pillared properties in Lansdown. And finally, the best part of Cheltenham is that I met my husband there! :D We still live here and would never want to leave!"

@jasminehyett on Instagram...

"I have lived in Cheltenham my whole life of 24 years and I still love it. Me and my boyfriend who lives in Hereford, love to walk all around Cheltenham especially in Montpellier and the Promanade, and the amazing parks, peaceful Sandford and fun Pittville. It is a town of culture with good shops and plenty of great coffee houses! Will always recommend and love Cheltenham."

@liv96 on Instagram...

"Born and raised in Cheltenham. Cheltenham will always be my home because so many of my loved ones live here but also because of what Cheltenham offers. For those considering the move to Cheltenham do it! Cheltenham has some fab shops (chain and independent), great bars, clubs, restaurants, theatres, plenty of fitness and leisure facilities, the best scenery (parks, lakes, hills), schools around here are good and we hold lots of events (the races, science, jazz, literature festival) and the great thing about Cheltenham is there is choice with how you want to live, you can live in the town if you want to be central to everything or live in one of the surrounding villages (Prestbury, Bishops Cleeve) if you want a more suburban lifestyle. In addition to all that there's plenty of jobs going and lots of clubs /societies to ensure people feel part of a community ❤️"

@alex19050472 on Twitter... 

"I moved here from Oxford and love it! The town is the gateway to exploring the cotswolds and south west. Great parks, bars, restaurants - amazing place to live."

@grannybiker on Twitter...

"Living in Cheltenham mean you have everything you need close to home. If you need a change of scene, there are some fantastic places just a short distance away."

@anyasophiaco on Instagram...

"I love living in Cheltenham. It is a beautiful town with a lovely tree-lined Promenade & many attractive Regency townhouses, and the glorious Imperial Gardens. There is lots to do for everyone - concerts, the theatre, famous festivals (music, literature and science) and plenty to keep young families busy. There are great shops and restaurants, and the countryside is in the doorstep. What’s not to love about Cheltenham?! 💕"

@laura_scribbles on Instagram...

"The architecture makes it look like a mini Paris. The independent restaurants and coffee shops are diverse and scrumptious. Even the chains are housed in stunning buildings - Zizzi is in a church?! The parks are beautiful. The people are warm and friendly. There are world class festivals every year , one of which is dedicated just to books 📚. I wouldn’t want to live anywhere else! 💛"

@Miriam Orritt on Facebook...

 "Born here moved away couldn’t cope so came back. I have done my family tree and I go back 6 generations and all born and lived in Cheltenham. What’s not to like 😊"

@Danni Blackburn on Facebook...

"All the beautiful open green space! Pittville Park alone is fantastic but we also love the Lido and Sandford Park. Growing up here, it felt like the perfect place to move back to with our family! I think I’ll always want a base here!"

@Carly Walls on Facebook...

"Nowhere else compares! Born here and have tried living in SA and Australia but always end up returning to where my heart is! Not too big Not too small, stunning architecture, friendly and soooo much going on in and around Cheltenham throughout the year to entertain all! Basically the perfect spot to live 💕💕"

Drum roll please folks!  Our three winners of the £100 Cheltenham gift cards are...

@AngePangePoo who entered via our Twitter account...

"Such a vibrant town, so much to offer with shops festivals and restaurants but also beautiful green spaces."

@Claire Gardner who entered via our Facebook page...

"Was born here, lived away for a short while and came back, lovely town, amazing countryside on the doorstep and brilliant people - wouldn’t live anywhere else! We’re very lucky 😀"

@skywalker_walker1 who entered via our Instagram channel...

"I love going to the lido on a sunny day and I love wandering down the prom in and out of the shops and I absolutely love going for lunch at one of the amazing restaurants, so many to choose from. It's a feel good town. 😍 Love it".

Congratulations to our three winners.  Please don't be disappointed if you didn't win this time.  We have another competition launching very soon with an overnight stay at The George, the new hotel owned by the Lucky Onion group up for grabs!  Sign up to receive our free fortnightly newsletter to be one of the first to hear about it.