Chapter 5: Getting around Durham
Durham Cathedral is on the Bailey. Being a UNESCO world heritage site with winding narrow streets there is basically no parking. We will contact our guests with mobility problems with details of special arrangements. For everyone else there are three main options:
- Walk. Durham is a very small city. The reception is only a ten minute walk from the cathedral. We can recommend which accommodation is central. If you think you might want a taxi home at the end of the night we suggest you book it in advance.
- Park at Durham School and walk to the cathedral. You might want to have a pair of flat shoes for the walk. There is ample free parking at Durham School and they have confirmed it is fine to leave cars overnight and collect them in the morning. Again, we recommend you book your taxi in advance.
- Park in the Prince Bishops car park for the service then drive to Durham School for the reception. The Prince Bishops is a multi-storey car park with a 5 minute uphill walk to the cathedral. Parking will cost £2-3 for up to two hours. After the service you will have a 5 minute drive to the reception venue.
Taxis:
Taxis will be very reluctant to go onto the Bailey and take you up to the Cathedral because they get charged the congestion toll and pass this on to you. If you are staying too far out to easily walk and don't want to drive, we suggest you ask your taxi driver to drop you off just before the market place (where the congestion zone charging starts) and have a 5 minute walk from there.
Taxi drivers will know where Durham School is. You might need to specify that it is the Senior School on Quarryheads Lane, not the Prep School. We recommend that you book your taxi home in advance as it can get quite busy on a Saturday night.
Here is a list of some local taxi companies. The best man and ushers will have a list of taxi numbers on the day just in case.